Friday 31st August 2007

Don`t think the usual weather summary`s relevant today as i`ve not had time to do any wildlife recording. Been up to my neck in odd jobs around the house. Thankfully got them all cleared for late afternoon and then a bombshell hit me, when Storm & Rudi came home with a 12 foot diameter trampoline, courtesy of their grandad ( thanks Jack, not!!!! ).
Anyway, after 2 hours of assembly, it is now functional. The problem is it takes half of the lawn up, so i`ve had to relocate both the bird table and birdbath and not to mention re-arranging the washing line.
The birds will now have to get used to feeding & drinking/bathing that little bit closer to the house.
I must both apologise to & thank Joanna. Firstly the apology, sorry i have`nt had time to list 5 blogs for world blog day. And a very big thanks for her very kind description of my blog relating to world blog day. Thanks Joanna, you are a star.

Back to the start of today ( prior to been run ragged ), the only pics i managed to get, were of the local skyscape ;







By the way, nothing but Large Yellow Underwings in the moth trap this morning. Could`nt even be bothered to count them.

Copyright Dean Stables

Thursday 30th August 2007

Sunny, Blustery W/NW
It goes from bad to worse regards birdlife. Started off the morning with c60 House Martin over the garden at 06.10, but then that was it.
A walk along the Trans-Peninne Trail at Cortonwood failed to produce any noteworthy birds, but there was plenty of dragons about, with singles of both Ruddy Darter & Southern Hawker, 5 Brown Hawker and loads of Common Darters & Migrant Hawkers. Only 3 species of butterfly were seen : Common Blue, Speckled Wood & Meadow Brown.


Southern Hawker

Back at home, the poor run continued with just the following noted : Canada Goose 16 N, Lesser Black-backed Gull ( just a single bird SW ) & only 2 species of butterfly : Peacock & Red Admiral.


Flesh Fly

Think it`s time for another " guess the pic "...



... answer on Sunday evening.

Gonna try the moth trap again tonight. It`s a bit cool but i hope for something better than Large Yellow Underwings.

Copyright Dean Stables

Wednesday 29th August 2007

Sunny, Patchy Cloud, Light W/NW
Todays Highlights ;
DEARNE VALLEY PARKWAY : Chiffchaff 1 singing, Bullfinch 4, Song Thrush 1, + a cracking sunrise ;



WOMBWELL GARDEN : in pics ;


Grasshopper sp


Hoverfly sp


Hoverfly sp


The Fly ( be afraid, be very afraid )

MY GARDEN : not a lot today, with the most notable sightings being a Sparrowhawk E, Cormorant 1 NE, Swift 1 S at 16.50 & 1 W at 18.22.

In answer to Joanna`s question that she left on the previous post`s comments. The reason that clear & moonlit skies have a poor effect on the number of moths caught at light traps, is that moths usually fly by keeping the light of the moon on one side of them ( hence the spiralling motion when they fly around a light bulb ) and it has a stronger attraction than an artificial light source. That`s why you get better results from cloudy nights. The light source you use, is to re-create the effect of the moon. Hope this helps and better still, i hope it`s true :)

Copyright Dean Stables

Moths....

.... or rather the lack of them.
Did`nt expect a lot overnight, especially with the clear sky & full moon, but i did expect more than 17 Large Yellow Underwing & 1 Yellow Shell ;





Can`t win em all !!!!!

Copyright Dean Stables

Tuesday 28th August 2007

Cloudy, Bright Spells, Light Variable
Had a short walk along Trans-Pennine Trail at Cortonwood this morning, but not a lot to show for it, with the only notable sightings being : 2 Chiffchaff, 1 Willow Tit and a male Kestrel.
The rest of the day was spent at home, but it was late afternoon before anything made it into the notebook, Highlights ;
Lesser Black-backed Gull 4 NE & 1 N, Black-headed Gull 13 E, Goldfinch c30 over ( largest flock being 10 birds W ), Lapwing 2 S, Grey Heron 1 W, House Martin c30, Swift 3 S at 19.30, Pied Wagtail c40 W at 19.55 heading towards Cortonwood, presumably to roost.


Grey Heron


Light Brown Apple Moth


Solitary Bee - Colletes succinctus ?




Calla Lily

Just about to switch the moth trap on, so i should a have little extra to report tomorrow ( in theory ).

Copyright Dean Stables

Monday 27th August 2007

Sunny turning Cloudy, Light W/NW
Not a lot from my garden first thing ( 06.00 - 08.30 ), with just c40 House Martin, a single Lesser Black-backed Gull SW & a pair of mating Collared Doves being the best on offer.
Then off to Wigfield Farm, Worsboro ( horse/pony show ), where i took a break from the activities and had a wander around Worsboro Res. Not a lot to report from here, with the best birds being : 2 Cormorant, 8 Great Crested Grebe, 5 Grey Wagtail and singles of both Common & Lesser Black-backed Gull.
Plus a couple of pics. Quite pleased with the results. There`s no way i would`ve have got them with my previous camera.

( a not very healthy ) Robin


( juv ) Pied Wagtail


House Martin & Swallow ( Wigfield Farm )


House Martins




Been back home since 17.00 but not seen anything from the garden yet. I won`t do will i, while i`m sat here blogging :)

Copyright Dean Stables

Sunday 26th August 2007

Sunny, Light NW
Bit of a poor one today. The first couple of hours from the garden could`nt produce anything better than c20 House Martin & 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull W.
A visit to Cortonwood did`nt provide much more than my last visit, with the only highlights being c150 Canada Geese over ( 100 of which landed on the lake ), 3 Chiffchaff, a couple of Brown Hawkers & 2 butterfly species ;

Canada Geese




Coot


Meadow Brown


The rest of the day ( as usual ) was spent at home. Very tedious at first, with nothing of interest for the first few hours. Then things started to pick up ( in a fashion ). So-called highlights ;
Sparrowhawk 4 sightings, Lesser Black-backed Gull 8 N/NE, Budgie 1 blue/white bird briefly, Red Admiral 3 & a single Migrant Hawker ;


Collared Dove


Frog


Yep!!!, things were that bad

Incidently, nothing at all from the last hour of yesterday. Even the sunset was`nt up to its usual standard ;



Will be at Worsboro ( Wigfield Farm Horse Show ) for most of the day tomorrow. Both Storm & Rudi have entered in several pony classes. If there`s any wildlife to be seen, i`ll try and fit it in.

Copyright Dean Stables

Saturday 25th August 2007

Sunny, Blustery W
The day got off to a good start as soon as i opened the back door, when i was greeted by the sound of a calling Bullfinch from the top of the garden. Did`nt actually see it till it took off and flew off N. ( don`t get many bully`s in my garden. So i was well chuffed ). Other highlights from the morning stint were, Yellow Wagtail 3 S at 08.15, Lesser Black-backed Gull 9 W/SW, Pied Wagtail 4 over. Then to finish off, as i was locking the door to go out, i heard the alarm calls of the local House Martins and looked up to see an adult Hobby going through at speed, heading towards Broomhill.
Also found this Beetle sp, near the back door. ( Another one for John :)





I then got dropped off at the Wentworth Estate. Why i bother going here is anyones guess. The place as usual, was deadly quiet, with only the following of note : Great Crested Grebe 18, Tufted Duck 1, Cormorant 1, Grey Heron 6 & Canada Goose 29.
Then a walk through the Stubbin area of Rawmarsh, on my way to my parents did`nt produce anything like what the regular watcher finds there ( maybe he hallucinates ). All i could muster was 4 butterfly species ( 16 species were reported from there the other day, and the conditions were no different ), a singing Chiffchaff & a decent feeding flock of c50 Goldfinch.
The best my parents garden could offer was this Red Admiral, that did its best to impersonate a Blue Tit ( i know, it`s not that funny!! ) ;





Back at home, the main afternoon highlight was of a Green Woodpecker that flew through heading E at 13.50. The best of the rest were, singles of Sparrowhawk, Kestrel, Holly Blue, Red Admiral & this Elephant Hawkmoth cat ;



Ah well, go and see if the last hour of daylight produces anything of note.

Copyright Dean Stables

Friday 24th August 2007

Sunny, Light > Breezy NW
Finally after a week of searching for Rhododenron Leafhoppers at the Wombwell garden, at least 12 gave themselves up this mornng. Although it is an alien species from America, i don`t think they pose a threat to anything ( not unlike some other species ) and they are`nt half little belters ;





Not a great deal ( again ) from my garden, with the following being the most noteworthy ;
Sparrowhawk ( 3 sightings ), Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 S, Grey Heron 1 high E, Swift 1 E at 13.55. The best of the inverts were, Common Darter & a male Vapourer ( moth ) that flew through this afternoon.


Common Darter

Nipped down to the Gypsy Marsh, late afternoon. Where i spent about half an hour chasing Ruddy Darters. Wish they were as approachable as their commoner cousins. Only managed the 1 shot ;



Ah well!!, another bank holiday weekend is upon us. See if that brings anything my way.

Copyright Dean Stables

Thursday 23rd August 2007

Sunny, Light > Blustery N
WOMBWELL GARDEN : All the usual bird species ( Great Spotted Woodpecker, Nuthatch, Coal Tit, Treecreeper & Goldcrest ) were heard. In fact the only species different was a single Meadow Pipit over, heading W.
Inverts were well represented, with Common Darter, Migrant Hawker, Brown Hawker, Small White, Holly Blue, Red Admiral, Peacock & Speckled Wood ;

Common Darter


Small White


Peacock


Speckled Wood


Forest Bug




Highlights from home were, House Martin ( largest gathering was of c60 birds high at 06.20 ), Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 W, Starling c200, Swift 7 birds all W ( 2 at 17.35, 1 at 17.40, 1 at 17.50 & 3 at 18.40 ).
Not much in the way of inverts, with just Common Darter, Large White, Peacock & this beastie that i rescued from the bird bath ; ( pretty sure John at barnsleywildlife will know what it is )


( apologies for the poor pic )

Copyright Dean Stables

Wednesday 22nd August 2007

Overcast turning Sunny, Gusty N
Felt a bit better today ( after yesterdays migraine ), so i opted for a few visits here & there. Nothing out of the ordinary was recorded, but it was good to get out.
First off, the Wombwell garden failed to produce anything on the bird front, but i still managed a couple of other things ;


Small Phoenix


Pebble Hook-tip


Boletus sp

From there, i walked home along the western edge of Cortonwood, where the only highlights were ; 13 Canada Geese W & a singing Chiffchaff + this juv Woodpigeon, that posed nicely for the camera ;





After dinner, we called in at the farm, but i was only there long enough to grab a quick pic of the Swallows ;



Then onto my parents at Rawmarsh, where there were c300 Starling, a female Sparrowhawk N & a single Swift flew E + a Gatekeeper butterfly ;



Back home for the duration, where the blue sky revealed a bit more than yesterday. Highlights ;
Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 W, Canada Goose 16 W, Swift 1 E at 14.40, Grey Wagtail 1 NW, Sparrowhawk 1 male W, Grey Heron 1 E, also a pair of House Martin are still feeding nest bound young on the local chippy.
A couple of inverts were also tempted out by the sun : a pair of Common Darters were flying around in tandom + singles of Large White, Peacock & Gatekeeper ;


Peacock

It`s clouded over again, so i`m not expecting much overhead from now until dusk.

Copyright Dean Stables

Tuesday 21st August 2007

Overcast, Blustery N

Having been ko`d with a severe bout of migraine this morning, i spent most of the day in bed, hence the shortage of sightings. In fact the only ones i managed from the garden today were 2 Cormorant W & 12 Black-headed Gull, also W.
A good nights sleep`s in order & hopefully i`ll have more to report tomorrow.

Monday 20th August 2007

Cloudy, Bright Spells, Light > Blustery N
A visit to the Wombwell garden this morning produced a few highlights, with ;
Red Underwing 2, singles of Green-veined White, Holly Blue, Peacock & Speckled Wood + a couple of photographic opportunities ;


Red Underwing


Speckled Wood


Large White larvae on Nasturtium


Buff-tip


Carder Bee sp

Pretty dire in and around my garden, with a handful of House Martin, Sparrowhawk 1 E & Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 E, being the most notable species.
Any day now i expect the first Meadow Pipit movement of the autumn.

Copyright Dean Stables

Sunday 19th August 2007

Overcast, Showers, Light W > Blustery N



The first couple of hours from the garden produced the following highlights : Swift 1 W at 07.45, Sparrowhawk 1 female, House Martin 5 & a Willow Beauty ( moth ) found resting on the fence ;



Then a damp visit to Cortonwood, where i recorded the following : Mute Swan - pair with 7 well grown cygnets, Tufted Duck 18 including a brood of 6 ducklings, Coot 20 ( including young ), Moorhen 2, Grey Heron, Kestrel, Swift 6 W along with several Swallow/House Martin, Chiffchaff 1 singing ;









Purple Loosestrife


Back at home for the rest of the day, where the House Martin numbers had increased to c20 + a couple more Swifts moving, with 3 S at 11.30 & 10 W at 17.55. Also a female Common Darter with damaged wings was found on the pond vegetation ;



Copyright Dean Stables

Kenfig ( Glamorgan ) or Local ( Barnsley )

I know which i`d prefer, but unfotunately it has to be the latter, as John did`nt contact neither me or Mike last night. And to make it worse, it`s currently dull & damp outside, MARVELLOUS!!!.
In the meantime, here`s the garden highlights from yesterday evening : 15 House Martin & 4 Swift blogging about at 19.40 + 3 Carrion Crow flew S ( presumably to roost ).

Feeling a little un-inspired about today, but i`ll try and find some blog fodder from somewhere.

Saturday 18th August 2007

Overcast, ( Rain pm ), Breezy S
Once again, all quiet on the bird front in & around the garden, with 5 House Martin feeding & 3 Swift flying over heading S at 14.30, being the only highlights.
Even a visit to the Gypsy Marsh/Knollbeck area mid-morning could`nt produce anything of real interest.


Carrion Crow - the garden


Helophilus pendulus - Gypsy Marsh


Michaelmas Daisy - Gypsy Marsh


Gypsywort - Gypsy Marsh


Haresfoot Clover - Knollbeck


Verbena bonariensis ( garden escape - Knollbeck )

No news either way on tomorrows proposed trip to Kenfig ( Glamorgan ), with John Law & Mike Richardson. Really hope it`s on. Looking forward to a day away from Barnsley.

Copyright Dean Stables

Dusk ( 16/08/07 )

Bit late posting this, due to just getting back from a full day in Lincoln ( Pony Club Camp ). Anyway the sky was virtually empty yesterday evening apart from 4 House Martin blogging about & a largish flock of c70 Swallow heading NW at 20.30 ;


20.11 hrs


20.31 hrs

Hopefully get back to normal blogging practice tomorrow, if the weather holds out, ( rain forecast ).

Thursday 16th August 2007

Todays highlights in pics ;

Hoverfly sp - Wombwell ( not sure why it has an oversized abdomen )


Fungi sp - Wombwell


Meripilus giganteus - Wombwell


Southern Hawker - Cortonwood




Swallows - West Melton






Fungi sp - West Melton


To get the Swallow shots, i had to stand on a dustbin in the adjacent stable and photograph them over the partitioning wall. A bit hit and miss but it seemed to have worked ok.

Late news from yesterday - 2 Swift flew W over my garden at 19.55.

Copyright Dean Stables

Wednesday 15th August 2007

Cloudy, Showers, Light W
c30 House Martin were the only birds of note from my garden this morning. A walk along the canal from Brampton > Hemingfield and back, could`nt produce anything better than 2 Kingfisher.


Bladder Senna


Himalayan Balsam - a very unwelcome species

I then went to the farm to help Jakki with the ponies, where the highlights were, a couple of noisy young Kestrels, the pair of Swallows are still feeding young in the nest, & a Dark Spinach ( moth ) was disturbed from the vegetation ;



Back at home for the rest of the day, so far the highlights have been singles of each - Swift W, Cormorant E & Grey Heron SE.

The sun`s decided to show its face, so i`ll spend the rest of the daylight hours watching the sky for anything interesting.

Copyright Dean Stables

Tuesday 14th August 2007

Overcast, Rain, Light S
After 3 hours of watching the garden this morning and only recording 7 Swift & c50 House Martin overhead, i went against the grain and had a couple of hours at the Old Moor RSPB. It was`nt too bad a visit, with a couple of nice birds. The best of which were ;
Little Egret, 2 flew in and landed behind tall vegetation, so no chance of a pic.
Common Sandpiper 1, Green Sandpiper 6, Black-tailed Godwit 1, Ringed Plover 1, also c12 Swift & plenty of Common Snipe.

Green Sandpiper ( digiscoped )




Black-tailed Godwit ( digiscoped at distance )


Canada Geese


Absolutely deathly back at home for the rest of the day, with only a few Swallows & a handful of House Martins blogging about.


Garden Snail ( youngster on its way down the window )

No chance of a colourful sky tonight, so here`s last nights from the garden ;



Copyright Dean Stables

Monday 13th August 2007

Sunny & Patchy Cloud, Light W
Not much from my garden during the first couple of hours, with just c30 House Martin, 1 Sparrowhawk N & a Lesser Black-backed Gull SW.
The only highlight from the Wombwell garden was a Southern Hawker ;





The walk home along the western edge of Cortonwood did`nt produce anything better than 4 Brown Hawker & a male Broad-bodied Chaser ;



Back at home, a heavy shower early afternoon forced 2 Swift down low. The best sighting however went to the Green Woodpecker that flew over low, heading S at 17.58.


Buff/White Ermine larva


Raindrops - on the window


Houttuynia cordata " Chameleon "

Heavy rain forecast for tomorrow, so it looks like garden/skywatching all day for me.

Copyright Dean Stables

Sunday 12th August 2007

The only highlight from my garden during the first few hours was c30 House Martin. Then it was time to go and get Storm & Saffie ready for Pony Club Camp. While they were getting ready, i had a quick look around the farm where we stable the ponies. A single Swift flew S, as did a Sparrowhawk. Also plenty of Swallows about, including a late brood in one of our friends stables ;


Swallow chicks


Cinnabar larvae


Saffie & Storm, already for loading up

After what seemed a lifetime, we left Storm at PC Camp ( bless her!!, she was in tears when we left. It is her first time away from home without us ).
Arrived back at home just after 7pm, just in time to witness a flock of 7 Common Snipe flying SW over the garden.
Must admit it`s very quiet without Storm. Rudi`s missing her like hell already. Never mind she`ll back home on Friday evening.

Copyright Dean Stables

The missing bits

from yesterday.
Had to nip to Morrisons during the afternoon, so i had a quick look around Cortonwood Lake, where after many years of trying, i finally got to photograph a Emperor Dragonfly. Not the best shots in the world, but this individual was very flighty, forever chasing off Black-tailed Skimmers and when it did land, it always settled on the far side of the Bulrush`s ;





Other highlights were ;
Mute Swan - pair with 7 cygnets, Tufted Duck - several, including a female with a fresh brood of 7, Ruddy Duck 2, Black-tailed Skimmer 10+.


Mute Swan - chasing off the Canada Geese


Algae

The last 2 hours of daylight from my garden could`nt produce anything better than a group of 19 Swift heading S.



Copyright Dean Stables

Saturday 11th August 2007

Sunny, Light S/SW
Spent the first few hours skwatching from my garden, where the highlights were Lapwing 2 E, Swift 4 W, Lesser Black-backed Gull 5 W & 3 S, Grey Heron 1 E ;


Dawn


Lesser Black-backed Gulls " honestly "

Then had a walk around Wentworth Park & Lakes, where there was`nt much about, with the best being - Nuthatch, Great Crested Grebe 15, Grey Wagtail 4, Willow Tit, Cormorant & Great Spotted Woodpecker.


Wentworth Woodhouse




Common Stinkhorn

From there, i went to my parents at Rawmarsh. Not much there either with just 6 Swift heading S.


Starling


Passion Flower - simply stunning flowers

Back at home a few more Swifts were moving with 21 heading W/SW. The best of the rest were a female Sparrowhawk heading E, Brown Hawker, Common Darter & Ruby-tailed Wasp.

Common Darter




I had to nip out for an hour late afternoon, but more of that later, along with any other highlights from now until dusk.

Copyright Dean Stables

Friday 10th August 2007

Sunny, Light Variable
Could`nt be bothered to venture away from home today, so i spent the day in & out of the garden. Here`s the highlights ;
Lapwing 6 E, Cormorant 2 W, Sparrowhawk 1 female, Starling c200 dove into hedges looking like they were evading something, but i could`nt see any raptors about. Swift - just a single bird over this morning, then at 12.30 a decent movement overhead with 138 birds counted heading high NW.
Quite a few inverts were seen with the best being, Holly Blue, Clouded Border, Ruby-tailed Wasp & Strangalia quadrifasciata.
A few pics with the new camera ;


Blackbird ( juvvy )


Clouded Border


Hoverfly sp


Pond Snail


Yellow Loosestrife


Yellow Corydalis

Tried to identify the Hoverfly but the world of syrphidae was`nt working.

Think i`ll try Wentworth Park & Lakes again tomorrow. Can`t be worse than anywhere else of late.

Copyright Dean Stables

Thursday 9th August 2007

Sunny, Light Variable
The first couple of hours from my garden did`nt produce a lot with just 21 Swift over & a couple of pics ;


Blackbird ( digiscoped )


Garden Spider ( photographed through the living room window )

The only highlights from the Wombwell garden were a calling Nuthatch, this Slime Mould ;



and the best was a Wasps nest that i found in the middle of a Rhododendron. Me being me, just seeing it was`nt enough. I wanted a pic, so i crept up & cut off a obscuring branch then made a hasty retreat. This process was repeated several times, till i finally got a clear enough view. What an amazing construction these nests are. This particular one was the size of a football ;



The walk home along the western edge of Cortonwood was another poor one regards sightings, with the best being a singing Chiffchaff, 2+ Bullfinch, 4 Brown Hawker & a single Emperor.
The rest of the day was spent back at home, where 40+ Swift passed over & both singles of Sparrowhawk & Kestrel.
Gave the macro function another try & was more than pleased with the results ;

Frog


Pineapple Lily




Can`t wait for next year now. Gonna give the wildflowers/plants a real hammering.

STOP PRESS : a Spoonbill was present at the Old Moor RSPB this afternoon. I know it`s only a 5 min walk but i`m not a member + i`m too tight to part with the £2.50 entrance fee.

Copyright Dean Stables