The continued cool, dull and overcast conditions once again meant a camera-less walk over to the College Grounds this morning, and those same conditions are making for frustrating visits, as very little bird song is heard, and no chance of finding any Butterflies or Damselflies either  :-(

It was very much as yesterdays visit, with a couple of singing BLACKCAPS on their respective territories one at the Greenhouse Grounds and one in the large garden adjacent Migrant Alley, where a slight increase in the CANADA GEESE flock on the sheep pasture, 14 to 21 was noted, and also a slight increase in GREYLAG GEESE from 11 to 14. The 100 plus ROOKS were feeding around the geese, and in an adjacent paddock 22 LINNETS were feeding on Dandelion seed heads, with 20-30 STARLINGS probing for inverts around them. A COMMON WHITETHROAT sang from the Wooded Headland to the North of the paddocks.

The SPOTTED FLYCATCHER was heard, but went unseen at the College Grounds, also heard were GOLDCREST, COAL TIT, MISTLETHRUSH, CHIFFCHAFF and another Blackcap. SONGTHRUSH, BLACKBIRD, ROBIN, DUNNOCK, PIED WAGTAIL, and JACKDAW were all seen carrying food, however I have not seen any newly fledged young for these species as yet.

I left it until early afternoon to visit the Scrubby Woods and Lakes, as the forecast was for it to brighten up, so I took my smaller lens in case any Damsels or flutters were seen, however it didn't brighten up at all, it just got windy! Needless to say the camera didn't leave my shoulder :-(

I stayed for around 90 minutes, checking up on the COOT family, they are doing well, and looking over the water finding just a GREY HERON of note. BULLFINCH were seen, as well as more Coal Tit, Goldcrest, Blackcap, and Chifchaff. GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKERS 'drummed' and GREEN WOODPECKERS 'yaffled', a fleeting glimpse of a TREECREEPER was had, and a pair of LONG TAILED TITS were seen carrying food, another species that will produce fledglings very soon now.

In all then, not a very inspiring day, but looking at the weather to come for later this week today might prove to be one of the better days! Looks like Friday i'll be staying in bed, ''wet snow on hills'' they said - it is Summer isn't it? I hope those fledglings don't come out just yet!

I snatched a couple of garden photo's later in the afternoon, having done the STARLINGS and Great Spotted Woodpeckers already, there was little else to photograph, its not very busy at the feeders at this time of year  :-)

WOODPIGEON

CHAFFINCH

Yet another dull and gloomy summers morning, with a cool wind thrown in  to dampen the spirits. I did the usual early morning walk over to the College grounds, not finding an awful lot on the way, a singing BLACKCAP was heard at the Greenhouse Grounds, where a KESTREL sat on the roof of one of the greenhouses. Another Blackcap sang from a large garden adjacent to Migrant Alley, and on the paddocks there, 11 GREYLAG GEESE and 14 CANADA GEESE were grazing, while on the sheep pasture at least 125 ROOKS were feeding, at least a quarter of those were young ones.

Arriving at the College Grounds I was straight away greeted by the calls of - at last- a SPOTTED FLYCATCHER (97,67) a quick look through the foliage of an Oak tree soon revealed it, before it quickly flew off further into the Grounds, where I came across it a few minutes later, but no photo was obtained, as the light was so dull and dismal I left the camera at home. Lets hope between now and September that we get a sunny morning to grab some images of the Spotfly  :-)

Looking at my stats for Spotted Flycatcher reveals just how late this spring is, todays arrival is 10 days later than the 12 year Median average arrival date, and 6 days later than the previous latest date!

On my way back across Migrant Alley, I stopped for a half hour sky watch from my seat, the highlight of that was seeing a PEREGRINE fly across to the tower in the village, with a large item of prey, a SPARROWHAWK was also seen up high.

A check of the Lakes and Scrubby Woods was quite a poor affair, 14 Canada Geese were on the Water, with 8 GREYLAG GEESE and a single drake MALLARD. The COOT pair were on their own lake, feeding their 3 young, and 2 pairs of MOORHENS were skulking around the lake edges.

In the Scrubby Woods, fewer CHIFFCHAFF and Blackcaps are singing, a COAL TIT also sang, as did a GOLDCREST or two and both GREEN and GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKERS were seen. I watched a pair of BULLFINCH feeding quietly in an old dying apple tree, easily the best looking birds seen today  ;-)

A surprise for the day was waiting as I got home, I reached my front garden and heard a TURTLE DOVE singing loudly from a large poplar tree 30m out in the field opposite my house, it's been a few years since I heard this species from my garden! Also this afternoon, the first newly fledged STARLING was seen with its parents at my feeders, 10 days later than last years first record, and 6 days later than 2011.

Down to the last few photo's in the blog photo folder now, at this time of year it should be crammed full! Just the rest of the Great Spotted Woodpecker and Starlings left. :-(

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Starling

Starling

The weather today proved totally unproductive for any decent birding, rain, drizzle, low cloud and cool temperatures all conspired to make it a very quiet day. The only thing I can note was the finding of two drake MANDARIN DUCKS in the Wet Woods, where a MALLARD had a family of 18 ducklings! I wonder how many of those will escape predation ? Talking of which, I checked up on the BLACKBIRD nest in my garden boundary this morning, finding one dead chick below the nest, and the nest empty :-(  I wonder who did that!  Could have been the magpie, Jay or even the Sprawk.A sad end to all that work that the adult birds went through to get to within 5 days of fledging their young. All part of nature though, just think if no Blackbird nests were predated, next year the place would be over run with them, there would be no food for them all and disease would be rife, nature provides plenty to go round for all, and enough survivors to continue the species - as long as humans stay out of it!!

Back to the 'garden photo blog' folder to brighten todays post  :-)

GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER

Great Spotted Woodpecker

STARLING

Starling

Starling

MAGPIE - did he take the young Blackbirds ?

Who me ? No mate, it wasn't me!

A low, murky cloud hung over the area for most of the morning, but at least it stayed dry and it wasn't windy :-)

I only visited the College Grounds, Greenhouse grounds and Migrant Alley today, with a quick scan of the Pub Field and Ashes Lane field, both of which were home to a few STOCK DOVES, but nothing else.

The WHITETHROAT was back singing in the Greenhouse Grounds as I passed through, along with a BLACKCAP and the regular WRENS, ROBINS, DUNNOCKS, BLACKBIRDS, SONGTHRUSH, and PIED WAGTAIL. Another Blackcap and a CHIFFCHAFF were singing from the Wooded Headland to the North of Migrant Alley, but the hopes of recording Turtle Dove on this part of my patch, which was a former haunt for them, have now been relinquished. Migrant Alley was again home to CANADA GEESE and GREYLAG GEESE, 6 of the former and 8 of the later were seen, as were the 20 odd LINNETS that fed on the dandelion heads there.

An hour spent looking through the College Grounds and gardens didn't produce a Spotted Flycatcher, or any of the ''expected any day now'' fledgling young, from the likes of ROBIN, Songthrush, DUNNOCK, WREN or PIED WAGTAIL.

MISTLETHRUSH, GREENWOODPECKER, GREAT SPOTTED WOODPECKER, GOLDCREST, COAL TIT, JAY, SWALLOW, and a couple more Chiffchaff and Blackcap were best of what was found at the College today.

SONGTHRUSH

An hours sky watching from my seat over at Migrant Alley produced a few of the scarcer birds for my patch, including 4 Raptor species - BUZZARD, KESTREL, HOBBY and SPARROWHAWK. A few SWIFTS also moved through, and a GREY HERON flew low over my position, while the sighting of a pair of MUTE SWANS flying high was a bonus. One new species for the month was added as I sky watched, when a YELLOWHAMMER (66) flew in to the Tall hedge behind my seat, called twice, then flew off again, another of those species that has declined to almost extinction on my patch  :-(

Grey Heron over my seat

Grey Heron

Later this afternoon the sun made an appearance, so I went out to find some flutters. Not an easy thing to do on my patch anymore, as the best habitat has now been lost to the plough, it will be nigh on impossible to find the likes of Common Blue, Brown Argus and Small copper here now.

I did manage to find Small White, Large White, Green Veined White, Orange Tip, Comma, Speckled Wood, Peacock, Holly Blue and Brimstone, the latter of which I have never manged to get a photo of, today I was that close though! I was just going to press the shutter when a Bee landed on the Brimstone and off it went.......blast it!!

All I came away with was these two shots in the end!

Peacock Butterfly

Speckled Wood