Tuesday 11th.August 2009

Only managed to get out for an hour and a half this afternoon , but , it worked out well , as it was during the best part of the day by far . I split my time between Spring Park Pond and the Farm Lake . At Spring Park Pond , it was obvious that maintainance work had taken place recently , as the choking Parrot's Feathers that had covered most of the pond , had been removed , leaving areas of open water between the remaining emergent vegetation and the Lily pads . What worries me is the timing , and the fact that large numbers of Dragon/Damselfly eggs and larvae must have been removed as well . Several pairs of Common Darters and Common Blue Damselflies were egg laying whilst I was there , they are probably the lucky ones . I also sighted one of the Goldfish that some idiot put in the pond , now looking very rotund , having probably feasted on the many tadpoles that were seen earlier on . The only flowers around the edges are Purple Loosestrife , and a member of the Labiate family , Common Hemp-Nettle-Galeopsis speciosa , which is definitely not common , as it is only the second time I have found it . Butterflies had emerged in the sun , but one , a male Brown Argus , attempting to fly across the pond , got blown down onto the surface . Fortunately , I managed to reach it with a stick , and it lived to fight another day . There must have been an emergence of Small Coppers on this site as well as Down House , as I recorded 5 around the pond , 3 of them on the same head of Ragwort , and another four later . In all 10 species of butterfly were recorded , but mostly in small numbers . I always check the areas of Bramble from and to the car , and above one of them , I found a male Migrant Hawker , taking the afternoon sun , and whilst photographing him , noticed another male , this time a Southern Hawker , same species that was in the car port yesterday , fly around the area , then come to rest higher up in the trees . These two Hawkers doubled my Odonata species for the site . From the pond , I headed to the farm lake , and arrived to find the owner grass cutting the area around the lake , so didn't expect too much . A few species of butterfly were about , Brimstone , Large and Small White , Common Blue , Brown Argus , Gatekeeper and Meadow Brown , and even the grass cutting didn't stop them from doing what they had to do . As I got to the far side of the lake , a Corvid call had me looking skyward , to find a Common Buzzard , my second in two days , being mobbed by the Corvid and a Sparrowhawk , just over the woods . I got the camera ready , and hoped that they would come my way , which eventually , they did .
I managed a few shots , but unlike yesterday , there was no doubt about the species .
Apart from that , it was a quiet visit , but the clear skies made it a very humid late afternon .