Sunday's visit to Brandon Marsh began cool and overcast but eventually yielded a couple of year firsts on the butterfly front, with both
Large Skipper and
Small Heath recorded on Farm Field, when the sun finally broke through in the early afternoon.
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| Small Heath on Farm Field |
Monday I met up with Jim Timms for a good tour of the reserve, mainly looking for butterflies and odanata, Jim being a real enthusiast and a great knowledge base for these things!
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| Garganey on East Marsh pool |
We met in the Wright Hide mid morning for a look at a newly arrived
Garganey, although it wasn't one of the most pristine birds I've ever seen it was my first at Brandon this year, having missed out on an earlier visitor.
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| Red-eyed Damselfly |
From here we checked out Swallow Pool, a good place for
Red-eyed Damselfly, with around fifteen or so showing on the lily pads. A visit to East Marsh Hide produced
Hobby, along with the usual selection of waders and Teal Pool revealed a very camouflaged
Green Sandpiper, which was asleep sunning itself on top of a tree stump. While at Carlton and Ted Jury Hides at least five
Four-spotted Chaser dragonfly and a selection of
Large Red,
Common and Azure Damselfly.
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| Brown Argus on 'Tip' area |
Plenty of
Banded Demoiselle on the River Meadow, along with a single
Small Copper butterfly, but the highlight here was a cracking
Emperor Dragonfly, which was patrolling the River Avon. Moths included
Chimney Sweeper,
Burnet Companion,
Cinnabar, and
Small Yellow Underwing.
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| Black-tailed Skimmer |
By the time we'd completed the 'Tip' area, Farm Field and Top Reedbed butterflies of note included:
Painted Lady, (2)
Brown Argus,
Large Skipper,
Small Heath, 20+
Common Blue and various counts of
Peacock,
Small White,
Green-vein White and
Brimstone. Moths included
Mother Shipton and we ended an enjoyable day with a
Black-tailed Skimmer dragonfly!
Next stop Spain....
