Last Chance Saloon!

My last visit to the bog at Birk Bank on 5 September, brought me to remark that I reckoned it would be the last of the dragonflies to be seen there this year....Well what do you know, I was wrong about that, because my visit there on Thursday produced 4 species of 26 dragons.

Common Darter Birk Bank Bog. Pete Woodruff.

A total of 16 Common Darter were seen, including 5 pairs in tandem.

Black Darter Pairing Birk Bank Bog. Pete Woodruff.

Also 7 Black Darter which were seen as 2 pairs in tandem and 3 male. Two Migrant Hawker flew quite rapid through and over the bog, too rapid for me to be able to rule out Common Hawker being the habitat of an acidic bog in late September.

Common Hawker. Copy Permitted.

Best sighting of the day was the male Emperor Dragonfly still here. This record beats my last years sighting on 19 September by 6 days. 

Two notes to make here re the Emperor records....

1) 'Date is outside the known fight period of Anax imperator'....iRecords 

2) 'Emperors become scarce by early September'....The Dragonflies of Lancashire and North Merseyside. Published in 2015.....How things change in a decade. 

Crossbill.

After getting my fill of dragons, on a wander along the path to Ottergear Bridge and return, it wasn't long before I discovered what an excellent decision I had made.

I was no more than 400 metres from Ottergear Bridge, when I was met by the amazing sight of a male Crossbill. The bird was taking a drink from the run-off in stony area in the centre of this picture. 

But my excitement was short lived as the bird soon took to flight and I discovered it was accompanied by a second bird which I hadn't seen. An educated guess is, that it was an olive/grey female, camouflaged on the ground amongst the grass.

In 35 years when my association with the Forest of Bowland was taking off, I have never seen nor expected to find the Crossbill at Birk Bank/Clougha, and to be honest I know of no records from here either, so this surely has to be a first.

Thanks to Simon Hawtin for his excellent image of the stunning male Crossbill.

And Finally.

Even with just a remote interest in Odonata, I recommend you take a look at Marc Heath's Kent Dragonflies.

Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly Marc Heath  

And Now For Something A Little Different!

Lune Estuary.

By way of a change, I decided on a different viewpoint to observe the incoming tide on the Lune Estuary, and went to the embankment above the picnic site at Conder Green. This was a first for me, I always view the same stretch on the river from the bowling green at Glasson Dock, but both these locations have plus and minus points, some you win, some you loose.

Until the tide gained height, most of the waders were out of view below the marsh, but once the tide reached the marsh they were out in the open, though then the smaller birds were in the long grass.

On the shoreline I managed to see 4 Greenshank, 6 Black-tailed Godwit, a Ruff, Whimbrel, and Common Sandpiper. Then driven on to the marsh by the tide, a Curlew Sandpiper and Snipe. Overhead a Sparrowhawk, a Buzzard was briefly attacked by a Kestrel, and 3 Migrant Hawker were patrolling the trees.

When I left the area, there was little dry land for the waders to escape to. The group pictured in my header were hanging on in at high tide.

Birk Bank Bog.

Black Darter male. Pete Woodruff.

Thinking it could well be my last chance for the dragons, and the day being at least decent weather-wise, I decided to give Birk Bank a return visit where I found 6 Black Darter, 5 male and a female.

Black Darter female. Pete Woodruff.

Eleven Common Darter were seen as 6 male and 5 female. It was good to find the male Emperor Dragonfly again, still patrolling and checking out the vegetation by the boardwalk.

Common Darter. Pete Woodruff.

I reckon these are the last of the dragons at Birk Bank Bog in '25. 

Guillemot Inner M'cbe Bay.

Scaup Off Broadway 17 January. Pete Woodruff.

 

I met Steve Edmundson at Birk Bank, he reminded me we had met earlier in the year at Morecambe when we were watching the female Scaup off Broadway. Steve told me of a Guillemot he'd seen off Teal Bay during the week. I told him he had been fortunate to find a scarce sea bird for this area of Morecambe Bay, he said he would send me a picture of the bird.

Guillemot Teal Bay 9 September. Steve Edmundson.

Thank you Steve, much appreciated.

Swifts.

When I found the quite amazing record of 60 Swift on passage through Borrowdale in the Lake District on Thursday 11 September, I thought it was a sighting worthy of mention. Even more amazing when I read they were observed over a 2 hour period flying north, which is in the opposite direction of their wintering grounds in Africa. Only a minority of Swifts would still be in Europe during September....Sixty Swift flying north in Northern England in mid-September doesn't sound like a minority in Europe.

Tuesday 2 Sept - Friday 5 Sept.

Not as much action on Conder Pool as my last visit 28 August, but impressive all the same, and didn't loose any ratings in the Hot Spot League as far as I'm concerned. 

I had been at Conder Pool about an hour, and had got back to the motor to move on, when AC knocked on the windscreen to tell me the Spotted Redshank had flown in and joined the company of 10 Greenshank....Thanks Andrew.

Also to note on the pool, 8 Little Grebe and a lone Black-tailed Godwit. I'm convinced this is the same BTG as seen here in previous years, and always alone. A Common Sandpiper was in the creeks.

Within the space of about 15 minutes, a Marsh Harrier, Peregrine Falcon and Buzzard were overhead, along with a good number of hirundine, high like dots in the sky.

Thirty minutes on the canal towpath at Glasson produced 2 Migrant Hawker and 2 Brown Hawker, and along the coastal path 4 Migrant Hawker, with a 'blue butterfly' seen. This was a disappointing sighting in that it was too distant for ID to species, so I was left with a possible third brood Holly Blue, or second brood Common Blue which can last until early September. Other butterflies seen, Painted Lady, 5 Red Admiral, 5 Speckled Wood, and 3 Small Tortoiseshell.

Migrant Hawker.

Migrant Hawker 2 September. Pete Woodruff.

I find the Migrant Hawker one of the easier dragons to observe, their behaviour is often to be seen hovering frequently, hawking along hedgerows, and regularly basking low down on vegetation as mine was today.

Conder Pool Friday 5 September.

I paid my second visit of the week to Conder Pool where the scenery was much changed and reduced in numbers of birds, though I was delighted to find my highest all time count upgraded by the presence of 32 Greenshank on the pool. The only other records of note were, 10 Little Grebe and a lone Ruff.

Birk Bank Friday 5 September.

My visit the bog at Birk Bank was suitably rewarded by recording 14 dragons in the hour spent here. Pick of the bunch was 2 Emperor Dragonfly which were something of a surprise, though I did find two here last year 19 September 2024....Late! 

Black Darter Birk Bank 5 September. Pete Woodruff.

Also seen, 5 Black Darter were all males, and 7 Common Darter were seen as 5 male/2 female. I had two sightings of Buzzard, both of which were seen as two pairs 10 minutes apart, but to be honest I reckon it was just the one 'mewing' pair seen twice.  

Garden Moth.

Seeing what appeared to be a moth through the kitchen window, I dashed out to find it was the most obliging of its kind, giving good views as it lingered a few minutes nectaring on Soapwort.

Hummingbird Hawk-moth

In the header image, we can see the 'Keep Britain Tidy' man with the strimmer at Saltcote Pond has done the right thing this year, leaving the pond side vegetation to flourish, in which case it seems my conversation last year with Glasson Councilors has paid off. 

Around The Estuary And A Trip Down The A6.

For starters, there was some bird behaviour to be see on my latest visit to Cockersand, nothing too surprising, but interesting just the same.

This silo is situated at Bank House Farm at Cockersand, and as I set off on the circuit, it came into view to reveal up to 60 Swallow. These birds took me by surprise, in that they were obviously feeding on the wing inside the silo, they kept appearing over the rim before dropping back inside. Something of a spectacle when 60 birds were up and down like a yoyos in and out of the silo.

When I returned 2 hours later, having walked along the headland to reach the spot again, in a similar number, Swallows were in the field behind the silo, this time they were feeding low and over Yarrow.

 

For a bird with a mammoth task ahead of it, opportunism at its best I thought, and a flight of c.8,000 to reach the continent of Africa after 6 weeks of virtually non-stop flying....Knocks y'er socks off dun'it!

The Cockersand Circuit.

Truth is, I'd been plodding along for an hour and had seen nothing of note, then all of a sudden 2 Wheatear dropped onto the kissing gate by the abbey. This was followed by another spell of nothingness, until I reached Bank House Farm again to make another check of the area. Well blow me over, there are 2 Yellow Wagtail on the rim of the 'Swallow Silo'.

Painted Lady Cockersand 20 August. Pete Woodruff.

A personally poor year for butterflies continues, though today I raised it to 'moderate', seeing up to 100 'whites' including 3 Green-veined White, 12 Small Tortoiseshell, 2 Red Admiral, a Painted Lady, Speckled Wood, and a Silver Y moth.

Conder Pool.

I was rewarded with my best - and probably everyone elses - all time count of 27 Greenshank on Conder Pool, with 13 Little Grebe counted.

Little Ringed Plover Juvenile Conder Pool 20 August. Pete Woodruff.

Also a juvenile Little Ringed Plover present, and 2 Wigeon were both female and the vanguards of things to come.

Also present, 2 Ruff and 4 Snipe....Not all in the video.

A Trip Down The A6.

Nine years ago on 13 September 2016, I made the same trip down the A6 to Heversham Moss, to see the same two species of birds at the same place as I did this time. That day I saw 2 Wood Sandpiper a Pectoral Sandpiper, a Green Sandpiper, and 22 Ruff.

Wood Sandpiper. Antonio Puigg.

On Fridays visit, I saw a Wood Sandpiper, 20 Ruff, up to 12 Pied Wagtail, and at one point a Sparrowhawk put up all and sundry from the flood, and eventually made one attack at Swallows before being lost to view.

With time on my hands and whilst in the area, I called at Leighton Moss RSPB Reserve and went to the Eric Morecambe Hide. Not the best time of day for birding from this hide if the sun is shining brightly in your face.

Putting in a bit of effort, I estimated the silhouettes to be at least 260 Black-tailed Godwit, 60 Redshank, 8 Knot, 5 Avocet, 5 Snipe, 3 Ruff, and 2 Dunlin. On the inner marsh, 2 Great White Egret and 18 Little Egret.

Migrant Hawker. Pete Woodruff.

Along the path to the hide, a male Migrant Hawker and 5 Speckled Wood, 2 Red Admiral, and a Small Tortoiseshell. 

And Finally.

With favourable weather, there have been opportunities to find and photograph some insects in the garden, particularly on the Alium.

Hoverfly Syrphus sp and Honey Bee. Pete Woodruff.

Red-tailed Bumblebee Bombus lapidarius Pete Woodruff.

Common Carder Bee Bombus pascuorum Pete Woodruff.

Comings And Goings At CP And Some Other Bits!

On my last visit to Conder Pool in the week, the comings were represented by 17 Greenshank accompanied by 14 Redshank, and building up to look more like winter numbers, were 12 Little Grebe.

The goings were represented by the last of the Common Tern, with a youngster being fed small fry by the adult like there's no tomorrow, it was fishing the creeks at high tide.

Avocet Juvenile. Howard Stockdale.

The last of the Avocet, the juvenile flagged C6 was accompanied by an adult, and the last of the Little Ringed Plover which put in an appearance just as I was about to leave, and showed close in as I filmed a clip of a Ruff.

As far as I'm aware, the last sighting of the lone surviving juvenile Little Ringed Plover, was in the creeks on Wednesday 13 August. Many thanks to Howard Stockdale for his unfailing updates for me on things Conder Pool related.

Other notes from the pool were, 24 Lapwing and a similar number of Pied Wagtail which included juveniles, some of which will no doubt be from underneath the tern platform where the wagtails bred this and in previous years. A lone Common Sandpiper was seen, and a Buzzard overhead was briefly attacked by a Common Tern. From the viewing screen I saw 4 Brown Hawker and a Migrant Hawker past, also 4 Gatekeeper.

A short 15 minute walk from Glasson Dock along the canal towpath, a Brown Hawker and Gatekeeper noted. And at Saltcote Pond, just 4 Common Blue Damselfly, 4 Small Tortoiseshell and a Peacock.

Thanks and congrat's to Howard Stockdale for his fourth header image in as many weeks.

Grisedale Brook.

Golden Ringed Dragonfly Male Grisedale Brook. Pete Woodruff.

In the end, Fridays dragonfly hunt wasn't to be called riveting stuff, but I was keen to see what the situation was downstream on Grisedale Brook to Holme Wood. After a pleasant hour spent, I had to be satisfied with just 3 Golden-ringed Dragonfly and a Common Hawker.

Common Darter Male Grisedale Brook. Pete Woodruff.

I also found 2 Common Darter, and having never seen these here before, they were a species first for me.

Hawthornthwaite Fell/Catshaw Pond.

The visit to Hawthornthwaite was a bit of a non-starter, apart from anything else it was chat'less and therefore - the chat fanatic that I am - very disappointing. But throughout the hour spent here, I did see what could only be described as mid-autumn movement, when a total of at least 30 Meadow Pipit, including 10 as a flock, exploded out of the heather. Otherwise, a Buzzard was seen soaring high overhead. 

Hawthornthwaite Fell Viewed From Catshaw Pond. Pete Woodruff.

For the sake of recording, I christened this small waterbody Catshaw Pond, perhaps it will stick! It has hosted Emperor Dragonfly for the past two years, but I didn't see the Emperor this time, although AC recorded it here last Wednesday 13 August.

Black Darter Birk Bank Bog 13 August. Barbara Southward.

This is Britain's smallest dragonfly, and I reckon the 2 Black Darter seen today, were no more than 30mm in overall length, and were my first for the site.

Thanks to Barbara Southward for permission to publish on B2B this excellent image.

And Finally.

I can't resist ending this post with a splash of glorious technicolour in our garden.

 In full bloom, the stunning Dahlia....Sincerity Rose

Short List High Counts....Well Two Counts!

I managed a couple of decent estuary counts this week in an area I'm slowly becoming familiar with.

Conder Pool.

With the usual difficulty of counting birds on the surface one minute and diving the next, after several attempts I eventually arrived at 20 Little Grebe. This is not an all time personal highest count, last year I had 22 Little Grebe here 24 September. But both my records pale into insignificance, with 32 reported at Conder Green 3 years ago on 25 September 2021, a record I'm not holding my breath to be beaten by anyone any time soon.

Other notes from Conder Pool, 8 Greenshank, 2 Snipe, and 2 Wigeon were my first of the winter, also c.50 Swallow flew through with some taking on water.

Not many opportunities for piks today, so I grabbed the chance of 6 Greenshank with one of the vanguard Wigeon putting in an appearance.

Lune Estuary.

From the bowling green at Glasson Dock, I picked out 11 Mediterranean Gull in reasonably close proximity. This was certainly a personal best ever count here on the Lune Estuary and was followed by the decent count of up to 550 Golden Plover which can be compared to the Morecambe Bay WeBS count of just 205 Golden Plover in September 2023....Lancashire Bird Report 2023

Also in my notes from the Lune Estuary, 2 Greenshank, 12 Wigeon, and 2 Goosander.

Two Peregrine Falcon were at the south end of Colloway Marsh - two distant dots in the video - one of which took to the wing to fail miserably at taking out one of two Lapwing as an easy choice for a meal, before returning to the spot in the video where I first found it.

A short walk along the canal to Saltcote Pond and return to Glasson, had me see a surprise Migrant Hawker on the coastal path, it was patrolling trees at a height of 6 metres in 14°c and dull, cloudy, and breezy conditions, probably my last of the year.

Mystery bird in my kitchen?

On Tuesday afternoon, Lynn Woodruff walked into her kitchen at Brookhouse to be confronted by the surprise of a lifetime. I subsequently received an e-mail with a phone photo attached, the title being 'Mystery bird in my kitchen?'....No mystery to me as it was instantly recognisable as a Wheatear.

Wheatear. Lynn Woodruff.

In Lynn's absence, the bird had flown in through the open kitchen door. In a panic Lynn also opened the windows, but the bird eventually escaped flying back out through the door to freedom. But the bad news about this little tale, the bird appears to have a length of string attached to its leg. How come you ask yourself, and why on earth did a Wheatear find itself trapped in a house and perched on a pressure cooker on a shelf in Brookhouse?

Twice Around The Estuary.

Thankfully with the summer making a surprise return this week - well it turned up for a few days once before didn't it! - I managed a couple of days around the Lune Estuary, and had an hour to spare to check out the bog at Birk Bank at the end of the second one.

Conder Pool.

Best of the pool was the sight of 2 Whinchat on and around the long grasses at the east end. The male Whinchat obviously a cinch to ID, two days later the female at the distance and not very obliging, not quite so obvious. The Kingfisher delighted the gathering photographers of which I met five over my two visits, staked out and living the dream for a good pik. The Kingfisher obligingly and repeatedly perched either on the goal post or on the water level measuring post. It's a pity the light wasn't at its best for some footage when it caught a large fish for lunch.

There was a decent count of 15 Greenshank and 15 Little Grebe on Friday, with 2 Snipe noted. Also 12 Migrant Hawker recorded past the viewing screen over the two visits.

Migrant Hawker Conder Green 19 September. Howard Stockdale.

Cockersand.

Not for the first time I botched my visit, arriving only 30 minutes before the high tide and barely just a few metres of Plover Scar above water.

No more than 60 Dunlin, 6 Ringed Plover and one or two Turnstone were there to entertain me on what remained of Plover Scar today, but 48 Eider were of note off here.

Up to 150 Wood Pigeon were in and around three Wheat fields, and I don't get to record 65 Rook very often, seen today in a field east of Abbey Farm, though I did see a corvid mix of at least 500 Rook/Carrion Crow/Jackdaw grounded on the mud on the Lune Estuary at Glasson on 17 October 2019, of which I reckoned at the time 50% were Rooks.

Birk Bank.

A pleasant hour spent at the bog showed 12 Black Darter including two pairs in tandem, also a male Common Darter. But the pleasant hour turned even more pleasant and surprising, when I spied towards the eastern end of the bog, 2 Emperor Dragonfly both male....Certainly wasn't expecting that!

Black Darter Male Grit Fell/Ward's Stone 19 September. Ian Mitchell.

On the subject, Ian Mitchell reported to me c.15 Black Darter including ovipositing, found on a pool on the hike midway between Grit Fell and Ward's Stone.

Emperor Dragonfly.

With abdomen measurements being equal to that of the Emperor at 50-59/61mm, there was only one other species the Birk Bank sighting could have been, that of the Common Hawker. Best diagnostic feature being my Emperor Dragonfly at the distance was the abdomen being distinctly blue, not black with blue spotting, also the patrolling flight was leisurely and certainly not strong, fast, and tirelessly as in Common Hawker.

Having searched the Emperor Dragonfly on iRecord, I found 13 records for September 2024, two of which are later records than mine on 19 September. All the records carry the note....'Date is outside known flight period of Anax imperator'.

Much appreciate the excellent images from Martin Jump who saved me the trouble of looking for a header image, and from Howard Stockdale, Ian Mitchell....Thanks to all.

Little To Write Home About Mother!

Given its recent history, Conder Pool was at best pretty quiet on Friday, with just 60 birds noted in my stock taking exercise. The bulk of the count being 42 Lapwing and 13 Little Grebe, with 2 Tufted Duck, a pair of Lesser Black-backed Gull and a Little Egret bringing up the rear. I've reluctantly called this a dull and boringly routine experience, and not what I'm acquainted with for Conder Pool....But that's birding in'it!

The Lune Estuary didn't light any fires either, with up to 550 Lapwing, 155 Curlew, 24 Little Egret, 4 Greenshank, a lone House Martin flyby, and not a Golden Plover in sight. But I did see my first of the winter 120 Pink-footed Geese in two skeins >south. Other than finding them too distant to sift through, I ignored a couple of hundred gulls to the north of the Conder mouth.

Common Darter Saltcote Pond. Pete Woodruff.

On a relatively short walk along the canal towpath, 7 Migrant Hawker, 3 Brown Hawker, and a mewing Buzzard over. On Saltcote Pond, 3 Common Darter, one of which provided me with the only pik of the day.

Garden Goings On.

Garden Robin. Pete Woodruff.

A Robin returned to our garden nearly 2 months ago on 18 July after its summer break, and I tracked it down for a pik through the kitchen window yesterday in the plum tree. 

I captured this Dunnock out of the kitchen window too, they have had at least one brood this year with a juvenile>1st winter seen.

We have had some regular butterfly sightings in the garden, with probably 10 Red Admiral and a couple of Peacock seen over a couple of weeks.

Making Hay While The Sun Shines.

With summer days making another brief appearance over the weekend, it was more like finding dragons than making hay while the sun shines. 

A wander along the canal towpath for a little more than a mile east of Glasson Dock to Conder Green, had me collecting a decent count of 36 dragonfly records.

Migrant Hawker 6 September. Pete Woodruff.

A total of 19 Migrant Hawker, with 13 Brown Hawker, and 4 Common Darter male seen. Little wonder that given the record of 19 Migrant Hawker on this stretch of the canal today, saw me find 112 Migrant Hawker along the length from Conder Green to Galgate 12 months today on 8 September 2023. 

Swallow/House Martin. Pete Woodruff.

At one point, there was probably a mix of up to 150 Swallow and House Martin hawking and gathering on the wires on their southward movement.

Small Copper 6 September. Steve Graham.

Worth noting....Steve's image of the Small Copper is one of three he saw while he notes they have been scarce this year. Steve also had a remarkable movement of c.10 Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler through his garden yesterday, with some song heard from both species.

Speckled Wood. Pete Woodruff.

There's no chance of the butterflies making any miraculous recovery this year, and my sightings today reflect this situation, with just 3 Red Admiral and a lone Speckled Wood. But the good news for me is, that I saw a Small Copper by the lock at The Mill at Conder Green, my favourite small butterfly which made my day and was only the second one this year.

A look in at Saltcote Pond, a Migrant Hawker and Brown Hawker were in company with Common Blue Damselfly, and 8 Common Darter including a pair in cop.

Of note on Conder Pool, a Ruff mingled with 12 Greenshank and a similar number of Redshank, also a Common Sandpiper and 4 Teal female were the first seen here all summer, probably birds returning to winter. I failed to find any more than 4 Little Grebe on this visit, but 4 Brown Hawker flew by the viewing screen.

Thanks to Martin Jump for his image of the in flight Southern Hawker from the canal towpath on Friday.  

Owtabout!

Well there certainly wasn't as much about on Conder Pool as my last visit which was three weeks ago on 9 August when there was up to 2,500 birds there, with at least 2,200 Redshank present in a now established unprecedented record.

In stark contrast today, the number on Conder Pool amounted to a little under 100 birds of no more than 12 species noted, being 65 Lapwing, 8 Little Grebe, 6 Black-headed Gull, 6 Lesser Black-backed Gull including 4 immature, 5 Mallard, 3 Pied Wagtail, 3 Carrion Crow, 2 Greenshank, a Grey Heron, Little Egret, and a Swallow which scooped up a drink as it flew through.

But a return visit to Conder Pool in the afternoon paid off as it often does with me. As I scanned the area, I thought a nice Yellow Wagtail might be a good one to end the day, but hey'up, there's not one but 2 Green Sandpiper roosting in the channel.

Green Sandpiper Conder Pool 29 August

Not very obliging, asleep and too distant for a decent photograph, but the video footage is good enough for the record.

A look over the Lune Estuary at Glasson gave me sightings of 3 Mediterranean Gull, a Greenshank, a few Golden Plover, with probably more as they dropped out of sight below the mud bank which falls steeply as the tide ebbs, and 22 Little Egret counted.

At Saltcote Pond, a Brown Hawker was seen off by a Migrant Hawker every time it entered its air space. Also, 3 Large Red Damselfly included a pair in cop, and a Common Blue Damselfly.

Coastal Path. Pete Woodruff.

 

As I walked back to Glasson Dock, up to 6 Migrant Hawker were seen patrolling the hedgerow along the coastal path. 

Urban Dragonflies.

I've seen two urban dragonflies in Lancaster in the past week, a female Common Darter by the Chip Shop on Coulston Road before flying off, and a Migrant Hawker buzzing over our garden for several minutes yesterday.    

Dragons2blog....Episode 2.

Given the perfect conditions and the right time of the season, It was time I did the 3 mile/4 hour trawl along the canal towpath Conder Green to Galgate. 

As I made my way to the canal at The Mill at Conder Green, I noted 8 Avocet in the creeks. However, striking east along the canal, it soon became apparent that it wasn't quite 'the right time of the season' and had only seen 2 Migrant Hawker in the first hour of the walk. Realising I was at least 3 weeks ahead of myself, I note on the same route last year on 8 September, I had found 112 Migrant Hawker by the time I reached Galgate. This number added to the previous sightings made the grand total of 206 Migrant Hawker in 2023. 

I soon found the first of what became a total of 12 Emperor Dragonfly, soon followed by the first of 14 Brown Hawker, and went on to count 26 Common Darter including 4 mating pairs.

Banded Demoiselle. Marc Heath.

When I arrived at the penultimate lock before the junction of the Glasson Arm of the canal, I noted rafts of Water Lilies, and was soon relishing the spectacle of 16 Banded Demoiselle flitting over and occasionally coming to rest on the lilies.

The butterflies have now established a serious concern over their current status this year, and although I recorded 24 Large White, they were accompanied by just 4 Gatekeeper, and 2 Speckled Wood....Hard to believe!

Canal Closure.

For some reason the canal is closed between Conder Green and Galgate, perhaps one of the locks has ceased up. But some good has come out of the closure, in that void of any traffic the water looks clear and healthy. I don't recall ever being able to see the bottom of the canal before.

Knowing relatively little about fish, these seen in the clear waters of the Lancaster Canal, and with only size for detail, perhaps they are Minnows!

Time and the seasons move on apace.

I took this photograph looking towards a drab dark green Birk Bank on 19 July.

From the same viewpoint, I took this one 3 weeks later on 8 August, showing Birk Bank covered with carpets of beautiful purple Heather.

And Finally.

Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly. Marc Heath. 

My man in Kent has a new post about yet another discovery of a new species for the county Here