Good Afternoon....The Sequel.

Not only did Paul West find 45+ Little Egret on Conder Pool 13 August, but he also achieved an excellent image of this all time highest record of the species for this amazing location....Paul West Photography

Conder Pool. 

Conder Pool 19 August. Pete Woodruff.

I think it's possible the water level at Conder Pool is lower than I have ever seen before, but it took nothing away from the enjoyment of seeing a decent number of eight species of birds.

Although they seem to have favoured the backside of one of the islands on my last two visits, I counted 18 Common Tern on view, seen as 14 adult and 4 juvenile. Up to 450 Redshank were present this visit, 6 Black-tailed Godwit, 3 Ruff and 4 Dunlin made a total of 463 waders today. Also 18 Little Grebe was my best count so far this period heading into winter, and 25 Greylag. Two female Wigeon were the vanguard of winter visitors I reckon. A Small Tortoiseshell put in an appearance.

Saltcote Pond.

Common Hawker. Pete Woodruff.

A Common Hawker was obliging and settled for pictures. Also an Emperor Dragonfly, a Brown Hawker, 5 Common Darter, and 2 Speckled Wood seen.

Glasson Canal Towpath.

A brief visit to the canal towpath was rewarded by a Clouded Yellow butterfly.

Clouded Yellow. Pete Woodruff.

Though the butterfly was in pristine condition, it wasn't at all obliging.

The minute I got close for pictures....we have lift off! 

Bank End.

A return to Bank End to meet AC and find 5 Yellow Wagtail was well worth the effort. Thanks for the Stonechat record at Cockers Dyke on Friday, I always love to find a Stonechat, and I know you do too Andrew.

Birk Bank.

Common Lizard Birk Bank Bog August 19. Pete Woodruff.

Best reward for the visit to the bog at Birk Bank was a Common Lizard. I have seen few reports from here since the new boardwalk was installed, and I've previously only had brief views of one. Only 4 Common Darter seen today was a bit disappointing.

Sundew Birk Bank 19 August. Pete Woodruff.

In seeing the tracks through the bog left by the heavy machinery during the erection of the new boardwalk, I had thought it was goodbye to the Sundew, so it was great to find several clusters of it today. 

Over the hour spent here, I saw 9 Buzzard, including a family of five soaring and mewing together, and a Peregrine Falcon picked up high and drifting, went into a stoop to disappear below Birk Bank ridge....A good afternoon Part 2

Lady In The Garden.

A stunning Painted Lady paid a visit to our garden yesterday, in pristine condition, it spent a long period on the Alium coming and going throughout the afternoon.

Painted Lady. Pete Woodruff.

....But First The Bad Bit!

Based on the weather being not as good as forecast, although it was bright, there was cloud most of the day, with an annoying cool breeze which wouldn't bode well for dragon hunting. I was tempted to title this post Another Wrong Day, but decided that would be a little too boring for three posts in a row....So here goes.

Let's get rid of the bad bit first....The only Keeled Skimmer I saw in two 30 minute visits to Birk Bank bog was a deceased male.

Keeled Skimmer Male (Deceased) Pete Woodruff.

OK, everything reaches the end, but there's no way I wanted to see a dead dragonfly today, and certainly not a Keeled Skimmer, a species that has only colonised Birk Bank bog since it was first discovered here 10 years ago in August 2015 by local birder Steve Graham. I've seen them every year since then, but there's no question I was gutted at seeing this one having expired today.

Now here's the good excellent bit....I saw 3 Golden-ringed Dragonfly, including a 'buy one get one free' moment, when two settled together for a photo-shoot.

Golden-ringed Dragonflies Birk Bank 6 August. Pete Woodruff.

Also, a stunning male Emperor Dragonfly was patrolling close to the boardwalk.

Common Darter. Pete Woodruff.

Six Common Darter male were all basking on the boardwalk as they do, and 2 Blue-tailed Damselfly seen.  

Whilst watching the dragonflies I spotted some interaction between two raptors which kept coming in to view over the ridge above Birk Bank. Difficult to keep up to, but managed some brief record footage of 2 Peregrine Falcon. Later in the same area, a soaring Buzzard. 

Also seen from the boardwalk, a bird flew out from a Mountain Ash, to my great surprise and pleasure, it was a Green Woodpecker. This was my first since I last found one here 4 years ago in April 2021, previously a Green Woodpecker was found here in July 2020....Three in a row at Birk Bank.

Sundew Birk Bank. Pete Woodruff.

It was good to find the Sundew still thriving here, with several clusters found below the north end of the boardwalk.

Common Darter. Pete Woodruff.

Sightings on a wander from the bog to Ottergear Bridge. A Common Darter female seen from the path up the bank on bracken was difficult for an image for ID. 

Did you know, bracken is thought to be the most common plant in the world and is found on all continents except Antarctica. 

A Roe Deer was seen in a field off Rigg Lane, and it was great to find the breeding record of a family party of 4 Stonechat. A male Common Darter was on Ottergear Bridge, and butterflies noted along the way, a Painted Lady, 2 Small Copper, a Holly Blue, and Meadow Brown.

Another Wrong Day....Definitely not, quite the opposite actually, it developed into more like an excellent day in my book.

Conder Pool.

An update from Conder Pool has me gutted once again, when I learn that just the one young from three Little Ringed Plover has survived. Just the one piece of good news out of this is, all being well the bird should fledge in the coming week....Here's hoping!

Little Ringed Plover Conder Pool 30 July. Howard Stockdale.

Assuming this young bird is the sole survivor from the same pair, it is the result of 5 attempts to breed, and that's from a species which usually lays 4 eggs in the breeding season, which although not likely this year - though she did lay 3 eggs this last attempt - would make it a pitiful 20 eggs laid from this female.

I'm grateful to Howard Stockdale for regularly keeping me up to date with matters relating to Conder Pool. 

The Dead Duck!

Excuse the pun title, an American slang used politically in the mid 19 century and basically meaning useless....Rings true in the early 21st century, but politics and religion are barred on B2B.

My last two visits to Birk Bank have been almost useless, but truth is, there are never useless birding days, and Thursdays certainly wasn't one. 

Keeled Skimmer Birk Bank 13 July

I had to try for a video of the male Keeled Skimmer because it was the only dragonfly I saw on the day at Birk Bank or anywhere else, and was the only one seen on my previous visit there on 5 July. If this isn't related to the cloudy and breezy weather, then the hot dry conditions of late have had an impact on odonata....Nothing serious I hope!

Towards the end of the video, the Keeled Skimmer sharply lifts its head and opens its mouth....Quite a gape!

There was no sign of life when I went to Cragg Wood to find zilch on the River Conder. On my return to do a double check at the bog, I met Ian Mitchell who told me he had seen just the one male Keeled Skimmer I had found three hours earlier. In our conversation I told Ian I had found 2 Purple Hairstreak in the Oaks east of Ottergear Bridge. When we parted, Ian said he would take a look in the hope of finding a butterfly he had never seen before....There is evidence that he was successful with his brilliant header image of the Purple Hairstreak.

Common Carder Bee/Cuckoo Bee. Pete Woodruff.

At Birk Bank, a Common Carder Bee, and a faded male Cuckoo Bee which I am unable to identify to species.

Sundew Birk Bank 13 July. Pete Woodruff.

And on the bog, after finding Sundew there in August last year, I found more again on Thursday, this time two plants seen. This plant is noted to be in need of protection. 

Garden Hovers.

Some sunny weather brought hoverfly and a leaf cutter bee of interest into our garden, to keep me entertained and to photograph them with their elaborate scientific names.

Eupeodes corollae on California Poppy

Eupeodes latifasciatus on Chicory

Eristalis arbustorum on Shasta Daisy

Xanthogramma pedissequum on Willow

Eupeodes corollae (right) with Megachile centuncularis (leaf cutter bee) on Elecampane

Little Success...Big Disappointments.

In a week with perfect weather, I was off to check out Birk Bank bog and surroundings. But, bearing in mind the successes of recent sorties here and there, five hours later I came away from the area with little success and big disappointments.

Dealing with the disappointments first, given the conditions of calm hot sunny weather, I've not seen Four-spotted Chaser over or on the bog since 15 were seen on 16 June. I've also yet to see Black-tailed Skimmer or Black Darter here this year, and that's three species certain to be found around the bog at Birk Bank*

Dragons2blog....But not that many! 

To lift the visit to the bog out of total disappointment, I did see 4 Golden-ringed Dragonfly, 2 Keeled Skimmer male, 8 Common Darter all males, a Common Hawker and a Migrant Hawker. 

The Migrant Hawker was seen as a species that avoids acidic water, but tolerates brackish water. It can be found anywhere on migration which reaches its peak during the first half of September. My records in 2021 show a total of 90 Migrant Hawker seen in two trawls along the canal towpath, 43 Glasson-Conder Green 15 September, 47 Conder Green-Galgate 20 September. Both these records fit in nicely with the peak migration of Migrant Hawker in mid-September.

Keeled Skimmer Ottergear Bridge. Pete Woodruff.

A wander to Ottergear Bridge had me finding 2 Keeled Skimmer male again this year on the west side of the bridge. On the grit track to Cragg Wood, 2 Common Darter female and a Common Blue Damselfly.

Stonechat Birk Bank. Ian Mitchell. 

A pair of Stonechat with a young were east of the car park on Rigg Lane, and a juvenile Robin seen from the footpath as I came away from the bog. Butterflies, 6 Red Admiral, 2 Small Copper, 2 Meadow Brown, and a Speckled Wood.

Sundew Drosera rotundifolia. Pete Woodruff. 

A recent star find goes to the Sundew. A plant which carries the symbol indicating the need for protection, and which Charles Darwen once wrote in a letter in 1860....'at the present moment, I care more about Drosera than the origin of all the species in the world'.

Black Darter bog boardwalk (Archive Image) Pete Woodruff.

* In relation to my lack of sightings this week at Birk Bank in mid-August, some notes on flight periods of three species in Lancashire which may go some way to explain reasons for the disappointment.

Four-spotted Chaser....The first large dragonfly to appear in spring, and the earliest to disappear in autumn, falling rapidly in early August.

Black-tailed Skimmer....Appears mid-June, rapidly declining in mid-August.

Black Darter....A late emerging species, beginning during August and gradually reaching a peak in September.

Looks like I may have been too late for the top two species, and too early for the last one....My next visit might throw up some answers on that.