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Last updated Thu 17 Apr 2008 Member since June 2007

Bishops Stortford, Spellbrook, hatfield forest and beyond. VIEW BLOG is my birding diary. PHOTOSTREAM is my photos. e-mail me: graemejsmith1 @ btinternet.com Reply

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Bishops Stortford to Spellbrook and beyond - birds Full Post View | List View

BIRD JOURNAL AND PHOTOS

28th - 31st August 2008

Links:

Sunday, 31st August 08:

Wasp Spider - Argiope Bruennichi
The superb Wasp Spider Argiope Bruennichi (Female)
The length of this spider (tip of abdomen to 'nose) was around 15mm or 3/5inch (not including legs) making it massive in my book!
A lifer for me... and still not too common in Herts

Stortford Park Farm:

Today's mission was an insect-hunt with zoology student (and all-round star) Sarah... unfortunately we got utterly soaked in the thunderstorm, but managed to fit in a few sightings. Odd thing was that our great find-of-the-day had EIGHT legs and therefore didn't qualify!

  • 22-spot Ladybird 1
  • Pine Ladybird 7
  • Wasp Spider 1 - Female. A lifer.
  • [Pterostichus Madidus - a beetle]?
  • Meadow Grasshopper
  • Smooth Newt (i think) 2
  • Hawthorn, Green and Nymph Sheildbugs
  • Xanthogramma pedisequum - hoverfly (thanks to Colin for correct ID)
Smooth Newt - in hand showing true sizeXanthogramma pedisequum  - female SPF
Smooth Newt and hoverfly Xanthogramma pedisequum

Saturday, 30th August 08:

Light EmeraldMother of PearlSilver Y - showing hindwingsDouble-striped Pug - reading the paper
Light Emerald, Mother of Pearl, Silver Y and Double-striped Pug

Honeysuckle Close:

In the trap tonight

  • Marbled Beauty 2
  • Silver Y 1
  • Double-striped Pug 1 (Thanks to Herts Moth Group for this ID)
  • Square-spot Rustic 5
  • Mother of Pearl 1
  • Green Carpet 1
  • Light Emerald 1
Double-striped Pug
Double-striped Pug - showing a little more detail (both the same specimen)

Friday, 29th August 08:

long-tailed tit
I have remarkably few images of Long-tailed Tit
This one was taken on wednesday along the r. Stort

on way to IKEA with toothache :-(

  • Kestrel 1
  • Sparrowhawk 1
  • Grey Heron 1
A poor list considering the distance but my tooth was driving me to distraction.
feeling a bit sorry for myself but have an appointment to get offending tooth removed on Monday. Field trips should resume then.... but for now mostly moths i'm afraid.

Leaden Roding:

Poker Game Intruders!

Old Lady
Old Lady
.
Square-spot Rusticcommon wainscot
Square-spot Rustic, Common Wainscot
.
Small Square-spotAngle Shades
Small Square-spot, Angle Shades
.
Also noted (but no photos): [Spectacle]?, White Plume
Thursday 4 September 2008 - 10:21PM (BST) Permanent Link | 0 Comments
25th - 28th August 2008

Thursday, 28th August 08:

Stortford Park Farm from 1900 Hrs:

EAST:

  • Goldfinch 19 - mostly juvs
  • Spotted Flycatcher 3
  • Chiffchaff 2
  • Jay 2
  • Great Spotted Woodpecker 1 juvenile
  • Green Woodpecker 1 Juvenile

WEST:

  • Grey Heron 1 - over north-east
  • yellowhammer 1
  • whitethroat 1

Wednesday, 27th August 08:

Spotted Flycatcher - Juvenile moulting to 1st winter side onSpotted Flycatcher - Juvenile
Juvenile Spotted Flycatchers today on the Stort

River Stort (around Pig Lane Lock):

  • Kingfisher 1
  • Blackcap 1 - singing male
  • Chiffchaff 15+(8+ moving south with large flock of Blue, Long-tailed and great tits, 1 singing, 4, 2)
  • Treecreeper 1
  • Coot 1
  • Swallow c.20 - resident from nearby farm? Never left the scene during my stay
  • Whitethroat 2 - just south-west of metal footbridge
  • Blue tit c.25(++)...............\
  • Long-tailed Tit c.40(++).....} all together in one flock
  • Great Tit 15(+)................./
  • Spotted Flycatcher 5 (3 Juveniles) - breeding at exactly the same location as last year?
  • Bullfinch 1 - calling
  • Green-veined white 9
  • Small White 2................... and another 10, or so, which may have been either Small OR G-V White

Tuesday, 26th August 08:

orange swift
Orange Swift

Stortford Park Farm (west):

  • Lesser Black-backed Gull 1 - south-east
  • Sparrowhawk 1 - seen hunting on both sides of the bypass
  • Cormorant 4 - south-east
burnished brassburnished brass - head on
Burnished Brass

Monday, 25th August 08:

marbled beauty
a wonderfully patterned Marbled Beauty

Fishers Green (a stroll around 70 Acre lake with Kate and Finn):

lots of:

Tufted Duck, Coot, Mute Swan, Canada Goose,

Black Headed Gull, Cormorant, Great Crested Grebe

a few scribbles in my notebook:

  • Swallow 30+ south
  • House Martin 18 south
  • Greylag 2
  • Common Tern 4 (2 Adults, 2 1st yrs)
  • Pochard 2
  • Little Grebe 1
  • Chiffchaff 7 - 3 singing birds

Stortford Park Farm (east) East-edge pond with MH:

  • Spotted Flycatchers 0
  • Phyllo's 2 - calling but not seen
  • House Martin 4(5)
  • Swallow c.15
  • Moorhen 3 juvs doing well
agriphila tristella
(agriphila tristella)?
Tuesday 2 September 2008 - 08:43PM (BST) Permanent Link | 0 Comments
21st-24th August 2008

Sunday, 24th August 08:

flesh fly - or one of exceptionally similar sp
Another moth trap 'intruder'... this time a Flesh Fly

Trims Green (1000 - 1115 hrs)

  • Black-Headed Gull 37 (20 1st winters)
  • Lesser Black-backed Gull 6 (1 1st win, 1 ad, 4 sub-ad)
  • Canada Goose 16
  • Greylag 1
  • goldfinch c.15
  • House Sparrow 7
  • GREENFINCH 150-200 coming down to the north west edge of the borage field TL 450 188
  • Jackdaw c.20
  • Rook c.100

Stortford Park Farm (east) East Pond:

  • Spotted Flycatcher 3
  • Chiffchaff 3

Stortford Park Farm (west) Across bypass:

  • Grey Partridge 3
  • Lesser Black-backed Gull 13 south (5, 8)

willow beauty
A regular catch... a Willow Beauty

Saturday, 23rd August 08:

brimstone
brimstone

Hatfield Forest (a quick walk around with PH)

Minimums:

  • Small White 5
  • Green Veined White 8
  • Peacock 7
  • Red Admiral 6
  • Painted Lady 1
  • Meadow Brown 8
  • Gatekeeper 4 (many less than last week)
  • Brimstone 2 - females
  • Speckled Wood c.10 lots of these about today
  • Skipper sp. 1

    No Commas, Ringlets or Small Toirtoiseshells today tho

also:

  • Spotted Flycatcher - along butterfly transect
  • Blackcap 1 male still singing
  • Chiffchaff 2 singers
  • Canada goose 44

Storford Park Farm (East):

  • Spotted Flycatcher 3 - Still hanging about
  • Chiffchaff 5
  • Tawny Owl feathers left again under trees beside pond
  • Green Woodpecker 1 juvenile
  • Moorhen - 3 juvs still alive and kicking

Storford Park Farm (West):

  • Great Spotted Woodpecker - alarming almost continuously from the wood, South
  • Yellowhammer 5 (3 adult males)
  • Stockdove 1
  • Little Owl pellets at usual roundabout
  • Linnet 0 - usually I'd expect 5+ birds present
great crested grebe - 23rd aug 08
An adult Great Crested Grebe on Hatfield Forest NT Lake

Friday, 22nd August 08:

Spotted Flycatcher - video clips

Stortford Park Farm (east pond):

  • Spotted Flycatcher 7 - Favouring the bushes [Hawthorn] overhanging water AND fence

Hatfield Forest:

  • Goshawk 2 - over south. Adult and Juv. (prob both female)
  • Chiffchaff 1 - still singing
  • Tufted Duck 0
  • Greylag 0
  • Canada Goose 20+
  • Bullfinch

butterflies on the cafe buddleja:

  • Painted Lady 1
  • Green-Veined White 4
  • Small Tortoiseshell 1
  • Peacock 4
  • Red Admiral 5
  • Small White 2
  • Gatekeeper 1 (nearby)

Thursday, 21st August 08:

spotted flycatcher - spf 21st aug 08 (3)
spotted flycatcher - spf 21st aug 08spotted flycatcher - spf 21st aug 08 (2)
Spotted Flycatcher

Stortford Park Farm (east pond):

  • Spotted Flycatcher 3 - Still favouring the bushes overhanging water
Wednesday 27 August 2008 - 12:49AM (BST) Permanent Link | 0 Comments
16th - 20th August 2008

Wednesday, 20th August 08:

spotted flycatcher - spf 21st aug 08 (1)
Spotted Flycatcher

Stortford Park Farm (the pond on the east edge of grounds):

  • Spotted Flycatcher 3 - Showing off above the water
  • Moorhen - Have somehow managed to hide the presence of a 3rd chick
  • Willow Warbler 5
  • Tawny Owl feather below the dead tree

Tuesday, 19th August 08:

Trims Green

Morris Farm/Rhino fisheries entrance:

  • Linnet 4
  • Goldfinch c.25
  • Lesser Black-Backed Gull 9
  • Swallow 4
  • House Sparrow 2

Blounts Farm:

  • Swallow 13
  • Kestrel 1 - a tatty, moulting adult male
  • Greenfinch 30
  • Goldfinch 3
  • Linnet 2
  • Stockdove 1

Mathams Pit:

  • Bullfinch 5 (3, 2)
  • Muntjac 1
  • Goldfinch 3
  • Mallard 12 [2 female, 2 eclipse male, 8 juvenile (2 'old' brood, 6 'new')
  • Tufted Duck 12
  • Wren 2
  • Yellowhammer 2 - One was a male carrying food.
  • Swift 7 - stopped to feed for a while and left South
  • House Martin c.40-45 - Most filtered north towards Stortford
  • Lesser Black-Backed Gull 3 - Two flew straight over South -East, while another heading in the same direction stopped for a wash.
  • Black-Headed Gull 1
  • Coot 5
  • Little Grebe 1
  • Moorhen 3 - 1 juvenile
  • Speckled Wood 1
  • Stockdove 2
  • Starling 2
  • Greenfinch 6

Michaels Mead Pond (Southern Park):

  • Green-Veined White 1
  • Bullfinch 1
  • Goldfinch 18

Monday, 18th August 08:

copper underwing - below
copper underwing - above
Copper Underwing

Blounts Farm:

  • Swallow 15+ locals
  • Linnet c.25
  • Greenfinch 18 - mostly juvs
  • House Sparrow 2
  • Lesser Whitethroat 1 - with food

Trims Green:

  • stockdove 5
  • Black-Headed Gull 52
  • Lesser Black-Backed Gull 32 (28 on fields and 4 over south-west)
  • YELLOW-LEGGED GULL 1 ADULT Sharing northern field with LBBGulls
  • Kestrel 1
  • Whitethroat 1
  • Goldfinch 12+
  • Linnet c.20
  • Corn Bunting 1 (hanging around Morris Farm entrance gate but no song today)
  • Yellow Wagtail 2
  • WHEATEAR 1 - on the black pile for a few seconds
  • House Sparrow c.20 beside new farm buildings is a site record for me
  • Hare 2

Sunday, 17th August 08:

vine weevil - on my arm
Vine Weevil
It's not just moths i get in the moth trap... there's always a few intruders, too

Stortford Park Farm (west):

  • Green Woodpecker 3
  • Stockdove 2 - over West
  • HOBBY 2 - catching insects over Stocking Wood
  • Kestrel 1 - male
  • Grey Heron 1 - over South
  • Lesser Black-Backed Gull 7 (5 South-East, 2 South)
  • Little Owl - A few more feathers for my collection beneath favoured perches
  • Linnet 1 - usually many more
  • Yellowhammer 0 - I usually get a few

Saturday, 16th August 08:


Hatfield Forest:

Stort Valley Wild butterfly outing

A walk along one of the butterfly survey walks with a good number of species (15 i think)

Details/Photos/Species noted:

http://hornbeam.proboards102.com/index.cgi?board=insects&action=display&threa...

My highlights:

  • Common Blue - unbeleivably my first of the year!
  • Painted Lady - only a single on the large Buddleja Davidii beside the shell house.
  • Common Lizard 2 - My 2nd and 3rd record of this species.
Tuesday 26 August 2008 - 10:01PM (BST) Permanent Link | 0 Comments
12th - 15th August 2008

Friday, 15th August 08:

orange swift - pretending to be dead
Orange Swift - in the trap tonight.
When this species feels threatened it will just keel over and pretent to be dead!

Hayter, spellbrook (west):

  • Kestrel 1 - hunting north field

Thursday, 14th august 08:

GREEN CARPET
Green Carpet

Hayter, spellbrook (west):

  • Muntjac 1 - walked infront of us (SE) for the whole length of north field giving super views for a few mins
  • Bullfinch 11 (12) - (hayter 2, stort R. 5 [2,3], Honeysuckle Cl. 2, SPF 2[3])
  • Long-Tailed Tit 57 \
  • Blue Tit 22 / together in the same flock crossing the stort

Wednesday, 13th august 08:

a juvenile great spotted woodpecker posing infront of the hayter offices today

hayter, spellbrook (west):

  • swift 1 - over south
  • painted lady 1 - disturbed from nettles

Tuesday, 12th august 08:

digiscoping rainbow with mobile phone!
mobile phone digiscoping example stort park farm

spellbrook (1610 hrs):

  • swift 5 - south

stortford park farm (west):

thunder, rain and a double rainbow

  • linnet 3
  • yellowhammer 3
  • black-headed gull 9 - over east
  • lesser black-backed gull 1 - south

stortford park farm (east):

  • moorhen 4 - 2 tiny young still present
  • sparrowhawk 1 - immature male giving me ample time to ogle plumage through scope in great light... shame i didn't bring my camera (knackered or not!)
Monday 18 August 2008 - 12:30AM (BST) Permanent Link | 0 Comments

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