Butterflies, dragonflies and birds at North Cave Wetlands

What a difference to my trip two weeks ago to the wetlands. Today it was very hot, butterflies, dragonflies and grasshoppers - with many other invertebrates - were active. I saw several birds panting, and a blackbird and a sedge warbler sunbathing.

 I finally caught up with the Corn Bunting (above). As I approached the north path I heard its jingly song and flushed it. I relocated it at the top of the hedge, singing again, and managed some shots. 

There were many dragonfly species around the maize field and dragonfly ponds, of some I couldn't get a photo of, but I think I saw an Emperor Dragonfly cruising about.

There was still a Common Tern on a nest by Crosslands Hide, looking like it was turning eggs.

After the walk around the reserve it was a relief to sit on the cool south hide for lunch, and watch the diving little grebes and the constant mobbing of the Common Terns (a pair had two grown chicks on the raft) to the Black Headed gulls. A few mute swans and a lone back swan were also in Main Lake.

Meadow brown

a very battered Peacock on ragwort

Small Skipper

The youngest black headed gull chicks I saw today, on Island Lake

Young Shelduck resting

Shoveler

Avocet and chick in Island Lake

Small Tortoiseshell

Elder, rosebay willowherb and ragwort blooming by the maize field

The first silver Y of the year

Male black-tailed skimmer

Four spot chaser

A Small Tortoiseshell resting on pondweed

A distant shot of a Broad Bodied chaser

and of Mating Azure damselflies

Water lilies

Avocet chick in Reedbed lake

mystery bird

Sedge Warbler sunbathing

Speckled Wood

Great Crested Grebe 

Little Grebe Diving

Little Grebe

Reed Bunting singing on the North Hedge

Butterflies

Peacock

Small Tortoiseshell

Meadow Brown, pair mating.

Ringlet

Small Skipper

Dragonflies & damselflies

Black-tailed skimmer

Four-Spotted chaser

Broad-bodied chaser

Azure damselfly, pair mating.

Common blue damselfly

Birds

1. Avocet        
2.  Black Swan        
3.  Black-headed Gull        
4.  Blackbird        
5.  Carrion Crow        
6.  Common Tern        
7.  Coot        
8.  Cormorant        
9.  Corn Bunting        
10.  Curlew        
11.  Dunnock        
12.  Feral Pigeon        
13.  Gadwall        
14.  Goldfinch        
15.  Great Crested Grebe        
16.  Great Tit        
17.  Green Woodpecker        
18.  Greenfinch        
19.  Greylag Goose        
20.  House Martin        
21.  House Sparrow        
22.  Jackdaw        
23.  Kestrel        
24.  Lapwing        
25.  Lesser Whitethroat        
26.  Linnet        
27.  Little Grebe        
28.  Magpie        
29.  Mallard        
30.  Moorhen        
31.  Mute Swan        
32.  Oystercatcher        
33.  Pied Wagtail        
34.  Pochard        
35.  Reed Bunting        
36.  Reed Warbler        
37.  Robin        
38.  Rook        
39.  Sand Martin        
40.  Sedge Warbler        
41.  Shelduck        
42.  Shoveler        
43.  Song Thrush        
44.  Starling        
45.  Swift        
46.  Tufted Duck        
47.  Whitethroat        
48.  Woodpigeon     
49. Wren