A morning walk to East Park. Mostly cloudy, mild and breezy, with a chance of sunny spells in the early morning. As I passed by the aggregates company I saw they had removed some of the mountain of aggregates covered in flowers, making a cliff, which made me think of Sand Martins and Bee-eaters (which are breeding in N Norfolk). I don't think the cliff, or hill, are going to last long enough, but it was a nice thought.
Aggregate hill and cliff.
A sunny spell as I arrived at Rockford Fields encouraged me to take a detour and make a butterfly list. I checked a skipper, turning to take a face on photo to check it's antennae underwings and had a lovely surprise, black tips! an Essex Skipper, my 1st in Hull! also Ringlets, Small Skipper, Small Tortoiseshell, Red Admiral, Green-Veined White and Small white.
Essex Skipper.
This Small Tortoiseshell shivered its wings while sitting on the grass.
A ball of Pisaura mirabilis spiderlings.
Small Skipper.
Two Treecreepers and a singing Goldcrest in the shrubbery.
One of the three returned Black-headed Gulls.
A passage of Swifts, with about 20 flying around the lake, drinking. Some failed to drink and circled around.Two visible terrapins, one a Cooter.
Common Blue Damselfly.
Three adult Great Crested Grebes, but chicks being brooded on nest, out of sight.
A relatively short visit to East Park, little Odonata activity due to weather, but really interesting nonetheless. 1st a UK ringed Greylag! CCS green, will report on origin. Looks like a yearling bird. My 1st ringed greylag in Hull, a different one to Lesley Longworth's.
On the way back, on Stoneferry area, 2 Buzzards mobbed by Lesser Black-backed gulls drifted past, then a Peregrine came to check them out. Not a pleasant area to walk, but it is great for raptors, with Kestrel earlier too, maybe they follow the river.I almost got the three raptors in the same shot!
A very nice way to finish the walk.
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