Along the Beverley and Barmston Drain at the end of May

A mild overcast day with brief sunny spells, I head for my regular walk along the urban stretch of the Beverley and Barmston Drain, starting at Barmston street bridge. Three Reed Warblers are singing, one downstream, and two upstream of the bridge. A pair of Swallows appear to have a nest under the bridge. Swifts fly over, occasionally with chases, all through the walk.

A calling Bullfinch.

Reed Warbler singing.

Looking upstream from Barmston street bridge.

There are two families of Mallard resting on the banks visible from Fountain road bridge. I also spot a Fox playing on the bank.

Three small ducklings on this one.

And five grown ones.

At the Sculcoates stretch, I watch one of the two Whitethroats males in residence singing from a wire. A Lesser Whitethroat sings alternating with a Chaffinch.

One of the coots is resting on the nest.

I take the compulsory detour to reach the next stretch with public access by Clough Road.

I need to ID this plant.

A Stock dove on an ash with holes.

Siver Ground Carpet moth.

Green-veined White.

Harlequin Ladybird.

Greenfinch singing by Beresford Avenue.

Moorhen on nest near Beverley Road.

I had to do a double take, but it was just the silver crow.

Woodpigeon just fledged.

I thought they were water vole droppings, but apparently they are Brown Rat's.

Near Greenwood Avenue, a clump of nettles had many Small Tortoiseshell caterpillars.

The second time I see this hoverfly, Parhelophilus, there were several around.

Dozens of Azure damselflies about, but no other odonata.

Several ovipositing Azure pairs.

In the stretch that curves with the path near the water, the underwater vegetation was luxurious, there were tadpoles and this large snail.

A Sparrowhawk flew onto the waterside, maybe to drink or bathe, but they it spotted me and flew off.

The first Painted Lady of the year.

And the second, further ahead by the Counter Dyke. This one has a damaged hind wing.

On the last stretch by the Counter Dyke, a male Kestrel sat on a pylon. A Buzzard soared over. A Little Egret flew up from the drain.

The Starlings were very noisy today. I spotted my first fledglings of the year. Parents and young calling each other.

Sparrow and Starling.

A very fresh Small Tortoiseshell on dandelion.

A sleepy coot brooding chicks on nest.

Stretches of grass hadn't been mowed and a flock of about 80 Starlings were feeding, no young amongst them.

On the way back I decided to take a detour to Oak Road Lake to look for the Mute Swans. 

As soon as I got there I saw the family, keen to come close to me.

Swans love clover and I often get some handfuls from the banks for them. The cygnets didn't know what to do with it, but mum and dad started pecking and eating in front of them and soon they got the gist of it.

Here the large size of the cobs 'knob' is visible. It reaches it maximum size when cygnets leave the nest. Him and the female were hissing to me occasionally.

I was amazed to see a Tetragnatha spider guarding an almost black egg sac, something I've never seen before.

These male blackbirds were strutting in front of each other on a roof, fluffed up and tails spread.

Sculcoates in May

 I take an early morning walk to Sculcoates, getting there at 7:15. On the way I notice the Greylag is brooding goslings, they must be about 3 days old now. A fledgling Stock Doves is basking on a tree, looking drabber than the adults, no metallic sheen on its neck. It's eye is paler too.

Stock Dove fledgling.

This photo is from Wednesday, when I sadly saw that the watchful pair of Lesser Black-backed gulls had got a gosling. I didn't see any other goslings, but they were probably being brooded, as the next day I saw them on the island. Crows are particularly displeased with LBBG and I often see the local crows mobbing them. It is not the adults that are at risk, but the nestlings or fledglings.

Two Whitethroats are singing by the drain, and at regular intervals, 3 Reed Warblers. One of them sings in the open

Song Thrush.

Reed Warbler.

Surprisingly Coots have 8 chicks. Several must have been roosting on the shore last time I saw the family, when only 2 chicks were visible.

Reed Warbler.

In the north cemetery, a family of Long-tailed tits is feeding on the large oak. Three of the fledglings sit close together on a branch, watching and preening.

There are some sunny spells and butterflies about. A female Orange Tip settles on a cow parsley flower, almost disappearing from view, perfectly camouflaged.

Holly Blues have been around in good numbers this week.

A Buzzard was soaring over the river. The Feral Pigeons flew around the large building in a tight flock and Carrion Crows kept a close eye.

Whitethroat singing.

I find a Fox family in a sheltered spot, enjoying the peace and quiet of the morning. The cubs were quite active, while one of the adults dozed nearby. I counted 5 foxes in total.

There is a bumper harvest of dandelions on the grassy areas. Today I was surprised to see that sparrows also enjoy their seeds.

Male House Sparrow feeding on dandelion seeds.