Figham Common with Hull Nats

A warm day with barely a breeze, it was great to record insect along the river Hull and the drain and common. The common was very dry and there was no pooled water. I had taken a bus to Beverley and walked along Beverley Beck and then south along the river Hull. At the end of the beck, I hear and then see a juvenile Peregrine chasing an adult which seemed to be carrying something in its bill. The Minster family in Peregrine school mode. A patch of Himalayan Balsam dampened my excitement. It really has been a long time since I've visited Figham, and the previous time was during my walk along the River Hull in 2017, but that was in Marsh, when the main interest is birds. The marginal vegetation is flourishing in a narrow belt along the river, where the cows and horses of the common can't reach. At the other side, there is a Reedbed, from where Reed Buntings and Reed Warblers sing. The river looks placid and inviting, its waters transparent and I can see plenty of fish. A big surprise is a Common Tern, which I see in the morning and then in the afternoon. It stays only long enough to catch a fish and then fly westwards. I can only think of Common Terns nesting at North Cave wetlands west of Figham, but this is 19 km away! I meet up with the Hull Nats group at Woodmansey after lunch and then we explore the common, walk upstream by the river and return south along the west shore of the Barmston drain.

Beverley Beck

Moorhen and Yellow Water lilies at the Beck.

The Barmston drain at its crossing with the beck. The drain is channelled under the Beck.

A boat at a dry dock at the Beck.

Peregrine juvenile and adult.

Patch of Himalayan Balsam at the river Hull.

The River Hull.

Barmston Drain.

A Black-headed Gull adult and a juvenile rest on the floodbank.

One of a pair of Oystercatchers over.

Buzzard.

A peak flowering River Water-dropwort.

Curlew over.

Common Tern with just caught fish.

A very rushy section of the common.

Butterflies

I recorded 16 species of butterflies on the wing, many nectaring on the abundant thistles, other salting or egg laying. The hedges along the Barmston Drain were especially productive. Many Peacocks, Red Admirals and Painted ladies were fresh, just emerged for the summer generation. 

Comma.

Red Admiral

Small Skipper.

A Painted Lady basking on a cowpat.

Small Whites salting at the bottom of a dry ditch.

And not far off, Green-veined Whites.

A Small Copper on Ragwort.

A few very fresh Peacocks of the summer generation were about.

Dragonflies and Damselflies

Red-eyed Damselflies were plentiful at the Beck. But, once on the river, Banded Demoiselles where the stars of the show, with small groups of males chasing females along the shore. Although the river is still tidal here, the water is fresh and this is demonstrated by the abundance of marginal plants, fish and dragonflies.  

Red-eyed Damselfly at the Beck.

Male Banded Demoiselle.

Female Banded Demoiselle.

Male Emperor Dragonfly patrolling along the river shore.

We watched as this femaleBanded Demoiselle dived underwater to lay eggs in the vegetation.

While we were watching the egg-laying demoiselle, this female Southern Hawker did some astounding behaviour,it propelled itself against the water and somersaulted up, only to repeat the performace a few times before flying away. Apparently they may do this to cool down, although it looks like quite a risky behaviour too!

Back at the drain, two Brown Hawker females egg layed near each other ona floating log.

Southern Hawker.

Robin Pincushion.

Strensall Common with Hull Nats

A warm and humid day with welcome, scattered clouds. We start our walk from the railway line crossing car park. There are several clumps of creeping thistle buzzing with insects, including a diverse cast of butterflies. The common is very dry, we walk on two board walks over a parched landscape, which was probably wet in the winter. An area shows the signs of fire, black ground, birches and pines with the purple moorgrass sprouting, two paths appear to have acted as firebreakers. I stand on the path and point the bat detector to the burnt area: silence. I turn round and point at the chugging calls of the Bog Bush crickets on the other non burnt side.

Small Skipper.

Meadow Brown.

Large White.

Large Skipper.

Comma.

There is a ditch with tussocks of Purple Moorgrass by the car park. I have a look before we all assemble and quickly find a Long-winged Conehead nymph and a Bog Bush Cricket. There are also Common Green and Meadow Brown Grasshoppers. My bat detector allows me to hear the reeling of a Roesel's and chugging of Bog Bush-crickets.

Long-winged Conehead nymph.

Bog Bush-cricket.

Meadow Grasshopper.

Female Bog Bush-cricket.

Sandy coloured Bog Bush cricket female.

We are lucky enough to witness a female Bog Bush-cricket nymph moulting. The whole process is quite fast. The next three photos illustrate it.

Moulting Bog Bush-cricket.

We are moving very slowly indeed and we reach the following car park after an hour and a half. There the heath is under open woodland and there seems to be more nymphs than adults, in large numbers. I stop trying to record each Bog Bush-cricket I see. This one got its antennae entangled and was trying to sort them out.

Female nymph Bog Bush-cricket.

Lesser Spearwort.

Round-leaved Sundew.

Eyed Ladybird, netted by Bill Dolling.

We move onto Worlds End Wood, where we go to a large pond. An Emperor lands on a birch during a cloudy spell. 

Four spotted chaser.

Labyrinth Spider.

Brown Hawker ovipositing.

Ruddy Darter.

Emerald Damselfly.

Large Red Damselfly.

A Bog Bush-cricket male by the pond. I found they were singing even from bracken areas with Molinia underneath.

Mottled Grasshopper.

An unfortunate Common Green Grasshopper fallen prey to a Labyrinth spider.

Common Green Grasshopper is plentiful around the common, here on a sandy path.

It was very quiet on the bird front. Of note were some fledgling Stonechats on the large bracken patch and a Reed Bunting.

Stonechat juvenile.

Reed Bunting.