A Secret Rendezvous

Dunnocks enjoy (if thats the appropriate word) an interesting social lifestyle.

"menage a trois" is hardly the description for it.

Without going into all the detail here it can be gleaned from many birding sites on the Net.

Suffice to say that the male and female meeting in the images below that I shot recently was unlikely to be the only encounter the Lady had that day or the male for that matter.

An unsuitable male it would appear here as she made off.

Common Tern

Local Birding colleagues had observed Arctic Terns on one of lakes in the Parkland this last week. 

So I went searching to see if I could get some images. I have in previous years been fortunate to observe these amazing birds on the Parkland lakes. Arctic Terns have in the past used the lakes as a staging post on their long haul flight from the Antarctic to the Arctic.

Unfortunately I could only find Common Terns I believe, although I struggle to tell the difference, so I took a few shots of them. 

They will fly along the edge of the largest lake in the Parkland and dive for fish in the shallow areas.

I did catch one dive albeit somewhat late.....,

.... but it was a successful dive as you can observe from these images below.

Some of these may be Arctic Terns, but I doubt it. {:))

Green is the Colour

The Green Hairstreak Butterfly (Callophrys rubi)

Yesterday - was the earliest date that I have found the Green Hairstreak in the season.

With a wingspan of 33mm (15mm closed), green in colour on the underside (wings always closed when at rest) and favouring the green leaves and white flowers of the Hawthorn bush, its not the easiest species to find. Fortunately I always check a certain location where it is known that in the past they colonise provides some advantage. This species is the most widely distributed Hairstreak in the UK, that said it is not found everywhere, mostly in Southern England and Wales.

If you can find one pitched then they can been observed, but if disturbed they are so difficult to follow and involves some luck in keeping up with.

Interestingly it is a very dull brown on the upper wings, but you never see it and you would be very fortunate to get a good shot of it. My latest blurred effort is at the foot of this post.

Blurred image of the upper wing colour.

Meadow Pipit

The Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis) is a Summer visitor to Iceland, Scandinavia and NE Europe. It can be found all year around in UK and mainland NW Europe. It also migrates to Southern Europe in Winter. 

In keeping with its name it is a ground nester and produces two broods May to July.

I was able to shoot these images of this one in open grassland as it was moving from a fence to ground and back again. 

Spring Lambs