The jewels of July

I love July, as the woods of South Northants come alive! This year though the weather has had a real impact with June and the beginning of July horrendously wet.

Finally however, the last 10 days or so have seen a bit of long awaited summer, with temperatures in the 30s. In turn, I've finally been able to get out and find some things! I was really looking forward to trying to find some Purple Emperors locally again this year after a lean year last year. Thankfully, on Sunday 17/07, I had a free day with the weather fare. Off to Bucknell Wood I went!

I made my way to one of the best areas and I hadn't been walking too long before I caught sight of a Purple Emperor, as it flew away from me strongly along the path! I of course, zoomed off after it, getting a rather bemused look from a passing dog walker! I was in luck too, as reaching the path crossroads the emperor had come down onto a large dollop of horse dung. Result!
It stuck around for a little while before zooming off again, however over the next little while, it appeared several times, allowing some great views.

Later on in the day I also got onto a female flying around a lone oak for quite some time. It began to show some interest in something which, when looking through the bins, I realised was a mating pair of emperors too. Wowee! The intruding female tried muscling in on 'proceedings', however after a minute or so departed. All really exciting and cool to witness these two securing the 2017 generation of Bucknell emperors!

White-Letter Hairstreaks are pretty scarce in Bucknell and a tricky butterfly to see up close at the best of times, spending most of their time lurking in the treetops. During the last couple of weeks however, I've been lucky enough to have had several closer encounters with butterflies coming down to nectar on brambles in the evenings.

As usual, Silver-Washed Fritillaries are numerous, together with a few stunning Valezina forms drawing in quite a few admirers!

Aside from the butterflies, I've had some frequent and enjoyable encounters with Foxes, both cubs and adults, often at pretty close quarters.

Slow Worms are probably quite common in Bucknell Wood, however aren't easy to see. On the evening of the 14/07 however, I got lucky with a huge, docile one sat in  the middle of the path. A cautious approach allowed me to get up super close.

It's been encouraging to see several Spotted Flycatcher territories this year in Bucknell, with at least 4 seen but almost certainly more. Also on the morning of the 14/07, a vocal male Crossbill made a welcome appearance, my first in Bucknell for a good couple of years.

White Letter Day

Sunday (03/07) appeared to finally be a day without rain, following a horribly wet 2-3 weeks. The day began at an eye-watering 5am, to carry out the last installment of breeding bird survey in the Upper Cherwell Valley near Banbury, together with Gareth Blockley.

Despite the shock of the early start, I really enjoyed myself. The highlight was in fact not bird related as I stumbled across 18 Bee Orchids, a Pyramidal Orchid and an insane amount of Kidney Vetch, more than I've ever seen before!

On the bird front it was fairly quiet with a Common Sand & 4 Common Tern on Grimsbury Res, while the survey produced 4 Lesser Whitethroat, singing Reed Warbler, juvenile Sedge Warbler and great numbers of juvenile Whitethroat. Six Marbled White were also seen in the early morning sun.

Afterwards, Gareth and I gave Bucknell Wood, near Silverstone a go for butterflies. July really is a great time in Bucknell with plenty of interest. It was particularly pleasing to see my first White Letter Hairstreaks of the year. We found 3 in total, sunning themselves on the treetops, occasionally having a brief fly about before settling again.

There were also at least 5 very smart male Silver Washed Fritillaries about, though one was already looking pretty ragged, presumably having caught itself on a bramble. Several Wood White were still around with at least 11 and a couple of Red Admiral made an appearance too. Still surprisingly no White Admiral, nor were there any Purple Emperors as yet also. A Spotted Flycatcher was nice and the only bird of note.

We finished our day at Whitecross Green Wood south of Bicester, to have a go for Black Hairstreak. It was near the end of their flight period, however we were hoping we may catch one or two.

We took quite a long walk to the pond area and after a bit of a search had a probable flying around an ash tree, followed by decent views of one that dropped in front of us for a minute or so, before zooming off into some nearby blackthorn...result!
It appeared to be a really well-managed site, with tonnes of Marbled White along the flower-rich tracks and loads of Common Spotted Orchids, now mostly gone over. They must look pretty spectacular when at their peak. A couple of Silver Washed Frits also made appearances. The super early start was then catching up with us so we headed home.  

Poland Part TWO: Biebrza Marshes

Day 5: Thursday 02/06 continued...

So we reluctantly left Bialowieza after a spectacular few days, however there was still so much to look forward! On the way to the marshes, we had two stops, both at water bodies , with the prospect of a few nice things.

First up was a visit to Dojlidy fishponds, on the edge of Bialystok, basked in bright sunshine and dominated by the raucous sounds of a large Black Headed Gull colony. It was a very breezy day, however it didn't prevent us seeing some great stuff. Initial highlights included breeding Black Necked & Red Necked Grebes, an unexpected pair of Whooper Swan with cygnets and a couple of female Goldeneye.





A Bittern began booming from the reedbed further along the path and we were lucky to gain a couple of nice flight views, particularly Dan who had it fly up from next to the path, no more than 10 feet away from him! Other things along here included calling Penduline Tit, a few Bearded Tits, singing Savi's Warbler, a few singing Reed Warbler (the first of the trip) and several Marsh Harriers.

Towards the end of the path we discovered a Penduline Tit nest, but sadly with no current inhabitants. A Hobby appeared briefly and we were then treated to of a colossal adult White Tailed Eagle, harassed by a Marsh Harrier. After a while, the eagle briefly shrugged off the harrier before swooping down and plucking a fish from the far side of the lake in front of us! Sensational scenes! The first time Dan & I had seen them do this, so a real highlight for us (half decent video below).

After a very enjoyable visit, we moved on further north to another fishpond complex some 25 minutes from our accommodation near the small town of Goniadz. The complex proved brilliant last year for waders with Dan and co enjoying both Broad-Billed & Terek Sandpipers. It was, therefore well worth a go!

The conditions on this occasion, were not quite as good, however still produced quite a few waders including 2 summer plumaged Spotted Redshank, Greenshank, Wood, Green & Common Sandpipers, Ruff, several LRP, Ringed Plover & Greenshank.

A kettle of several Buzzard appeared overhead and amongst them was a very welcome bird in the shape of my first Black Stork. Very nice indeed!

Also here were a couple of brief Turtle Doves, a Hoopoe, several Blue Headed Wagtails, Garganey, White Stork and a few Greylag Geese. The reedy areas also produced a nice variety of acros with Reed, Great Reed, Marsh & Sedge Warblers.

It was late afternoon and we decided it was time to find our accommodation near Goniadz. Before we did so, we gave an apparently reliable Greenish Warbler site a go. This proved successful with us soon hearing a single singing male, however we failed to get any views. Knowing we could give the place a go each day we were there, we moved on to find our guest house. It took us a while to find, however a lovely local couple pointed us in the right direction, despite a substantial language barrier!

We grabbed a bit of food from a shop in Goniadz for an on-the-go dinner and then headed down the Tsar road to Barwik, formerly THE place for Great Snipe. Sadly,  the habitat is no longer suitable, being too dry, however it was still well worth a look.

It was a lovely clear evening and sunset and hence the mozzies were out in force, almost unbearable at times! Thank god I brought my deet with me! The birds here though just about managed to distract us enough! The main highlight was the number of waterbirds heading over to roost, with 6 Cranes, 2 and then 5 Black Storks and in excess of 100 Great White Egrets. Amazing sight! Several Woodcocks were also doing their rounds and at least 2 Grasshopper Warblers were reeling away nearby. On the way back, the Tsar road, apparently good for mammals produced nothing.

Day 6: Friday 03/06

An earlyish start began our first full day in the marshes and for me, proved to be one of the best!

It began back in Goniadz for another try at Greenish Warbler. Again we were able to quickly locate a singing male, possibly two and this time, we were all able to gain some views for a short while, as one sang high up in a nearby tree. Unfortunately, we were unable to gain any photos as it moved on towards an inaccessible area. I did though manage a decent recording of it's song here: http://www.xeno-canto.org/320976  

We took a drive towards a place called Kapice a little way to the NW. On the way, we had views of a pair of distant Hen Harrier and a female Goosander with several ducklings. Near the village of Przechody, it got exciting! Gareth got onto a Ortolan Bunting singing distantly on the edge of some forest. I was really chuffed with this as I thought the chance of catching one on the trip had gone. We parked up and went for a closer look getting some lovely scope views as it projected it's rather sad song.





A Redstart appeared here too, before we headed back to the car. I then happened to look up to see a high-flying raptor above our heads. Oh yes, Honey Buzzard!! Such a bogey bird for me for so long and so I was understandably buzzing, as I watched it slowly get higher and higher and out of sight. We barely had time to catch our breath as firstly my first ever Tawny Pipit pearched up on a nearby wire fence and a gorgeous male Montagu's Harrier appeared right next to the road and began hunting super closeby affording some mega views. This was madness...what a spot this was!







So the day was going rather well indeed! We carried on towards Kapice and parked up here for a look along a track for eagles. This general area was pretty awesome for butterflies and I soon changed from looking up, to down! It was exciting to see several new ones for me here including Glanville & False Heath Fritillaries, Large Heath and a probable Pale Clouded Yellow that zoomed past me in classic Clouded Yellow style! Birds here consisted of Red Backed and Great Grey Shrikes, while Dan had views of Lesser Spotted Eagle.







The marshes just east of a village called Mscichy were next, some 30 minutes away. This is an excellent area for a range of marshland species and was to be our best chance yet of catching up with a Bluethroat, a bird that I rather shamefully had yet to see, but one I have desperately wanted to see from a young age. Usual excuses really...I always seemed to be away or busy whenever one had stuck around anywhere but hey...here I was possibly about to see one on it's breeding grounds and not 100's of miles off course. A far more positive situation!

On the way, Dan spotted a magnificent male Elk coming right out of the forest to the roadside verge! Bugger, Gareth & I were unfortunately were looking ahead and missed it as it ducked back into the trees. We turned around and parked up for a look. After a short look it was seen briefly by all of us as it shot off through the forest and was not seen again.

A short while later, we arrived at the marshes and parked up in an area Dan had seen Bluethroat last year and grabbed a quick bit of food. I of course, scoffed this down and began looking around. I soon found a likely little area a short way off the track and was so excited to quickly find myself a gorgeous white-spotted Bluethroat at the top of some willow scrub, singing away. Yes, yes, YES! I managed to get a little closer and just sat among a load of Early Marsh Orchids and enjoyed the spectacle with the sound of a couple of closeby bugling Cranes in the background. Just amazing!





Having had my fill of Bluethroat, we carried on along the track to the end where a watchtower stood, enjoying good views of Whinchat along the way. A look from here produced a good variety of stuff despite the fact the marshes were looking worryingly dry. Highlights here included a maximum of 10 Black Stork in the air at once (!), a couple of distant Elk, Lesser Spotted & White Tailed Eagles, White Storks, very distant Montagu's Harrier, Great White Egrets & Hooded Crow.







The last part of the day was dedicated to visiting the Dluga Luka boardwalk, one of the best places in the world to see the scarce and endearing Aquatic Warbler, the last of our planned targets. We stopped a mile or so before Dluga Luka for a look from a watchtower overlooking the vast area of marsh. Bird-wise, there wasn't all that much to see here, just a drumming Snipe, however the small area at the base of the tower was alive with wildlife with an amazing display of Blue Cow-wheat, as well as my first ever Chequered Skipper...bonus!





Aquatic Warblers have a habit of singing more early morning and particularly in the evening, so arriving at Dluga Luka at about 5 o'clock was about spot on.





The boardwalk was great and we were lucky to have views of several singing male Aquatic Warbler with one in particular, coming amazingly close for a short while, inching to the top of a nearby reed, letting out its lazy song.

Other highlights were a number of Early Marsh Orchids (including the rare Ochrantha variant), several Large Heaths and the sight of Dan not once, but TWICE managing to fall off the boardwalk and into the marsh. What a brilliant day that was!

Day 7: Saturday 04/06

Saturday was our last full day in the marshes and of the trip. It was to be a very early start to enjoy the marshes near Mscichy again at first light.

The Bluethroats were a little more active and again performed well, although unfortunately, the light was not as good as hoped. I also had brief views of a presumed Lesser Spotted Eagle.

We drove on, to the watchtower. Before we arrived there, we were treated to a brilliant and unexpected distraction as a lovely pair of Citrine Wagtail appeared on the track, with the male in particular, showing fabulously well for some time.

Birds from the watchtower included views of a single White Tailed Eagle, Willow Tit, Great White Egret, Hooded Crow, Raven, several Marsh Harrier, White Stork & singing Savi's Warbler & Golden Oriole. Driving back down the track we were caught unawares by a Honey Buzzard that flew up from the side of the track, circled a couple of times and then disappeared. Very nice!

By mid-morning, it was time to move on so headed back towards Goniadz for some food and another try for views of Greenish Warbler. No views, however more song was heard.

After some food and a bit of deliberation, we decided to give the fishponds north of Bialystok another go for waders, especially with a few showers forecasted.



On arrival, singles of both Black & Whiskered Terns were flying around, however soon vanished. A nice Bluethroat also showed well a couple of times which was cool. The waders present were pretty much the same as our previous visit with a couple of Spotted Redshank, LRP, Wood & Green Sandpiper & Ruff.





Other birds present included a Hoopoe, a Caspian Gull, White Stork, Garganey, Marsh Warbler, Great Read Warbler & Blue Headed Wagtail. We decided next to move on to a new area the other side of Goniadz, but before we left we were treated to views of a tustling pair of White Tailed Eagles overhead.





We then took a drive around the SE corner of the marshes. We stopped at an interesting looking dry heathland habitat near to the village of Piaski. It looked great for Tawny Pipit and was well worth a look.





Nice views of a Red Backed Shrike were had initially, while also present were Blue-Headed Wagtail & a Glanville Fritillary.



Dan, swiftly followed by myself and Gareth, then got onto an interesting looking raptor. Straight away it was a Buteo-type bird and very striking, with white flashes on the upper wing and obvious pale tale with coffee coloured tale band. Due to the distance, it was difficult to gauge any idea on it's size, however it was very interesting to say the least. We rattled off a few record shots before it slowly circled off out of view.





Dan had a bit of a hunch and back at the car suggested Long-Legged Buzzard, having taken a bit of a look at the literature we had to hand. Looking at this too I must say it was looking really good. Later on, having consulted several people it appeared we had indeed discovered our very own Long Legged Buzzard...incredible!! This is a species of eastern origin, and are a rare bird in Poland, however occur almost annually. Our bird appears to have been part of a mini influx too with another two individuals seen in Southern Poland the same day. 

Unbeknown at the time, of the enormity of what we had just seen, we decided to go back to Dluga Luka for seconds on the Aquatics, with the weather again clear and bright. We were immediately greeted by a stonking red Common Rosefinch singing it's heart out. We enjoyed views of a handful of Aquatic Warblers and was definitely well worth the visit again.



Walking back down the boardwalk we were then treated to, for me, one of my highlights of the trip. The site has a sprinkling of Large Heath butterflies about and when another butterfly flew past me, I assumed it was the same. It was though, a bloody stunning Large Copper, a very unexpected surprise! I have to say it is right up there with one of the most beautiful butterflies I've ever seen, with bright, blue-grey outer wing and the most vivid orange inside wing imaginable. Magic!





A quick peek at the nearby watchtower produced nothing new, other than 2-3 large Greater Butterfly Orchids.



That drew to an end our last full day of the trip and what an insanely good trip it had been! A celebration was therefore in order and after heading out in Goniadz for a tasty meal, let's just say the vodka took a bit of a hammering!

Sunday 05/06

After a bit of a late one, the previous night/morning, things had a rather sedate feel to it. We did venture out for one last blast at the Greenish Warbler again, however frustratingly not for the first time, we were limited to hearing a singing male, but no views.



After forcing a bit of food down us, we then left for Warsaw Modlin Airport. The journey was broken up by a visit to a big, sandy quarry, a site for Bee-eaters. We were lucky enough to see 2-3 birds, although the views were sadly rather distant which was a shame. A couple of Wheatear also became a late addition to the trip list here too.



Our arrival at Modlin, sadly signalled the end of our trip and the prospect of being back at work was looming!

What a spectacular place Poland had been, so wild and unspoilt in many places, just full of interest virtually wherever or whenever you stopped. The bird species list totalled 166 which is a really solid effort for a week, while mammals totalled 9.

Will I be going back...you bet I will!!