Weather like today often brings in large numbers of black terns and with the lovely bird mentioned by Bob in his last post I had high hopes, despite Bobs suggestion at the end of yesterday that it was still a bit early in the year… so when I opened up I suppose I shouldn’t have been too disappointed that there weren’t any, not even the bird that had been around the last couple of days!
So I was grateful to David for sending this picture of yesterdays black tern, as well as one of the little gull which was at least still here today!
Black tern by David Stanley-Ward
Little gull by David Stanley-Ward
What there was, apart from the little gull, was a large number of sand martins, house martins and a good number of swifts – the first I’ve seen this year. Talking of firsts the sunshine of Wednesday seems along time ago today but I also saw my first large red damselfly of the year then – not at Blashford but actually on my way back here from our head office near Botley where it alighted on the grass by the small pond there when I was passing.
Keeping with the bee theme from Bobs last post here is a red-tailed bumble bee nectaring on ground ivy, sent in by Andy:
red tailed bumble bee by Andy Copleston
Woodland Hide is definitely getting quieter this week – Bobs male brambling doesn’t seem to have hung around but there was a female out there today, and there are still a few siskin. Finally a selection of common Blashford birds taken and sent in during the last fortnight by Adrian Moore:
Wren by Adrian Moore
Long tailed tit by Adrian Moore
Pochard by Adrian Moore
Blashford Lakes Nature Reserve 