30 Days Wild | Day 5 - stroll in the sunshine

For day 5 of 30 Days Wild I went for a stroll in the early evening sunshine as a reward for having spent the afternoon having a bit of a clearout ahead of moving house. We live in Bournville, Birmingham (currently!) where we are spoilt with numerous lovely parks. Today I walked across Rowheath playing field and did a loop around an area of rough grassland, before heading back across to Rowheath Park where I checked out some more rough grassland before finishing off with a quick look at the pond.

Over both areas of grassland there were a lot of speedy orange flutterers; without my binoculars it was hard to tell what they were but I think probably Large Skipper. I also saw a Holly Blue at the edge of Rowheath playing field and Common Blue and Green-veined White in Rowheath Park. I spotted a couple of Stock Doves and some Swifts during my walk, as well as one solitary Greylag Goose among the Canadas by the pond, unusual around here.

Here are a few photos!

Rough grassland on Rowheath playing field.

Rough grassland in Rowheath Park.

Nice area in Rowheath Park.

Common Vetch (Vicia sativa) in Rowheath Park.

Yellow-rattle (Rhinanthus minor) in Rowheath Park.

Meadow Buttercup (Ranunculus acris) in Rowheath Park.

Solitary Greylag in Rowheath Park.

30 Days Wild | Day 4 - Rowley Hills wander

Today I went on a guided walk jointly arranged by the Friends of Rowley Hills (who I am closely involved with) and Sandnats (who I would probably be involved with if I had more time/wasn't about to move to Malvern!). The day was cloudy, still and humid, but to begin with we didn't see many butterflies. However as the afternoon wore on, the temperature rose and the butterflies started to become more active. Small Heath was the species we saw the most of, and we also saw a few Common Blue, a Large Skipper, a Large White and a few Green-veined Whites. There were also a few day-flying moths about - loads of Burnet Companions and a few Latticed Heaths, and lots of Burnet (Five/Six-spot) caterpillars and chrysalises. Along with the large range of wildflowers and grasses on display, it all made for a most enjoyable walk!

Soft Brome (Bromus hordeaceus).

Goatsbeard (Tragopogon pratensis).

Bird's-foot Trefoil (Lotus corniculatus).

Common Cat's-ear (Hypochaeris radicata).

Mouse-ear Hawkweed (Hieracium pilosella).

Silver Hairgrass (Aira caryophyllea).

Yellow-rattle (Rhinanthus minor).

Tall Mouse-ear Hawkweed (Hieracium praealtum).

Lesser Trefoil (Trifolium dubium).

Burnet Companion (Euclidia glyphica).

Hard Rush (Juncus inflexus).

Red Fescue (Festuca rubra).

Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus).

Caterpillar of a Five- or Six-spot Burnet Moth.

Spheroidal weathering of dolerite (HDR).

Spheroidal weathering of dolerite (HDR).

Small Heath (Coenonympha pamphilus).

Great Lettuce (Lactuca virosa).

The Rowley Hills (HDR).

Kings Norton Nature Reserve 03/04/16

On Sunday I was back at Kings Norton Nature Reserve, wondering what new patch ticks the spring would bring me today! I saw 39 species, and one was new for me at this site, taking my patch total to 62. Today's new species wasn't the one I was expecting though....

• Having not seen a Blackcap yet this year, and after fellow KNNR patch birder Adrian told me he'd had one a few days ago, I was expecting to find one today. I expected in vain! Instead I found a Willow Warbler, my new species for the day, singing in the trees at the top end of Merecroft Pool. I think this is on the early side for this species, to see one before a Blackcap seems quite topsy-turvy to me! However I was very pleased to find it, hopefully more will appear in the coming weeks (along with some Blackcaps).
• Chiffchaff explosion! There were at least five singing this week compared to last week's two, fairly evenly spread throughout the reserve.
• Lots of Jay activity. I watched one pair determinedly chase some Magpies away for quite a while, perhaps they were too close to a potential or actual Jay nest. I also enjoyed hearing more Jay vocalisations that weren't the usual harsh RASP, including at one point mimicry of a Buzzard call.
• At least three Treecreepers singing throughout the reserve.
• Still a few Siskins about.
• Also still ten Teal sitting at the back of Wychall Reservoir, surely they'll be off soon.
• Buzzards flying at various points over the reserve; also a high flying Peregrine seen from the Merecroft Pool part of the reserve.
• Only two Tufted Ducks today on Merecroft Pool.
• Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell butterflies.

Here are a few photos from my visit. You may notice that I state the binomial name (the Latin) for each plant, that is because I am trying to learn these! :o)

Peacock butterfly.

Robin in poor light.

Bluebell (Hyacinthoides non-scripta).

Just a female Mallard, but I don't think I've ever seen one quite so high up...

Zoomed out for some context.

Variation in Lesser Celandine (Ranunculus ficaria) flowers.

Variation in Lesser Celandine (Ranunculus ficaria) flowers.

The Peafields/West Extension (HDR).

FULL BIRD LIST

Blackbird	Goldfinch	Moorhen
Blue Tit	Great Spotted Woodpecker	Nuthatch
Bullfinch	Great Tit	Peregrine
Buzzard	Greenfinch	Robin
Canada Goose	Grey Heron	Siskin
Carrion Crow	Herring Gull	Song Thrush
Chaffinch	House Sparrow	Stock Dove
Chiffchaff	Jackdaw	Teal
Coal Tit	Jay	Treecreeper
Coot	Lesser Black-backed Gull	Tufted Duck
Dunnock	Long-tailed Tit	Willow Warbler
Feral Pigeon	Magpie	Woodpigeon
Goldcrest	Mallard	Wren

Kings Norton Nature Reserve 13/03/16

Yesterday I was back at my local patch, in glorious springtime weather! It was very sunny and mild, and I really was hoping that today would be the day that I found my first Chiffchaff of the year. However it was not to be, but I didn't mind at all as three of the 36 species I saw were new ones for me at this site, taking my patch list up to 60! Here are the highlights:

• The first new species I heard (but unfortunately didn't see) was a Reed Bunting, in the reeds and scrub to the northwest of Wychall Reservoir.
• It was another raptor-tastic day thanks to the clear, still conditions. My second new species was Peregrine - a pair soaring very high up, seen from the River Rea path near Westhill Road.
• The final new species I saw was one I'd been expecting for a while, as it is on the Friends of Kings Norton Nature Reserve's logo and I was starting to wonder where it had got to! It was of course Great Crested Grebe - a pair had arrived on Merecroft Pool and were engaging in their lovely courtship behaviour. I guess they spent the winter on a larger water body somewhere else. I saw them do the full dance - upright on the water, presenting bits of water weed to one another. I just caught the end of it in a short video, in which there is also lots of head-waggling:

• More raptors - a maximum count of five Buzzards over the reserve, and a Sparrowhawk too.
• A Treecreeper on Popes Lane.
• Seven Tufted Ducks on Merecroft Pool - I wonder if any are resident and will stay all year round?
• Five Teal on Wychall Reservoir.
• Superb views of a Muntjac Deer in the area behind Wychall Reservoir - it saw me coming but I managed to stop a sufficient distance off so that it didn't scarper straight away, but instead had a good look at me before sauntering off.
• My first butterflies of the year! A Peacock basking in the sun, and also a Small Tortoiseshell not on the reserve, but on my walk home.
• Loooooads of frogspawn in the pools behind Wychall Reservoir.

Spring was well and truly in the air! I saw lots of birds getting paired up - no mixed tit flocks any more, even the Long-tailed Tits have abandoned their usual family groups to check out potential nest sites with their mates. There's nothing else like it, and now I'm feeling super-excited for the coming spring and all the delights it will bring!

Behind Wychall Reservoir (HDR).

Behind Wychall Reservoir (HDR).

Frogspawn!

Behind Wychall Reservoir (HDR).

Behind Wychall Reservoir (HDR).

Lovely Great Crested Grebe pair.

Peacock butterfly warming up.

FULL BIRD LIST

Blackbird	Great Crested Grebe	Moorhen
Black-headed Gull	Great Spotted Woodpecker	Mute Swan
Blue Tit	Great Tit	Peregrine
Bullfinch	Grey Heron	Reed Bunting
Buzzard	Herring Gull	Robin
Canada Goose	House Sparrow	Song Thrush
Carrion Crow	Jackdaw	Sparrowhawk
Chaffinch	Jay	Teal
Coot	Lesser Black-backed Gull	Treecreeper
Dunnock	Long-tailed Tit	Tufted Duck
Goldcrest	Magpie	Woodpigeon
Goldfinch	Mallard	Wren

Magical Malvern Hills!

Having free time after completing my degree is marvellous :o) I went birding TWICE at the weekend, good times! After visiting my local patch on Saturday, on Sunday Chris and I went down to the Malvern Hills; I was hoping to maybe see the Ring Ouzels and Snow Buntings that had recently been reported there. 

The weather was very foggy throughout most of the journey there but luckily cleared as we approached Great Malvern. We headed straight up Happy Valley; although this is not the most interesting route up the hills and is also rather steep in places, it's where Ring Ouzels are frequently spotted around this time of year. It's thickly wooded at the bottom but starts to open out as you ascend, and it's around this zone where there are quite a few Rowan trees - hence the attraction for migrating thrushes.

Near the bottom of Happy Valley (HDR).

Heading up Happy Valley (HDR).

Delicious Rowan berries.....if you are a bird! (HDR)

We stopped to inspect a likely-looking Rowan tree not far from the path, which was the same one I found a flock of Brambling in two autumns ago. It's clearly a favoured spot as it was immediately obvious that it was jammed with Redwings stuffing their faces, along with a couple of Fieldfare. A few minutes of further scrutinity revealed a male Ring Ouzel, hurrah! We watched for a while and saw him fly around, being joined by another individual and landing in a few different spots before returning to the Rowan. NICE. We continued to the top of the valley where we stopped for lunch, and saw three Ring Ouzels fly past. It was so warm at our lunch spot that I heard a few grasshoppers rasping in the grass behind us.

It wasn't until we reached the ridge of the Hills and the view to the west opened up that we realised the entire surrounding landscape in all directions was covered in fog. The Malverns were like an island in the middle of a sea of cloud; it was impossible to tell how far away the ground actually was! Hopefully these photos will give some idea of how it looked although they don't really do it justice:

Chris, bemused by the abundance of fog.

Foothills on the western side rising through the fog.

Foothills on the western side rising through the fog.

Foothills on the western side rising through the fog.

Great Malvern being engulfed around its outskirts by the fog.

In search of Snow Buntings, we walked over the top of North Hill and circumnavigated it, but by that point I think there was too much disturbance and we saw no buntings. We did however see a Red Admiral flying over the summit - further evidence of how warm it was - and a pair of Stonechats on the eastern slope. 

On North Hill (HDR).

What with the Ring Ouzels (my first seen in the Malverns) and the mad weather we had had an excellent trip! I attempted a final two HDRs while we were waiting for the train back - Great Malvern station is one of my favourites :o)
 

Great Malvern railway station.

Great Malvern railway station.