Red Hot Summer Day

Hard to know which way to look round the local patch today

Along with a plethora of local passerines with young, signs of post breeding movement with small groups of Crossbill & Siskins moving over the last few days, Green Sandpiper & juvvy Little ringed Plover dropping in prior to the afternoons thunderstorm, with other passage visitors including Pochard & Spotted Flycatcher.
Several pairs of Kestrel with young currently leaving nests :-

Peregrine soaring over again but no sign of the weekends Hobby - although Hobby-food abounded. 100's of damselflys with a handful of their larger cousins including these Four spotted Chasers :-

 

Four Spotted Chaser thanks for the ID ;-)

A couple of firsts for the year :-

1st juv Black Headed Gull

first brood of Tufted ducklings :-

Oddly this feral Mallard was doing a good job as surrogate mother to these two Tufted ducklings :-

 

The main pool is yet to produce any goods other than Canada goslings - the Crow family have grown well on a protein rich diet of eggs & chicks

Dabchicks are one of my favourites, a pair had young well on, with another sitting on eggs.

Masses of insects, 500+ Ringlets alone, finally another couple of Bee Orchid to end on :-

On the way home a pair of semi-detached council houses stand isolated - the bulk of the post-war estate having been demolished. These 2 houses all boarded up, but now providing accomodation for a few pairs each of Swift & House Martin.