Walk to Kingston Embankment Reserve

A cool but bright day on Sunday for a walk across the field to Bourn Golf Club and then back through the Kingston Embankment Reserve. The 'yellow brick road' comes to mind - arid cracked clay and weed-killed barley doesn't have the same ring.

 

The Kingston Reserve lies on  part of the Bedford to Cambridge railway line closed in the late 1960s. It is the site of the old railway bridge removed in the mid-1970s. At this stage I was running the first YOC (junior RSPB) group and we helped with the conservation work there. We cut lots of steps down to the Bourn Brook and built dipping platforms etc but all these have grown over now; however, the old railway hut looks just about the same as it did 50 years ago!!. (phone images)

-

Trumpington Meadows 9th May

 The warm weather on Saturday brought out lots of insects and spiders. I was trying to concentrate on compositions rather than just unusual species looking for interesting backgrounds and different focus/exposure settings. ID sheet at the end

Macro Session at Paxton Pits

A very enjoyable morning at Paxton on Friday wandering through the reserve taking images of what we saw, trying to choose good specimens and good angles of view. Damselflies very active now along with a good variety of spiders!! The first image is a member of the Mayfly family with the most extraordinary eyes - I think it is a Small spurwing but the ID app prefers Pond Olive though I have never seen one of that species with these protruberances, The black Hoverfly is yet to be confirmed on species as this too is new to me.

Coot, Grebe and Herons at Paxton

Generally things are going well for our Heron brood with all three chicks now looking ready to fledge while the Great Crested Grebes have 2 or their 3 chicks still surviving the inevitable Cormorant and Otter attacks. The Coots seem to have been less successful - no longer sitting on the near nest and obviously renewing the courtship and mating behaviour.

Buttercup Meadow Paxton

The second meadow for our survey on Tuesday was Buttercup meadow, appropriately yellow with Buttercaps at the moment. The flowers attracted several species including Orange Tip pairs, beetles, wasps, bees etc