Paxton Pits - Rain At Last

In other years, the camera would have stayed in the camera bag with light levels as bad as they were yesterday morning, but the first rain into Heronry Lake at Paxton for many weeks had to be recorded!! The two Great Crested Grebe chicks are now as big as their parents but still being fed by them. They spend a lot of time in the shallow water - a good tactic to avoid the Cormorants. All the usual 'players' visited - Gulls, Gadwall, Coot, Heron, Egrets etc. 

Paxton Pits 4th August

The Great Crested Grebes still have their two young which are growing fast though still riding on the back of the adult some of the time. Fingers crossed they avoid predation by the many Cormorants around Heronry South Lake. I couldn't resist a few more images of the Migrant hawker though the light was not as good as on Sunday. 

Sunny Afternoon at Paxton

Just about the full cast performed for us in front of the Hide yesterday - the Great Crested Grebes are guarding their two chicks well at the moment while Cormorants, Little Egrets and Herons flew in and out at regular intervals. The chicks are beginning to make short dives and also appeared to be catching damselflies. As the sun came round and lit the perches, we were entertained by Ruddy Darters (body shape, black legs), Willow Emerald Damselflies (yellow spur on the thorax, no blue pruinescence), Tachina fera Fly, Migrant Hawker and Green-Veined White Butterflies.

Update from Paxton

Today I did a recce with Ann and Mike for the Macro Session with the RPSNature Group on Sunday at Paxton Pits as I was apprehensive with the drought conditions that there would be enough to photograph. In the morning we walked in the fields and along the Meadow trail with macro gear and found enough subjects to keep people happy for one session. In the afternoon, we photographed along the Haul Road where there were lots of hunting Dragons  including Migrant Hawkers. Later in the Cobham Hide there was a Brown Hawker laying and plentiful Darters for long lens work. Good to see the Great Crested grebes still have their two chicks - fingers crossed for their survival!!

Glimpses of Life

 For me, my camera and the photographs that I take are a glimpse of so many creatures and behaviours that I would not be able to see and certainly not recall in any detail without its magnification and ability to capture a sequences. Here three scenarios from yesterday afternoon at Paxton. First a fledgling Wren that got left behind by the parents and other young, looking first at me and then elsewhere till it heard them calling and flew off. Then some solitary bees on the thistles with a male trying to mate (unsuccessfully). The Great Crested Grebe I photographed as a record hoping we will have a sequence through to successful rearing of young this time. Only when looking at photographs could I see that the air around was full of blue damselflies which it was eating. The brown hawker I only saw when reviewing my photographs as it was so well camouflaged