Lackford Lakes Action Shots

A very enjoyable day at Lackford Lakes yesterday in near perfect weather - sunny but not too hot and light winds so plenty of insect activity  as well as a very obliging Great White Egret that hunted in front of one of the hides. Only disappointment was not seeing the Camberwell Beauty that was around in the afternoon. Two plus Hummingbird Hawkmoths on the Buddleia kept us entertained for a couple of sessions along with Hornets, which are too fast for me to capture in flight unless coming into land or weighted down by a bee prey. Migrant Hawkers and Darters ruled in the Dragonfly sector. Macro session of other insects to follow!

Drought Conditions at Summer Leys

The usually still lush meadow at Summer Leys is almost entirely without flowers now - just the Fleabane and a few remaining thistle flowers supporting a much reduced number of insect species. Below some of my favourite finds during the day, As at Paxton Migrant Hawkers reign supreme over the lakes and ponds while Small Heath, Small Copper, Brown Argus and Small White are the main butterfly species. It was an RPSNature outing so I was concentrating on backgrounds, composition rather than ID and species list but a few comedy shots also snuck in like the first Carder Bee out for a stroll and the shy grasshopper.

Preparing for Dragonfly Day at Paxton

Today is our Dragonfly day at Paxton Pits reserve with walks in the morning and afternoon - thankfully in cooler conditions according to the forecast. Yesterday we did short walks in the heat just to check on what is around. Certainly the Migrant Hawkers are the stars with their stationary hovering as well as frequent perching but there are Brown Hawkers, Common and Ruddy Darters and some Damselflies on the wing as well as some incomers this year such as the Lesser Emperor and Southern Migrant Hawker though with a reserve as large as Paxton, sightings cannot be guaranteed!! Plenty of other insects if the flying conditions are right such as the Beewolf Wasp.

Guided Walks – Dragonfly Day – Paxton Pits Nature Reserve

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. 

Paxton Pits Macro Day

Ten RPS Nature Group Members together with four Volunteers from Paxton Pits Reserve enjoyed a surprisingly varied selection of wildlife photography considering the recent ongoing hot arid conditions. We started in one of the large Meadows which was full of Grasshoppers, Crickets, Damselflies though very few Butterflies but we soon needed to find a shady spot along one of the trails where we could watch Darters and Dragonflies from the cool shade of the trees. After a welcome drink and lunch back at the visitor centre, some of us braved the Bee-wolf site which was busy with female wasps carrying in bees, trying to remember where their predug burrow was. I was also pleased to record Astata boops, the Shield-bug Stalker Wasp (without Shield bug unfortunately), a new record for the site I think and such a wonderful latin name.

Everyone appreciated the cool of the hides and a lot of time was spent trying to capture the Migrant Hawker in flight, Brown Hawker laying and also the birdlife (images to follow)