6 OCTOBER 2025 - HORNET ENCOUNTER

I don’t often get the chance to see Hornets at close quarters, but on this occasion, I was closer than I’ve ever been before.

I was enjoying a banter with a friend of mine (Gary) over a cup of tea in the garden, when suddenly this huge ‘orange’ shape flew over the fence and straight into the greenhouse. I sort of suspected it was a hornet and immediately rushed indoors to get my camera. When I got back and entered the greenhouse, I saw that the hornet had been caught in a spider’s web, so even before I could do any photography, I needed to set about attempting to free the insect, which isn’t as easy as it might sound.

I used a small bamboo cane to prise the web away from its wings and limbs, with the hornet frantically doing the same thing, but as soon as I succeeded, the insect flew directly into another web, and then another, which covered the inside windows of the greenhouse. But this wasn’t a normal sized hornet, it was massive, with a length of at least 1.5 inches from the top of its head to the tip of its abdomen – by far the biggest hornet I’ve ever seen (maybe it was a Queen); and because of its size I needed to be extra cautious as a sting from this monster wouldn’t be at all trivial!

I eventually managed to coax the hornet onto the tip of my bamboo cane, as it tried to extricate it’s legs from the remains of web, and promptly handed it to Gary, so that I could take some pictures, though I could tell he wasn’t really happy with that idea, as I tried to assure him that the insect wouldn’t attempt to sting either of us (though, to be honest, I wasn’t at all convinced it wouldn’t). I got sufficient pictures, then took the bamboo cane back from Gary with a view to taking it out into the garden to allow the insect to fly off. But instead, the hornet dropped onto the patio, where it didn’t look comfortable - strange thing to say I admit, but I wasn’t going to leave it there as it probably wasn’t safe from predators……………………. whatever they might be; I hadn’t a clue.

So, I coaxed it back onto the cane and placed the insect on the leaves of an Acer bush that was growing in the garden, and from there after twenty minutes or so, the hornet eventually few away, with some of the web was still attached to one of its legs. But at least it was free, so I was relieved about that.

16 SEPTEMER 2025 – ABBERTON RESERVOIR

We were lured to Abberton by the prospect of seeing a Grey Phalarope that had been seen at the reservoir from the Hide Bird Hide the previous day; but like a lot of ‘lures’ they don’t always come to fruition. This was one of those days - though of course, weren’t to know that when we arrived half-an hour before opening time at 10.00 a.m. so, we tried a vantage point from a car park near St. Andrews Church overlooking the reservoir, a few hundred metres away uphill.

Of course, trying to spot a small bird in part of a huge reservoir from a distance is like looking for a needle in a haystack, but we had to try; and if we were successful, we knew where to train our binoculars (or in John’s case binoculars and scope) from the Hide Bird Hide a long way opposite us once we got into the reserve. The light was good, with nice warm sunlight, though it was breezy, with occasional strong gusts, so it wasn’t going to be easy. But there was no news about the Phalarope on the net thus far.

Mike and I tried our level best, but we were at a disadvantage with John using his telescope - but even at 60 times magnification, one had to have doubts as to whether he could pick the Phalarope up had it been there from that far away. We could see waders, but they were mainly birds like Black-tailed Godwits, which were almost Curlew-sized waders, yet even at that distance they looked miniscule. We didn’t find the Phalarope, so we had to wait until we got into the visitors’ centre to get any news. So, for the time being, we headed for the causeway to get our birding off to a proper start.

As we strived to get the Phalarope, John picked up a Western Marsh Harrier, and as Mike and I scanned the scene in front of us to pick it up too, I thought I saw another raptor which momentarily recalled the shape of an Osprey - but it soon disappeared behind a line of trees and didn’t reappear, so I had to write that one off. Yet later in the day, that ‘sighting’ might have had a semblance of significance.

So, at the Layer de la Haye causeway, there wasn’t much happening, although there were probably 20-30 Common Terns (mostly juveniles) plying the wavelets in the strong wind, and in the distance maybe 10 Great Egrets and several Little Egrets, together with 20 or so Spoonbills (mostly in sleep mode) on the shoreline sheltered by trees. Some of the juvenile Terns were resting on the steep sides of the causeway, allowing me the opportunity of getting some photographs, but the flying Terns - being buffeted by the wind - posed a much more challenging task photographically.

Before going into the Centre, we stopped off at Billett’s Farm, Wigborough Bay, where again most birds were some distance away - against the light it must be said, so the views weren’t great. Large numbers of wildfowl were here, including some Pintail, with large flocks of Black-tailed Godwits, and a bit nearer, some Ruff, several Curlew Sandpipers and at least four Little Stints, which pleased me for the latter two species were ‘year ticks’ for me. On the way back to the car, I had a reasonably good view of a high-flying Hobby which the others missed, as well as a hovering female Kestrel.

So, onto the Centre where there was no news of the Phalarope, so we made our way directly to the Hide Bird Hide where several birdwatchers were already scanning the north-western fringes of the reservoir. There were at least three Curlew Sandpipers; a Greenshank; loads of Black-tailed Godwits and at times at least three Great Egrets and a couple of Little Egrets, but little else of much interest was found. Island Mere hide revealed nothing more, and Gwen’s Hide almost gave the same result until John stated he could see a Raptor a long way off in the distance, circling between two tall wind turbines, which seemed somewhat familiar. Mike and I could just about pick the bird up in our binoculars, but quiet frankly it was like watching a speck circling between the turbines. Luckily, another birder was able to pick the bird up in his scope and he was sure it was an Osprey being mobbed by Crows, and when we all considered the flight pattern, the consensus was that it was more probably that species, which maybe gave my possible sighting earlier in the day just a little more legitimacy.

After a welcome cappuccino at the Vistors’ Centre, (where we were entertained by a tame Moorhen and close views of a lovely Little Grebe in the pond outside the café) we returned to the view from St. Andrews Church for a ‘last ditch’ effort to locate the Phalarope - without success - before driving to the Layer Breton Causeway, with nothing more of much interest, and heading home. 

The only butterfly species seen that day was a male Small Copper, in a sheltered area out of the blustery wind, and Dragonfly species restricted to a few Common Darters and a lone Migrant Hawker.

BLACK-TAILED GODWITS and GREY HERONS

COMMON TERN

JUV COMMON TERN

JUV COMMON TERN

EGYPTIAN GOOSE

MUTE SWAN

COMMON KESTREL

GREAT EGRET

GREAT EGRET

LITTLE EGRET

MOORHEN

LITTLE GREBE

SMALL COPPER BUTTERFLY

 

 

 

 

 

 

9 SEPTEMBER 2025 – TEDNAMBURY and THORLEY WASH

I’d heard about Whinchats being seen locally, so having seen the species previously at Thorley Wash (though not since September 2017) I thought I’d visit Thorley Wash in case one had found its way there. But as soon as I got off the bus at Spellbrook, instead of heading north along the Stort towpath, I headed south towards Tednambury, as I remembered I’d seen Whinchats there too in the past.

It started well with sightings of a Great Spotted Woodpecker and a Green Woodpecker (both of which had been hard to see at Thorley Wash this year), but after a relatively short distance along the towpath I heard a ‘cronking’ sound and when I turned around, I saw a large ‘crow-like’ bird alight atop of a radio mast a couple of hundred metres or so away. The knew the ‘cronking’ was that of a Raven but the bird I was seeing was too far away to be sure, although binocular views when the bird bowed to show a large crop, I was certain in my mind that it was indeed a Raven; I mean its whole demeanour screamed Raven, and anyway Crows don't 'cronk'!!

I took several shots through the camera using my 100-400 mm telephoto - and in the screen when enlarged I could see the bird well enough to know that my conclusion was correct. But I couldn’t leave it there - I needed to get closer, to try and get better photographs if possible. So, I retraced my steps along the towpath, to get into the field where the radio mast was situated. I might have been trespassing (something I wouldn’t normally do) but access to the field was from an unrestricted pathway, so maybe I was okay; but up the hill I was luckily undercover of trees and bushes, and when I reached the mast I had no option but to leave the cover in order to view the top of the mast - but of course as soon as I did so, the bird saw me and took immediately to flight - joined by another equally large bird - both ‘cronking’ continuously. I had to act quickly, so trained the camera on the two birds, and tracked them as they flew, with just four or five shots taken before they were too far away to matter. They both flew around and away to land in a distant oak, where another - equally large - bird was perched, together with a kestrel which was diminutive in comparison. I looked at my shots, and could see the birds’ massive bills, and in one photo the wedge-shaped tail; so, I was happy I’d identified the Ravens correctly - indeed, I was over the moon at the superb views I’d had. Later, I enjoyed another sighting as a Raven flew high over me - ‘cronking’ all the time - and when I could see the wedge-shaped tail more clearly, although, unbelievably, I sort of forgot to use the camera!!

Along the towpath, I found a juvenile Little Grebe hiding amongst the reeds along the Stort. This was quite a surprising record, as normally Little Grebes are seen here (and at Thorley Wash) in the winter months - occasionally in good numbers, my best being fifteen individuals. But could this one be a locally bred bird?? I also saw a distant Red Kite and a Cormorant fishing in the river.

As for chances of seeing a Whinchat, well they were non-existent, as the marsh was virtually completely devoid of any birdlife - no Whitethroats; no Reed Buntings - absolutely nothing. But it would have been difficult to see any bird anyway as the marsh was completely covered in Himalayan Balsam, which was clearly rampant here; a scene completely different to the last time I visited the site some months ago. I turned back at that stage, and made my way back along the towpath, with no further views of Ravens, although I did get some quite lovely shots of the Little Grebe, before two canal boats disturbed the waters.

As I approached Thorley Wash Reserve along the towpath alongside Walbury Estate, I found a couple of pairs of Western Spreadwing damselflies (previously known as Willow Emerald damselflies) and the briefest glimpse of a Kingfisher flying high over some Willow trees.

A walk around the northern section of Thorley Wash Reserve produced little in the way of birdlife, and the number of Western Spreadwing damselflies was disappointingly small - indeed, I don’t think I’d ever witnessed the reserve so quiet. This quietude was exemplified by the sighting of a small herd of Water Buffalo that were lying down, sheltering from the warm sunshine beneath Willow trees. It had been warm, with unrelenting sunshine throughout the day, but cloud was increasing from the south, and by mid-afternoon showers were threatening. I did see several Hornets hovering over an Ivy bush, but it was almost impossible to get decent photographs because they were all entirely unpredictable and constantly on the move.

A few more Western Spreadwings were seen on my way north along the towpath - although they were incredibly difficult to photograph without risking falling into the river - and the Kingfisher was seen again, this time skimming the surface as it flew rapidly upstream. A few dragonflies were seen - a single Brown Hawker; several Common Darters (most in tandem with a mate egg laying); a couple of Common Blue Damselflies, and rather a lot of Migrant Hawkers - a couple of which I found ‘perched’ on stems of reeds and were photographable. Further along, I found a species of Cricket which I believe was a Brown Bush Cricket - an entirely new species for me.

I guess it hadn’t been exceptional bird-wise, but even as I write this, I still cannot believe I’d seen Ravens at such close quarters; and of course, the sighting of a Kingfisher was memorable because it was the first siting of the species anywhere this year.

RAVEN (the first view - vastly enlarged)

RAVENS

RAVENS

LITTLE GREBE

LITTLE GREBE

LITTLE GREBE

COMMON DARTER

MIGRANT HAWKER

WESTERN SPREADWING

WESTERN SPREADWINGS IN TANDEM

WATER BUFFALO

MUTE SWAN

HORNET

BROWN BUSH CRICKET

 

 

 

 

 

7 SEPTEMBER 2025 –  SOUTHERN COUNTRY PARK

I hadn’t been out all week (except for health-related appointments) and although I’d enjoyed a bit of photography in the garden the previous day ( photographing both Hummingbird Hawkmoth and Hornet Hoverfly) I was hoping the warm spell of weather might be good for dragonflies and butterflies; so, I decided on a visit to Southern Country Park, NW Bishop’s Stortford.

Passing through Thorley Wedge on the way, I stopped to photograph a lovely bright Comma Butterfly and a rather tatty Common Blue, arriving at the northern entrance to the park shortly after 11.00 a.m. Immediately, I saw another male Common Blue, then a superb Ruddy Darter that literally posed for my camera. A Willow Emerald Damselfly (recently renamed Western Spreadwing) unexpectedly flew in, alighting on the branch of a Lime tree, a mere few feet away though at slightly more than head-level to me. But it was very difficult to get as close as I’d have liked, and anyway for some reason the sunlight was exceptionally bright - giving a rather over-exposed reading through the lens (which I knew meant that I would need to take that into account when processing the image in my software at home). This species had enjoyed good breeding levels in recent years, but in fact I wasn’t destined to find any more today, which was rather disappointing.

A couple of buzzing Migrant Hawkers along the treeline, made me feel as if today’s tally of dragonfly species thus far might eventually be quite good, but in fact I only managed to add just one other species to the list - a Common Darter; although to be fair not many species are still on the wing at this time of year, so I couldn’t have expected many more realistically.

The same could be said for butterflies, as throughout the day I only recorded seven species - both Large and Small White (in reasonable numbers); a Comma; a single Red Admiral; two Small Coppers (both males); a couple of Speckled Woods, and a simply huge number of Common Blues - at least 32 males and 3 females - without doubt the largest number I’ve ever recorded locally. But apart from the rather ragged male seen at Thorley Wedge, I only managed to get just one other (a male) to keep still long enough to photograph.

Another species I hoped to add was a Small Heath, and I was beginning to think that none were going to show, when at the last moment one flew passed me, landing on the ground in front of me and allowing a photograph (for record purposes only). The species is just about holding on in the park, but so far this year I’d not connected with any at all locally, so this sighting was welcome indeed.

Chickory was evident all over the park - a very attractive wildflower; as is Viburnum, with large leaves and masses of bright red berries - although only evident in the Wedge area near the lake. It was noticeable that most berry trees and shrubs were already well in advance with regard to their fruits - a consequence of the long, hot and very dry summer- so autumn fruits are likely not going to be so available to birds and insects this year. Nature certainly moves in strange circles.

I have to say that birdlife wasn’t in any sense prolific or anything remotely close - the only species seen were Woodpigeon; Carrion Crow; Jackdaw; Rook; Magpie; Mallard; Moorhen; Blue Tit; Swallow and a probable House Martin. A Red Kite was seen briefly (indeed, I’ve never recorded the species anywhere locally in September) but it was no more than a fleeting glimpse really.

COMMA BUTTERFLY 

COMMON BLUE BUTTERFLY

RUDDY DARTER

COMMON DARTER

WESTERN SPREADWING

SMALL COPPER BUTTERFLY

SMALL HEATH BUTTERFLY

CHICKORY

VIBURNUM

 

28 AUGUST 2025 – OLD HALL MARSHES/ABBERTON – ESSEX

Mike and I left it to John to make the decision as to where to go and he suggested Old Hall Marshes near Tollesbury, Essex. I hadn’t been there for many years and was doubtful, given that the walk round was exceptionally long. John said there were two options – a long walk and a short walk, where the latter might suit be better considering the problems with my right hip. I was still a tad doubtful but agreed to try it. He and Mike had visited the site a few weeks ago, and had seen a good selection of birds, so it seemed a reasonable choice. He had checked the tide timetable, with high tide expected around 3.00pm.

We arrived at the car park around 9.00 a.m. in bright, warm sunshine, with a light to moderate SW Breeze. Along the grassy path out towards the Salcott Channel, we kicked up many micro-moths and species of butterfly, including Common Blues; Gatekeeper; Meadow Brown and lots of Small Heaths, with at least eight Migrant Hawker Dragonflies, but little else of note. Birds included a Common Whitethroat; Swallows; a lone Sand Martin; carrion Crows; Rooks; Magpies; a large flock of Goldfinches; and distant Western Marsh Harriers a Kestrel and a Hobby. A trio of Yellow Wagtails around the feet of a sheep, included a bird which had the hallmarks of being a Blue Headed race – which Mike confirmed once he’d researched it once we got home. I did think I had a Clouded Yellow along the path which quickly flew away and disappeared under the dry grassy tussocks in an adjacent field, but I couldn’t claim it unfortunately.

Overlooking the Salcott Channel (which had a reputation for birdlife) we headed east towards the Blackwater Estuary, but as the tide was out, the birds were strewn out along the channel, and in any event were not numerous in numbers. Apart from the ubiquitous Black-headed Gulls; Lesser and Greater Black-backed Gulls (mainly on the far bank) there were several Little Egrets; at least one Curlew; a couple of Grey Plovers; a good number of Black-tailed Godwits, and many Redshanks - but nothing of great note.  I picked up a juvenile Wheatear, which was new to me for the year, whilst John scoped a distant Red Kite over the opposite bank, and another Marsh Harrier and Hobby. Butterflies were few and far between up on the bank, comprising mainly Whites and a few Small Heaths, with a sprinkling of Migrant Hawker Dragonflies. Then we turned off the Salcott Channel, to continue along the ‘short’ walk and back to the car.

Almost immediately, we found a Little Ringed Plover on a small pool; and nearby a trio of Muntjac Deer (two adults and a fawn) making their way through a stand of Hawthorns. A few more sightings of Hobby tantalised without giving splendid views. By that time, I was way behind Mike and John but was giving more attention to the dykes which looked excellent habitat for dragonflies, which was difficult to do due to the steep grassy banks. I’d already seen a couple of Ruddy Darters and was looking out for Emerald Damselfly and in particular Scarce Emerald Damselfly which could well have been present at the site; it did look promising.

A fleeting glimpse of a Clouded Yellow butterfly gave rise to some optimism - but was short-lived regarding that species. Suddenly, I found what I was looking for and called Mike back in the hope that he could verify it. But the banks were very steep and quite dangerous and given that I had a walking aid (a Nordic stick) for support I was loathe to try and get closer. But Mike had no such qualms, so I carefully followed him down until I could get close enough to get a reasonable telephoto shot. Mike had difficulty finding the insect at first, but followed my instructions and eventually saw the damselfly, clinging to a single reed that was hanging over the dyke. My view was that it was an Emerald Damselfly (possibly a teneral male) - but viewing the image in the camera, it was difficult to say for sure; and we’d have to wait until we could view the guides before confirming the sighting. But it was new for the year for both of us – probably for John too but wasn’t anywhere close so we couldn’t do anything about that. Other dragonflies seen at this location included a Blue-tailed Damselfly; a male Emperor Dragonfly and a couple of Migrant Hawkers.

Further along the path, I could see Mike looking down into the dyke where the rushes were thicker, but he wasn’t looking at dragonflies, for he’d seen several juvenile Reed Warblers and a probable family of Sedge Warblers seemingly trying to ward off a mammal - possibly a Stoat or Weasel (or a Rat), but that had long gone by the time I arrived on the scene. I missed the Sedges, but there were several (very attractive) juvenile Reed Warblers (possibly as many as six individuals); and when John joined us, he found us a juvenile Bearded Tit too, which was a fabulous bonus. We could hear the ‘pinging’ calls of Bearded Tits, but up to that point hadn’t connected – until John came along!

I missed a pair of Spoonbills flying over the marsh, but got a lovely view of a Hobby, and previously an adult Cuckoo, thanks to a shout from the guys. Later, as we neared the car park, I saw a Great White Egret in flight (which the others missed); and as I caught them up, they had a Greenshank and a Whimbrel in scoped views. A pair of Redshank caused some consternation and discussion as to whether one might have been a Spotted Redshank – and in fact, the jury is still out on that one as Mike has concluded he needs to do more research, before coming to a final decision.

In formation online suggested that Abberton Reservoir had a few waders of interest, so we headed there as soon as we’d partaken of lunch back in John’s car. The weather had been fantastic, but we could see a big cloudbank coming in from the west, and by then the wind had increased dramatically. By the time we left the site, light rain was beginning to fall.

At Abberton - the Layer Breton Causeway (back in bright sunshine with no hint of rain) we saw flight views of at least three juvenile Black Terns in amongst the Common Terns; at least 16 Great White Egrets; with at least 50 Little Egrets spread out over the reservoir; a Ruff; three Green Sandpipers and a Common Sandpiper (but I only realised this bird was present when I processed the photo of about 30 Little Egrets in a tree near to the causeway, with other species of duck - and the Common Sandpiper - below it).

After a very welcome Cappuccino at the Visitor Centre - a solitary Spoonbills was seen at Wigborough Bay, but nothing much else of interest was seen. So, we called it a day. We’d seen a broad selection of species of birds; butterflies - and dragonflies - at Old Hall Marshes and Abberton. So, despite the long ‘short’ walk at Old Hall (which took its toll on me physically - although the guys felt it too) we’d enjoyed our visit enormously.

OLD HALL MARSHES

OLD HALL MARSHES

RUDDY DARTER (with very worn wings)

EMERALD DAMSELFLY

CHAROLAISE SHEEP (?)

SMALL HEATH BUTTERFLY

TIDAL CREEK TOWARDS TOLLESBURY

TIDAL CREEK

GREAT EGRET - ABBERTON

NORTHERN LAPWING

RUFF

HAMPSHIRE SHEEP (?) at WIGBOROUGH BAY