A Field Notebook: Early summer at Hope Carr

Friday, 19 July 2019

Early summer at Hope Carr

Photo: Black-headed gull X2VA ringed in Germany.

With the Blyth's reed warbler now a distant memory I've spent most of my time at Hope Carr birding alone. Early summer has been fairly uneventful though interesting enough for me but nothing exceptional. Birding highlights included a pair of garganey for a few days at the end of May and several sightings of little ringed plover which I suspect bred or attempted to breed somewhere on the sewage works. A single cuckoo was on site at the end of May and around the same time there was a reeling grasshopper warbler present for a few days at least. A barn owl hunting over the beds on 5th June brought my Hope Carr total for 2019 to exactly 100 species for the year.

An adult Mediterranean gull was present on the sewage works on several dates during the period, associating with the small flock of black-headed gulls though not always present. In July the gull flock included a black-headed gull with a black leg ringed, apparently ringed in Germany and also in July there was a small but noticeable build up of herring and lesser black-backed gulls.

I suspect oystercatchers bred on the sewage works, as did grey wagtail and for a while I thought that a pair of ravens might attempt to breed because they were hanging around one of the larger buildings for a week or two. At least one pair of lapwings bred at Hope Carr, with a single chick seen on one of the beds.

Photo: Garganey.

Several species of warbler showed signs of breeding this year, there were three singing Cetti's warblers, two along the Glaze, the other in the centre of the site. Blackcap, willow warbler, chiffchaff and sedge warbler were all singing in double figures, and there were also good numbers of reed warbler and whitethroat as well as the grasshopper warbler mentioned earlier. A single garden warbler was singing on several dates near the bridge over the Glaze.

At least three pairs of little grebes were seen feeding young and there were several pairs of gadwall with ducklings.

The first returning green sandpipers were seen at the beginning of July, with at least two different birds seen.

Photo: Little ringed plover.

Banded damoiselles were numerous along the Glaze and many were seen in the centre of the site in apparently quite unsuitable habitat including this one on an iris on the banks of the main lake. Other dragonflies where few and far between, with just a couple of sightings of brown hawker, a possible broad-bodied chaser and lots of azure and common damselflies.