After a morning appointment I stopped off at Sutcliffe Park LNR to do today’s Butterfly count.
The predominant butterfly species were Meadow Brown and Small White, although a couple of sightings of Common Blue was the highlight. Dragonflies were also evident with 5+ Emperor Dragonflies present and 3 Common Darters.
Common Blue Butterfly
Photo by Bart Busschots (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbusschots/)
There were also some interesting birds with a Grey Wagtail on the edge of the Marsh area and an adult Little Grebe feeding one youngster on the Lake (up to 4 youngsters have been seen in the past week) so it seems that they have had a good breeding season here.
Canada Goose [sp] (Branta canadensis)
Mallard [sp] (Anas platyrhynchos)
Tufted Duck (Aythya fuligula)
Little Grebe [sp] (Tachybaptus ruficollis)
Grey Heron [sp] (Ardea cinerea)
Common Moorhen [sp] (Gallinula chloropus)
Eurasian Coot [sp] (Fulica atra)
European Herring Gull [sp] (Larus argentatus)
Lesser Black-backed Gull [sp] (Larus fuscus)
Common Pigeon [sp] (Columba livia)
Common Wood Pigeon [sp] (Columba palumbus)
Common Swift [sp] (Apus apus)
Eurasian Magpie [sp] (Pica pica)
Carrion Crow [sp] (Corvus corone)
Great Tit [sp] (Parus major)
Eurasian Reed Warbler [sp] (Acrocephalus scirpaceus)
Common Starling [sp] (Sturnus vulgaris)
Common Blackbird [sp] (Turdus merula)
House Sparrow [sp] (Passer domesticus)
Grey Wagtail [sp] (Motacilla cinerea)
European Greenfinch [sp] (Carduelis chloris)
Large White (Pieris brassicae)
Small White (Artogeia rapae)
Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus)
Small Tortoiseshell [sp] (Aglais urticae)
Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina)
Speckled Wood [sp] (Pararge aegeria)
Emperor Dragonfly (Anax imperator)
Common Darter (Sympetrum striolatum)
Pete's Favourite Things 