High pressure building over the last week ultimately delivered some weather which may be viewed as being loosely associated with ‘summer’. There was no pressure building on the birding front, however, as we drifted further into what is generally regarded locally as one of the quietest times of the year.
Another telltale sign of the period is the emergence of wildfowl ‘sporting’ eclipse plumage. One such bird was the drake Garganey that appeared on the dam at Stanford Res on 17th.
Not normally associated with this point in time, a second-summer Yellow-legged Gull was found at Daventry CP on 20th.
The ongoing presence of Bitterns at a minimum of two locations in the Nene Valley this week continues to fuel speculation they are breeding … somewhere.
However, with a nest holding at least two young, Cattle Egrets are definitely breeding at one site in the Nene Valley – a welcome return after they last bred in 2020. Also in said valley, two visited Summer Leys LNR on 15th, one was at Stanwick GP on the same date and one was present at Thrapston GP’s Titchmarsh LNR on 18th.
The week’s raptors saw a fall in the number of Ospreys reported to singles at Ravensthorpe Res on 15th and at Pitsford Res on 16th and 21st, while a Marsh Harrier flew north-east over Stanwick on 20th.
Almost seeing out a fourth week, the singing male Wood Warbler remained at Harry’s Park Wood until 20th but was nowhere to be seen subsequently.
And here’s something else to think about. Virtually three-quarters of the way through June and the fact that we have not yet had even a sniff of a Common Quail in Northamptonshire is perhaps a sad reflection of the times. But, one singing east of Raunds and south of Keyston, Cambridgeshire, on the last day of the week, was less than one kilometre from the county boundary. There’s still time and the Brampton Valley’s always a good bet …
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