Burbage Brook and a Grey Wagtail

Burbage Brook

to view a gallery with more photos, click here

While the 'girls' were doing their writers retreat in Sheffield I visited the Longshaw Estate in Derbyshire on April 20th and followed the Burbage Brook, one of my favourite walks. The bilberries were in flower and I photographed a grey wagtail, frog, song thrush and a stonefly.

Bilberries, Vaccinium myrtillus

Bilberry flowers

Burbage Brook

Common Frog, Rana temporaria

Grey Wagtail, Motacilla cinerea

Grey Wagtail

Grey Wagtail

Longshaw Estate

Song Thrush, Turdus philomelos

stonefly

Green Hairstreaks and Duke of Burgundies

Green Hairstreak, Callophrys rubi

to view a gallery with more photos, click here

This morning I spent an enjoyable few hours with Mark Colvin and Neil Hulme at Heyshott escarpment. I was pleased to see Orange-tips, Brimstones, several Whites, Speckled Woods, Red Admiral, a Grizzled Skipper, several Green Hairstreaks, including a stunningly marked specimen, and a male and female Duke of Burgundy.
 I then visited Rewell Wood and saw many Green Tiger Beetles.

Duke of Burgundy, Hamearis lucina

Early Purple Orchid, Orchis mascula

Grizzled Skipper, Pyrgus malvae

view from Heyshott escarpment

Rewell Wood:

Green Tiger Beetle, Cicindela campestris

Rewell Wood

Anemones, Celandines and a Sparrowhawk

the Porter Brook

to view a gallery with more photos, click here

The anemones and celandines were out on the banks of the Porter Brook during our Sheffield trip. On one of my walks I saw a couple of birds battling on the opposite bank. I sat on a handy seat and watched. It turned out that a sparrowhawk had been chasing a pigeon which hid in the thick ivy round a tree. The sparrowhawk perched and kept an eye on the ivy. The pigeon must have tried to escape at one point because the sparrowhawk dived down again without success.

Lesser Celandines, Ranunculus ficaria

the Porter Brook

Wood Anemones, Anemone nemorosa

Brittle Cinder fungus, Kretzschmaria deusta

Sparrowhawk, Accipiter nisus