This quiet time of the year for birding, usually gives way to trying to see some interesting insects and flowers etc. Myself, Bob K with Chris B at the helm set off from Newhey to visit a few different sites. Firstly calling at Flamborough Head for a spot of sea watching, only to see Brett Richards leaving saying, Best of luck, there`s too much mist. It took a while to clear and when it did we saw lots of Razorbill, Kittiwake, Puffin, Gannet, Fulmar, Shag, lesser numbers of Guillemot and a couple of Sandwich Tern in around 2 hours. It will be a bit livelier when we return next month (We hope) Next stop was Troutsdale, new to us all. Walking along part of the River Derwent looking for Beautiful Demoiselle dragonfly, without any joy, but a Golden-ringed Dragonfly really brightened a nice walk in sunny conditions. The dragonfly really performed well and gave numerous photographic opportunities. At Wykeham Forest raptor viewpoint it seemed very quiet with not many birds taking to the air in really good flying conditions. Then a bird of prey appeared in the sky, this bird performed really well for about two 4 minute spells and by the end of it all we were all a little unsure of its species due to some very unusual behaviour. A bit of field guide use and the decision was, juvenile / first year Honey Buzzard. Chris heard / saw a few Crossbill flying over. Fairly quiet at the nursery area also. Last stop was Wharram Quarry looking for Thistle Broomrape. It was a really nice place to pass an hour with lots of Marbled White, Ringlet, Small Skipper, Meadow Brown taking to the air as we searched for the Broomrape. After checking all the Woolly Thistle plants Chris finally found the plant he was looking for. Well done Chris you deserved that! He also told us many names of the various plants growing in this delightful reserve. I found a bird sat in a low bush and was a bit bemused as to what I had found. It was a juvenile Cuckoo, we dont see very many in this plumage, well that was my excuse! We all enjoyed the day out and all learned a little bit more. Dave O.
