31 May 2013
PM- Butterflies seen- Orange-tip, Green-veined White, Large White, Small White, Holly Blue, Speckled Wood. Damselflies seen- Large Red, Common Blue, Azure and Blue-tailed.
AM- A quick circuit of the park this morning resulted in a count of 13 drake Mandarins. A pair of Canada Geese were on Pond 3 and six Tufted Ducks (4m, 2f)were present on the Moat Pond. A fresh clutch of Mallard Ducklings were with their mother on Pond 3 and perhaps 15 other Mallard ducklings of various ages from this year were also present. Green and Great Spotted Woodpecker were seen and heard along with Blackcap and Chiffchaff. Along the canal, a family party of Long Tailed Tits was a nice sight and a male Chaffinch was seen feeding a newly fledged chick. Overhead several Swifts were present along with a regular movement of Herring and Lesser Black-backed Gulls.
30 May 2013
I managed a walk around the park after work this afternoon. Blackcap and Chiffchaff were heard singing along with several Song Thrush and a Mistle Thrush. A decent count of 11 drake Mandarins and a single female was made around the ponds, however, there was a lot of movement so the actual numbers could be slightly higher. A Little Egret was feeding on the Moat Pond edges and a singlep pair of Tufted Ducks was also on the Moat. Around Pond 3, four Canada Geese were seen. Despite the windy conditions, both Azure and Blue-tailed Damselflies were seen. A single white butterfly was seen on the wing but at distance.
27 May 2013
Inspired by Sarah Kilshaw’s reports of Odonata I spent an hour after workchecking the park’s water features and vegetation for damsels and dragons. Despite the wind and large numbers of people and dogs I still managed to find several Large Red, Azure, Common Blue and Blue-tailed Damselflies. Best of all, however, was a single Hairy Dragonfly that was patrolling between the Moat Pond and Pond 3. Birds of note were singing Blackcap, Whitethroat, Goldcrestand Chiffchaff along with Mistle Thrush and Green Woodpecker.
25 / 26May 2013
Sarah Kilshaw was in the park this weekend and recorded several Large Red Damselflies (see below, top)including 3 pairsflying in tandem on the 26th. Sarah also recorded Azure Damselfliestoo (see below, bottom).
Sarah alsosaw Holly Blue, Large White, Small White, Speckled Wood,Orange- tip,Peacock, Brimstoneand Comma butterflies. Birds of note seen were 3 drakeTufted Ducks and a singlefemale. A Little Egret was also presentalong with 6 Canada Geese.
18 /19 May 2013
Parrish Colman was able to spend some time in both Holywells Park and Landseer Park this weekend. With the sun shining he was able to record a good number of butterflies including Speckled Wood, Large White, Small White, Green-veined White, Orange-tip and Holly Blue (see below).
Birds of interest included Shelduck over Landseer Park and a possible Garden Warbler singing in the Conservation area off Cliff Lane.
04 May 2013
Joe Underwood, Park Ranger led the Holywells Park Dawn Chorus this morning. A good number of bird species were heard singing and calling including Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Goldcrest and Treecreeper. A Kingfisher was seen in the conservation area and six Tufted Ducks (4m, 2f) were present on the Moat Pond. This is an incredible number of Tufted Ducks and probably a park record. Lets hope some successful breeding comes from it.
I had a walk through the park mid-morning and saw the six Tufted Ducks on the Canal Pond. A pair of Canada Geese were seen to fly in and land on the Moat Pond. The only other bird of note was a male Common Whitethroat seen singing from trees along the fence by the allotments.
03 May 2013
I had a walk back through the park after finishing work early. There were good numbers of butterflies on the wing and I was able to record: Green Hairstreak 2 (my first of the year), Brimstone 3 m, Small Tortoiseshell 2, Large White 3, Small White 2, Orange-tip 2 f, Comma 3, Holly Blue 15+.
Nearby in Landseer Park, Parrish Colman saw a Common Whitethroat.
02 May 2013
A walk through the park this morning on my way to work produced a singing Whitethroat. This scrub loving warbler was heard singing from the Allotment/ Orchard area of the park. Other birds seen were seven Mandarins (6m, 1f) on the Canal and a pair of Tufted Ducks on the Canal Pond.
01 May 2013
A pair of Shelduck were seen over the park early this morning before flying towards the River Orwell. Late afternoon saw Peacock, Comma, Green-veined White, Large and Small White butterflies all on the wing.
Steven Bird