Lockdown Wanderings (A Retrospective) 17th-24th April

 Wirksworth-Middleton Top-Carsington Water 17th April 2020

A sunny day but with strong winds at the tops, and around the high peak trail, but cooler than the past few. 

Despite the hide closures and the lack of visitor amenities, the public footpath sections of Carsington's trails were open. I strolled down from Middleton Top into Carsington/Hopton Village, where the verges bloomed with Forget Me Nots and Dandelions, attended by Tree Bumblebees and a few small Andrena spp. Most of the trees down here are not yet in full leaf. 
Carsington's birds were mainly passerines, with most of the winter waterfowl apparently moved on. Blackcaps sang spiritedly and wrens darted low back and forth across the paths, presumably with hungry gapes to feed. Hirundines wheeled and Lapwings displayed, issuing their strange, electronic sounding whistles. 
My intended route home was blocked by a footpath closure- it passed through the garden of some self-isolating people, so I returned by the same route along which I arrived. There were a pair of Redstarts in the bushes near Middleton Top. 
Additional interest was provided by flypasts from a single member of the RAF Red Arrows display team, a single jet screaming through the sky, low over Carsington Village. 

Birds Seen: Canada Goose, Tufted Duck, Mallard, Pheasant, Great Crested Grebe, Buzzard, Coot, Oystercatcher, Lapwing, Redshank, Black Headed Gull, Great Black Backed Gull, Lesser Black Backed Gull, woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Kestrel, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Swallow, House Martin, Long Tailed Tit, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Wren, Nuthatch, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Robin, Redstart, House Sparrow, Tree Sparrow, Dunnock, Pied Wagtail, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Linnet, Goldfinch. 

Wirksworth to Alport Heights, 20th April 2020

Natty and I strolled South out of Wirksworth along Prathall Lane, taking a detour to Moor View Farm through the small woods. There were a few Swallows zipping about around the farm buildings, and plenty of pretty, chirpy Linnets in the fields adjoining Hay Lane. We continued along the narrow country lanes to Alport Heights, pausing to giggle at Knob Lane.
Sadly lots of litter had accumulated around the Alport Heights car park, which was currently closed, but we enjoyed stunning views over the rolling hills of South Derbyshire. Willington and Drakelow Power Stations loomed large to the south. Alport Heights is something of a local tourist destination, where people come to park up and enjoy the view. Irritatingly, the Trig Point at Alport Heights was locked into a fenced compound with the mobile phone masts.

We returned via Prathall Lane again, where Orange Tip Butterflies fluttered and Wild Garlic bloomed beside a babbling brook at Folly Well. Returning to Wirksworth over the bridge across the Hannage Brook I had a surprise, eye to eye encounter with a pair of chiffchaffs, the male continuing to sing just a metre or so from my face. 

Birds Seen: Pheasant, Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Black Headed Gull, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Stock Dove, Woodpigeon, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Kestrel, Magpie, Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Swallow, Long Tailed Tit, Chiffchaff, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Robin, House Sparrow, Dunnock, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Linnet, Goldfinch. 

Wirksworth - Bolehill - Black Rocks - Dene Hollow - Gang Mine - Middleton Village - Wirksworth 22nd April 2020

An interesting one, strolling from Wirksworth up to Bolehill, where a single House Martin circled, then continuing to Cromford Moor, where a surprisingly confiding Willow Warbler was in a Silver Birch. I began to descend via Black Rocks, and took up the path to Gang Mine Nature Reserve. Sadly there were some dog idiots about here and their menacing charges were off lead and running amok. The grassland at Gang Mine, which hosts remarkable botany, nationally scarce Mountain Pansy and Alpine Pennycress, thriving on the lead spoil which would be toxic to many of their competitors, and a diverse insect flora including mining bees, could also support ground nesting birds if only dog walkers could stay away.  Irritated, I continued to Middleton, passing the town's recreation ground. Since closure it has become a beautiful riot of Dandelions and forget me nots, the abandonment of mowing giving way to a feast of wild flowers.

Taking in some good views of the town, I continued up onto Middleton Moor, where Skylarks sang,  Meadow Pipits argued over breeding rights and nest sites, and Swallows zipped across the grass at speed. 
The weather was fine, with a cooling breeze in the high places. Orange Tip, Large (a beautiful 'cabbage classic') and Small White, were on the wing, with Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell. The Blackthorn on Gang Mine had begun to go over, brown petals falling as the shrubs came into leaf, and the Wood Anemones have begun to fade, but the Bluebells and Forget Me Nots had grown in intensity. 

Birds Seen: Pheasant, Buzzard, Stock Dove, Sparrowhawk, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Kestrel, Jackdaw, Raven, Carrion Crow, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long-Tailed Tit, Skylark, Swallow, House Martin, Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Blackbird, Robin, House Sparrow, Dunnock, Meadow Pipit, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Linnet. 

Middleton Top Long Loop, 24th April 2020

Natty and I walked up to Middleton Top via Stoney Wood and Middle Peak Quarry. We saw our first Whitethroat of the summer, performing his song flight. He descended slowly and loudly from the heavens to take up his position atop the scrub. We continued to the trig point at Middleton Top, access to which is somewhat ambiguous, where we enjoyed the 360° view from there, taking in the range of local habitats and geologies. Here Natty and I parted company for the evening, among the cowslips above Middleton Top Cycle Hire, having enjoyed further aerial virtuoso performances from Skylarks and Meadow Pipits. 

I continued with a circular walk around Middleton Top, taking in views of the village, then continued through the young Hawthorn woods with their abundant Wood Anemone- these still looking stunning, and bluebells. My visit took in an abandoned quarry, along unofficial paths cut by mountain bikers. The quarry workings were impressive, tunnels of varying ages were cut into the rock. A short stretch of road brought me to a footpath through a farmyard, where I apologised for the intrusion as the family were enjoying a barbecue. I walked past dry stone walls, where increasingly tired Small Tortoiseshell butterflies competed for each other's attention, and that of peacock butterflies, across fields,  and then returned to the High Peak Trail and retraced my route home. 

Birds Seen: Pheasant, Buzzard, Stock Dove, Woodpigeon, Kestrel, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Raven, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Skylark, Long Tailed Tit, Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Whitethroat, Wren, Nuthatch, Treecreeper, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Robin, Meadow Pipit, Chaffinch, Bullfinch. Goldfinch. 

Lockdown Wanderings (A retrospective) continued. Walks from 11th-15th April 2020.

Stoney Wood, Middleton Moor, National Stone Centre, 10th April 2020

Orange Tip Butterfly at National Stone Centre. 

A stroll was taken from the front door, up through Stoney Wood, where Peacock Butterflies were abundant, through the abandoned quarry, and up the fields to Middleton Top. Near Middleton Top stand some old farm buildings, and here a male Redstart sang from the top of some Gorse. I crossed Middleton Moor, where a friend had advised me his daughter had seen a Wheatear a few days before.

Cowslips. 

 

Middleton Moor is not a Moor at all, but instead a gentle hill of close grazed grassland,  well used by walkers, which in April is alive with yellow Cowslips, and from its Trig Point it offers commanding views of the area.

Birds Seen: Pheasant, Buzzard, Woodpigeon, Stock Dove, Kestrel, Jackdaw, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Skylark, Long Tailed Tit, Chiffchaff, Wren, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Robin, Redstart, Dunnock, Meadow Pipit, Bullfinch, Goldfinch. 

Butterflies Seen: Orange Tip, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Small White. 

Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly.

Stoney Wood-Middleton-Ible-Limestone Way-Bonsall-Middleton  11th April 2020

A relatively long one this time, crossing Stoney Wood and walking to the edge of the 'White Peak' section of the Peak District National Park at Ible. Industry and industrial archaeology is in evidence here with active and disused quarries on the way.  The weather was hot and sunny, unseasonably so. 

Between the High Peak Trail at Middleton and the Via Gellia road, I crossed open farmland, mainly improved grassland managed for, and by, sheep and cattle. A Skylark sang above me and Swallows hawked around some farm buildings, but wildlife was not abundant. Closer to the road which was set in a steep sided valley, woodland grows, but birds seemed relatively few. The steep footpath to Ible had discouraging notices on it, politely requesting walkers to 'consider alternative routes' on account of the Covid 19 crisis, so a nervous jog along the Via Gellia, impossible in times of normal traffic, was required. Ible village seems to be a motley collection of particularly untidy farm buildings, dilapidated and piled high with agricultural rubbish, but Linnets were up there, busy and active, and a new species for the Lockdown List. These chestnut backed finches, the males displaying in summer bright red 'bleeding heart' chest markings, are emblematic farmland birds and seem to be a summer visitor to these parts.

I found the Limestone Way, which took me across more picturesque and gently undulating farmland. I neglected the two turnings for more direct routes home, the first in optimism and enjoyment of the butterflies, the second in error. I crossed an interesting patch of scrub, described somewhat worryingly on my OS map simply as 'shafts.' In addition to the common and vocal passerines and a few Small Tortoiseshells, it held several scars and capped mineshafts, dating back presumably several hundred years.

Buzzard.

Eventually I found myself in Bonsall, under a glorious summer sky, stood beneath the lovely old village church. Despite being picturesque this was something of a navigational error, but I found the narrow road to the village of Slaley, and found the steep, descending footpath toward the Via Gellia. The early Bluebells were gorgeous, and not yet open to their full glory. Eventually I found my path blocked by a fallen tree, which moved ominously at the slightest touch. Not fancying surfing or being dragged down to the busy road on or under a sliding, rootless Beech I retraced my steps to Slaley, an interesting collection of fairly grand old houses old and modern. From here I found a much better path, which took me down to the Via Gellia, and then I struck uphill through the woods. The Anemone flowers had closed for the night, pink heads nodding in the fading light. I reached the pavement in Middleton, which took me all the way home, in twilight. I had cut it very fine indeed. 

Birds Seen: Pheasant, Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Stock Dove, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Kestrel, Jay, Magpie, Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Skylark, Swallow, Long Tailed Tit, Willow Warbler, Wren, Nuthatch, Robin, Redstart, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Chaffinch, Linnet, Goldfinch. 

Butterflies seen: Peacock, Orange Tip, Green Veined White, Brimstone, Large White, Small Tortoiseshell

National Stone Centre, Gang Mine, Rose End Meadows, Black Rocks.  14th April 2020. 

Another bright sunshiney day, another sunny stroll out of the front door, taking in three local Nature Reserves and the environs of Dene Quarry, walking along its Eastern fringe, parallel to Cromford Hill. Here the common passerines were abundant, with vocal Wrens and Blackcaps especially plentiful. 

Rose End held no new passage migrant surprises but was floral and pleasant. The pond, which in previous years has held good Dragonflies and Amphibians, seemed unfortunately to have become somewhat silted up and appeared relatively lifeless. A Peregrine hunted overhead, circling on the thermals. 

I walked up the steep path through woods and fields, taking in impressive views, up to Black Rocks, and descended via the now familiar path through Bolehill. Siskins, streaky green and yellow seed-eating finches associated with Northern and Upland woodland, were on garden feeders in Bolehill.

Chiffchaff

 

Birds Seen: Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Stock Dove, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Peregrine, Kestrel, Jay, Magpie, Jackdaw, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long Tailed Tit, Chiffchaff, Blackcap, Wren, Treecreeper, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Robin, Pied Wagtail, Chaffinch, Bullfinch, Goldfinch, 

Butterflies Seen: Peacock, Orange Tip, Small Tortoiseshell, Green Veined White.

Middleton Moor Again. 15th April

More fruitless searching for the Wheatears of Middleton Moor. I strolled up to Middleton by Wirksworth via Stoney Wood, counting butterflies on the way, and then on to Middleton Moor. In the Gorse near the disused farm buildings two male Redstarts were fighting a pitched and colourful battle. The aggression was serious, not dissimilar to Robins fighting. Eventually one bird decided to beat a retreat and flew out of sight with the other in hot pursuit. I did not get to see whether he escaped. 

Also in this area there were plenty of Small Tortoisehell butterflies (Aglais urticae). Butterflies adult lives are brief, and, having endured the winter fully formed and in torpor, these insects seemed well aware that time was against them. Many, after a long spell of hot weather and great activity, had already become somewhat tatty, wings frayed at the edges or with chunks missing or translucent patches, their colour sun bleached. The urge to reproduce, or to reproduce one more time both sexes can breed with multiple partners, was strong in them. Intriguingly, what I assume to be a male Small Tortoiseshell appeared to be attempting to court a female Peacock Butterfly (Aglais io), following her persistently, and touching her with his antennae every time she landed. This cross species behaviour has been reported on the internet too. I found it a curious sight. The two species are cogeneric, so perhaps the chemical and visual signals are not too different.

Small Tortoiseshell and Peacock (with wings closed) cross species courtship behaviour. 

I walked down from Middleton top via the National Stone Centre, where I enjoyed beautiful close views of a female Orange Tip (Anthocharis cardamines) butterfly. Named for the male, whose dayglow orange wingtips are conspicuous, the female lacks these, but still has a beautiful pattern of dappled green, like sunshine on a mossy forest floor rendered in miniature, on the underside of her hindwing. She was ovipositing, laying a single egg on each Cuckoo Flower plant. A wise move, for Orange Tip larvae will readily turn cannibal on encountering another of their kind.  She was confiding and elegant, a sweet bug, and photogenic.

Orange Tip Butterfly ovipositing. 

I went on my way as the light took on golden tones. 

Birds Seen: Pheasant, Buzzard, Kestrel, Magpie, Jackdaw, Raven, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Skylark, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler, Wren, Blackbird, Mistle Thrush, Robin, Redstart, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Goldfinch, 

Butterflies Seen: Brimstone, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Green Veined White, Orange Tip. 

Lockdown Walk Retrospective part 4. Gang Mine, Dene Quarry and Rose End Meadows.

7th April 2020. 

On a glorious summers' day I strolled up through the grounds of the National Stone Centre, counting bees towards Natty's bumblebee survey on the way. We reached the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust reserve at Gang Mine, a site somewhat overused by dog walkers, though the Alpine Pennycress and Mountain Violets continue to flower on the site of an ancient lead mine. Butterflies were out in force today, a highling being four Peacocks (Aglais io) chasing each other. There were also good numbers of bees, including Common Carder and Tawney Mining Bee. 

Unknown wasp species on Daffodil at Stoney Wood

View of Dene Quarry.

Beneath a blue sky I walked the footpath around the active Dene Quarry, which had been somewhat diverted from its course shown on the map. There were plenty of Peacocks up and about. The path down to the Via Gellia had been closed by quarry workings, and quarry vehicles were still busy in spite of Lockdown. In the chalky grassland and farmland I saw my first Redstarts of the year, beautiful birds with orange bellies and black throats in the summer plumage males, and brick red tails in all plumages, from which they get their name (Steart is an old English word for tail).  I proceeded by the Green Lane down to Rose End Meadows. I found the site surprisingly good bird-wise. with the highlight being a brief, and initially obscured view of a Ring Ouzel. Any doubt as to the birds' identity was blown away when he flew directly over my head, his primaries distinctly grey, and the crescent collar at his neck bright white. This scarce passage migrant, a mountain relative of the Blackbird breeds on the Eastern Moors, 20 or so miles to the North. 

By now the sun was setting and the walk by road up Cromford Hill seemed like rather a long slog home. 

Birds Seen: Mallard, Buzzard, Stock Dove,  Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Kestrel, Jay, Jackdaw, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Raven, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Sand Martin* Swallow, Long-Tailed Tit, Chiffchaff, Wren, Ring Ouzel* Blackbird, Song thrush, Mistle Thrush, Robin, Redstart* Meadow Pipit, Chaffinch, Bullfinch, Goldfinch

Butterflies seen: Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell, Green Veined White. 

Stoney Wood, 8th April 2020

A nice sunny unofficial survey day in stoney wood. Blackthorn was blooming, white and scented on the steep slope and a glorious cherry tree was in blossom in the lower part of the site. Maintenance was taking place around the StarDisc. Stoney Wood is a community woodland set in a former quarry, regenerating limestone grassland and young woodland on its slopes.

Blackthorn flowers in Stoney Wood.

View of Stoney Wood.

Bird life was a little disappointing, but a Field Vole emerged from a hole under the small wooden bridge and looked up at me, which was something of a highlight, and there were plenty of Tree and Buff-Tailed Bumblebees on the wing. 

Birds Seen: Blue Tit, Great Tit, Chiffchaff, Wren, Robin. 

Butterflies seen: Peacock (9), Small Tortoiseshell (5)

Cherry Blossom in Stoney Wood

Peacock Butterfly in Stoney Wood

Peacock Butterfly in Stoney Wood. 

Back home in the evening a Tawny Owl was singing in the dark, and Woodpigeons, Blue Tits, and Small Tortoiseshells were in the garden. 

Wirksworth, Bolehill, Whatstandwell, Cromford Canal, Wirksworth  9th April 2020

I strolled up a sunny Wash Green, past a year tick singing Blackcap, and several beautiful butterflies, down the long path towards Alderwasley, carefully avoiding the cattle. The route took me through Anemone carpeted woods, where, near Mere brook, a small bat, probably a Pipistrelle, was circling, apparently catching flies, which were abundant, in broad daylight. I found a noisy track, which I didn't enjoy much, through a small community comprised mainly of dogs and diggers, and eventually crossed the Derwent and the A6 at Whatstandwell.

Anemone and Celandine near Mere Brook.

From Here I took up the Cromford Canal towpath, which was surprisingly quiet of humans, and found it alive with the sound of singing Blackcaps, which must have only arrived recently. Only male Blackcaps were seen. The regular residents and chiffchaffs also sang. A  pair of Moorhens had little black fluffball chicks, which were being fed by the adults. Little Grebes were about on the canal as well as Mallards, the sun reflecting off their metallic green heads. 

Moorhens on Cromford Canal

Mallard on the Cromford Canal

I returned via the regular path across farmland, from near the High Peak Junction to Bolehill. No friendly black cat met me this time, and sadly, there were too many squashed toads on the track, presumably killed by farm vehicles. However the roadside ditches were full of the warty amphibians which could also be heard singing. 

It was a Thursday and the applause for the NHS and care workers at 8pm was stunning, loud, car horns, fireworks, and even a shotgun sounded to be in the mix, showing their appreciation. 

At home this evening the Tawny Owls once again provided its midnight symphony of hoots and kee-wicks. 

Birds Seen: Mallard, Pheasant, Little Grebe, Moorhen, Buzzard, Woodpigeon, Jay, Magpie, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long Tailed Tit, Chiffchaff, Blackcap*, Goldcrest, Wren, Nuthatch, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Robin, House Sparrow, Grey Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Chaffinch, Goldfinch. 

Butterflies Seen: Peacock, Small White, Small Tortoiseshell, Red Admiral, Brimstone, Orange Tip, Peacock. 

Other Wildlife: Rabbit, Grey Squirrel, Common Toad, Pipistrelle spp. 

Little Grebe on Cromford Canal

A Retrospective on my Lockdown walks. Part 3

Wirksworth-Alderwasley-Shining Cliff Woods-Ashleyhay-Wirksworth, 6th April 2020

An extraordinarily, or so it felt, long one, walking from Wirksworth up the hill, amid intermittent showers and occasionally glorious sunshine, through woods carpeted with white Anemone, and fields full of Celandines, by babbling brooks to the sound of Chiffchaffs and Robins singing, to Alderwasley. There were a good selection of early butterflies on the wing, including Commas, Peacocks and Small Tortoiseshells, species which overwinter as adults and appear on the first warm days to take advantage of the early nectar sources.

Marsh Marigold, probably a garden escape, beside a babbling brook. 

Comma Butterfly, a harbinger of summer.

In Alderwasley I crossed the bridge over the pond in the school grounds, and continued across a patch of Heathland and past a war memorial, into Shining Cliff Woods, thought locally to be haunted, along stream bed paths, to obscured views of the River Derwent and the corner of a quiet industrial estate, before striking back uphill, past the small reservoir and information boards about the wood's history, its historical ownership by the radical Grith Fyrd Pioneers, an organisation dedicated to survivalism, off grid living, and challenging urbanism and industrial labour, and later by the Youth Hostels Association.

Wood Anemone flowers. 

 

Bird-wise, Shining Cliff Woods was surprisingly quiet, with little birdsong, but the adjoining plantation was alive with Goldfinches, busy in the Larches, and a Great Spotted Woodpecker. A pair of Swallows near a small farm and a sign for Belper were my first of the summer, wheeling about in a clear blue sky. Moments later, a huge flock of fieldfares took flight, massed ahead of their long trip North. The changing of the Seasons. A Mistle Thrush sang his lazy blackbird song. 

A long walk from home. 

I picked my way back toward Wirksworth via lanes and rural footpaths. arriving in Prathall Lane, itself appearing an experiment in rural living, with Showman's Caravans and the curious shapes of the living tree furniture chair farm. Prathall Lane was long, but Pheasants, Song Thrush, and a singing Willow Warbler welcomed me back into Wirksworth. 

What a long and rewarding stroll. 

Birds Seen: Canada Goose, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Pheasant, Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Moorhen, Feral Pigeon, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Magpie, Jackdaw, Rook, Carrion Crow, Coal Tit, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Swallow*, Long Tailed Tit, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler*, Goldcrest, Wren, Treecreeper, Blackbird, Fieldfare, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Robin, House Sparrow, Dunnock, Grey Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Chaffinch, Greenfinch, Goldfinch. 

Bird*=my first sighting of 2020. 

Continued. A retrospective through my lockdown walks.

Stoney Wood and Environs Thursday 2nd April 2020

A walk was had of a clear and bright but somewhat blustery afternoon, up through Stoney Wood, where there were several large bumblebees on the catkins, and then taking the second footpath off the hairpin bend on the Dale. Stoney Wood is a favourite local spot, and a community woodland on the site of an old quarry. There were no new migrant birds, somewhat to our surprise, but there were Chiffchaffs, Blue and Great Tits, and chaffinches, all singing. 

We then wandered onto the shorter of the two footpaths across the Middle Peak Quarry, through a tunnelled section, and then picked up the road toward Carsington. Another footpath on our left brought us back through Middle Peak quarry. A few walkers were out and about but humans remained somewhat scarce. Blackthorn, Celandine, and huge mats of some herbaceous plant with white flowers clung to the quarry walls. 

Birds seen: Lesser Black Backed Gull, Black Headed Gull, Stock Dove, Woodpigeon, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long-Tailed Tit, Chiffchaff, Wren, Blackbird, Dunnock, Pied Wagtail, Goldfinch. 

Bolehill, Cromford Canal, Black Rocks, Cromford Moor.   Friday 3rd April

A Longer circular walk was had this afternoon, taking the now familiar trail up from Wirksworth, past the parked historic trains, up the hill into Bolehill, through the village, along the farm track and down a network of footpaths through a pastoral landscape of spring lambs and shy cattle. I spent a little time with a beautiful, one eyed black cat, who was very friendly and affectionate. I rather wanted to bring him home. A Skylark sang. I reached the canal and looked for waterfowl, but found it all surprisingly poor, both on the canal and the derwent. Unusual. I then struck up the steep part of the high peak trail, and made my return via Black Rocks, and part of Cromford Moor, which hosts a fragment of moorland vegetation but is largely disappearing under conifer plantation. 

The view from the Cromford Moor trig point did not disappoint and I stopped for an obligatory selfie up there. as the sun broke out. The view took in part of Carsington Water in one direction, with the White Peak beyond, and the flat land toward Derby in the other. Cromford Moor was a surprising beauty, and something of a revelation and a discovery, but a few hundred metres from my home.

Birds Seen: Mallard, Pheasant, Little Grebe, Moorhen, Buzzard, Woodpigeon, Jay, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Raven, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Skylark, Long-Tailed Tit, Chiffchaff, Wren, Treecreeper, Blackbird, Fieldfare, Redwing, Song Thrush, Robin, Dunnock, House Sparrow, Pied Wagtail, Chaffinch, Goldfinch 

Cromford Moor

Part of the view from Cromford Moor Trig.

Descent via Bolehill, with Micropigs. 

Rail Transport through the 80s. 

Middleton Moor, High Peak Trail, Black Rocks and Bolehill.   4th April 2020

Another lockdown walk took me to Middleton Moor via Stoney Wood and the vastness of the Middle Peak Quarry, passing around abandoned or near abandoned farm buildings and a large stand of gorse. Middleton Moor, seldom explored by me, is something of a misnomer. On the limestone, it consisted largely of highly improved grassland, and held a few Meadow Pipits, and Skylarks sang from on high. 

Further down the High Peak Trail a Peregrine circled overhead, and Natty and small human joined me at the National Stone Centre. We climbed the steep footpath up Black Rocks to the Cromford Moor Trig Point I'd visited alone the previous day. The view was still good. I suspect it will take a while to get old. 

We walked back through the Shetland Ponies and spring Lambs near Bolehill. 

Birds: Pheasant, Lesser Black Backed Gull, Kestrel, Peregrine, Jay, Magpie, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Skylark, Chiffchaff, Wren, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Mistle Thrush, Robin, House Sparrow, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Goldfinch. 



Home. 5th April 2020

On a day spent mainly at home, Goldfinches were busy in the bushes, and were house sparrows. Black Headed Gulls flew over and a Peacock Butterfly was in the garden. An afternoon stroll about town added Greenfinch to the Lockdown List, and we also saw a Bombus lapidarius. A Buzzard was in flight over the town and the first Herb Robert was in flower. 

Part of Middleton  Moor. 

A Retrospective on Lockdown walks. Part 1. March.

National Stone Centre and Middleton Top, 26th March 2020

A retrospective on the Lockdown period. 

On a glorious sunny spring day, The Bee Girl and I made our way to one of the survey sites in the grounds of the National Stone Centre. There were a few people still enjoying the sunny weather but visitor numbers were definitely down since the Government advised us all to Remain Indoors. This was our permitted exercise. Walks will be limited to those from our front doors, for the foreseeable future. Still, beats working. 

There were a good few fat queen Bumblebees about, a Bombus hypnorum, a few B leucorum, and hundreds of Bee mimic hoverflies. A Small Tortoiseshell butterfly, recently awoken from his winter torpor, was on the wing near the closed cafe. Blue Tits and Blackbirds sung enthusiastically to a blue sky. 

Approaching Middleton Top, a passing Buzzard flushed big flocks of Fieldfare and Redwing, these wintering species still very much present alongside Butterflies and the spring Bees. Another Buzzard allowed close approach as I returned along an eerily quiet Middleton to Wirksworth road. 

Birds sighted were: Pheasant, Buzzard, Woodpigeon, Magpie, Jackdaw, Carrion Crow, Raven, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Coal Tit, Nuthatch, Starling, Blackbird, Mistle Thrush, Fieldfare, Redwing, Robin, Grey Wagtail, Pied Wagtail, Meadow Pipit, Bullfinch. 

Buzzard

Sculpture at the National Stone Centre

A Walk to Bolehill and Back 30th March 2020

Setting out for an afternoon stroll, Natty and I walked beneath a lead grey sky. By our return in the sunset the sky was blue, small clouds picked out and lined by a red sunset, a magnificent display of greens and blues and long shadows. 
Bees buzzed and birds sang, white and purple violents and golden celandines bloomed. Flies danced in the air and briefly, the sound of a mosquito bothered my ear. We placed figurative bets on when the first Swallows would appear and make a summer. I gave it less than a fortnight. We met few humans, fewer than the previous day. Woodpeckers drummed unseen, and Chiffchaff numbers appear to have risen, with so many singing. This was the kind of stroll of which summer evenings are made. 

Birds Sighted were: Pheasant, Grey Heron, Woodpigeon, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Magpie, Jackdaw, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Long Tailed Tit, Chiffchaff, Treecreeper, Blackbird, Song Thrush, Robin, Chaffinch, Goldfinch.

Celandine

A tale of joy and heartbreak- An unforgettable encounter in Orkney

A couple of weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to visit the Orkney islands off the North coast of Scotland. A patchwork of ancient sites, standing stones, wild seas and cattle farms, of jewelled wild flower meadows and moorland in bloom, where blue butterflies and bumblebees live only in sheltered hollows, where Neolithic villages and places of worship stand testimony to the ingenuity of our ancient ancestors, Orkney is a remote, and fascinating place.

One afternoon, I drove in the sunshine to the RSPB’s Cottascarth viewpoint, on the moors not far from Finstown.  While on the road I encountered, and photographed, very badly as it turned out, a beautiful Oystercatcher chick, in the company of a parent. The chick still had some down, though its adult feathers had begun to show, and it was nearly ready to take to the skies. Oystercatchers breed in substantial numbers in Orkney’s farmland. I took the narrow, twisting track through farm buildings to the viewpoint, where, green-roofed and windowed, but still clearly crafted from abandoned croft buildings, stood the RSPB hide.  Optimistic, I waited and enjoyed the surroundings, hoping to catch a glimpse of a Hen Harrier.  The occasional call of a Curlew echoed from the hills, or an Oystercatcher alarm call rose from the farmland and the flock of linnet which alighted briefly on the roof of the hide. A few sheep grazed.  After about an hour the Harrier appeared, a male, a smart, grey bird, with black, fingered wingtips, a grey ghost over the moorland, hanging on wings with the characteristic dihedral.  Hen Harriers hunt in part by hearing, and by sight, and prey on voles, as well as young ground nesting birds.   The male made a couple of passes, his attention fully focussed on the ground below, looking for voles or any unfortunate small birds, before disappearing over the ridge into the valley behind. I waited another few minutes, hoping this magnificent bird would reappear, but he did not, and I began to make my way back to the small car park ready to head back to my camp site.

As made my way back to the car I saw the male glide over the place I had just been standing. With some disappointment at missing out on this close view, enjoyed his majestic hunting through binoculars. I headed back down to the coast roads. Driving slowly on empty roads with my eyes open for birds, I became aware of the mother Oystercatcher I had encountered earlier. She was loudly and aggressively mobbing something in the field, down beyond a low brow hidden from sight. She’d break away bto chase off a passing Hooded Crow, though these birds did not seem to go far, then returning to her target on the ground, strafing with her sonic weapon, her passes low and frequent, her calls rhythmic but high and frantic. I slowed down, wondering what could possibly have enraged her like this. Then, just 15 metres or so from my window, I saw what had happened. On top of a sad, white lump with feathers, feet extended toward the sky, stood a female Hen Harrier. Her golden yellow eyes, set in a subtle facial disc recalling an owl, glanced to me, before, unconcerned by me or the distraught mobbing of the adult Oystercatcher, returning to plucking her prize.

My heart in my mouth, I silently reached for my camera and grabbed a few photos through the passenger window.  I watched the bird, predator, as she continued to remove the downy feathers from her prey, scattering them to the wind like dandelion seeds, calmly, yet so alert, eyes scanning in all directions.  The adult did not relent from calling.

Suddenly the bird was on the move, a grey shape emerging from the bushes. A farm cat burst out from cover toward the bird of prey. With her wings spread, her imposing size was apparent. She struggled into the air with her prize, but it was a little too heavy, and she dropped it. The dead Oystercatcher chick flopped limp to the ground. She swooped in on it again, and stood on it, bearing a steely look, extending her wings to protect her prize.  But the farm cat was determined. The next spring it made, the bird was off and flying, back toward the hills, and the Oystercatcher chick was clasped firmly in the jaws of the tabby.  It sloped off, toward some farm buildings to enjoy its prize. I considered some attempt to scare the cat off, in the hope the Harrier would return, but I figured even semi-feral mammals must eat, and a cat brave enough to take on an adult Hen Harrier, talons and all, must be very hungry indeed.

My heart still in my mouth, I sat for a while,  as a band of thick, grey cloud rolled in over the sea, and the cool rain began to fall.  A double rainbow arced from the horizon. A confused and angry adult Oystercatcher stood on a fence post, yelling at the wind.