Royston Wildlife Blog: Local Wildlife Sightings April 2022

Cold weather in the first week, combined with strong winds on the 6th and 7th (which almost blew the garden fencing down) brought migration from the south to a virtual halt, whilst winter visitors had largely departed in March. An early wheatear was seen near Ashwell on the 2nd, whilst a few immature large gulls were seen at Hatchpen Farm, including a probable 3rd winter yellow-legged gull. A very windy walk round the villages on the 7th produced a pair of tufted ducks and a little grebe at Phillup's Lake and a flock of around 50 fieldfares at Hatchpen Farm, where there was some mining bee activity. A few lapwings were still hanging on at the NE corner of Greys Farm.

Tufted Ducks, Phillups Lake, Reed End, 7 April

There was a big change in the weather from the 8th and by the 13th we were basking in the sun and temperatures of 18-20C. Common migrant birds flooded into the region over the next week, with blackcaps, in particular, becoming widespread and common. After dropping my car off for repair near Rushden on the 12th I walked back along footpaths to Royston (around 10 miles), seeing my first willow warbler of the year near Blagrove Common nature reserve, as well as green-veined and orange tip butterflies. A wheatear was seen in a field near Chapel Green. Further singing willow warblers (now essentially a passage migrant in the Royston area) were seen at the west end of Therfield Heath on the 15th and at the Newsells Stud Farm on the 18th. A wheatear was at Greys Farm on the 15th and four swallows were back at Hatchpen Farm on the 18th. One swallow showed interesting behaviour, standing on the cattle grid at the entrance to the farm before dropping down under the grid and re-emerging around 20 seconds later. Was it looking for invertebrate food or nesting material? There was an excellent display of pasque flowers through the first half of the month on Church Hill. Six butterfly species (brimstone, comma, green-veined white, orange tip, peacock and small tortoiseshell) were seen on a 'there and back' walk with my partner up the Icknield Way to the 'Fox and Duck' in Therfield on the 17th.

Pasque Flowers on the side of Church Hill, 11 April

Female Green-veined White Butterfly, Fox Covert, 11 April

Another visit to Amwell, on the morning of the 14th, was rewarded with sightings of my first sedge warblers and common whitethroat of the year, although there was no sign of the reported cuckoo. After getting good views of a singing Cetti's warbler near the edge of Hollycross Lake I walked back across the field towards the gate leading to the main track, only to be confronted with the sight of a barn owl, sitting on a dead tree stump around 50 yards away! It stayed whilst I scrabbled to get my camera out and even allowed me to get a little closer before eventually flying away. Sadly, my images revealed that it was an injured bird, having lost one eye and showing some other damage. Although barn owls hunt mainly using their acute hearing, I fear that this bird will struggle to survive in the wild for long.

Barn Owl, Amwell, 14 April, Showing its 'Good Side'

One-eyed Barn Owl, Amwell, 14 April

As more and more insects were emerging I spent some time at Hatchpen Farm, photographing and trying to identify the mining bees and their cleptoparasites that live there. Both male and female hairy-footed flower bees were identified from photographs, as were male and female armed melecta bees, which parasitise the hairy-footed flower bees. Nearby, a couple of Gooden's nomad bees were seen These parasitise a variety of andrena mining bees, although none of these could be found at the site. Whether there is any relationship between the nomad bee and the other species seen remains to be clarified: I must do some more research into their interactions.

Female Armed Melecta Bee, Reed, 18 April

Male Armed Melecta Bee, Reed, 18 April

Female Hairy-footed Flower Bee, Reed, 18 April

Male Hairy-footed Flower Bee, Reed, 18 April

Gooden's Nomad Bee, Reed, 18 April

I do the vast majority of my local bird watching on my own, but I can't cover all of my 'local patch' by myself on a very regular basis. Fortunately there are other bird watchers who cover local sites. I am grateful to Doug Radford (who found the bird) and Andy Symes (for spreading the news) when a female ring ouzel was found on the side of Church Hill on the 25th. I saw and photographed the bird the following day and it was still present when I visited again on the 29th. Ring ouzels are spring passage migrants, which stop off in the Royston area almost every year (but none seen in 2021!). This bird was probably heading to Scandinavia, although they nest in upland areas as close to us as the Peak District. Later on the 26th I visited Phillup's Lake in Reed End, where swallows and house martins were feeding over the water and three pairs of Canada geese were showing aggression and chasing each other around the lake.