Summer proper finally arrived in late July and persisted throughout the first half of August, with dry, warm and sometimes hot weather, which reached 33C (hottest day of the year) on the 12th. Just back from holiday on the 4th, I stepped into the back garden to look at the tomato plants and found a Jersey Tiger Moth resting on one of the leaves - another garden 'first'.
Jersey Tiger Moth, Royston, 4 August
Local bird records included a Cattle Egret, which I saw at Amwell on the 6th, and a Quail, which I heard from the track leading from the Baldock-Wallington road towards Clothall Common and the model aircraft field on the 7th. Apparently three 'singing' birds were in the same area at the time in this, the 'Quail centre of Britain'. A Tawny Owl, probably a different one to the individual that was heard from the house and garden throughout most of 2023, was heard twice from the house early in the month. Phillup's Lake was pretty quiet, although two adult Little Grebes were seen there on the 12th (no sign of juveniles this year). The Swifts had departed by the time I got back from Scotland. Juvenile warblers (Chiffchaffs and Whitethroats) were seen in local hedgerows as their main food source changed from invertebrates to ripe or ripening berries. On the 22nd I visited RSPB Rye Meads, looking for Garganey and Great White Egret, which had been reported there earlier in the day and on the days before. Sadly, I missed out on both my targets - lots of 'eclipse' Teal were seen from the Draper Hide (where the two Garganey had been seen), but despite my best efforts I couldn't turn any of them into the very similar Garganey.
'Record Shot' of Cattle Egret (left) with Little Egret, Amwell NR, 6 August
Insect numbers were well down on where they usually are at this time of the year, with only grasshoppers increasing in numbers and size. Chalkhill Blues were still emerging early in the month and I found an 'aberrant' female (quite a rare event) on The Heath on the 6th (image below). By the end of the week to the 9th I had seen very small numbers of second generation Common Blues and Brown Argus at all the sites I regularly visit. Numbers rose somewhat in the following week, but it was clear that this was going to be a very poor year for both species. Likewise, I failed to see any Silver-washed Fritillaries on The Heath this year. Numbers had never been high and the woodland areas are not extensive, so conditions for this species are far from ideal. Hopefully, they will return in due course, weather conditions permitting. However, I did see at least three Silver-washed Fritillaries at Scales Park, near Meesden, on the 9th, so I know where to go to see them next year. I also visited Clothall Common (Baldock) on the 7th, where around 15 Chalkhill Blues were seen in far from ideal conditions (image below).
Black-and-Yellow Longhorn Beetle, Scales Park, 9 August
Aberrant Female Chalkhill Blue (some Spots Missing), Therfield Heath, 6 August
Two Male Chalkhill Blues Extracting Salts from 'You-know-what', Clothall Common, 7 August
On the 12th (a very hot day) I visited Hertford Heath Nature Reserve, looking for dragonflies. I was rewarded with the sight of two Southern Migrant Hawkers (a rare but increasing in numbers immigrant from The Continent) flying backwards and forwards across the Brick Pits (they wouldn't settle, so I have no photographic evidence), Willow Emeralds and lots of Ruddy Darters, singly, laying eggs in tandem and mating. At one point a female Southern Hawker made a beeline for my trainer and landed by the side of it, adopting a position as if she was laying eggs (she may have been, but I couldn't find any after she eventually left). I also recorded an Emerald Damselfly, presumably recently hatched (image below) which I couldn't initially identify. However, somebody sent a photo of what looked like the same individual to the Hertfordshire Dragonfly Society Facebook page (an excellent read!), identifying it as a Scarce Emerald Damselfly, so I'll stick with that!
Immature Scarce Emerald Damselfly (?), Brick Pits, Hertford Heath, 12 August
Male Ruddy Darter, Hertford Heath NR, 12 August
Female Southern Hawker interacting with my Trainer, Hertford Heath, 12 August
Locally, Common Darter, Migrant and Southern Hawker dragonflies were on the wing. A few Common Blue Damselflies and Emperor Dragonflies were still active at Phillup's Lake (Reed End). Several members of the wasp mimic hoverfly Volucella inanis were seen, with one found in the garden. Numbers of Common Blue butterflies continued to increase slowly, with around ten males seen on my local wild flower meadow on the 19th. However, Brown Argus butterflies remained scarce.
Female Common Darter, Royston, 20 August
Hoverfly Volucella Inanis (a Wasp mimic), Royston, 19 August
Reports of Adonis Blue butterflies in the Old Rifle Range area later in the week encouraged me to visit The Heath on the afternoon of the 23rd, following a morning rain shower and three days of strong winds. I found several other butterfly photographers there and lots of male Adonis Blues! I counted around 15, most in pristine condition, and there must have been more. Most were on Lankester Hill, at the far eastern end of The Heath. Significant numbers of Common Blues and Brown Argus were also seen and quite a few Chalkhills, mostly females, were still active. I saw a smart Holly Blue on my way up to The Heath, making five species of 'blue' in total. Maybe all is not lost for the blues after all - if only we could now have a colder, drier winter and a drier, sunnier spring in 2025! Most of the female Common Blues seen were suffused with lots of blue (example below). A new generation of Speckled Woods was on the wing. Later, I visited Church Hill. No blues at all were seen on the south side of Church Hill, but around the bottom of the hill I counted nine Chalkhill Blues, including a female, so there is hope that the colony here will revive one day, assuming that the right ants are present. Small Heath butterflies have been here from late April, throughout the spring and summer, and a new generation was on the wing (pristine example below). Some tiny voles were scampering about in the bottom field, where at least five Common Blues were roosting dangerously close to the web of a Wasp Spider.....
Male Adonis Blue, Therfield Heath (East Side), 23 August
'Blue' Female Common Blue, Therfield Heath, 23 August
Small Heath, Therfield Heath (Church Hill), 23 August
Two Roosting Male Common Blues, Therfield Heath (Church Hill), 23 August
Twelve hours of rain on the following day put a dampener on things, and on each of two further visits to this area I was only able to find two male Adonis Blues. No females at all were seen, assuming that the few very tatty females that I did see were all Chalkhill Blues. This is not too surprising, since females are far less active than the males and not at all showy. I presume that some were there - if not, we won't be seeing any Adonis Blues on The Heath next year.
Male Adonis Blue, Therfield Heath, 30 08 24
On the 29th I made a return visit to Wilstone, hoping to see birds at the reservoir and photograph dragonflies along the Grand Union Canal. Two distant Hobbies, two Greenshanks and a Green Sandpiper were seen from the hide at the reservoir. Dragonflies were few here, with most being Black-tailed Skimmers. Migrant Hawker dragonflies were abundant along the canal. No White-legged Damselflies were seen, but I did find a mating pair of Blue-tailed Damselflies. Other insects photographed included some interesting flies, such as a fly with an orange abdomen, possibly Musca domestica (image), and a distinctive fly with a long snout, Rhingia campestris.
Fly (Musca domestica??), Wilstone, 29 August
Migrant Hawker, Wilstone, 29 August
On the 30th a 'there and back' walk from the large layby off the A505 just outside Royston to Heydon Pig Farm failed to produce any surprises. The farm is noted for the large numbers of wintering gulls, occasionally including rarities, that can be seen there. I didn't expect to see many at this time of year, but in fact there were hundreds there, the vast majority Lesser Black-backed. However, farming operations had pushed them further away from my viewpoint, so I wasn't able to check through them for rarities. A Raven was heard, but there was no sign of Lapwings (a familiar sight in the winter) here or elsewhere on the walk.
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