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Latest Sightings September 2011

Click on the link to send in your sightings [email-masked]

For previous months sightings see Archive

The "Area Seen" refers to the 10
sections that the Brook has been split into for monitoring purposes (see
Wildlife page under Monitoring ). .

All sightings unless stated are from personal observations by Eddie Napper

Birds

Click on any picture to see a larger image

29/09/11 In Area 4 this mornings the first
Redwing of the Autumn was seen flying west
along the brook by Paul Bright- Thomas and a Kestrelflew South east.

28/09/11 Paul Bright-Thomas was watching
Area 4 today with a Linnet , 3 House Martins , 5 Pied
Wagtails and a Skylark all flying
South. A Goldcrest was feeding in the trees
near Ripple Stream Bridge.

26/09/11 In Area 5 the Grey Wagtail was seen in Riverside Walk along with
a Sparrowhwk , and 45 House Martins flew South and 2 Song Thrushes flew East in Area 4 and were seen by
Paul Bright- Thomas.

25/09/11 Yesterdays Grey Wagtail was back again today near Dragonfly
Bridge. Watching the bushes in Area 5 lit by the early sun produced a
Song Thrush, Chiffchaff & Blackcap ,. In
a 10 min period this morning between 08:50 and 09:00 approx 95 House Martin were seen drifting south with at least
1 Swallow . A further 2 Skylarks were also seen .

24/09/11 Canada Geese
were on the move again today with 18 moving West a Kingfisher was flying up and downstream on the Emm
between Ripple Stream Bridge & Kingfisher Bridge. A Grey Wagtail was also seen near Ripple Stream
Bridge.

22/09/11 The birds just keep coming!. This
mornings walk was all going much to plan (for the time of the year) when
in a mad flurry 15 Meadow Pipits flew South
followed by approx 30 Swallows & House Martins
. 2 Skylarks then flew East calling. A
Goldcrest was feeding in the trees near
Ripple Stream Bridge.

21/09/11 An early alarm call in Area 5 this
morning with a Tawny Owl calling at 05:30. A
total of 18 Canada Goose flew West and in an
hour this evening 50 House Martins flew S/SE

19/09/11 My walk to walk this morning
along the Brook highlighted the change of seasons. A flock of at least
40+ Finches mostly Greenfinch with some Goldfinch exploded out of there usual tree. Mistle Thrushes have returned with at least 4 seen.
On a long walk home via Area 2 (Rear of Tesco's) at least 50 hirundines
were seen drifting over south. The majority were House Martins with a few Swallows . A Buzzard was
also seen soaring.

18/09/11 In Area 5 a Kingfisher was seen flying upstream towards
Kingfisher Bridge ( only the second sighting this month ). A Canada Goose flew West and a single Swallow & Grey Wagtail were seen in Area 4. 50
Meadow Pipits were seen flying over Area 4 in
approx 1hr (mostly in small groups) by Paul Bright-Thomas.

17/09/11 In Area 4 a late Swift was seen heading low North by Paul
Bright-Thomas. Also seen were a Juvenille Buzzard
a Blackcap & Kestrel .

16/09/11 Paul Bright-Thomas was busy again
in Area 4 today with10 Long tailed Tits
through his garden & 2 Song Thrush
over high West. Also seen were Goldcrest
& Chiffchaff. Visible migration was evident with 25 Meadow Pipits flying south , 3 Skylarks 1 west & 2 low south east. A hefty 125
Swallows flew over. 100 were seen before
07:30 mostly flying south. In Area 10 in the field to the rear of
Lavell's Lake carpark on Sandford Lane a Yellow
Wagtail was seen flying over by Richard Marsh.

14/09/11 With a bit more time this morning I
was able to stand and stare. The hedgerow & shrubs to the rear of
the feeding station in Area 5 allways catch the early morning sun. Today
was no exception, that and the combination of Blackberry, Hawthorn and
Ivy were keeping the birds happy. Sightings included singing male Chiffchaff a pair of Blackcaps & Chaffinch,
Greenfinch & Goldfinch . There were flyovers by 6 Swallows going south. A Cormorrant going east and a Kestrel . To the rear of Morrisons it was getting a
bit noisy with 5 calling Mistle Thrushes and
12 Magpies having a difference of opinion
over who's tree it was.

In Area 10 at 09:00 in the field to the rear of Lavell's
Lake carpark on Sandford Lane a female/immature Redstart was seen by Fraser J Cottington.

10/09/11 Paul Bright-Thomas was keeping a
watchfull eye on the skies in Area 4 this morning with good results.
Firsts for this autumn were 8 Meadow Pipits
flying low south and 2 Siskin .
Migrants included a single singing male Chiffchaff
and 13 Swallows including juveniles
flying south in 3 groups. Elsewhere in Area 5 2 Cormorrants were seen flying west at 07:00. An
elusive Coal Tit was finally seen after heard
calling for 5 mins.

08/09/11 Todays highlights included a Red Kite & a solitary Swallow flying south in Area 5 at 18:35. A Goldfinch was seen feeding a juvenille at the bird
feeders.

07/09/11 A brief visit into Area 2 produced
a soaring Buzzard being harrased by a Carrion Crow . In Area 5 a Sparrowhawk was also being chased as it flew across
the brook

03/09/11 Today started at 07:00 with 80 mins
standing on the highest point in Area 5 next to the Acorn Centre. This
area gives allmost 360 degree visibility and hopefully means if it flies
over I see it. A total of 35 hirundines mostly Swallows with approx 5 House
Martins flew south. Gulls were well represented with Herring Gulls, Black headed Gulls & a Lesser black backed Gull all putting in an
appearance. 11 Canada Geese flew west
calling. A Chiffchaff was still calling.
Another 19 species were also seen.

02/09/11 More hirundines heading south today
in Area 5 with 20+ Swallows at 07:45 . Rooks are also on the move at this time of year
with 20 seen heading N. A Kingfisher was seen
by Ripple stream Bridge. In Area 8 a Chiffchaff
was calling and a juvenille.Buzzard
was perched in a tree getting a lot of interest from nearby Carrion Crows . In Area 4 between 07:00 & 08:00
Paul Bright Thomas had the following Chiffchaff,
Coal Tit,& Ring necked Parakeet . 12 Swallows flying SE and an amazing flock of 11 Yellow Wagtails flying S. Another first for the
FOTEB bird list. In Area 10 in the top left hand corner of the field to
the rear of Lavell's Lake carpark on Sandford Lane the Redstart & Spotted Flycatcher are still present
with 10 + Blackcaps , 2 Whitethroat and a Lesser
Whitethroat .

Insects/ Spiders

Click on any picture to see a larger image

25/09/11 At this time of year the misty
mornings highlight the webs of Spiders. These in Area 5 are from Dictyna Spiders they are usually seen on the dry
heads of vegetation.

23/09/11 This magnificent Red Admiral was seen sunning itself on the leaves
of Brambles in Area 5. Nearby several Harlequin
Ladybirds and a Speckled Wood were
also enjoying the sun.

14/09/11 Inspired by Jan Haseler's
magnificent talk last night at the FOTEB Open Meeting on "Mid Berks
Butterflies", I kept an eye out on this mornings walk in Area's 4 &
5. With the sun shining several species were on the wing. A Small Copper was on the banks of the Emm near
Ripple Stream Bridge and a Speckled Wood was
on the footpath near the Woosehill Underpass. By the afternoon it had
really warmed up and Comma, Large White &
Peacock were seen in the balancing pond in Area 4.

Whilst in the balancing pond at
least 6 Common Darter dragonflies were seen.

04/09/11 Alongside the Emm in Area 10 this
afternoon a Common Hawker dragonfly was seen
and a Common Blue Damselfly .

02/09/11 With a sunny day forcast it
seemed a good time to go on a bug hunt. Area 8 (Adj to Old Forest Rd )
was chosen. It is an area of rough pasture but is private land. 2 new
butterflies for the year were seen Small White &
Common Blue this brings this years FOTEB butterfly list to 20
species. Grasshoppers & Crickets were the main target and the
following were found Roesel's Bush Cricket &
Meadow Grasshopper . More to follow as other grasshoppers are
identified.

Other Wildlife

Click on any picture to see a larger image

Amphibians

14/09/11 In Area 4 a Common Frog was seen hopping across the channel in
the middle.of the balancing pond this afternoon.

Coarse Fish

Mammals

29/09/11 With the warm weather continuing it
was no suprise that a Pipistrelle Bat were
seen feeding around trees in Area 5 at 19:00.

24/09/11 2 what were presumed to be Pipistrelle Bat were seen feeding around trees in
Area 5 at 19:30 whilst setting up the moth trap.

03/09/11 A Pipistrelle
Bat was seen feeding around trees in Area 5 at dusk.

02/09/11 In Area 8 at approx 11:30, 2
Roe Deer were seen despite trying to keep a
low profile.

Plants/Trees

15/09/11 The Wildflower Meadow in Area 5 was mown today by
Wokingham Borough Council. See News page for more details.

05/09/11 The Crack
Willow in Area 4 lived up to its name with a large bough snapping
off this morning . Thankfully the fallen branches were removed from the
brook avoiding flooding.

02/09/11 In Area 8 Common Toadflax & Common Fleabane can be seen.

Fungi

04/09/11 The weather is perfect and my
fungi foray along the brook continues . Seen today that I can identify
Conical Waxcap ( Hygrocybe conica )
and a newly emerged Fly Agaric ( Amanita
muscaria)

04/09/11 With Autumn rapidly approaching
September is a good time to keep an eye out for fungi. Seen today near
Morrissons Common Puffballs ( Lycerpodon Perlatum ) .