I made a return visit to Highstead today to see if I could manage to catch up with the Norfolk Hawker I saw the other day. While I was scanning the bushes near the old stables a Kestrel was hovering nearby and then moved much closer and gave some fantastic views as it hung in the wind, adjusting its wing strokes to keep itself completely steady.
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| Kestrel |
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| Kestrel |
Once the Kestrel moved on I started out along the track and came across a Large Skipper butterfly resting up. I had not realised just how long its probiscus was until it unravelled it. I am always amazed at the level of control and accuracy that butterflies have over it.
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| Large Skipper |
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| Large Skipper |
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| Large Skipper |
I caught sight of blue and could see a Broad-bodied Chaser resting up before recommencing hunting sorties. I am presuming that the markings are down to age but it was very striking all the same.
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| mature Broad-bodied Chaser |
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| mature Broad-bodied Chaser |
A beautifully fresh Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly looked great in a patch of sunlight and I saw a moth that I think may be a Common Carpet Moth although some aspects don't look quite right for it so I will need to look into it further.
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| Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly |
It was nice to catch up with some Azure damselflies but I did not have any luck with the Norfolk Hawker. One of the Azure's had a marked kink in its abdomen.
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| Azure Damselfly |
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| Azure Damselfly with kinked abdomen |
A Yellow Shell Moth was tucked down amongst the vegetation and a Dock Bug was making the most of the sunshine.
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| Yellow Shell Moth |
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| Dock Bug |
I had a wander down to Marshside to reach the pick up point and a Kestrel was tucked into the hedge shining pale against the dark leaves.
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| Kestrel |
I caught sight of a Norfolk Hawker flying along the dyke but unfortunately it kept going and I wasn't able to get a photograph. It is the first time I have seen one at Marshside and I suppose that it is not inconceivable that it could be the nearby Highstead one. A couple of unusual colouration Ladybirds were climbing stems. I am not sure if they are in fact Harlequin Ladybirds which could explain the colour forms. I couldn't see an 'M' on them but it may have been down to the angle I was viewing them from.
I finished the visit with good views of a Broad-bodied Chaser and it made a nice way to finish, they are beautiful dragonflies.
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| Broad-bodied Chaser |
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