These Things Happen

Well where do I begin! Having had a lovely walk around Aldbourne on Friday I drove back home and as I passed under the M4, there was a loud crunching sound from under the wheels and a loud thud as something smacked into the embankment to my right. And then there was this clickety clip, clickety clop from one of the offside wheels.

As I approached, what used to be The Shepherd's Rest at Foxhill, I decided to pull into their car park and check the tyres. As it happened the car stopped in just the right position to reveal a 3mm bolt head sticking out of the rear offside tyre. How the tyre didn't burst goodness only knows, but not wanting it to deflate it by driving on it, I changed the wheel. To cut a long story short, it transpired that the 3mm bolt head was actually a 3in stubby car aerial. It had dropped off someone's car and as my front wheel went over it, the ball part on top, pinged off into the hedge. As the car moved forward the remainder of the aerial "sat up" and drove itself straight in between the tread of the rear tyre. Unfortunately the hole it left was too big to plug, so I had to fork out £50 for a new tyre.

what appears to be a 3mm bolt head turned out to be a........

3in Care aerial embedded in the tyre

I thought things couldn't get worse but at the weekend the zoom button on my camera kept sticking and now the camera is now back at the manufacturers for the second time in 6 months. Not wanting to be without a camera for 3 weeks I went out and bought a Finepix S8200, with a 3 year insurance cover. The one good thing with this camera is, because it was was a penny under £150, I can get an instant replacement if it breaks. Hopefully I can't be unlucky 3 times in row.

So to try it out I visited Liden Lagoon at lunchtime and had a nice leisurely walk around the pool in the warm sunshine. As usual I parked at the end of Eastmere and walked clockwise around the Lagoon. The undergrowth has really shot up since I was here last, but fortunately some kind soul had cut back the nettles along the paths, to make the walk "sting free". A couple of butterflies flew past a female Brimstone and the smaller Green-veined White. Sitting close to the path there was a male Blue-tailed Damselfly and as I took a couple of photos of it, a Speckled Wood butterfly appeared next to me.

A male Blue-tailed Damselfly

Speckled Wood butterfly

Further around the path just beyond the outflow I acme across another male Blue-tailed Damselfly, several hoverflies soaking up the sun in the hedgerow, with cheilosia illustrata, Xanthogramma pedissequum and Helophilus pendulus.

Another male Blue-tailed Damselfly

Hoverfly - cheilosia illustrata

Alderfly

Xanthogramma pedissequum Hoverfly

Helophilus pendulus Hoverfly

Possibly Ichneumon - Eclytus exornatus

Apart from the hoards of insects, there were fish galore in the pool with both Bream and Carp spawning. By the overflow from the estate there were some large Carp with Mirrors, Common and even a Ghost Carp in the shallows. On the water there were 3 pairs of Tufted Duck and 3 single males. The drake Gadwall with his unusual plumage (sort of a cross between a male and female), was quacking away, but there was no sign of the female. Is she nesting!!!

the "resident" drake Gadwall and his unusual plumage

One of many Carp. This one is a Common Carp

Yellow Iris out in flower

One of adult Great Crested Grebes was on the nest and the now very large juvenile was alongside it. There was no sign of the other adult. The Canada Geese have done well!! with 15 goslings counted. The Mute Swans weren't seen at all and apart from the Mallard, Moorhen, and a Grey Heron, the only other birds I saw on the water were Coots, with one pair with two chicks.

Canada Geese goslings

Just before I left 14 gulls arrived on the water for a bathe, there were 8 Lesser Black-backed Gulls and 6 Herring Gulls. Mainly adults with a few juveniles from this year. As I arrived back to my start point I came across dozens of Green Dock Leaf Beetles on one plant and on another plant, dozens of Willow Leaf Beetle - Lochmaea caprea, with the latter making short work of the plants they they were on. Also by the car park there were a few Caddis Flies and lots of Small Tortoiseshell caterpillars on the nettles.

Green Dock Leaf Beetles

Green Dock Leaf Beetles

The damage done by the Willow Leaf Beetle

The Willow Leaf Beetle - Lochmaea caprea

Caddis fly

Small Tortoiseshell caterpillars

Small Tortoiseshell caterpillars

Birds recorded: 1 adult and a juv Great Crested Grebe, 1 Grey Heron, Mute Swan not seen, 17 adult Canada Geese plus 15 goslings, Mallard, 1 male Gadwall, 9 Tufted Duck (3 pairs and 3 drakes), Moorhen, 5 adult Coot plus 2 chicks, 6 Herring Gull, 8 Lesser Black-backed Gull, Wood Pigeon, Dunnock, Robin, Blackbird, 1 male Blackcap singing, 2 Chiffchaff singing, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Wren, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw, House Sparrow, Chaffinch and Goldfinch.

Butterflies and caterpillars recorded: 2 Green-veined White, 1 female Brimstone, 1 Speckled Wood and Small Tortoiseshell caterpillars

Moth recorded: Common Nettle-tap Moth

Damselflies: 2 male Blue-tailed Damselflies.

Hoverflies: cheilosia illustrata, Xanthogramma pedissequum and Helophilus pendulus.

Other insects: Alder Fly, Drone Fly, Caddis Fly, Willow Leaf Beetle, Green Dock Leaf Beetle and a possible Ichneumon - Eclytus exornatus

Photos Here