The Highways and Byways of Dorset - Sir Frederick Treves

A little further afield today to try and add to the Year/Dorset Lists and a chance to rekindle memories of some of my favourite sites in in the south of the county. Grey and Red-legged Partridge were considered good contenders around the Winterbournes, a group of small farming communities prefixed with that name such as Zelston, Tomson, Muston and Kingston, but with no success after a hour it was time to move on. Heading towards the village of Bloxworth, known by every entomologist as lending its name to a tiny Moth known as the Bloxworth Snout,

looking over this lovely vista there was something of interest

among the trees.

I know if it were mine, this tiny Summer House 

would have seen a few parties by now.

Also on view and seemingly enjoying the farmers crop this

DEER Sp which I cannot identify, but know a man who can.

Over to you John!

 and then the first

YELLOWHAMMER

which thereafter seemed to be in every hedgerow.

At the next farm gateway the air was full of birdsong including

Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Whitethroat, Chiffchaff,  Robin,

Blackbird, Song Thrush, Swallow, Skylark etc,

 along with more DEER believed to be ROE.

 There was also visible migration going on overhead, the pick

of the bunch being a brief

 HONEY BUZZARD

 a 'rare' breeding bird to our shores and as the name suggests

 rather fond of the product of the Hive.

 The subject and quality of these images are something I can only

dream of and 'borrowed' from Wiki for illustration.

 Returning to skyward, SISKINs were well represented but

after a period of time were seen to be flying from one coppice to 

another and not in fact migrants at all.

 Identified from their calls the passage birds included

TREE PIPIT

 YELLOW WAGTAIL and

 COMMON CROSSBILL

In addition there were also 'hundreds' of Racing Pigeons which

Looked and sounded fantastic.

Sticking with the flying theme, these also are not 'migrants'just another GLIDER being towed to altitude from the local club. There followed a cursory wander around Oakers Wood, where the now abandoned Lesser Spotted Woodpecker hole looked tantalising, Waddock and Tincleton Watercress Beds all to no avail. Starting slowly back to base, the area around Higher Hyde and Great Plantation is always worth a look but Turtle Dove was not in evidence. What was pleasing to see there was the

 continuing breeding

 of that delightful little bird the

 WOODLARK

 seen carrying food to young that could be heard but with no 

attempt to find them.

 On the down side the were no Turtle Dove, Hobby or Green Hairstreak Butterflies and no hirundines at all let alone the usual healthy colony of Sand Martin that have historically bred in this quarry.

 The final planned site was the Heath at Ovens Hill

 where this 'singing' male

 DARTFORD WARBLER

 was quickly and easily located. The guess is he hasn't found a 

'bit of nonesense' yet?

 

 There was also a very lucky, but all too brief, sighting of a tiny

Sand Lizard

 unfortunately this shot id also from Wiki.

 and a final peek into Longham Lake found this 

GREAT CRESTED GREBE

at fairly close quarters and irresistible.
Totals - Year = 115
Dorset = 93