Ducks on a Pond - The Incredible String Band

Without wishing to sound patronising, since my first visit to Parley Court Farm in 2006 it has been noted how all projects, large and small, on the land here are carried out sympathetically with the local surroundings and wildlife. None more so than the newly installed Solar Panel Farm (the biggest in the UK) at the north end of the property which is now rapidly reaching completion. Access to the area is limited, to say the least, with foot, vehicle and even dog patrols continuously monitoring the sites while on the two occasions we have run Moth Traps there a written permit has had to be obtained just to transport our equipment from A to B. While I do visit from time to time, in general Hugh keeps me updated on progress which he did yesterday, suggesting a wander up there myself, Stand-By, all will be revealed!

What with the tail-end weather of Hurricane Bertha coinciding with a

FULL MOON
and clear skies last night (but no signs of the promised accompanying
Meteor Shower) it's surprising there were any Moths in the Traps at all.
That said, numbers of the more common species have remained high throughout
the period and also threw up a couple of Goodies!
I am reliably informed that some authorities insist that

 SVENSSON'S COPPER UNDERWING*
cannot be properly recognised without resorting to study of genitalia,

but last nights specimen fulfils all the written criteria so, 'Tick'!

Not so lucky with a
SHARP-ANGLED PEACOCK
which it was hoped was a 'Peacock' but

YELLOW BELLE
came up trumps as an addition to the Year List.

As numbers of the migrant Micro
RUSTY-DOT PEARL
increase it was thought worthy of inclusion.
Now to continue my visit up
NORTH.

With plenty of machinery available while the construction of the Solar Panel Farm continues, and cross referencing with outstanding work at the ECO Site it was considered an ideal time to refurbish what has been an Irrigation Pond while Turf Production was in progress.

Completely overgrown and blocked from view, a few hours with
bulldozer, digger and some carefully placed banking and BINGO
a super habitat for Waders and other birds and animals.

Only at the site for a matter of moments and a
LITTLE RINGED PLOVER
showed up

and during circumnavigation, using the Range Rover as a Hide, this

GREY HERON
remained unconcerned as did a

MOORHEN.

Both male and

female MALLARD were also in attendance while on the return visit a
GREEN SANDPIPER
also flew in.
In addition, Hugh had described the whereabouts of an even bigger watercourse but despite its size it still took me a full 15 minutes to locate.

The trees beyond form the north eastern boundary of
Parley Court Farm

and it seems all of this new habitat, constructed in the name of Wildlife,
was the brainchild of Trelawney the older brother of Hugh.
The pieces were now starting to fit, as at our last meeting, JJ and Rachel 'swedding, he and his wife Gwen had asked if I would take them 'bird watching' one day to Hengistbury Head.
MY PLEASURE!
Overhead, there were more Sand and House Martins than I have seen on the property all year combined, in company with a few Swallows while around the margins Pied Wagtail outnumbered

 GREY WAGTAIL

 about 3 or 4 to 1.

 The only accurate count of the latter was 25 as these birds, seemingly
feeding up for migration, were plying between the pond and the Panels
at a very rapid rate.
 Power Generated here will have a significant input to the
National Grid
and while it continues the area will be under 24 hour a day surveillance.
Apart from the human presence, the site is peppered with CCTV Cameras
and there is little or no access to the general public.

In addition, wide 'rides' have been left all around the fenced off areas
which, once natural growth is re-established should be ideal for all manner of Wildlife.

but there's more...........
The gravel extracted has gone to form a hardcore at the ECO Plant which
regenerates domestic, demolition and garden waste etc leaving
exposed a natural Sand Wall which next season should be a Des Res
for Sand Martin and Kingfisher alike??

It was getting to the point where I was finding it difficult to pull myself
away, taking in every square inch of what is effectively a newly established
WILDLIFE RESERVE

 that's when another
MALLARD
dropped in followed by a bunch of

 GREENFINCH

 An adult COOT with c2 juveniles seemed already to have their
'feet under the table'
and it was no surprise when another (or maybe the same)
 
 GREEN SANDPIPER
alighted.

 Of note, it looked like this
GREY WAGTAIL
was in moult as it plucked

 a wing-feather, abandoning it on the spoil heap.

 The Turf Fields which grew here previously took
up many man-hours and had to be closely attended throughout the year.

 Little chance then of any Wildlife establishing itself on human disturbance alone.
As the natural Grasses and other Herbage regrows between the rows

there is no knowing what is likely to turn up in the future given what
you have seen arrived already!
ROE DEER

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