Warble warbletastic!!!!

It is a dull, muggy overcast day at Paxton Pits Nature Reserve.

The trails are mainly dry with some wet muddy areas.

Nightingales and especially garden warbler are very vocal this morning along Heron Trail.

Heron Trail:
5 (singing nightingales), 6 garden warblers, 2 goldcrest, red crested pochard (male on Heronary North), 2 cuckoo, 2 hobby, house and sand martins and swallows over Heronary North & South, marsh harrier (male) over Washout Pit, lesser whitethroat (in brambles at start of trail), whitethroats (at least 8 along trail this morning)

Meadow Trail:
4 bullfinch (2 pairs), 1 cetti's singing, (dozens of) swift, 1 (singing nightingale), lesser whitethroat (in meadow scrub), whitethroat (in meadow), blackcap, garden warbler, kingfisher (pair by riverside)

Sailing Lake:
20 (sitting) common tern, 4 oystercatcher (pair with 2 juvs), greylag goose (with 3 goslings), 4 lesser black back gull

Ouse Valley Way: (first 0.5km N off reserve)
2 turtle doves, 3 sedge warblers, 1 reed warbler, 11 whitethroat, 3 lesser whitehroat, 2 blackcap, kingfisher1, 1 bullfinch (calling), 5 reed bunting

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS:
1 red kite flying over A1 N (good views on Diddington footpath); plenty of butterfly species inc. orange tip, speckled wood, holly blue, small tortoise shell, large white, small white, brimstone, peacock, comma; hornet moth on meadow trail, bee fly (throughout reserve); banded demoiselle and common blue damsel flies; wood mouse in hawthorns opp. Hayden Hide; grass snake (near sailing lake), treecreepers in Rory's Wood

WADER PASSAGE:
It is well worth walking the public footpaths around the reserve (maps can be obtained from the Visitor Centre). From Stirtloe Lane (off Ouse Valley Way) you can sit and watch the latter stages of tern and wader passage.

POSSIBLE: 1st record for county of Hymenoptera sp. sphecodes spinulosa (awaiting confirmation)

Please call us with any sightings on tel: 01480 406 795 or pop into the centre and write them into our sightings book.