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Sunday 16 September 2018

Hicks Lodge Revisited - Almost!! - on 5th September, 2018

I was starting to think that I ought to do a bit of local birding, as birds (apart from those in my garden) seem to have been somewhat off the agenda lately, with my main focus having been on dragonflies and damselflies. Hicks Lodge, with its trees, lakes, and grassland seemed to be the place to go, so off I went.

I parked by the south entrance to the site and started to take the track northwards. I'd got part way when I was reminded that a new public footpath had been opened which headed off to the west of the south access track. It passes a lake which I'd often thought might be worth visiting, so I diverted from my original plan.

Reaching the lake, there was no indication of the direction of the onward public right-of-way, so I took an anti-clockwise route starting out onto the northern side of the lake. I soon saw a large collection of geese, which included a small flock of domestic geese, and somewhat larger flocks of  Canada Geese and Greylag Geese. 

mixed geese - Hicks Lodge, West Lake
There were a several patches of wild flowers adding some colour to otherwise relatively barren land immediately surrounding the lake. I found the occasional patch of Fox and Cubs particularly attractive.

Fox and Cubs (Pilosella aurantiaca) - Hicks Lodge, West Lake
Inevitably, I was drawn towards the water's edge. Here I found a pair of Blue-tailed Damselflies mating.

Blue-tailed Damselfly (Ischnura elegans) (male + female in cop) - Hicks Lodge, West Lake
Driven by my original intention to seek out some birds, I left the edge of the lake but, other than Magpie, and the geese, little was seen. I did, however, photograph a Small Copper butterfly.

Small Copper (Lycaena phlaeas) - Hicks Lodge, West Lake
Seeing so little away from the water, I returned to the water's edge and immediately spotted a female Southern Hawker dragonfly. I watched as she disappeared into some waterside vegetation and didn't emerge again, so off I set to try and find her. Sadly she saw me before I saw her - or so it seems - as she flew off as I approached. I must have spent nearly an hour trying to photograph her as the process repeated itself over and over again. Eventually I gave up without having taken a single shot - disappointed as female Southern Hawkers are not the easiest of dragonflies to find and photograph.

Whilst I was trying for shots, the flock of Greylag Geese flew off to go and forage on another area of the Hicks Lodge site.

Greylag Goose (Anser anser) - Hicks Lodge, West Lake
Having given up with the Southern Hawker, I continued my circumnavigation, stopping to photograph more Small Coppers. I think the plant might be Common Fleabane.


Small Copper (Lycaena phlaeas) - Hicks Lodge, West Lake
Shortly after this, the Canada Geese took to the air and followed the Greylags.

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) - Hicks Lodge, West Lake
As I was at the water's edge, a 4x4 approached and drew up alongside me. It turned out to be the owners of the land that I was on, who had seen me on their  security cameras, and wanted to know what I was doing. Unbeknown to me, the public footpath was on the other side of the lake! I presented my credentials and they very kindly allowed me to continue my wanderings.

Little more was seen until I got to a small pond at the far end of the lake. On the far side of this, I found a solitary Emerald Damselfly. This is a species that I have seen very little of this year - I don't think that they have fared well in this exceptionally hot and dry summer.

I started to take some shots, with results that I was not entirely happy with.


Emerald Damselfly (Lestes sponsa) (female) - Hicks Lodge, West Lake
The sun had not been shining when these shots were taken, and it was only when the cloud thinned that I realised I'd been shooting into the light. I managed to get to a point 180° round from my original position without disturbing the damselfly, and got some rather better shots.


Emerald Damselfly (Lestes sponsa) (female) - Hicks Lodge, West Lake
She then started waving her abdomen up and down. I'm not sure of the significance of this action.



Emerald Damselfly (Lestes sponsa) (female) - Hicks Lodge, West Lake
It was now time to be headed homeward after a quick call to Lindsay to say I was going to be a bit late!

I suspect I'd seen more Small Copper butterflies that morning than I'd seen in the whole of the past decade. This was particularly gratifying as the decline of this species has been causing great concern. I could not, therefore, resist taking more shots as I headed back on the southern (legitimate!) side of the lake.

Small Copper (Lycaena phlaeas) - Hicks Lodge, West Lake
As I approached the gate that would take me away from the lake, the domestic geese came in from the field where they had been foraging and took to the water. OK, so these are not a birdwatcher's bird, but they do have a certain elegance.

domestic geese - Hicks Lodge, West Lake
In the event, I arrived home at the originally expected time, so salvaged some brownie points.

The morning hadn't been what I'd set out for it to be, but it was, nonetheless, very enjoyable - and a new place under my belt.

Thank you for dropping by. I have something planned which I hope might give me a few avian shots for a future post, but the weather forecast does not look favourable, so it's currently in the lap of the gods.

31 comments:

  1. Hello Richard,
    on the last picture you can see the Christmas roast .. Upps ...
    Great post
    Greetings Frank

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    Replies
    1. Hi Frank. I nearly said something like that myself! Thank you, with my best wishes - - - Richard

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  2. Another interesting post. The head on shot of the damselfly is a real belter.

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    1. Thank you, Adrian. Sorry about the delay in replying - just got back from a few days in North Yorkshire. I think that head on of the damselfly is my favourite too! Best wishes - - Richard

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  3. Hi Richard,
    These are also really beautiful photos.
    The geese are there with many and that is geod to see.
    The small fire butterfly is very beautiful and sharply photographed just like the beautiful ladies. The flying geese and also the flying Canadian goose you have very nice to catch. Nice piece of photography!

    Kind regards and a nice new week.
    Helma

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    Replies
    1. Hi Helma. I'm sorry I didn't reply until now - I have been away where the internet connection was almost impossible. Thank you for your kind words. My very best wishes - - - Richard

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    2. Hi Richard,
      I was also away for a study and sat for a week internally because it was too far away from my home. I did not have time to sit on the internet.
      Greetings

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  4. As you are well aware, the lighting makes all the difference with odonata. A nice compilation Richard.

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    1. Thank you, Marc. Just back from Yorkshire where I was hoping to find some different odos, plus some birds, but the extremely high winds meant there was virtually no chance!

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  5. Hi Richard
    Brilliant images, those Geese, funny. And the Small Copper, beauty.

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    1. Thank you, Bob. I very much enjoyed that morning. Sorry for the late reply - I've been away. Have a great weekend - - - Richard

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  6. Well Richard, I am not sure that I want to go birding with you again since the birds you sought got transmogrified into odenates. Surely there must be some law against this. And there were butterflies too! Where are the birds that eat them? At least you had a good number of CANADA Geese. Salvation is in the detail I suppose!

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    1. David - if I ever again had the pleasure of taking you birding, I assure you that the main focus would be on birds that remained birds. I would be delighted to look forward to such a day. Having said that, Lindsay and I have just returned form a short holiday on the North Yorkshire Moors and, due mainly to constant high winds (bad enough for safety warnings to be issued), we saw the square root of bugger-all (to use an old engineering expression), so I wouldn't be able to guarantee you results!

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    2. Oh yes! In fact it was one of the key reasons for choosing to go to this location. Ryeburn of Helmsley, only 200 metres from where we were staying, make the best ice cream we have ever tasted. My favourites were Cherry & Cinnamon, Cinder Toffee, and Fig & Mascarpone - I had the latter on three occasions!!

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    3. This is a serious addiction! I recommend treatment!

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    4. Perhaps aversion therapy? I shall keep going until I find one that's so disgusting that it puts me off for life!

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  7. Well, even though it seems to be guilt that motivated you to go birding, we shall take what we can get.

    I really like that Copper. It's a beauty! The Emerald damsel is likewise gorgeous.

    The important thing is you were outside and enjoying whatever nature provided. We appreciate the fact you shared it with us!

    Gini and I are off later this week on a short road trip. We hope you and Lindsay have a peaceful and wonderful week!

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    1. Hi Wally. Sorry for the late reply, and thank you for those kind words. I hope your road trip is going/went well. As you may have seen from some of my replies, above, Lindsay and I have also been away - and the weather was anything but peaceful! My best wishes to you both - - - Richard

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  8. Hi Richard! Awesome pictures! Greetings

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  9. A great set of all round photos and I have never heard of Fox and cubs before, interesting. Love the in flight shots. Have a good week, Diane

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    1. Hi Diane. Sorry for the late reply - we've been away where the internet connection was as bad as yours when available, but most of the time it wasn't available at all, so I gave up! Thank you for your kind words - - - Richard

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  10. Hello Richard,
    What a brilliant series of butterflies and damsels... no anisoptera???
    I am quite impressed with your photos of the copper butterfly, you seem to have a more than a decent depth of field, and I am wondering what lens you use...
    I don't recall taking photos of Lestes sponsa although I know we have it in some areas but not mine so much. The closest I got was Lestes virens.
    Take care and enjoy your week end

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    1. Hi Carine! Yep, no dragons caught by the camera - but I did try!

      Virtually all my photos are taken with the Sigma 50-500, as were all these in this post. It's an extremely versatile lens. If it helps to let you have the details, the four Small Copper images were as follows:
      No.1 lens at 210mm, ISO 450, 1/400 sec, F13
      Nos.2&3 lens at 170mm, ISO 560, 1/400 sec, F13
      No.4 lens at 290mm, ISO 560, 1/400 sec, F11

      the last damselfly image was taken with lens at 90mm, ISO 1000, 1/400 sec, F11

      The only other lens I use is the Sigma 150 macro, but this only gets used when I'm relatively confident that I won't need the longer reach of the 50-500. I never change lenses in the field.

      Lestes virens isn't a species we get in UK - yet! But who can tell with all the effects of climate change?!

      Have a great weekend and take good care - - - Richard

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  11. Hi, I think it's my first visit to your site from Diane's in France. You photos are very beautiful and so crisp and clear.

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    1. Thank you, Penny, for your kind words. I have much enjoyed a visit to your own blog. Best wishes - - Richard

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  12. Fantástico reportaje, me han gustado mucho todas las fotos, en especial la barnacla canadiense en vuelo. Enhorabuena Richard, un abrazo desde España.

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    1. Gracias por esas amables palabras, Germán. Con mis mejores deseos desde Inglaterra, donde se ha vuelto un poco más cálido, ¡espero que dure! - - - Richard

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  13. Your damselfly shots are dead on. Nicely done. I done have the patience for some of those little guys. One part focuses while the other does not. That's the bug challenge with dragonflies as well. Birds have different challenges!

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    1. Hi Chris. You hit the nail on the head with your comment about photographing damselflies and dragonflies. Depth of field, and position in relation to the subject, plus postion of the sun, are all factors to consider. Couple those to any attempts to get flight shots of these creatures and you'll understand why I often have to take a huge number of shots to get one half-decent one!

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