Buzzards are back!

During our post-storm checks of the Reserve we found yet more evidence that Buzzards bred in one of the conifer blocks at Foxglove.

To begin with I had just one noisy individual voicing its displeasure at my presence.

Before too long it was joined by two more that were if anything, even more noisy than the first!

It's great to see and hear such a heavily persecuted bird over the Reserve and to know that these three are doing well thus far; here's hoping we will see them again next year.

After our post-storm checks were completed it was time to load up the quad bike trailer with aggregates and get stuck into some path work. 

First thing's first, clear the entire area of weeds and leaf matter, then and only then can you start laying the aggregate.

With the majority of the job complete I had time to admire the many Bees, Butterflies and Hoverflies on our secret Knapweed patch by the Bullet Catcher. 

It was nice to see a Pellucid Fly (Volucella pellucens) again, with its distinctive ivory-white band and dark wing spots. The larvae of this striking hoverfly live in the nests of social Wasps and Bumblebees, eating the waste products of their hosts (including the occasional Bee larvae).

Both sexes prefer sheltered areas, such as woodland rides and tree-lined paths. Males will defend rays of light filtering down through trees, darting off to investigate intruders or females (like the one above) before returning to the same beam of sunlight.