This page is dedicated to my wildlife sightings in the Royston area, for the year 2010.
To find out what birds have been seen recently in the county of Hertfordshire, visit the Herts Bird Club website. What follows relates to my own "local patch" wildlife sightings for 2010.
September 2010
The month got off to a great start when I found my first ever local Nuthatch at Fox Covert on the 1st. The bird was seen at 7.00am and could then be heard off and on in the woodland for the rest of the day. I have seen birds in Therfield before, but never this close to home!
August 2010
A Marsh Harrier was seen at Deadmans Hill, Sandon and another Marsh Harrier with 3 fresh-plumaged Red Kites were seen from the top of Coombe Road, Kelshall on the 1st. A local walk on the 2nd produced a pair of Spotted Flycatchers at a "new" site (Flint Hall), just outside Royston, at least 4 Yellow Wagtails including a pair feeding young and a female Marsh Harrier at Hatchpen farm and later a Little Owl at Reed End and two Marsh Harriers (juvenile and female, the latter possibly the bird seen earlier) on the way back down the Icknield Way between Therfield and Royston. I also saw two Painted Lady butterflies (the first I've seen locally this year) as well as several "Silver Y" moths at Hatchpen: these insects are both long-distance migrants and had likely recently arrived from the continent. Several recently-hatched Common Blue and Holly Blue butterflies were noted. Gulls were back in the area, with a flock of 40 Common Gulls and several Lesser Black-backed Gulls seen. I saw my first "local" Bullfinches of the year on the edge of Therfield Heath. Whilst showing a friend round some of the local "raptor hotspots" on the 12th we spotted Marsh Harriers at Wallington's "Quail watchpoint" and from the viewpoint at Deadman's Hill (Sandon), where three Red Kites, several Buzzards and a flock of Lapwings were also seen. The following day a Red Kite and a Marsh Harrier were seen from the Icknield way just south of Royston: 22 Grey Partridge (including some young birds) were seen nearby. A walk on the 18th produced another first for me in the Royston area: a Common Sandpiper at Hatchpen pond. Also seen in the area were Yellow Wagtail and (yawn) more Marsh Harriers. A colony of Small Copper butterflies was noted a little further up the path towards Reed and several Common Blue butterflies were on the wing, including females of both the blue and brown forms. A large flock of Lapwings (est. 120) was feeding with corvids and starlings on stubble fields off the Icknield Way, where a large covey (19) of Grey Partridge was also seen on the edge of the Heath. A Migrant Hawker dragonfly stopped briefly to look at my pond before moving on. This has been a poor year locally for dragonflies, with few recorded: perhaps a consequence of the dry early summer weather causing water-courses and ponds to dry up or perhaps due to low breeding success in the poor summers of 2007 and 2008. Some impressively large hoverflies were seen towards the end of the month, but most butterflies had disappeared following exceptional rainfall in the final week (according to my rainfall gauges this was the 2nd wettest month since I started keeping records in 1992). Sunny weather finally returned on the 30th and I had a most productive morning walk on the 31st, finding 2 Raven just south of Royston and my first "local" Hobby of the year over Reed End. A Spotted Flycatcher was again at Flint Hall and many warblers were feeding up on berries: I counted at least 5 Blackcaps (3 males) on one Elder bush as well as Garden Warbler, Chiffchaff, Willow Warbler and Lesser Whitethroat. Yellow Wagtails were spotted in 2 separate locations and a Red Kite was in the same area as the Ravens, "following the plough" along with about 300 (mainly Lesser Black-backed) gulls.
July 2010
After a week abroad my first local walk of the month (on the 8th) turned into quite a special one. First to appear was a juvenile Little Owl on the Newsells stud farm property. This was quickly followed by a Hummingbird Hawkmoth and up to 4 Red Kites, with strong evidence for breeding of this species in local woodland (see my June report). On my way down the Icknield Way from Therfield a Marsh Harrier was sighted heading west across the path but the best was yet to come: my first local White-letter Hairstreak (WLH) butterfly, perched on brambles at the side of the path. There have been sporadic sightings of individual White-letter Hairstreaks in Royston in the past, including one last year in the centre of town. The butterfly is incredibly difficult to see, spending most of its time perched on the higher leaves of Elm trees and only on the wing for a short period at the end of June and the first half of July. Because of this, it is probably a lot more common than people imagine and, given the relative abundance of Wych Elm trees around Royston and to the south of the town, there are probably quite a few undiscovered colonies in the area. Four of us returned to the area of the sighting on the 10th and found 3 more WLHs nectaring on brambles about 150 metres from the 1st sighting. A single WLH was seen on the same bushes on the 21st when I observed 17 butterfly species, including Essex Skipper, on the Heath. By the end of the month there had been several reported sightings of up to 7 Marsh Harriers and up to 5 Red Kites (including recently-fledged birds) in the Therfield to Sandon area.
June 2010
With no new arrivals early in the month I sought evidence of breeding in the four Royston tetrads that I cover for the Herts. Bird Club / BTO breeding bird survey. Spotted Flycatchers (2 pairs) were finally seen on the Heath on the 15th, about 2 weeks late but at their usual breeding sites. Eight Corn Bunting territories were noted when I carried out my second (late) breeding bird survey for tetrad TL33U (SE Royston). Good numbers of juvenile Lapwings were also seen, suggesting a good breeding season for Royston's only resident wader: excellent news! A visit to the Heath on the morning of the 21st produced the first Meadow Brown butterflies of the year and lots of Large Skippers were on the wing. A Common Spotted Orchid was seen. On the 26th I saw my first Marbled White and Ringlet butterflies, closely followed (on the 30th) by Small Skipper. At least 3 Spotted Flycatchers were in the Fox Covert area on the same date, when a bird carrying food to the nest was also seen in Therfield. There was much Red Kite activity towards the end of the month, with at least 2 birds regularly ranging between Royston and Therfield. These adult birds (missing wing and tail feathers) were often seen together over woodland not far from my home at a potential breeding site. A Bee Orchid was noted on the Heath.
May 2010
A Ring Ouzel was seen on the 6th hole of Royston golf course on the evening of the 3rd: this was my first local sighting for 4 years. This or another bird was seen across the Therfield Road on the 10th hole 2 days later. Starlings nesting on my roof hatched young on the 5th and Great Tits in the garden hatched young shortly afterwards. A BTO / Herts. Bird Club breeding bird survey for the SE Royston tetrad turned up 42 species on the 6th including a pair of Corn Buntings and two male Yellow Wagtails at Hatchpen Farm. A Turtle Dove was purring in Therfield on the 9th. Despite near Arctic temperatures a few Orange Tip and Speckled Wood butterflies were seen on the wing early in the month. A long walk to the villages of Therfield and Reed on the 13th produced 44 species but nothing new, although a Turtle Dove was heard near the "Silver Ball" in Reed. An immature damselfly at Reed End pond was the first I have seen anywhere this year. A couple of House Martins were seen over the town centre later in the day. A Brown Argus butterfly was seen on Church Hill on the 18th and Small Heath and Common Blue butterflies were also on the wing following the hot weekend of 22/23rd. The Starlings and Great Tit families in my garden both fledged on the 23rd. Another long walk on the 27th produced a very impressive 50 bird species seen and/or heard, including a Red Kite and large numbers of House Martins (finally back!) over Therfield, at least 20 Lapwings holding territory still at various locations and a goldcrest bringing food to the nest in Fox Covert. However, Spotted Flycatchers were noticeable by their absence. Azure and Large Red Damselflies were on the wing at Reed End pond.
April 2010
A very early morning walk right across Therfield Heath on the 6th produced my first Willow Warblers of the year (4 birds singing) as well as 2 Blackcaps and 2 Chiffchaffs: the latter two species were also seen in the Green Plantation adjacent to my house. Amazingly, Cormorants (3 birds this time) were again seen flying close to the house, heading south: where do they come from and where are they going? Six Buzzards were seen together over Horseshoe Wood (Kelshall) on the 7th. Butterflies (Brimstone, Small Tortoiseshell, Comma and Peacock) were on the wing in warm weather on the 8th. A long walk on the 13th produced 44 bird species including a flock of 31 Golden Plover and, surprisingly, my first local Goldcrest of the year, but no new summer visitors and no passage migrants. Small numbers of "white" butterflies (Small and/or Green-veined) were on the wing. I saw my first local Swallow on the 18th: House Martins were reported back in town from the 16th. Common Whitethroats were back on The Heath on the 22nd, when I counted 12 Willow Warbler territories. Male and female Wheatears were seen on the Rifle Range on this date and were also present on the 26th; the male in the Lapwing field just off The Heath where I was also pleased to see three Lapwing chicks. Lesser Whitethroats were seen both on The Heath and at Reed End, where a Red Kite floated over and three Yellow Wagtails (my first local birds of the year) were seen on a walk that produced 43 species, including several Swallows in their traditional farmland haunts. A Corn Bunting was singing behind the hospital in Royston; two birds were also seen here on the 22nd. A Garden Warbler was seen at Church Hill on the 27th.
March 2010
Lapwings were back and displaying just off the Heath on the 5th. A Treecreeper on the Icknield Way North of Therfield was my first ever local sighting of what is quite a rare bird in this area. Several pairs of Grey Partridge were disturbed as I walked up the Icknield Way from Royston. An impressive 95 Fallow Deer (including the albino doe) were seen NW of Therfield village. Dunnocks seemed to be singing every few yards along the hedgerows and several piles of Woodpigeon/Collared Dove feathers indicated the presence of a female Sparrowhawk close to home! With Spring finally in the air, lots of singing birds were noted on the 16th, when a walk produced 8 Canada Geese (unusual hereabouts) at Hatchpen Farm pond, 21 Corn Buntings in various locations, a singing treecreeper in Reed, plenty of displaying Lapwings and a flock of about 140 Golden Plover east of Therfield. An interesting corvid showing some features of Hooded Crow was also spotted. A Buzzard was displaying over my garden on the 17th. The first summer visitor, a Chiffchaff, was reported near Royston town centre on the 18th and I saw my first on the Heath on the 23rd. A walk in blustery, showery weather on the 30th produced at least 4 singing Chiffchaff and 2 singing Blackcaps on or near the Heath. A pair of Canada Geese (planning to breed?) was still at Hatchpen Farm pond. For the 3rd time in 18 months I spotted a Cormorant (this one in breeding plumage) flying over my house!
February 2010
During my second BTO / Herts. Bird Atlas winter survey on the 3rd (for the SE Royston tetrad) I saw lots of Redwings (including 18 in a mixed flock with Fieldfares and Starlings). Song Thrushes and Mistle Thrushes were starting to sing and there was much Great Tit activity. A large flock of Woodpigeons contained at a conservative estimate 300 birds (fortunately just outside the tetrad so I didn't have to count them all!). A Corn Bunting flew over the Barkway Road and nearby a Little Owl was sitting on its favourite perch. At least nine skylarks were singing within the tetrad. Goldfinches finally discovered the niger seed in my back garden! The cold weather continued into the second half of the month, when more snow arrived. On a much milder day on the 24th, a walk produced singing Song Thrushes, Mistle Thrushes, Great Tits, Dunnocks and even Yellowhammers. Reed Buntings were seen (appropriately) near Reed and also at Therfield, whilst 7 pairs of Grey Partridge were flushed as I walked down the Icknield Way between Therfield and Royston. I finally saw my first local Sparrowhawk of the year.
January 2010
The year stated with more freezing weather. Grey Partridges seem to have had a good breeding season in 2009 and over 40 were seen off the Icknield Way between Royston and Therfield on the 6th, together with over 60 Brown Hares. Coal Tits and a Wren were regular visitors to the garden whilst the snow was on the ground and Blackbirds enjoyed the apples that I put out on the lawn although other thrushes, including Fieldfares which were seen flying over on numerous occasions, ignored this treat. Pied Wagtails were also seen in the garden. A walk on the 18th produced 40 bird species including singing Corn Buntings at Hatchpen Farm (despite being in the middle of a game drive!) and lots of Grey Partridge, some of which had already apparently paired up, between Therfield and Royston. I saw the first Greenfinch of the winter on the garden feeder: this species has declined alarmingly hereabouts in the last year or two. Seven Corn Buntings were seen at Hatchpen on the 30th, together with at least 70 Yellowhammers in a mixed flock of finches and buntings feeding on stubble, although there was no sign of the Tree Sparrows that had been reported from here earlier in the week. A female Blackcap was a surprise find in my garden as I carried out the "Big Garden Birdwatch" survey.
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