Fudge And Messingham bits,Sunday 16th September.

Male Migrant Hawker.

Birch Shieldbug.

Juvenile Common Frog.

Teneral female Common Darter.

Tree-damsel Bug.

Juvenile Common Lizard.

After seeing GPC's excellent pics of the returning drake Ferruginous Duck at Barton,i made this my first port of call today.He was found feeding on the same pit he spent the majority of his stay last year and was watched at fairly close range,with a small,mixed flock of Tufties and Pochard.I know ducks arn't every ones cup of tea,because of the problem of escapees,but i particularly like them and this species is a cracker.I watched him for at least an hour getting some nice views through the scope and hopefully he will stay until he acquires his full adult male plumage,as at the moment the bird is still in eclipse.The only other highlight here,was my first Pink's of the Autumn,as 13 birds 'Wink winked' there way west up river to their wintering grounds on the upper estuary.After my visit to the 'Old patch',i made my way over to Messingham to try and get some decent images of Migrant Hawker and i wasn't disappointed.Bird highlights today were provided by two Juvvie Hobbies watched hawking dragonflies over the heathy area and main lake,giving some nice views.I always think of this being a bit of a dilemma,as one of my fave birds is eating my beloved dragons,but they are superb with their aerial prowess,fantastic stuff to watch!.The afore mentioned prey of the Hobbies, also were in abundance today around the reserve,with 6 species being observed and included Brown,Southern and Migrant Hawkers,Common and Ruddy Darter and a couple of Common-blue Damselfly still managing to hang on.Also,as is usual at this time of year,the Heteroptera were showing well,with several Birch and Green Shieldbugs being seen and a single Gorse Shieldbug,the Gorse being a personal favourite.A few butterflies were seen also and included the stunning Red Admiral,Small White,Speckled Wood and my favourite Comma.Reptiles and amphibians also featured today with several Common Frogs around the reserve and a hand full of Common Lizards,which included 3 very small young ones.A great day out locally,with some nice weather again.