Farmoor & FFPP 26 August 2017

Very very quiet birdwise at Farmoor today, but at least I finally caught up with the Ruddy Shelduck which was loafing around in the NW corner of F2, commuting between the causeway and the western bank.

Ruddy Shelduck

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There were also almost zero birds at Pinkhill, but as the morning wore on and it got a little warmer and sunnier, out came various dragonflies, including 2-3 Migrant Hawkers, Brown Hawker and Common Darters. The hide seemed to be the place to attempt flight shots, as one was sometimes hovering reasonably close for a few seconds at a time.

Migrant Hawker

On my way back, I again  diverted to Faringdon Folly Park Pond, but whenever I go there it seems to cloud over.  Even so, there was some Odonata activity with more distant Small Red-eyed Damsels on the floating vegetation, plus both Ruddy and Common Darters closer too. When the finally the sun came out, so did the hawkers, with several Migrant Hawkers and one Brown Hawker. Not the best site for photography though, and all the locals attempting to fish don't help - not a good substitute for the much lamented Shellingford Pit.

Ruddy Darter