Bird of the week - Little grebe

Little grebes are endearing birds that seem to be completely waterproof.  I see them on most of the ponds and lakes I visit.

Little grebes dive to catch fish and molluscs such as this snail.

This year's youngsters are now full size but still have juvenile plumage.

The little grebe has about the same UK population size as the kingfisher (∼5000 pairs) but seems to me to be much more easily seen.  Numbers have been fairly stable in recent years.

It is found in most parts of the British Isles.

The little grebe is also known as the dabchick although Thomas Bewick gave it four other names.  William Shakespeare called it a dive-dapper.  Bewick drew its feet (from a shot specimen) but I don't think I have ever seen one out of the water.

Bewick also wrote that it was found in America, although I can't find any evidence that it is now and it wasn't painted by John James Audubon.

This is its distribution according to Wikipedia.

The little grebe is Tachybaptus ruficollis, meaning red-necked fast-sinker.  It has a variety of calls which you can hear here.  Listen to Kate Humble's BBC Radio 4 Tweet of the Day on little grebes here.

Take off

It's hard work getting airborne.

Pheasant news

The two photos above were taken about an hour ago on a cloudy afternoon.  Looking back though my old photos I see it is four years since this pheasant first appeared in the garden so he must be at least five years old.  It is probably a pretty good age for a wild pheasant but as far as I can see the BTO have no data for pheasant longevity - probably because most of them get shot or run over.  This one was shy when he first came to the garden but he has been coming to the door most mornings and feeding from my hand since 2013.  Or sometimes, like today, he creeps up behind me in the garden and makes me jump.

He disappears each July, presumably to moult.  This summer he was gone for seven weeks - the longest period yet - and I thought he might not return.  However, he did eventually turn up and even still had his tail feathers, although they fell out the next day.  For a while he looked a bit like a rather scruffy exotic chicken although I wouldn't say that to his face.

While he was moulting he was keen on taking dust baths in the kitchen garden, presumably to get rid of the itching.

As he has got older he likes to have a rest in the afternoon (don't we all?), often standing in the shade of the blackcurrant or raspberries in the kitchen garden if it is sunny.

When you see him in this stance you can see how he might be descended from a Tyrannosaurus or Velociraptor.

BadgerCam

Since the last post of badger photos two weeks ago I have tried a couple of nights with the trail camera in the woods but both were blank.  But now another success.  Again the badger was facing the right way in nearly all of the photos. He must be getting the hang of it.

Mystery flowers

One of my aims for next year is to learn the names of more of our wild flowers.  I know very few by name but the variety is amazing.  These were all encountered on a short walk in the dunes at Druridge Bay this week.  I think I can name about 20%.

Painted lady

Migrant hawker

The migrant hawker is the last of the three locally common blue hawkers to emerge.  The others (southern hawker and common hawker) peak a bit earlier.  This slightly battle-scarred male is the first I have seen close up this year.  I think this dragonfly was named in the days when it was a rare migrant but it now breeds widely across England, although the local population is still boosted by migrants in autumn.