Back to Danemead Part 1

I returned to Hoddesdon this weekend and Danemead Scout Campsite. Originally I was going to be teaching a small group of leaders, but for various reasons some people cancelled and for most of Saturday it was only me and my friend Stuart.

As I arrived and got out of my car there was a large party of Long-tailed Tits and Goldcrests moving around feeding in the trees. As I was watching I heard the short, loud, distinctive "tsu-weet" of a Yellow-browed Warbler (Phylloscopus inornatus), a bird which breeds in Siberia and Russia and migrates to Asia and has wondered off course. Each Autumn this uncommon vagrant arrives in varying numbers for a brief stay as they make their journey south. During my years of serious birding I spent many ours chasing around looking for them. This bird called several times and then departed with the tit flock and I did not hear it again for the rest of the weekend.

There is a brief piece of video of a Yellow-browed on YouTube here

Stuart had purchased a Tentipi (made not that far from my cabin in Sweden) and was keen to get it set up and try it out.


Here is a view from the front.

After erecting the tipi, we cut and split some logs for fire wood

and then got a fire going and put the kettle on.

Another surprising find, especially for mid November was this Comma butterfly

It gets its name from the white mark you can see on the underwing.

To be continued!!