New (for me) Butterfly Observation:
The butterfly bushes (Buddleia) which have been nicely planted in several locations around the Fraunhoffer building next to my workplace on the TU Dresden campus, have just blossomed a few days ago in beautiful shades of violet and purple, and today I noticed butterflies on it for the first time, and there were quite a few! I checked them everyday on my way to work, and to my disappointment they have been completely void of any lepidopterans for several days, despite ideal weather! This morning (11:00am) on one well-lit bush there were:
4 Painted Ladies
3 Peacocks
4 Brimstones
1 Cabbage White
2 Small Heaths
During my afternoon coffee break, I checked the bush again, and there were still 3 Ladies, 2 Peacocks and 2 Brimstones (no Small Heaths, and lower numbers of all types), but then I decided to check this pair of bushes which this time of day (4:00pm) are completely in the shade (unlike the aforementioned bush, which was still fully bathed in radiation). To my surprise there were a total of 7 Peacocks between the 2 bushes...and no other species of butterfly! I think from the combination of facts: that there were more than 3 times as many Peacocks on the bushes in the shade (5 on a single bush even!) and that there were no other butterfly species, is quite strong evidence that (at least locally) the Peacock prefers shade or they are more opportunistic than other butterflies in the area. I will continue to check on this and see if some pattern can truly be seen over a longer survey.
OK, so back to BIRDS...
It has been hot and dry the past couple of weeks, although small numbers of waders have trickled in the few areas still holding some water/mud. (Funny thing is I hear they are having the opposite problem over in Cape May: too much water). So two weeks ago (Saturday, July 13) I met Michael in Leipzig, and we checked some flooded field south of Leipzig (Stöhna area) where we had only 3 Ruffs, and a flock of Lapwings (later may have been local breeders). But when we had heard a report of a Parasitic Jaeger/Skua near the border of Thüringia just a bit further south at "Windischleuba", we slowly made our way there all the while keeping eyes peeled for it sounded like it was on the move and would not likely stay at the same location for long. Sure enough, we never had the fortune to cross paths with the Jaeger, but we had a nice Smorgasbord of commoner wader species at Windischleuba, including: 1 Greenshank, several each of Green, Wood, and Common Sandpipers, and about 10-15 Little Ringed Plovers and 30+ Northern Lapwings scattered all over.
I have been using this relatively quiet birding time to study for oral exams, thesis writing, and preparing for my 2-week stint volunteering at Kvismare Bird Observatory, Aug 9 - Aug 26. This will be my first time trying my hand at serious banding (ringing) of birds, in this case mostly passerines, but also some waders (night) and sometimes a hawk or 2 are caught in the mist nets. They have been banding birds at the same locations for over 50 years now, and so I feel pretty confident that these guys know what they are doing and are very professional. More on that to come in the near future!
Good birding,
SR
