April 2018 - Part 2
12th April 2018 - (Thursday, Csütörtök)
This was my first visit to the SQ since Monday and each day since had been warm and sunny. This meant the that water level in The Bowl had dropped somewhat, as evidenced by the indicator rock in the Coffee Pool. On Monday, just the top of the rock protruded above the water surface, but today, a more substantial amount of rock was showing. All was quiet when I arrived, but after a while some Fire-bellied Toads started 'piping'. No Common Spadefoot Toads were heard, and no signs of the Green Tree Frog, either. I disturbed a young Grass Snake near the reedbed, and it swam off hurriedly through the reed stems. I found an adult Agile Frog in Rock Bath 1 ... although its nose rather resembled that of a Common Frog. True identification is always difficult to ascertain, without catching the specimen and performing the 'leg length test'. Smooth Newts were enjoying the clear water of the Coffee Pool, with 4 males and 1 female seen. A large Diving Beetle was also there, along with many Whirligig Beetles, and both types of Pond Skater. At least 3 Common Winter Damselflies were observed, including one linked pair. No Green Lizards were seen today.
13th April 2018 - (Friday, Péntek)
For some time I'd been angered and saddened by the mass of plastic and glass bottles that had been thrown into the bushes adjacent to the airfield road. Therefore, I spent the first 30 minutes of my afternoon visit removing this rubbish. I placed a large black bin liner inside a plastic bin and climbed into the bushes. I wore a hard hat, complete with visor, so that I didn't suffer any eye damage from protruding sticks and branches. Most of the bottles were plastic, which needed crushing to save space. After being greeted by a mass of stale wine fumes from those squeezed bottles, I'm glad I wasn't breathalised! The remaining bottles were glass, and there were also some old beer cans. By the time I'd finished, I had filled the large bin bag. After that job, I took my garden fork from the car and cleared the 'small but irritating' pile of rose cuttings that some kind local had thrown into the site. These were carried to the side vegetation dump. The is the part where the metal fence was stolen from. As I took the fork back to the car I spotted the first Grizzled Skipper of the year. Unfortunately, my camera gear was down at the work site, so no photo could be taken. After the work I saw one Green Lizard female, three Smooth Newt males (Coffee Pool), the young Grass Snake at the reedbed (escaping again!), the first Dorcadion beetle of the year, and a Violet Carpenter Bee. No amphibian calls were heard today. There was rain in the Mátra mountains last night, but it looks like nothing fell on the SQ area, unfortunately.
14th April 2018 - (Saturday, Szombat)
Another dry day, with its associated water loss. A few Fire-bellied Toads were seen, and 3 Smooth Newts were observed in the Coffee Pool (2 male, 1 female). The first Common Heath male of the year was seen and photographed, but a male Orange Tip and a Wood White could not be photographed. A few Tree Sparrows did not object to my close proximity after their reedbed bath. The top irrigation channel is ready and waiting for rainfall, but that rainfall may not be soon, unfortunately.
17th April 2018 - (Tuesday, Kedd)
Today was rather strange as it was mainly cloudy, and yet the temperature was quite high. When I arrived at the SQ I extracted the garden fork, tarpaulin, and gloves from the car. My first task was to remove the large pile of cut branches that had been 'donated' by a local person. I didn't enjoy the Rose thorns too much, but I managed to get all of the cuttings onto the tarpulin, tied it at each end, and then carried it up to the opening near the road that we like to keep blocked. The load wasn't heavy, just rather unwieldy, and I tried to lift it high so that the tarpaulin wouldn't become ripped on the 'resident' rose bushes. After the work was complete, I started my study walk. Teréz popped in for a while, and after she left, I explored the area just beyond our perimeter fence. Earlier, a local cat had tried for affection, but was somewhat unsuccessful. She appeared to have damage to her left eye pupil, but that hadn't stopped her belly becoming full with kittens. As I arrived back at the SQ top entrance, I saw the cat walking up the road to meet me. Suddenly, I realised that it wasn't a cat at all ... it was a juvenile Wild Boar! I spooked it a little when I noisily snapped on my big lens, but as I waited on the other side of the road, it re-emerged, making little snorting sounds. It stood there for a couple of minutes before making a dash across the airfield road. I waited, and then heard the little snorts getting closer. Several times it emerged from the bushes to be photographed. In all the excitement, I didn't really notice its size, but I suppose it was about 35 cms long. I'm a bit concerned as, perhaps its mother has been killed, and this very young baby will need milk to survive. It probably could be caught, and maybe a 'forest person' could take care of it.
18th April 2018 - (Wednesday, Szerda)
This afternoon I spent the first hour of my visit clearing all the plastic bottles, glass bottles, beer cans, and cigarette ends from the track to the north of the SQ. My haul was completed by masses of tissues and condom foil wrappers, as this track doubles as a local 'lovers' lane'. The two old mattresses remain in place, although they are no longer 'fit for purpose'. For the second time in a week, I filled a large black plastic sack, and left it beside the bin at the bus stop near to the Gyöngyössolymos road. It will be collected from there by the council workers. After this major work in considerable heat I felt rather drained but summoned enough energy for a quick look around the site. There was no sign of the young Wild Boar today. Maybe he didn't survive the night. I saw a male Orange Tip and the first Scarce Swallowtail of the year, but the only butterfly to be photographed was a Wood White. The only Green Lizard seen today was a juvenile. I observed a Velvet Ant in The Bowl, but it was almost impossible to photograph as it moved so quickly through the plants and other debris. Hopefully I got enough for an identification. The water level in The Bowl is starting to become 'critical', so maybe I'll try to rescue some of the Agile Frog tadpoles tomorrow. As I drove down the airfield road, on departure, I noticed something shiny on the left side of the road. I instantly swerved to the right as I thought 'snake'. I parked the car and walked back up the hill. I was correct ... it was a young Aesculapian Snake, but sadly, it was dead. It was upside down, displaying its pastel yellow underside, which was why it shone so brightly in the sun as I drove down the hill. I used a stick to turn it over, and found the snake to be perfectly supple, meaning that it had not been dead very long. Usually, if a snake is run over by a vehicle, it is pretty well squashed, somewhere, but this specimen showed hardly any damage. Earlier, I saw a man walking up the hill .... did he kill it, I wonder ??
19th April 2018 - (Thursday, Csütörtök)
Not sure of the temperature today, but it was certainly rather hot. My main mission for today was to rescue as many Agile Frog tadpoles from the Coffee Pool as possible and transfer them to another area of the SQ that has deeper water. My first 'catch' of about 100 tadpoles went into Rock Bath 1, which pleased the 60 cm Grass Snake that slid away as I approached. The second batch went into the open water area to the left of the reedbed channel. During my work I found a Water Scorpion on a dry rock, and at first I thought it was dead. I gently touched it with a dry stem and it moved slightly, so perhaps it had been drying itself after leaving the water. I also found some Caddis Fly larvae, which could be Limnophilus flavicornis judging by the design of the larval cases. When I arrived at the Coffee Pool I disturbed a small Grass Snake that was hunting tadpoles. This would be one of last year's babies. Butterflies seen were: Wood White, Orange Tip (male), Grizzled Skipper, Dingy Skipper, and three Scarce Swallowtails that were enjoying the moisture in The Bowl. One young Edible Frog was seen, along with four Fire-bellied Toads, but another species was much more frustrating. I heard 2 or 3 Green Toads calling, but I could not locate them. One of them appeared to be calling from the grassy area which is below the Tree of Heaven rock face. A pity I couldn't confirm this as I've never known Green Toads to call whilst out of the water. The Green-veined Orchid was in bud at its usual place, near to the houses on the top rim. A Marsh Tit was seen, as I was about to leave the site, and I found a new beetle species in the dampness of The Bowl. Before leaving, I scooped-up a small quantity of Daphnia to take back for study under the new digital microscope. I had seen many 'pink clouds' of Daphnia in many parts of the Coffee Pool, but as I found later, they look anything but pink through the microscope!
Here are the first images of the Daphnia, taken through the digital microscope:
20th April 2018 - (Friday, Péntek)
I tried to rescue more Agile Frog tadpoles today but the task seemed more difficult than yesterday. Perhaps this was because the water level had dropped even more and the tads were finding 'hidey holes' between the rocks. Even so, I managed to rescue about 50 and placed them into the open bay beside the reedbed where they have plenty of algae to tackle. No Green Toads were heard today, but a single Green Tree Frog called once from the reedbed area. I had no chance to locate it though. I photographed a single male Smooth Newt in the Coffee Pool, and two Fire-bellied Toads. Butterflies in evidence today were: Orange Tip (male), Wood White, Scarce Swallowtail, Dingy Skipper, Grizzled Skipper, and my first Queen of Spain Fritillary of the year.