A final word from Rob on the Hobby season…
As broods near to fledging for most nests at least, we are approaching the best time of year to find breeding pairs of Hobbies, for a few weeks after fledging as the young Hobbies learn the skills of catching slower insects , then dragonflies as they become more skilled fliers. They are at their most obvious around the nesting area. An old nesting adage says if you want to find this years nest look for last years, and in the case of Hobbies never a truer word spoken; find the juveniles out of the nest and you have a good start for next year as they are likely to return to the area.
It is some respects my favourite part of the season, with no more climbing, no more late evenings watching and hoping for some clue as to where they may be in the vastness of the countryside. Instead casual walks in favoured haunts of the elusive Hobby, after which their long awaited return next spring.