Mullein Wave
Small Blood Vein
Monday 3rd July was sunny but breezy as we headed out to Wembury for a Chunk Pasty lunch and a short walk. It was very quiet with an adult Mediterranean Gull in summer plumage the highlight on the bird front and Painted Lady, Ringlet, Gatekeeper and Large Skipper the butterfly highlights.
Large Skipper
It was back to work that evening for my last ever night shift after my mandatory 5 days off sick following my positive COVID test, the night shift was actually OK but I can't quite believe that they are now over.
Wednesday 5th July was cool and breezy with occassional sunny spells and so we headed up to Dartmoor to walk the remaining section of the Devonport Leat we haven't done yet. It was only a small section but most of it was on private land and it was also very boggy underfoot so we only managed to walk along a short part of it.
There were plenty of Meadow Brown flitting about despite the cool conditions but very little else on the insect front. The highlight was a fledgling Whinchat, my first sighting of a Whinchat for the year, and it was sporting a silver ring on its left leg so presumably was ringed in the nest. A fledgling Stonechat was also seen with a female and a presumed family group of 5 Mistle Thrush flew overhead.
It was an early start on Thursday 6th July for the bus out to Wembury to catch the high tide before the dog walkers arrived. I arrived off the bus at around 7:30am and it was cool and cloudy but as the morning progressed it became warm and sunny albeit breezy and the insect activity responded accordingly.
Butterfly numbers were much improved and I had an interesting time watching them as they flittered about with 12 species noted - Meadow Brown, a Small Copper, a Peacock, a Small Tortoiseshell, Red Admiral, Painted Lady, Ringlet, Gatekeeper, Small Skipper, a male Common Blue, Small White and a single Marbled White.
Red Admiral
Painted Lady
Gatekeeper
Small Skipper
I had a decent view of what I think was an Essex Skipper amongst the Small Skippers present, unfortunately I never managed a view of the antennae undersides to confirm it.
?Essex Skipper - but probably a Small Skipper due to hooked antennae?
It was quiet again on the bird front and the high tide didn't really deliver with just 42 Oystercatcher, 5 Curlew and 5 Little Egret roosting at The Point. Offshore was quiet too with just 2 adult Gannets moving west and the usual Fulmars around The Mewstone of note.
A Peregrine, a Sparrowhawk and 2 Kestrels overhead, 5 Cirl Bunting (1 female), Whitethroats seemingly everywhere with males still singing and songflighting and a Cormorant eventually swallowing a massive fish close to the beach were other avian highlights. An interesting sighting was of 8 Ravens soaring and tumbling together over the top horse field, a mix of adult and juvenile birds and presumably 2 family groups socialising.
A Hummingbird Hawkmoth feeding on Buddleia flowers was a year first, a pair of Beautiful Demoiselle were along the stream, a young Rabbit was seen at The Point and a Yarrow Plume by the footpath were also of note.
Yarrow Pug
I stopped off at Laira Bridge on the way home for a short walk along The Ride. It was still sunny, warm and breezy but there were plenty of butterflies flitting around and I found my first Plym Gatekeepers, Common Blues (2 males), Small Copper (1), Ringlets and Small Whites of the year along with Marbled Whites, Meadow Browns, Small Skippers (in very good numbers) and single Large Skipper and Small Heath.
Common Blue - very low in numbers this year
Small Copper
The tide was heading out and along the estuary amongst the increasing numbers of Black-headed Gulls were the usual Herring Gulls, an adult Great Black-backed Gull and an adult Lesser Black-backed Gull. The Skylarks were still singing away over Chelson Meadow and Swift, Swallow and House Martin were hawking insects overhead.
A very good morning out and a joy to see so many butterflies for a change.
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