While sat watching TV in the living room on our return home on Thursday 2nd July I heard a familiar tapping on the metal flap in the fire grate and on checking it out I found a Herring Gull chick inside the flue - Birdy 2026 (Number 1) had arrived. He seemed OK and while silent he was quite feisty as we placed him out on the flat roof outside. After last years disaster we decided to stand back this time so he didn't imprint on humans as much in the hope that it would make him more wary and street/traffic smart when he fledges but we did put a big bowl of water out for him. I did also buy some tinned Mackerel from Tesco across the road just in case but hoped I wouldn't need to use it.
The adults soon arrived and took over feeding him and keeping an eye on him but made very little fuss when we went out in the back yard, usually they would go bonkers and swoop down on us for a few days before tolerating our prescence and again maybe a sign that they are too imprinted on us as well.
Birdy 2026 remained very quiet and ended up on the lower flat roof where he was out of sight to us for most of the time but things seemed to settle down nicely. However on Friday 3rd July at around 8pm there was a hell of a commotion going on out on the flat roof and on checking it out from the breakfast room window there was a Great Black-backed Gull on the flat roof along with around 8 Herring Gulls including Birdys parents. By the time we'd gone upstairs for a better look from the bedroom windows the Great Black-backed Gull had gone and only the Herring Gulls remained but there was no sign of Birdy 2026. We assumed that the Great Black-backed Gull had found Birdy and had grabbed him for his dinner but at least the other chick was still present up on the chimney stack.
I headed out to Wembury on the 7am bus on Saturday 4th July, it was cool and overcast with mizzley spells but by the time I left to return home the clouds had cleared and the sun had appeared. Despite the initial early morning coolness there were butterflies on the wing and I managed to find 14 species including my first Gatekeeper of the year. A Small Tortoiseshell was a surprise find, only my second of the year and again too fast for the camera, and a single Marbled White was also seen flitting about and completing my annual Wembury butterfly list (23 species) unless something rare or unexpected shows up on my future walks.
Along the beach there were 7 Mediterranean Gulls - 3 adults in summer plumage, a 2nd summer in breeding plumage and 3 1st summers. Also present were 3 Black-headed Gulls, 2 summer plumaged adults and an 1st summer and all a sign of summer starting to turn already and I counted 36 Oystercatcher roosting on the rocks along with 2 Curlew, a Little Egret and 4 Mallard.
Whitethroat, Chiffchaff, Blackcap and Cirl Bunting were still singing away and a flock of 12 Swift were seen overhead at The Point heading west. Offshore an immature Gannet was also picked up heading west and 5 Manx Shearwater heading east and the usual Fulmars were wheeling around The Mewstone.
A Bloody-nosed Beetle was a welcome sight, only my third one this year following the footpath upgrade, and a Golden-ringed Dragonfly was seen buzzing along the stream in the valley to the beach. It was also good to see Beewolfs in their usual spot amongst the Ornate-tailed Digger Wasps.
Sunday 5th July and Birdy 2026 was refound on the lower flat roof, he hadn't been snaffled by the Great Black-backed Gull after all but had hidden himself away under some pipes and we hadn't noticed him. The adults were still keeping an eye on him and feeding him and on Monday 6th July the other chick on the chimney stack (Burdy 2026) came down the chimney and into the living room grate, the first time we have had 2 chicks come down the chimney in a season. He was smaller than his sibling and maybe a female bird and he was duly placed on the flat roof to join Birdy 2026.
With yet another heatwave developing I had the moth box out in the back yard that night and the next morning (Tuesday 7th July) I was woken up at 4:30am by a cacophony of Gull noises. I eventually got out of bed to sort out the moth box while the female Herring Gull noisely watched on and the 2 chicks continuously begged for food but I managed to empty the box fairly quickly and at least I wasn't divebombed by the adult as usually happens.
I had a nice haul in the box with the best moth a Pale Prominent which is a new moth for me. Five of my favourite back yard moths were also present in the box - a Marbled Green, a Coronet, a Buff Tip, a battered looking Mullein Wave and 7 male Four-spotted Footman - and other highlights were a Buff Arches, 3 Small Mottled Willow, a Dwarf Cream Wave, a Buff Ermine and what I think is a Tebenna micalis.
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