Moths and Birds

Back yard moth boxing continues at a slow pace with the cool and unsettled weather keeping numbers low but I did have my first Mullein Wave of the year, one of my favourite back yard moths, along with a Beautiful Plume and a Rusty Dot Pearl.

Mullein Wave

Friday 13th August was grey but dry and so I headed out to Wembury for a walk. It was breezy but warm and humid and the sun did eventually make an appearance as the clouds slowly cleared.

The tide was high and along the beach a large congregation of Gulls were feeding in the surf gently breaking onto the beach and on the seaweed mass washed ashore. 

Gulls at Wembury

I scanned through the assorted Herring and Black-headed Gulls but couldn't find anything more unusual than 14 Mediterranean Gulls (8 juveniles).

With the high tide waders were roosting at The Point - 59 Oystercatcher, 3 Curlew, 2 Whimbrel, a Common Sandpiper and a Turnstone were seen along with 3 Little Egret.

I picked up a steady movement of adult, juvenile and sub-adult Gannets offshore heading west and also a distant Shearwater species, too far out and in hazy light conditions to call but it looked good for Balearic. A few Fulmar were flying about around The Mewstone with some sat on the sea and getting aggro from nearby juvenile Herring Gulls and the fat and fluffy chick was still sat on its nesting ledge.

A Cirl Bunting was singing with another male seen along with a female and a juvenile, Stonechats and Linnets were showy, a Chiffchaff and 3 Whitethroat in contrast were skulky.

Common Lizards were basking in the occasional sunny spells including a few small and dark looking young. I was also pleased to finally see my first Long-winged Coneheads at Wembury since autumn 2017, the year before the Beast from the East hit Devon and which seemed to have totally wiped them out here, presumably these are new migrants arriving to recolonise. Also seen were 2 male Oak Eggar moths dashing back and forth along the footpath, presumably trying to home in on a female hidden in the brambles nearby. 

Common Lizard

Common Lizard

Tuesday 17th August was grey and cool in the breeze and I headed out to Wembury again for a walk. There were occasional sunny spells and out of the breeze it felt quite pleasent.

The tide was heading in and there were clearly waders on the move with a nice selection on show on the rocks - 78 Oystercatcher, 5 Ringed Plover, 4 Curlew, 3 Whimbrel, 2 Dunlin, 2 Common Sandpiper and a Sanderling. 4 Little Egret and 7 female Mallard were also seen and amongst the usual assorted gulls were 15 Mediterranean Gulls including a ringed juvenile.

Sanderling

Sanderling

Dunlin and Sanderling

Sanderling

Dunlin, Sanderling and Ringed Plover

Mediterranean Gull

Mediterranean Gull - ringed 1st July 2021 at Langstone Harbour, Hampshire

Mediterranean Gull

The usual Stonechat, Linnet, Cirl Bunting, Whitethroat, Chiffchaff and Rock Pipit were seen with a juvenile Willow Warbler at The Point and a Coal Tit in a village garden also noted.

Cirl Bunting

More Common Lizards were seen sunning themselves on various fences, walls and posts along with more Long-winged Coneheads and a Dark Bush-cricket but the star find of the day was a Convolvulus Hawkmoth found resting on a post, a huge beast of a moth with massive eyes and an absolute delight to see. 

Common Lizard

Long-winged Conehead

Long-winged Conehead

Dark Bush-cricket

Convolvulus Hawkmoth

Convolvulus Hawkmoth 

Convolvulus Hawkmoth 

Convolvulus Hawkmoth 

Convolvulus Hawkmoth 

Mixed Weather Wildlife Watching

The heat wave has finally ended and it is now cooler, cloudier and wetter - and it is quite a relief! At least it is easier to sleep at night now and a shift at work isn't quite the sticky and uncomfortable experience it has been. 

I had the moth box out in the back yard on Wednesday 28th July and on checking it out the next morning there were fewer moths as expected following the drop in the temperature. A total of 12 moths of 8 species were in the trap with a Flame Shoulder new for the year and 3 smart looking Knot Grass the pick of the bunch.

Knot Grass

Thursday 29th July was a rare day off together and so we headed up onto Dartmoor for a cream tea at Badgers Holt and a walk along the River Dart. The cream tea was OK but with new owners now running the cafe the scones were light and bready and not the usual cakey wedges and the jam wasn't the usual home made jam but came in a jar from a company based in Lifton. 

It was a mostly overcast day but warm with brief sunny spells and our walk along the river was very enjoyable with Beautiful Demoiselle, Golden Ringed Dragonfly, Silver-washed Fritillary, Gatekeeper, Ringlet, Nuthatch, Grey Wagtail and Marsh Tit all seen. We also found a few bilberries which were very tasty but stained our fingers purple with their juice. 

Silver-washed Fritillary

Silver-washed Fritillary

Storm Evert lashed Cornwall and Devon overnight and so I decided to visit Rame Head for a seawatch on Friday 30th July. It was windy and showery when I arrived at Whitsand Bay off the bus and I wasn't hopeful of seeing much and so it proved to be with just 10 Manx Shearwater, a Fulmar, Gannets, a juvenile Yellow-legged Gull and 3 Harbour Porpoise seen along with the usual Shag, Herring Gull and Great Black-backed Gulls. 

Pont Aven from Rame Head

A Peregrine, 2 Kestrel, Stonechat, Swallow and Whitethroat  were also noted along with Dodder growing on the Gorse and despite the weather I managed to see a Red Admiral, 2 Gatekeeper, a Meadow Brown and 2 Whites. 

Dodder

Gatekeeper

Saturday 31st July and with the calm after the previous days storm I decided to head out to Wembury for a walk. It was warm but mostly overcast and was overly busy due to it being a Saturday in school holiday hell time and with the ongoing COVID foreign travel restrictions but I enjoyed my wander along the coast path anyway. 

The tide was coming in and feeding along the beach were mostly Black-headed Gulls including quite a few juveniles along with 14 Mediterranean Gulls (5 juveniles) and Herring Gulls. A juvenile Yellow-legged Gull was a nice surprise as it flew along the beach before heading out to The Mewstone, showing the whitest and least marked rump I've seen before.

Juvenile Mediterranean Gull

Out on The Mewstone a Fulmar was flying around the cliffs where a pair were resting on a nest with a well developed looking chick. A few Gannets were picked up offshore but there was no sign of any Shearwaters.

Also along the beach were 3 Whimbrel, a Little Egret and 58 Oystercatcher and along the footpath the usual land birds were also seen - Chiffchaff, Cirl Bunting, Stonechat, Whitethroat and Linnet - with a Willow Warbler and a Greenfinch also noted.

A total of 7 Common Lizard were basking in the occasional sunny spells including 2 small and dark youngsters and a very confiding individual at the bus stop. 

Common Lizard

Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown, a Ringlet, a Small Skipper, a Red Admiral and a Green-veined White were flitting about and 3 male Beautiful Demoiselle were jostling together over the water by the bridge. 

A Trip to Suffolk

Sunday 11th July and it was off to Suffolk for a few days away visiting my family. The journey from Plymouth to Suffolk was not fun though, taking 7 hours and beset with heavy traffic and various jams but we arrived safely and in one piece and I managed to see 8 Red Kites along the way. 

We stayed at The Holiday Inn again which is  just across the road from my Mums house and on checking out the grassy roadside verges along the A12 when we walked back and forth between the hotel and Mums house I was very pleased to find quite a few Essex Skippers along with Small Skippers, a Bee Orchid and a few Pyramidal Orchids. 

Essex Skipper

Essex Skipper

Small Skipper

Monday 12th July and I managed to wangle a 3 hour visit to RSPB Minsmere. It was raining quite heavily when I was dropped off near the Island Mere Hide but by the time I was picked up 3 hours later it was hot and sunny.

I had a great time despite the weather and the challenging light conditions and I managed to add Common and Little Tern, Ruff, Little Gull, Green Sandpiper, Knot, Bearded Tit and Spotted Redshank to my year list. Marsh Harrier, Avocet, Kittiwake, Mediterranean Gull, Reed Warbler, Little Ringed Plover, Common Sandpiper, Sanderling and Sand Martin were all good to see too. 

Common Terns, Minsmere

Mediterranean Gull, Felixstowe

With the sun beginning to shine I decided to finish my visit with a walk along the butterfly trail and was pleased to find 2 Comma, Ringlet, Meadow Brown, Silver-washed Fritillary and a White Admiral flitting about. 

Silver-washed Fritillary, Minsmere

Silver-washed Fritillary 

Silver-washed Fritillary 

Long Horn Beetle Sp., Minsmere

Tuesday 13th July and I had my moth box out in my Mums back garden and the next morning I had a nice haul of moths including 3 Elephant Hawk Moths, a Light Arches, 10 Box Tree Moth, a Short-cloaked Moth, a Poplar Grey, a Pale Mottled Willow, Least Carpet and a Rush Veneer. 

Elephant Hawk Moth

Box Tree Moth

Short-cloaked Moth

Pale Mottled Willow

Heading home to Plymouth on Thursday 15th July and the journey was much more pleasent with only a few hold ups this time and along the way I saw a total of 7 Red Kites soaring overhead.

An enjoyable trip as always but the weather wasn't great for butterflying and I didn't get an opportunity to look for Purple Emperors and Small Blues as originally planned. It was nice to do some proper birding though despite the rain and also nice to catch up with my family in these continuing weird COVID times. 

Yet Another Holiday-less Holiday!

Monday 15th March and yet again another period of annual leave from work begins during a Lock Down. However there seems to be light appearing at the end of what has been a very long and very dark tunnel as I have now had both my Pfizer COVID jabs, my weekly COVID swabs since October last year continue to be negative and the Nations road map out of Lock Down appears to be on track. 

Monday was a breezy but dry day with sunny spells and so I decided to do my usual River Plym and Saltram walk. The tide was ebbing and out on the mudflats were 5 Dunlin, 4 Greenshank, at least 10 Curlew, an Oystercatcher and Redshanks along with Common Gulls and 2 Lesser Black-backed Gulls amongst the roosting Gull flock. A pair of Goosander were also busily diving for fish near the rowing club.

Little Egret

The park held the usual stuff but the highlight was a Green Woodpecker seen flying into the top of a tree, it was so nice to actual see one instead of just hearing the usual mocking yaffling.

Green Woodpecker

Stock Dove, Goldcrest, Song Thrush, Skylark, Buzzard and Ring-necked Parakeets were also noted along with a Meadow Pipit in the cow field and the pair of Stonechat in the same spot as last week. 

There was no sign of the Red-crested Pochard on the duck pond but there were 7 pairs of Mandarin Duck and an unpaired male present. A very smart looking male Pheasant was feeding around the pond side on the seed and bread being put down by passers-by along with a very confiding Dunnock.

Pheasant

Dunnock

5 Roe Deer were resting under a tree in the cow fields, the first time I have seen them here, a nice male with antlers and 4 females.

Roe Deer

There were flowers beginning to show all around the park with Sloe Blossom, Alexanders and Wood Anemones all noted along with the usual Daffodils, Primroses and Violets.

Sloe Blossom

Alexanders

Wood Anemone

White Poplar Catkins

Tuesday 16th March and we decided to head out to Stoke Point for a walk, something we only did once last year. It was a dry day with increasing cloud cover but it was as fantastic as always with the usual stunning views and interesting wildlife.

Chiffchaff and Blackcap were both heard singing away and a brief and flitty Peacock butterfly was a nice sight. Two Green Woodpeckers were heard with one seen in flight and a Marsh Tit showed well in the usual woodland area near the village of Noss Mayo. A male Kestrel, 2 Raven, Stonechats, Cirl Buntings, Yellowhammers, a Gannet, a Red-legged Partridge and Pheasants were all seen as well.

Yellowhammer

Cirl Bunting

Kestrel

There was as expected no sign of the recent Chough even though I checked out all the corvids I saw,  possibly it's still around in the area although with 3 patrolling Peregrines seen on the walk it may have moved on or may have ended up as a tasty meal.

Peregrine

A really enjoyable day out, unfortunately no lunch again in The Ship Inn for us but sandwiches, crisps and a glass of wine were just as tasty sat on a bench in the community orchard of Noss Mayo. And I felt so much happier that evening watching TV on the sofa after having done something normal for a change.

Wednesday 17th March was forecasted to be a warm and sunny day and so I headed out to the outskirts of Plymouth again to have another look for Goshawks. It was cooler and breezier and cloudier than expected but I had a successful walk and it was far less muddy than my previous visit. 

I had a brief and distant view of a Goshawk flying over the trees as I negotiated the country lanes and muddy footpaths towards my raised vantage point overlooking the valley and shortly after setting up my telescope at my watch point a pair of Goshawk circled overhead before drifting off with the noticeably smaller male having a half hearted skirmish with a Buzzard soaring nearby. 

Over the next couple of hours as I scanned over the treetops of the valley I had some distant scope views of 1 or 2 displaying Goshawks along with Buzzards, Ravens and Sparrowhawks. 2 Peregrines were also noted. 

Stock Doves, a Common Sandpiper, 4 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls, a Marsh Tit, Pheasants, Red-legged Partridge and Skylarks were also noted on the walk along with 2 Peacock butterflies. 

While watching a Red-legged Partridge feeding in a field as I neared the end of my walk the calls of Rooks overhead made me look up and amongst the crows and panicked Woodpigeon flying around I picked up a juvenile Goshawk flying through them, a distinctive looking bird with buff toned underparts and looking very Honey Buzzard-ish with an elongated looking head. It all to soon drifted off and out of sight but a very nice end to my walk. 

Red-legged Partridge

Thursday 18th March and a sunny but cool day saw me heading off to Wembury to meet Mavis for a walk. It wasn't too busy with people despite the good weather and the footpath was much less muddy than of late and we had an enjoyable walk.

The Bar-tailed Godwit was still present feeding on a sandy stretch of the beach with Oystercatchers and a 1st Winter/Summer Mediterranean Gull. At least 2 Curlew were out on the rocks with 2 Little Egret and a pair of Mallard were tucked down amongst the seaweed having a snooze.

Mediterranean Gull

Offshore a few Gannet were seen and on The Mewstone Fulmar were resting on the cliffs with Cormorant and Shag resting along the shoreline.

Stonechat, Cirl Bunting, Goldfinch, Wren, Dunnock, Robin, Pheasant and 2 Long-tailed Tit were seen along the footpath along with 2 Canada Geese resting in the stubble field. A Chiffchaff was heard singing and 2 Buzzards were seen soaring overhead.

It was good to see my first Common Lizard of the year along with an Oil Beetle although not so nice to see 2 more Oil Beetles squashed on the footpath.

Common Lizard

Oil Beetle