With the weather forecast set fair for the week beginning May Day Monday 6th May it was time to start catching up on the local wildlife I've missed out on during my extended stay in Suffolk.
May Day Monday saw us heading out for a short walk on Roborough Down, it was a sunny but cool and fresh day but very pleasant none the less. The highlight was a distant Cuckoo heard only, my first for 2 years, and there were lots of Willow Warblers singing away too.
Tuesday 7th May was cool and fresh again as I headed out to Grenofen Woods for a walk. It was overcast when I arrived off the bus at around 8am but by midday the sun had appeared and it helped to take the edge off the chilly temperatures. I kept my eyes open for Fritillaries but was out of luck but there were good numbers of Brimstone flitting about when the sun appeared.
A Redstart was heard briefly along with a Tree Pipit but neither showed themselves, fortunately Garden Warblers were much more obliging with a pair feeding together and showing very well as the male quietly sang to the female. A further singing male showed very well too and even collected up some feathers in its bill and another 3 males were heard only.
Otherwise the usual birds were seen and heard, the highlights being :- 3 Swift, a Swallow, a Raven and 3 Buzzards overhead; a Green Woodpecker heard yaffling away; a male Yellowhammer, a pair of Stonechat and a pair of Linnet on the scrubby hillside; showy and vocal Willow Warblers seeming to be everywhere; and a smart looking male Bullfinch coming down to a puddle for a drink and a bathe.
A Dartmoor Day out was arranged for Thursday 9th May with Mavis and Kay and it was sunny and warm as we headed off to Emsworthy Mire, a Devon Wildlife Trust reserve that I have never visited before. The Bluebells were just beginning to appear but we were a few days too early for the full display, it still looked stunning though and the views of the Moors were amazing.
An interesting range of wildlife was seen with Cuckoo and Redstart stealing the show, we had fantastic views of Cuckoos although they were very mobile and flighty across the Mire, we saw 3 together at one point as 2 males chased after a female while fighting with each other but more than 3 were likely present. The Redstarts were also vocal and showy too with at least 4 males and a female seen.
I took my Emperor Moth lure out with me, it's now in its 4th year so I wasn't hopeful that it would still be potent and on initial usage nothing appeared. However as we headed back up the hillside to the carpark we picked up a stronger breeze and they began to appear although they very quickly moved on without settling. Eventually I managed to catch one, such a stunning insect in close up, and by the time we reached the car there were quite a few flitting around us.
We then headed off to Challacombe Farm for a quick look about, a lovely singing Pied Flycatcher showed very nicely along with a singing Redstart while a Garden Warbler and a Cuckoo were heard only, a pleasant end to a very enjoyable day out on Dartmoor.
I was up and out early on Friday 10th May, I caught the 6:30am bus to Wembury, the first time I've caught the bus at this time, and my plan was to beat the dog walkers - and I succeded with not a dog in sight as I walked along the coastpath towards The Point! It was high tide and roosting along the beach with the Oystercatchers were 10+ mobile and flighty Whimbrel, 2 Ringed Plover and a Bar-tailed Godwit.
Also along the beach were 4 Little Egret, 3 Shelduck and a male Wheatear which was busily catching plenty of flies buzzing around and presumably newly arrived.
Offshore the usual Gannets and Fulmars were seen along with a distant group of 10+ Manx Shearwaters moving east which flashed their white underparts as the veered into the wind before virtually disappearing as they veered back into the wave troughs.
Whitethroats were very vocal and showy, they seemed to be everywhere with lots of songflighting seen, and Cirl Buntings were unusually confiding too. There were 2 Cetti's Warblers in the valley to the beach with a brief view of a bird disappearing into the bushes as another bird sang nearby, eventually the singing bird showed very well too before also disappearing into the bushes.
There were 2 Green Hairstreaks on the Gorse at The Point, Speckled Yellows were flitting about too and I also saw a Red Admiral, 2 Speckled Wood, a Large White and 5 male Orange-tip. A male Black Oil Beetle and a few Bloody Nosed Beetles were also seen and a Least Black Arches resting on a fence was a nice find.
