Birdy and Burdy 2026, Butterflies and Moths

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.

Gatekeeper

Gatekeeper

Meadow Brown

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.

Mediterranean Gull - Adult

Mediterranean Gull - 2nd Summer

Mediterranean Gull - 1st Summer

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.

Anthomyia Sp.

Flesh Fly Sp. - Sarcophagidae

Beewolf

Beewolf

Golden-ringed Dragonfly

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.

Birdy 2026

Burdy 2026 - smaller and less developed than his sibling

Ever Watchful Parent - Mum (with her black eyes)

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.

Pale Prominent

Dwarf Cream Wave

Tebenna micalis - tiny and flitty, 1 record shot and it was gone

With Dave the Butterfly Guy still seeing High Brown Fritillary on Dartmoor while I was away in Luxembourg I decided to head out for one last look of the season on Wednesday 8th July. I arrived off the bus on the edge of Dartmoor at around 8:30am, the heatwave was still building and it was already feeling hot at this early hour and by the time I headed home at around 1:30pm I seriously thought I was about to melt as it felt scorching hot by then.

The heat meant the butterflies were very active and especially the Fritillaries but I managed to see High Brown, Dark Green and Silver-washed Fritillary along with 12 other butterfly species - a Holly Blue, 2 Comma, a Large White, a Painted Lady, a male Brimstone, Ringlet, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Red Admiral, Peacock, Purple Hairstreak and a Small Tortoiseshell.

The Purple Hairstreaks were keeping low down in the non-Oak trees, presumably due to the heat and a lack of honeydew to feed on in the dry conditions and they were an odd sight flitting over the Bracken, usually they are only seen high up in the Oak trees.

Purple Hairstreak

The Small Tortoiseshell was a nice find too, now my third of the year, it was quite worn looking but was continously feeding on Bramble flowers with its wings mostly closed apart from when it was chasing after Red Admirals.

Small Tortoiseshell

The Fritillaries were mega-flitty in the heat, more so than usual and they rarely settled for long. Every time I got my binoculars up to my eyes to check them out they were gone and it was just the same trying to get a photo of them too but I persevered and eventually managed a few OK shots but the strong sunlight was very harsh. 

Silver-washed Fritillary

Male Silver-washed Fritillary showing sex brands on the upper wings

Dark Green Fritillary

High Brown Fritillary (female)

At one site there were at least 7 Large Fritillaries flying around and constantly tussling with each other, a mix of Dark Green and High Brown and occassionally joined by a Silver-washed, and as annoying as it was that they wouldn't settle it was very comical to watch them all chase each other over the Bracken like a sketch on The Benny Hill TV Show of old.

High Brown Fritillary - female with no sex brands on the upper wings

High Brown Fritillary - Female

High Brown Fritillary - Female

High Brown Fritillary - female 

Battle-worn male High Brown Fritillary showing obvious sex brands on upperwings

High Brown Fritillary 

High Brown Fritillary 

High Brown Fritillary 

High Brown Fritillary 

Bird wise a male Yellowhammer, a Willow Warbler, a Coal Tit and 5 Great Spotted Woodpeckers were all seen with a Garden Warbler, a Blackcap and 2 Chiffchaff all heard while good numbers of Golden-ringed Dragonflies were seen buzzing menacingly over the Bracken.

Yellowhammer

A Trip to Luxembourg

The heatwave finally broke here in Devon on the evening of Thursday 25th June with thunder and lightning and welcome rain and the next day, while still feeling hot, was noticeably cooler, fresher and less humid. However the heatwave was still holding on in the east of the UK and we drove right back into it on Saturday 27th June as we headed up to Heathrow Airport for an overnight stay prior to flying out to Luxembourg the next morning.

Notre-Dame Cathedral, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg

The drive up to Heathrow went very smoothly, the traffic wasn't too bad even at Stonehenge as presumably people were staying off the roads due to the heat. We were at least cocooned from the worst of the high temperatures with the air-conditioning in the car on full blast and as we drove along the A303 the usual Red Kites were seen soaring overhead amongst the Buzzards.

It was hot and humid at Heathrow with a strong breeze blowing hot air over us as we sat on the terrace of the hotel bar and watched the planes taking off. The clouds were starting to build though and there were flashes of lightning in the distance and the next morning it was cooler and fresher again as the heatwave continued to move off east.

The flight to Luxembourg on Sunday 28th June was short and OK but delayed by an hour and on arriving off the plane in Luxembourg it felt very hot and humid again, we just seemed to be heading into the heatwave all the time. However the next morning it felt cooler and fresher but still hot as we started our sightseeing in earnest.

Luxembourg is a place we have never really visited before although many, many years ago we went on a holiday to Austria and travelled by coach from Plymouth to a small village near Salzburg and back which involved 2 nights spent trying to sleep on the coach. On the homeward journey we stopped off briefly at a motorway service station in Luxembourg at 2 O'clock in the morning but I don't think that this really counts as a visit. Also, with our last 3 holidays (Sicily, Copenhagen and Japan) having been tense, awkward and stressful affairs due to a falling out with our travelling companions we wanted to get away and have a relaxing and fun time for a change.

Anyway, on Monday 29th June we headed out to Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourgs second largest city, and the journey only took around 30 minutes on a very comfortable double-decker train. All public transport in Luxembourg is free for everybody unless travelling 1st class and it was strange to just get on the train without having to buy a ticket.

The purpose of our visit was to have a look around the old steel blast furnaces at nearby Belval, an unusual place to visit but absolutely fascinating and also a strangely beautiful place despite the stark industrial architecture. Climbing up the outside of the furnace on a stairway was not for the faint-hearted, I'm not too bad with heights but it did make me feel a bit queasy at times and especially so when looking upwards but I managed to get to the top deck of the open stairs at around 40 metres.

Belval Blast Furnace - the 40m stairway is on the left

Belval Blast Furnace

Belval Blast Furnace in the middle of the Belval University Campus

Belval Blast Furnace

Belval Blast Furnace

We then had a look around the city centre of Esch-sur-Alzette where there were quite a few Art Deco type buildings along the high street. A Black Redstart was singing away from a rooftop while overhead House Martins and Swifts buzzed around, in fact Swifts were seen everywhere during our visit and especially over towns, cities and villages and in numbers I remember in the UK from my youth - now they are getting increasingly scarce in the UK and our government wouldn't even approve the mandatory use of Swift blocks in new buildings to try and help them with new nesting sites (although the Scottish Parliament has done so).

Sichel Hardware Store, Esch-sur-Alzette - built in 1909 (Western Wing) and 1924 (Eastern Wing)

Sichel Building Bee Motif - a symbol for diligence

City Hall, Esch-sur-Alzette -  Mirwelle bleiwe wat mir sinn -"We want to stay what we are"

The strangest sight was a large orangey-brown butterfly seen floating down off the rooftops and landing on the glass window of a shop. I thought it was a Large Tortoiseshell but on checking out the underwings I realised it wasn't and considered Map or Queen of Spain Fritillary, however on checking my photos later I managed to ID it as a Lesser Purple Emperor, Apatura ilia form clytie, an unexpected sighting indeed.

Lesser Purple Emperor - form clytie and a female with no purple colouring on the upper wings

Lesser Purple Emperor

We caught the train to Trier in Germany on Tuesday 30th June, we had to buy a ticket for the journey from the Luxembourg border to Trier and back for €6.80 each and the double-decker train ride took just 50 minutes to reach our destination. We visited Trier many, many years ago when my sister lived in Germany, it was a long train journey from Monchengladbach to Trier and on the way back we stayed overnight in Cologne. The weather was dreadful, it rained all day and we got soaked as we had a look at the Roman ruins and Christmas markets but I've always wanted to return for another look. We got soaked again on this return visit, this time from sweat as it was an incredibly hot, humid, sunny and still day and quite unpleasant but we made the best of it and enjoyed our visit although it was bliss to get back on the air-conditioned train for the return journey to Luxembourg.

Porta Nigra (Black Gate), Trier

Porta Nigra - the old Roman City gate

Porta Nigra - inside the gate

Basilica of Constantine, Trier

Basilica of Constantine - originally built in the 4th Century and now heavily reconstructured following World War II bombing raids

Amphitheatre, Trier

Amphitheatre - view from the resconstructed stage

Amphitheatre - view from under the reconstructed stage

Egyptian Goose, Trier

It was back on the train and bus on Wednesday 1st July for a day out at Vianden. It was another hot and sunny and humid day but less so than the previous day and Vianden was very picturesque and far less busy and touristy than Trier had been. It was also very picturesque and when the chairlift finally opened we headed up into the hills where the views were stunning. Even better was finding 3 Fritillaries flitting about over the vegetation below the chairlift at the top of the hill, there were at least 3 present and they rarely stopped for long but I eventually got some photos and was able to ID them as Marbled Fritillary, a Southern European butterfly expanding north due to climate change - maybe they'll reach the UK one day?

Vianden Castle

Vianden Castle

Vianden Castle from the bottom of the chairlift

Vianden Castle from the top of the chairlift

Vianden Castle 

Vianden Castle

Marbled Fritillary

Marbled Fritillary 

Marbled Fritillary 

Marbled Fritillary 

Marbled Fritillary 

Marbled Fritillary 

Chairlift

Chairlift - with feet!

Other butterflies seen here were Brimstone, Purple Hairstreak, Meadow Brown, a Marbled White, Small White, a Painted Lady and a Skipper Sp. Along the river there were a few male Beautiful Demoiselles and Damselflies flitting about, I eventually managed to photo one of the Damselfly and ID it as a White-legged Damselfly, a species I've only seen once before in Shropshire.

Brimstone

White-legged Damselfly

Firebug

Avian interest at Vianden included a Red Kite flying overhead being mobbed by Carrion Crows, a male White Wagtail along the river and a brief view of a Treecreeper Sp. feeding up an Oak tree near the chairlift which may or may not have been a Short-toed Treecreeper

It was back to the UK on Thursday 2nd July and the journey back to Plymouth again went smoothly, there were good numbers of Red Kites seen along the car journey from Heathrow to Plymouth including at least 3 in East Devon along the A30 near Monkton, the first time I've seen them in Devon airspace on this route and maybe a sign of them finally expanding their range into Devon.

Our trip to Luxembourg had been very enjoyable, a relaxed and fun trip for a change and better for it. Luxembourg is neat, tidy, clean and efficient and the people mostly polite and friendly, it felt in some ways like Japan although in Luxembourg there were litter bins but also litter lying around. Unlike Japan there was the usual graffiti adorning the railway line bridges and buildings and there were quite a few security men around the main station keeping the mostly immigrant drunks and druggies under a watchful eye and trying to prevent trouble escalating so it did feel a little more gritty and real. 

Luxembourg City was very beautiful and interesting but with it being an administrative hub of the European Union the city centre was full of Euro Bureaucrats and felt very uptight and stuffy so we spent very little time there other than our sight seeing visits, preferring the area around our hotel near the train station instead. The countryside was beautiful too, very bucolic with gentle hills, grassy fields, small farms, lots of woods and trees and very little development, probably how the UK looked 100 years ago, and passing through it on the top deck of the train was delightful.

Neumunster Abbey, Luxembourg City

Spuerkees Bank Building, Luxembourg City

Golden Lady, Luxembourg City - a memorial to the fallen of wars and symbol of freedom and resistance for the Luxembourg people

National Monument of the Solidarity, Luxembourg City 

The usual urban bird species were seen on the trip and my holiday checklist finished on 31 species, not bad considering the time of year and the excessive heat. Other avian highlights of the trip were singing Blackcap and Chiffchaff in parks and gardens, Red Kites soaring over the fields from the train and a pair of Egyptian Geese with 5 well grown goslings along the river gorge in Luxembourg City where 2 Peregrines were also seen soaring high overhead.

All in all it was a great trip despite the heat, Luxembourg is quite untouristy (at the moment) and very beautiful and interesting but also expensive and with cracks appearing in its veneer of orderliness,  however I would happily revisit when hopefully it might be a little cooler!

Luxembourg City from Grund