Birdy 2024

The Herring Gulls have nested again this year on our chimney stack and their single chick, Birdy 2024, duly arrived down the chimney and into our living room fire grate on Monday 1st July after starting his descent the day before. It's the first Herring Gull chick we have had down the chimney for 3 years after the nest failed in 2022 and the chick got himself down to the nearby flat roof without using our chimney in 2023 and it was a bit of a surprise to be temporary Herring Gull parents again. Fortunately Birdy 2024 arrived before we went away to Madeira otherwise there would have been all kinds of dead Herring Gull in our grate on our return home.

He was very docile and quiet when we fished him out of the grate but his little heartbeat was racing away at 19 to the dozen. We placed him on the flat roof next door and fed him a tin of sardines which he just nibbled at but it wasn't long before the adults arrived to resume their parental duties, one of the adults ate the sardines and then regurgitated them to the chick which he quickly swallowed so we breathed a sigh of relief. He seemed a bit weak and wobbly but unharmed by his experience and was soon making lots of noise as normal (and lots of poop).

Birdy 2024 - 2nd July and 14th July

I had a quick walk out to Wembury on Tuesday 2nd July, I usually spend the day before going away on holiday sorting out stuff but I was very organised for a change and had a bit of spare time on my hands. It was quiet as expected but I did find a few Gatekeepers on the wing, a mating pair of Azure Damselfly, a Golden Ringed Dragonfly, the usual Bee Wolf's hunting Bees, 2 Swift overhead and a Common Sandpiper along the beach. 

Azure Damselfly

Bee Wolf with Bee

Bee Wolf with Bee

On our return from Madeira on Friday 12th July Birdy 2024 was still present on the flat roof with the noisy parents still in attendance who divebombed us whenever we stepped out into the yard although they very quickly stopped once they had gotten used to our prescence again. Birdy 2024 is certainly growing well and is now even noisier, especially around dawn (around 5am!), so we have to sleep with the bedroom windows closed. Hopefully he will be fledging soon.

Ever-watchful Herring Gull parent

It was warmish and sunnyish on Sunday 14th July so I headed out to Roborough Down for a walk. There were noticeably more butterflies around - Ringlet, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, 2 very worn Large Skipper, 3+ Red Admiral and Whites - but I failed to find any Grayling, Silver-washed Fritillary or Purple Hairstreak. There were lots of people about too and the birding was slow but a Swift, a Green Woodpecker, a lovely yellow juvenile Willow Warbler flitting about, singing Yellowhammers and noisy juvenile Bullfinches were of note.

Gatekeeper

I headed out to The Plym for a walk on Tuesday 16th July, my first visit this month. It was warm and humid with sunny spells and I caught the bus out to Marsh Mills at around Midday to have a look at the 2pm high tide roost. As I got off the bus at Longbridge I heard a Dipper calling along the river but I failed to catch a sight of it and so I headed off to Blaxton Meadow. It was a low high tide so the water wasn't coming through the sluice gates but out on the Meadow were 23 Curlew, an Oystercatcher, 2 Mediterranean Gulls (adult and 2nd summer birds still in breeding plumage), 2 adult Lesser Black-backed Gulls, 3 juvenile Black-headed Gulls amongst the adults and 10 Little Egrets.

A Silver-washed Fritillary had been reported on the 14th July in front of the bird hide, I really didn't expect to see it today but sure enough it (or another) was present feeding on the Buddleia flowers, my first Plym sighting of one and my first for the year.

Silver-washed Fritillary

Silver-washed Fritillary 

The female Red-crested Pochard and 2 female Mandarin Ducks were present on the duck pond with the usual Mallard and Moorhen while Swallows buzzed overhead. A Jay, a Nuthatch, 2 Chiffchaff, a Ring-necked Parakeet and 2 Blackcap were heard around the Park and along the river 2 adult Shelduck with 6 well grown ducklings, a Common Sandpiper and a further 3 female Mandarin Ducks were seen.

Red-crested Pochard

Red-crested Pochard

Mandarin

A Comma, a Red Admiral, a Large White, Gatekeepers, Meadow Browns, 2 Common Darter, Azure Damselfly, an Emperor Dragonfly and a mating pair of 6-spot Burnet moths were also seen.

Mating 6-Spot Burnet - the female has barely gotten out of her pupal case!

Not so nice was getting stung twice on the ankle by a Wasp, it was surprisingly painful but at least my ankle hasn't swollen up too much!