Birds: October
Monday 20th There were still plenty of Goldcrests around, at least 43 of which were on the Green Wall, and a flock of 600 Lapwings flew over (our highest this winter). Only a small number of finches went through and they were all going south, which is unsurprising considering the switch in wind direction. Sunday 19th Our (belated) first Yellow-browed…
Moths: October
Monday 20th Given the wet and windy conditions, it wasn’t a surprise to see numbers fall off to 43 of 13 species. Migrants saw a slight increase to four Turnips and three Rusty Dot Pearls. Sunday 19th The wind has picked up now but there were still good numbers of moths around with 71 of 24 species in the trap.…
Ringing: October
Saturday 18th Excellent conditions with no wind to start with and a thin layer of cloud. As our small team went out we could hear plenty of movement in the bushes and overhead. In the end we ringed 122 birds, once again there were no controls. The highlight was nine Firecrests. Chiffchaff took back the lead with 24, closely followed…
Butterflies: October
Saturday 18th A helice Clouded Yellow was at the northern edge of New Downs, bordering the Sampher. Thursday 9th Two Clouded Yellows were on the Estate, one in the Whitehouse and another in the Dragonfly Pond Fields. Monday 6th The blinding sun and high temperatures were very out-of-character for October. Needless-to-say many butterflies were tempted out with the highlight being…
Dragonflies: October
Thursday 16th A Migrant Hawker was on New Downs. Tuesday 14th There’s been very little to report recently as we draw down to the end of the season. Two Common Darters were on RSPB Worth marshes today. Wednesday 1st Small numbers of Common Darter and Migrant Hawker were seen on RSPB Worth marshes and the Green Wall.
Dragonflies: September
Saturday 27th A Black-tailed Skimmer on RSPB Worth marshes was our latest ever record. Friday 19th At least one Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly was still present on the Estate. Over on New Downs there were totals of 63 Common Darters and 25 Migrant Hawkers. Tuesday 9th A Willow Emerald Damselfly was on the Estate. Friday 5th Six Common Blue Damselflies, 18…
Butterflies: September
Saturday 27th There was another double-figure count of Wall with 13 on RSPB Worth marshes. Friday 26th There was a feel of active migration today as Red Admirals seemed to be heading purposely through the Estate. A Painted Lady added to the mix. Friday 19th The excellent third generation of Wall continued with 11 on New Downs. Also present were…
Ringing: September
Tuesday 30th A lovely calm day with little cloud helped a big catch as birds headed south. A small group of us with one or two surprise guests ringed 268 birds with just seven subsequent encounters (all seven bearing our rings). The majority were Chiffchaffs (120) and Blackcaps (111). The steady trickle of Goldcrests increased to 21 and there were…
Moths: September
Tuesday 30th I do not think there was any cloud overnight and the temperature reduced to 5.6°C. The catch went down to 166 moths of 24 species. Two Red-line Quakers were new for the year. The only migrant related species was a single Rusty-dot Pearl. Monday 29th There must have been some cloud last night as the temperature did not…
Birds: September
Tuesday 30th It’s been unusually quiet for Chiffchaff and Blackcap recently, based upon counts at this time in previous years, but today there was a decent fall on the Estate. The final totals were around 180 Chiffchaffs and 110 Blackcaps, plus smaller numbers of Goldcrest. Four Firecrests joined them and a Pied Flycatcher was in the Little Elms. The most…