Birds: August
Monday 31st A Great White Egret was on Restharrow Scrape early on. A Tree Pipit flew over the Green Wall and a Hobby over Royal St George’s Golf Course. Two Curlew Sandpipers and a Little Stint were in Pegwell Bay, and on New Downs another Curlew Sandpiper. Sunday 30th Six Whinchats moved around Sandilands, a Spotted Flycatcher was in Big…
Butterflies: August
Friday 28th At least 25 Red Admirals were between the Observatory and the Chequers. Thursday 27th Another 16 Clouded Yellows were in the Haven. Wednesday 26th The excellent year for Clouded Yellow continued with a minimum on 20 on the Estate. Tuesday 18th Nine Clouded Yellows were in the Haven/Oasis area and another four on New Downs. Sunday 16th At…
Dragonflies: August
Friday 28th A minimum of 19 Migrant Hawkers were in the Mary Bax area. Wednesday 26th A Southern Hawker was in the Haven. Monday 17th At least 25 Migrant Hawkers were on the Estate Saturday 15th The ringing team had a Southern Hawker in the Whitehouse whilst two Scarce Blue-tailed Damselflies were in the Dragonfly Ponds. Friday 14th Six Willow…
Dragonflies: July
Tuesday 28th One Southern Migrant Hawker and two Red-veined Darters were in the Dragonfly Pond Field. Thursday 23rd A Scarce Blue-tailed Damselfly was on the Dragonfly Pools, perhaps the first of the second generation? Friday 10th Three Brown Hawkers, one Norfolk Hawker, two Southern Hawkers, five Ruddy Darters, two Common Darters, 12 Emperors, one Scarce Chaser, one Black-tailed Skimmer, two…
Butterflies: July
Friday 31st The numbers of butterflies on the BMS Transect are beginning to dwindle. No doubt the recent heat has had some impact. The most numerous were still Gatekeepers and Meadow Browns, with Small White making it into third place. Two Clouded Yellows were seen. Friday 24th One Large White, nine Small Whites, one Green-veined White, four Clouded Yellows, one…
Ringing: July
Friday 31st Unfortunately none of the team were available yesterday but warbler migration continues steadily. Twenty-four birds were ringed today. Warblers formed the bulk of this led by six Willow Warblers and four Whitethroats. There were two each of Sedge Warbler, Blackcap and Chiffchaff plus a Lesser Whitethroat. Resident birds continue to appear , including juvenile Blue Tit, Dunnock, Goldfinch,…
Moths: July
Friday 31st Trapping continued in my absence but I am told it was fairly quiet. This is not a surprise as the moon is very bright. Last night the temperature did not drop below 17.4°C but the catch was still limited to 223 moths of 78 species- as light improvement on the previous night. Small Mottled Willow maintained its top…
Birds: July
Friday 31st Thankfully the temperatures were not as hot today. Another 40 Willow Warbler were on the Estate again and a juvenile Wheatear was at Sandilands. Thursday 30th Just under 40 Willow Warblers were scattered around the Estate whilst singles of Snipe, Black-tailed Godwit, Wood Sandpiper, and Common Sandpiper, and three Green Sandpipers, were all on Restharrow Scrape. Wednesday 29th…
Moths: May
Wednesday 13th Not as cold as last night with a balmy ( barmy) minimum of 4°C. The car park caught most moths with 34 of 22 species. This included a Dark Swordgrass and two Silver Ys. A trap in the Haven had a Diamondback and new, for the year, a May Highflyer. Having seen some of the completly depleted hedgerows…
Ringing: May
Wednesday 13th It was windier than hoped but still okay before thundery and icy showers arrived mid-morning. The attempt was rewarded with a variety of new birds. This included the first juvenile Chaffinch and Long-tailed Tits (8). A new, full adult, Blackbird and a Chiffchaff were unexpected. It will be interesting to see if the colour ringing of the Blackbird…