26 Mar 20

Wakeham

I decided to forgo my permitted exercise walk today and spent the day in the back garden potting up plants and checking out the wildlife.

Quite a few birds about including what I'm pretty sure was a Willow Warbler moving through the neighbouring gardens. My rationale below.

Overhead a Raven passed by, cronking away as they do and the local Kestrel was checking out the Lower Horse paddock for a meal.

In the garden a Peacock landed next to the pond and the flower beds were alive Mining Bees and Furrow Bees.

On one of the Red Valerian I came across a Common Green Shieldbug

Here are a few images from today:

A Chiffchaff or a Willow Warbler. Those primaries (wing feathers) look very long, I'm betting this is a Willow Warbler. Not that the long wing feathers are anything to go by, but this was very yellow plumaged bird and was silent. All the Chiffchaffs I have had passing through the garden have been light brown to olive green and very vocal. I know when I was talking to the ringers at Portland Bird Observatory last Spring, even they were coming across Chiffs and Willows varying in colour. What a shame it didn't burst into song. I'm pretty sure it was a Willow Warbler and has been confirmed as such.

My first Peacock butterfly in the garden this year. In fact the first butterfly!!

An Andrena scotica, Mining Bee making its way to this........

..........leaf to warm itself up.

This very very small bee is I believe a Southern Bronze Furrow Bee

And two bees which don't look anything like the two species above. Probably not enough detail in either to get a 100% ID of what they are.

Sat on the pond weed a Migrant Hoverfly. There is one there honest.

A Common Green Shield Bug on the Valerian

I've been calling these Kentish Snails, but are they. I've seen posts on Social Media which might suggest that these are Wrinkled Snails. I will have to check.

And this is the last time you will see Ted's eyes covered. Late afternoon and after a bit of team work between me and Dawn I managed to scissor cut around his eyes. No easy task believe me.

Birds Recorded: 1 Kestrel, Herring Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Wood Pigeon, Collared Dove, Dunnock, Robin, 1 Willow Warbler, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Wren, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw, 1 Raven, House Sparrow, Chaffinch, Linnet and Goldfinch

Butterflies Recorded: 1 Peacock

Bees Recorded: Honey Bees (Apis mellifera), Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris), Southern Bronze Furrow Bee (Halictus tumulorum) and Mining Bee (Andrena scotica)

Hoverflies Recorded: 1 Migrant Hoverfly (Meliscaeva auricollis)

Bugs and Beetles Recorded: Common Green Shieldbug (Palomena prasina)

Slugs and Snails Recorded: Garden Snail (Cornu aspersa) and a possible Wrinkled Snail (Candidula intersecta)

Spiders Recorded: A Jumping Spider (Salticidae sp.)

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On this day..........

2019
Today's Sightings Here.

2018
Today's Sightings Here.