3 May 22

Lower Horse Paddock, Upper Horse Paddock, Broadcroft Butterfly Reserve, Broadcroft Quarry Lane, and Bumpers Lane

It was another fairly dry, cloudy and muggy day, with the occasional light drizzle. Two good highlights today with both my first Hobby and Garden Warbler of the year.

The Hobby passed fast and low over the Lower Horse Paddock, causing a bit of a stir with the Wood Pigeons as it flew over the heads. It caught something, but was gone before I could I tell what it was.

The second new bird for the year was a Garden Warbler which was catching insects from a muck pile of straw and horses waste alongside the hedge on the other side of Broadcroft Quarry Lane. This must be a good spot for migrants, as I also had a female Common Redstart here as well a few days ago.

Other highlights were the male Chaffinch again and his aberrant song, 2 Chiffchaffs, 7 Common Whitethroats, 1 Lesser Whitethroat and 2 male Blackcaps.


Mammals Recorded:
Bunny


Birds Recorded:
1 Hobby
Herring Gull
3 Stock Dove
Wood Pigeon
Collared Dove
3 Swallow
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
Song Thrush
1 Garden Warbler
7 Common Whitethroat
1 Lesser Whitethroat
3 Blackcap
2 Chiffchaff
1 Willow Warbler
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Linnet
Goldfinch
Greenfinch

Not the easiest of birds to photograph. This is a male Blackcap singing from the top of a Sycamore tree.

A male Chaffinch singing its "normal" song

So many Linnets about.

I did try recording its song, but it was drowned out by a Common Whitethroat singing from the bush right next to me. The funny thing is I stopped videoing the Linnet and turned slowly to record the Whitethroat, which immediately flew off!!!

Butterflies Recorded:
Large White
Speckled Wood
Small Blue

We're only just into May and this Speckled Wood is already very tatty

A Small Blue and my first this year.

Moths Recorded:
Vetch Piercer (Grapholita jungiella)

Cocksfoot Moth (Glyphipterix simpliciella)

Vetch Piercer (Grapholita jungiella)

Cocksfoot Moth (Glyphipterix simpliciella)

As above a Cocksfoot Moth

Bees Recorded:
Honey Bees (Apis mellifera)
Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
Common Carder (Bombus pascuorum)
White-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lucorum)

Common Carder (Bombus pascuorum)

A White-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lucorum)

Another view of the White-tailed Bumblebee

Flies, Craneflies, Gnats and Midges Recorded:
fly sp.

And my mystery fly today.

Spiders Recorded:
Nursery Web Spider (Pisaura mirabilis)


Plants:

Ground Ivy (Glechoma hederacea)

Ground Ivy (Glechoma hederacea)

General Shots:

A traffic free Broadcroft Quarry Lane, which saw my my first Garden Warbler of the year, along with other migrants feeding in the trees and bushes.

Ted:

Spot the dog

Here we are at the bottom of Broadcroft Quarry Lane. The new housing estate is on the left and what will probably another housing development on the right in the Lower Horse Paddock

Run Bunny, run Bunny, run run run......