Well if yesterday was a fantastic day with Whinchat, Common Redstart and Yellow Wagtails to add to my 2025 year list, well todays trio of Grasshopper Warbler, Dartford Warbler and Sandwich Terns was pretty special as well.
The only disappointment was that the Gropper was reeling away and then disappeared before I could pinpoint where it was and I missed out on a photo of the Dartford Warbler when it popped up onto a Wild Cherry Bush and flew off smartish when a two walkers spooked it.
The only success I had was photographing the Sandwich Terns, albeit from the otherside of the cove.
Other highlights were lots of Blackcaps, Chiffchaffs and Willow Warblers along my walk.
Also noted were my first Speckled Wood butterflies of the year with at least 10 seen, along with many Small Whites, 3 Commas, 2 Peacocks and a Brimstone.
There were lots of hoverflies and flies about, especially Dark-edged Bee-flies (Bombylius major) of which I must have seen a good dozen or so.
Birds Recorded:
3 Little Egret
2 Shelduck
2 Oystercatcher
Black-headed Gull
Mediterranean Gull
Herring Gull
8 Sandwich Tern
Wood Pigeon
Skylark
5 Sand Martin
8 Swallow
2 Meadow Pipit
Pied Wagtail
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
Song Thrush
1 Grasshopper Warbler
4 Blackcap
1 Dartford Warbler
10+ Chiffchaff & Willow Warbler
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
Magpie
Rook
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
1 Raven
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Linnet
Goldfinch
Greenfinch
The only success I had was photographing the Sandwich Terns, albeit from the otherside of the cove.
Other highlights were lots of Blackcaps, Chiffchaffs and Willow Warblers along my walk.
Also noted were my first Speckled Wood butterflies of the year with at least 10 seen, along with many Small Whites, 3 Commas, 2 Peacocks and a Brimstone.
There were lots of hoverflies and flies about, especially Dark-edged Bee-flies (Bombylius major) of which I must have seen a good dozen or so.
Birds Recorded:
3 Little Egret
2 Shelduck
2 Oystercatcher
Black-headed Gull
Mediterranean Gull
Herring Gull
8 Sandwich Tern
Wood Pigeon
Skylark
5 Sand Martin
8 Swallow
2 Meadow Pipit
Pied Wagtail
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
Song Thrush
1 Grasshopper Warbler
4 Blackcap
1 Dartford Warbler
10+ Chiffchaff & Willow Warbler
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
Magpie
Rook
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
1 Raven
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Linnet
Goldfinch
Greenfinch
A Little Egret spots its next meal.
On the buoy are 2 Sandwich Terns with 4 adult Mediterranean Gulls sat on the water.
Two more Sandwich Terns in flight.
And a few more in flight
And in amongst these Mediterranean Gulls I think there are 3 possibly 4 more Sandwich Terns.
A Chiffchaff
A pair of Blue Tits on the Cypress tree behind the caravan.
A Great Tit joined them, much to the annoyance of one of the Blue Tits.
Fish Recorded:
Mullet !!
Possibly.....................
............... Mullet fry. They can certainly swim fast.
Butterflies Recorded:
12+ Small White
1 Brimstone
10+ Speckled Wood
2 Peacock
3 Comma
12+ Small White
1 Brimstone
10+ Speckled Wood
2 Peacock
3 Comma
My first Speckled Wood of Spring.
A Peacock on a Wild Cherry
A Comma with a Chiffchaff singing in the background
Bees Recorded:
Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
Wasps, Ichneumon Wasps, Parasitic Wasps and Gall Wasps Recorded:
German Wasp (Vespula germanica)
German Wasp (Vespula germanica)
A German Wasp (Vespula germanica) on the fence behind the caravan
Hoverflies Recorded:
Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)
Plain-faced Dronefly (Eristalis arbustorum)
Tapered Dronefly (Eristalis pertinax)
Flies, Craneflies, Gnats and Midges Recorded:
Many unidentified flies
12+ Dark-edged Bee-fly (Bombylius major)
A Dark-edged Bee-fly (Bombylius major) about to land on this Common Dog Violet (Viola riviniana)
Another Dark-edged Bee-fly (Bombylius major). This time on the flowers of this Wild Cherry (Prunus avium)
A Dark-edged Bee-fly and its shadow.
The same Dark-edged Bee-fly but................
................ now landed.
Alexanders (Smyrnium olusatrum)
Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa)
Common Daisy (Bellis perennis)
Common Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)
Cowslip (Primula veris)
Lesser Celandine (Ficaria verna)
Marsh-marigold (Caltha palustris)
Wild Cherry (Prunus avium)
Marsh-marigolds (Caltha palustris)
Ted:
Ted leading the way to Tidmoor Cove.