Post lockdown blues

 Some days the lack of variety and overwhelming number and noise of people on an urban lockdown 'patch' is just so, so exhausting!! Sadly unlikely to be any let up over the Easter holidays. 

Little change songbird-wise with no Willow Warbler yet and still a few days too early for the local Whitethroat territory.  Then again, going out over lunchtime is probably  not the smartest move!!

This smart Small Tortoise shell was new for the year and a few Small Whites patrolled the hedgerows but no other butterflies surprisingly. A very bright Andrena (fulva maybe) got away but this Bombus vestalis stood out especially with the help of the new Papilios which, whilst best at close quarters, still gave nice 6.5x views of an overhead Buzzard. I think these will be default go-to binoculars for all casual or insect-based watching in the months ahead. 

A bit of a buzz in the air

 

Epistrophe eligans (male) and Myathropa florea (male).

Yesterday's  weather was a bit of a let down being totally overcast all day with the highlight being Mark's zoom presentation on Kabul. 

Today was an improvement and the mass of flowering Blackthorn had lots of insect activity but mostly at too high a level to see much - hopefully Saturday's  delivery of Papilios will help -  but Eristalis were very prevalent and Bee Flies were more plentiful than any day so far. The 'squirrel' hedge held the first Syrphus and Myathropa florea (above) of the year plus Epistrophe eligans (also above) and a few others and along here and the roadside scrub several first Common Carders. Two Blackcaps were on territory along with a single Chiffchaff but no Willow Warbler yet, but a third Cetti's was very close (and loud) at the midway point.

A  few small pulses of inbound Meadow Pipits went north with one coming within inches of the claws of a marauding Sparrowhawk, a different bird to Tuesday morning's female.

Just one each of both black-backed species amongst the other gulls.

Virtual nurse appointment with promise of new drug in the days ahead and continuing fortnightly blood tests until the summer!!

P.S.

Another 2020 release eagle did a close fly past yesterday being seen by various Worthing birders before heading directly east-west over town at 200+ metres, and would have been visible again from the back bedroom and certainly from the pre-lunch walk if I'd  delayed it by an hour!! Then, off behind Titchfield, across Southampton Water and the short crossing back to the IOW.

It's Tuesday which means...

 ..yay.. another blood test!! And so it's seems more time spent in the company of the phlebotomist than anyone else over the last year. On the bright side, the bespoke NHS-made cushioned innersoles collected today are the real deal and fit really well.

Up early enough to see a fine female Sparrowhawk slip very close past the bedroom window using the rather slow almost display-like flight, well lit by early morning sunlight and followed by a small trail of Starlings - presumably yesterday's pond bird. Having taken three months to bump into a sprawk she or another was up over the pond at lunchtime flushing the feral doves and being watched closely by Goldfinches and yet more Starlings. 

Yesterday's Blackcap had decamped and even the Chiffchaffs were silent leaving just the Cetti's  now favouring the area around the swan's nest. Surprised to see a Moorhen feeding a reasonably sized (single) youngster not having encountered any chicks in previous visits.

And elsewhere the new parents at Chichester have a second egg.

Oh and some Papillios from Amazon to help with insect watching should arrive by the weekend. 

Cholecalciferol - vitamin D to you and me!

Today was a first outing to the park in 140 days!! And was duly celebrated with a sausage  and mushroom ciabatta, coffee and intake of vitamin D!! Nice to listen to Song Thrush, Chaffinch and Siskin all heard only and all year ticks!! A Chiffchaff hidden in the blossomed-laden pondside bush was strident and a Buzzard enjoyed the fine soaring conditions. Sadly, no obvious Firecrest sounds.

Back at base yet more vitamin D whilst watching a heron chased down into the reeds and later back out onto a nearby rooftop where it sat, crest raised and bill upwards, to deter the annoyed Herring Gulls. It eventually flopped down into the garden where I'm sure a garden pond will have provided a lunch opportunity. 

Rather better, and definitely a harbinger of spring, was the first male Blackcap of the spring, just a little later than last year and singing strongly and perched up in view adjacent to the dead tree. 

The roadside scrub held just the usual Cetti's but little else other than a couple of NfY white spp butterflies.

Back to the bench for some final skywatching produced the first Sparrowhawk of the year flushing up all the feral doves and drifting off south behind the big Horse Chestnut.

March almost done.

The last three weeks has seen the usual mix of spring weather with some warm and dry spells encouraging a few changes. First up were a few hovers, mostly E. balteatus, Eupeodes spp and Meliscaeva auricollis. After a few changeable days these were augmented by E. pertinax, tenax and Epistrophe eligans. 

Little in the way of nectar bearing plants so just Blackthorn, Red Deadnettle and Dandelions to attract a few bees including A flavipes, A clarkella, Bombus lapidarius and the ubiquitous Hairy-foots and Buff-tails. The Microandrena above was the only other  species. No sign yet of any other species yet.

On the butterfly front just two Brimstones and a couple of Peacocks dogfighting  with up to three Commas. Hopefully, not long now until Whites, Speckled Wood and Holly Blue should appear - and Orange Tip within the next 3-4 weeks.

A single Chiffchaff arrived at the pond and was followed by a second in nearby gardens the next day. But still no Blackcaps!! 

Sky watching produced just a few Buzzards over the patch and the garden and this kite above which was virtually invisible with the naked eye but was just 'doable ' with the macro lens!! Sadly, the IOW eagles have eluded me despite one, G408 a male, whose  GPS track showed it cruised past behind the house at lunchtime on the 9th. Assuming flying at a reasonable height it would have been easily visible. Dammit! Later in the month it or another was over Eastney but pressed on back to the IOW.

Social media showed half a dozen in Hants and birds over the old Arun valley stomping ground in West Sussex. Another in East Sussex and one for Kent birders near Stodmarsh seemed to be non-IOW birds. Most only be a matter of time surely.

Elsewhere, despite being two new birds, the Chichester Peregrines are on their first egg as I write this,  with D and J plus others still watching them regularly and the camera switched on for the rest of us 'house bounded'.

A fortnight tomorrow should see TH and Arundel WWT opening up in some fashion (assuming I'm  able to drive that far) and hopefully the chance of a few more migrants.

And more importantly the chance of a big brunch fry-up!!

Oh, and finally managed to enter an Ebird complete list for the local patch, albeit a paltry 27 species.

No change yet...

(Above Sawfly Aglaostigma aucupariae, Comma, Peacock, Andrena flavipes, Vespula vulgaris, Red Kite).

(Below,Hairy-foot male, Beefly and Microandrena spp possibly  minutula group per FB BWARS).

And this Bittern from two winters ago at Blashford, the last I saw and the only half decent photo taken since, just as a reminder of 'proper birding ' after a year of Covid and ongoing issues

 

Start of a new month and little change, still fully blue skies but slightly hazy and a couple of degrees  cooler. A Little Egret was preening (above) with frisky Mallards and bathing gulls. Also a typical 'not-quite-there-yet' Black-headed Gull. Warm enough again to bring out basking terrapins.

The gull loaf was a little larger today and included a scruffy Med Gull, but still a year tick, and at the same time two Buzzards flew into the taller trees harassed by gulls.

A couple of Buff-tailed Bees were on the Gorse and a single male Hairy-foot was sunbathing on the ground but no sign yet of Bee Flies.