SHP briefly

Yesterday a nice fry-up before it got too busy followed by a walk up West Field.

A Kestrel put on a nice display directly overhead, a Stomorhina lunata along the path and a Clouded Yellow in the field. The very open, tall dead tree at the start of the Conservstion Area path had a noisy female Great Spotted Woodpecker at the very top. A few heard only Siskins, Meadow Pipits and Goldcrests. Sixteen Pied Wagtails were on the lawn in front of the house. The cafe garden plants were only being used by a few bees; no Hummingbird Hawkmoths today.

Today, locally, just five flyover Skylarks - can't remember when I had one here last.

Fifty or more Black-headed Gulls were pursuing a 'rise' of some unknown flies.

Thursday Titchfield

A walk on the east side produced a cream-crown Marsh Harrier having a spat with a Buzzard whilst both were egged on by crows but, unlike last week, no Firecrests.

Chatting to TH we watched the two Glossy Ibises head north towards Posbrook.

A few Stonechats failed to point to any Dartford Warblers.

On the beach a few Ringed Plovers and Sanderlings, probably totalling 25+ birds.

At the entrance to west side another helice Clouded Yellow.

MSH was busy, mostly togs, but little of interest. The sunny Ivy adjacent to the carpark was full C. hederae, a few Eristalis hovers, wasps and various diptera.

On the bright side the rebuild of Suffern hide is due to start soon; the downside being weeks (months?) of no access to the east side. Will the 6-monthly permit be reduced accordingly?

Butser R'ouzel Hunt.

With mist and fog predicted, an early start seemed fruitless and so I arrived a little before 10:00 am when the radio mast was still hidden - but the mist was being burnt off very quickly.

A look around the usual area and down the southern slope produced nothing but M'ipits, Skylarks and plenty of Chiffchaffs in tit flocks. The first three Redwings of the autumn included one bird perched up nicely and later a couple of invisible Siskins flew over.

But no Ring Ouzels.

Down to QECP for coffee and a walk with lots more Chiffs and a heard only Marsh Tit.

Just about to leave when JD posted the male Ring Ouzel was showing, so back up to Butser where I had to wait until 12:15 for the smart male to show himself albeit briefly. A female type left the same patch of scrub and flew low to the right and vanished. A little later another 'black bird' did the same but was too quick to see if it was the male Ring Ouzel. Unlike most ouzel hunts these didn't utter a peep. 

Three kites put on a great display in the glorious light and were joined by two Ravens and a Kestrel. Two or three Stonechats, a couple of flyover Yellowhammers and another Marsh Tit near the parking meter were it for the day.

Oh, and for the first time no Clouded Yellows!!

Last seven days

Saturday 

Lunch with KM at Southwick with Sparrowhawk and Buzzard overhead. Later, a walk at Portsdown produced just Clouded Yellows and tatty Common Blues.

It wasn't until later when I got home and enquired via social media that I found out from PG that the recent Long-tailed Blues were a few hundred yards further west from where we walked!!

Monday

Home with car in for MOT.  Phew... passed, not even any advisories.

Wednesday

Popped to Arundel where MJ was the only cafe customer in a pleasantly quiet cafe. A female Kingfisher entertained us whilst we 'swapped notes'.

At SMH a Great White Egret fished briefly before flying off to perch in the egret/Cormorant tree. One of the adult White-tailed Eagles was very distant over the estate. A juvenile Peregrine flew past and a Hobby put in a couple of displays during the morning.

Plenty of Chiffchaffs all over the reserve and a Clouded Yellow but little else. 

(Digiscoped Mallard and GWE, Dark Bush-cricket)

Thursday

Short walk at Butser in glorious weather where, yawn(!) Clouded Yellows, about 25+ Skylarks, 100+ M'ipits, three kites, two Kestrels, one flyover Siskin and a couple of heard-only Yellowhamers. Sadly, no 'tuck-tuck' of Ring Ouzels from the Yews near the carpark and, worst of all, no cafe!!  EDIT Four R'ouzels behind cafe Saturday and two or more Sunday.

Lunch at SC with heard-only Marsh Tit, Goldcrest and Firecrest and just three or so remaining Hummingbird Hawkmoths on the now gone-over Buddleia. Despite the nice weather that may be the last of them for me.

(Possibly Phaeolus schweinitzii, Stictopleurus spp and Tachina fera)

Friday

Coffee at SHP with M. The only wildlife being a noisy Buzzard and a lady in the carpark rescuing a Pale Tussock moth caterpillar. I'd never seen one before but two days ago, and indeed today after returning home, there were videos and pictures of these caterpillars elsewhere. Had it not been for that I wouldn't have been able to provide the lady with a confident ID.

Saturday

Pagham ringing session. Too tired so failed to attend 

Sunday

Locally, Cetti's Warbler, several Chiffchaffs, a surprise calling Chaffinch - uncommon here - one very high Buzzard, a Grey Heron and a few Migrant Hawkers.

TH Monday and SHP Tuesday

 

The start of a week's worth of Indian Summer weather.

This week

This week saw the start of inbound M'ipits with the odd Grey Wagtail at home, on nature reserves and even on a Sainsburys visit!!

Still Clouded Yellows at all sites including a helice at the TH west entrance today.

Arundel, Wednesday, was very quiet with just good numbers of Chiffchaffs and a few Kingfisher sightings. A couple of hundred mixed hirundines soon dispersed.

Caught up with MJ.

Locally, a Cetti's Warbler was in the very dense reeds adjacent to the library.

Today at TH a long chat with DH about bats, bat recording and bat recorders and later with one of the volunteers; I was able to point out Kingfisher and Glossy Ibis to him but little else.

Found myself excluded from tomorrow's local bat walk as I don't have access to any 5 to 15 year olds!! No kids - then not welcome!! I wonder if the same applies to single women??

Local -  Syrphus spp male, Red-legged Shieldbug, Chicken-of-the-woods, Jumping Spider spp possibly Pseudeuophrys lanigera?

TH - Boletes spp, Common Carder and Dock Bug, Common Darter, Mallow spp - Musk?, Garden Cross Spider, Halictus rubicundus x2, Boletes spp

Titchfield and moths at home

A bit grey and breezy but dry. From inside Harbourside, and over a coffee, four Eiders were distantly visible. About a hundred Turnstones in the harbour along with the perplexing 1cy Black-headed Gull with ring TJXY - I thought the ring was a mucky blue but couldn't find anything close on CR Birding.

Better luck with two 1cy Med Gulls in close to Meon Shore Hide :- 

1) White EK84 - one of Renaud's but his out of office message indicates a wait of a month for a reply. 

2) Yellow 2205, a Solent bird so a response shouldn't be too long.

Chatted to Mark R, Tony, Ivor, Daz and Ian C.

The Glossy Ibis was on the river when I arrived and still there when I left.

Six Snipe jumped from the newly manicured shore in front of MSH as I opened the window and a little later this obliging Water Rail came out whilst a second called nearby. First attempt at hand-holding the Balance and the TG7 - not great but a record shot.

Three or so Sedge Warblers, one Common Sandpiper and one juvenile Marsh Harrier.

Prior to the above a moth trap produced 50/14 with fifteen Large Yellow Underwings but more surprisingly ten Clancy's Rustics - until today I'd only caught three in three years. Nothing else of note.

One lucky (?) moth-er in west Cornwall, with multiple traps, pulled in 1500(!) Large Yellow Underwings last night. Hellish !!

EDIT PP replied soon after getting back from Spain and the yellow ringed bird was processed on Nap Island as a youngster three months ago and was seen by others at TH yesterday. 

The Ivy Beee nesting bank along the steps up from the promenade was heaving with bees, the most I've  seen since the eradication by a pest controller a few years back. Difficult to do it justice in photos.

(Least Carpet and Clancy's Rustic from home)