Time for a blog!!

We been rather busy of late and no time to settle down and do this blog thingy - what with more Breeding Bird Surveying, a weekend in France - of which more in the next blog, tomorrow hopefully - the open garden weekend aka st margaret's garden safari and so on

Anyway, the second Breeding Bird Survey out at Sutton by Dover is in this google earth shot, and I probably will be for pinching it - here we go transect by transect - exciting, eh?

You may even be able to track them on the overhead shot - the square is a bit of a stronghold for Skylarks I'm glad to say, and the count on 26 June was
Buzzard 3 ( and a pair are breeding IN the square)
Skylark 15
Swift 1
Grey Partridge 2
Chaffinch 18
Woodpigeon 32
Carrion Crow 10
Herring Gull 4!!! (flying over)
Turtle Dove 1 (they also breed here)
Wren 7
Blackbird 5
Blackcap 4
Whitethroat 15
Magpie 1
Jay 1
Great tit 2
Great Spotted Woodpecker 1
Green Woodpecker 1
Blue Tit 8
Yellowhammer 4
Long Tailed Tit 8 ( a family party)
Swallow 1
Linnet 6
Dunncok 1
Robin 1

A fairly typical late spring count - over the years I have recorded 55 species including Red Backed Shrike, Montague's Harrier and Quail too

Our Swallows first brood flew the nest last week, providing these photo opportunities

This weekend, after they have both been carrying fresh nest material, it seems Mrs Swallow is fertile and ready to lay again as all the boys around here have been chasing her, much to Mr Swallow's concern, and they been mating on the telephone wires ('phone sex??) to the amusement of Garden Safari visitors

And finally, have been mothing, and trapped these which are uncommon for me -

Burnished Brass, a beauty

Light Emerald

Black Rustic (I think) - yes the other one IS a Dark Arches, I'm getting tens of them

A washed out Mullein Wave I reckon - no its not, it is a Clouded Silver, a new species for me

Drinker

 



Thats it, look for the Battle of the Boar's Head in the next Post