There was a juvenile Cuckoo in the Vine Close hedge as I wandered home on Tuesday - the first Newland's record of 2015. Other signs of migration are very subdued - odd Black-headed Gulls and pulses of Swallows moving through. Passerines are conspicuous by their absence. What with the funeral and a Thursday evening deluge, of biblical proportions, the moth trap has been redundant for the majority of this week. With Emily staying over on Friday, I made the effort to run it and what a good decision it was.
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| I must be the only moth-er who hadn't taken one of these insects, thus far, in 2015? |
My first Bordered Straw of the year, there were three, a Tree-lichen Beauty, thirty-four Silver Y (attracted by the buddleia which is dominating the garden at present), a Rush Veneer and several Diamond Backs suggesting some migration taking place?
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| Apple Ermine |
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| Pyrausta aurata A regular garden visitor |
Plenty of tricky little chaps to keep my camera busy - the winter exploration of the world of micros looks like it will be rather enjoyable as I struggle to get to grips with the various family groups.
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| Something to keep me amused when I start to delve into this complex group of creatures |
Migration has been taking place here on Sheppey for a few weeks, with the reed beds almost empty of Reed and Sedge Warblers already - much earlier than normal.
ReplyDeleteSand Martins have also been unusually noticeable, passing through in the hundreds most days.
Had a fantastic afternoon at Reculver today, watching the Vulcan, Red Arrows and Eurofighter doing their thing at nearby Herne Bay.
Sorry for the lateness of this reply, Bev and I have been in Kingston (North Downs territory?) for my cousin's 50th birthday bash! I saw your comment last night using my Dad's I-pad, but couldn't sit in the middle of a, 1970's themed, disco and type a response. We'd seen the Eurofighter, over Reculver, as we travelled towards the celebrations. Signs of migration around Dumpton seem to be very few, moths excepted. I was half expecting something to show up on Friday morning, after that rain, but it didn't materialise. The local gulls have gone up on a few occasions, recently, although I haven't been able to locate the cause - I'm sure the culprits will be raptors or herons. It's still very early, and I am confident that the best is yet to come. That maize crop and our garden buddleias look an ideal combination for a few stopovers as the warblers start to head south. I will keep looking - all the best Dyl
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