Saturday 27 April 2024

Saturday 27th April

A small fall of migrants after the overnight rain were largely sylvias, with 14 Blackcap predominating, the third highest April count. With them at least six Whitethroat, the first two Garden Warbler of the year and a Lesser Whitethroat. Other arrivals included eight Wheatear and the third Grasshopper Warbler of the month, with seven Swift, 19 Swallow, 16 House and 15 Sand Martin heading NE. 

Counts from the estuary included 80+ Whimbrel, 30+ Dunlin, 28 Ringed Plover, 17 Bar-tailed Godwit, 12 Sanderling, 11 Dark-bellied Brent Geese, eight Turnstone, seven Knot, five Eider and a Greenshank.

Sanderling - Dave Jewell

Offshore eight Sandwich and a Common Tern were foraging early morning with totals of 62 Common Scoter, five Great Northern and four Red-throated Diver either on sea or flying SW. Also moving a flock of seven Tufted Duck (and a duck sp.) flew east and heading north, seven Lesser Black-backed, six Common and six Black-headed Gull.

Year list additions:

144. Swift
145. Garden Warbler

Ringing News: A Norwegian Bar-tailed Godwit yellow Flag PTE is visiting the Warren for a second time, and has now been present for a week. It was ringed as a juvenile in Rogaland, SW Norway on 30 August 2021, first being seen here on 19 September 2021. 

Other Wildlife: Invertebrate activity picked up during sunny periods in the afternoon with the first of several Black Mining Bee Andrena pilipes on the wing. Other bees included Early and Red-tailed Bumblebee, Chocolate, Short-fringed and Yellow-legged Mining Bee and Hairy-footed Flower Bee.

Day-flying micro-moths included good numbers of Nettle-tap Anthophila fabriciana as well as two new species for the Recording Area, Common Oak Leafminer Phyllonorycter quercifoliella and Feathered Cutter Incurvaria masculella.

Nettle-tap - Kevin Rylands

Phyllonorycter quercifoliella - Kevin Rylands

Incurvaria masculella - Kevin Rylands

Also found today a second Early-purple Orchid in Greenland Lake, a nest of Neodiprion sertifer, a pine sawfly larvae and Uromyces anthyllidis, a rust on Kidney Vetch, the 800th fungi for the Recording Area.

Neodiprion sertifer - Kevin Rylands

Uromyces anthyllidis - Kevin Rylands

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