Tuesday 21st April

Another day of variety headlined by the first Lesser Whitethroat along with five Wheatear on site and three House Martin overhead. The breeding season is well underway with the first fledged Blackbird, eight Mallard ducklings, two Song Thrush carrying food and Blue Tit nest building. 

In the estuary wader numbers remained similar but a range of summer plumaged and ringed birds showed continue movement. Counts included 39 Turnstone, 31 Dunlin, 30 Whimbrel, 23 Bar-tailed Godwit, 16 Sanderling, eight Grey and four Ringed Plover, three Knot, two Greenshank, two Pale and a Dark-bellied Brent Geese. 

Offshore 26 Sandwich Tern, 15 Manx Shearwater, four Common Scoter, three Great Northern Diver and a distant skua sp harrying a Kittiwake.

Other Wildlife: Despite the cold easterly wind there was plenty of invertebrate activity in sheltered areas. Butterflies included the second Holly Blue and Wall Brown of the year and four Orange-tip, with moths including Feathered Leaf-cutter Incurvaria masculella, Green Longhorn, Grey Gorse Piercer and Lackey caterpillars.

Holly Blue - Alan Keatley

Wall Brown - Kevin Rylands

Green Longhorn - Kevin Rylands

Lackey Moth - Alan Keatley

A new species of sawfly for the Recording Area, Widow Willow Nematine Euura viduata, was found on willow at the back of Crocus Compound. Other hymenoptera on the wing included Short-fringed Mining Bee Andrena dorsata and Furry-claspered Furrow Bee Lasioglossum lativentre.

Widow Willow Nematine Euura viduata - Alan Keatley

Short-fringed Mining Bee Andrena dorsata - Alan Keatley

Furry-claspered Furrow Bee Lasioglossum lativentre - Alan Keatley

Large numbers of St Mark's Fly were active with a Dark-edged Beefly still on the wing and unusually two species of phantom cranefly recorded, Ptychoptera albimana and P. contaminata.

Ptychoptera albimana - Alan Keatley

Ptychoptera contaminata - Alan Keatley

Dark-edged Beefly - Alan Keatley

The increase in flying insects has seen a corresponding increase in spiders.

Flower Crab Spider Misumena vatia - Kevin Rylands

Zilla diodia - Kevin Rylands