Lunar Marbled Brown

Suffice to say that April has been a poor month for numbers of moths in the garden. Whilst this is not a complete surprise with only April 2007 resulting in a total of more than a hundred individuals, and the fact that I am restricted to using an actinic light to avoid disrupting my neighbours' sleep patterns, my return this year of 27 is atrociously low and included 4 nights with nil returns. However by contrast the trap has held 2 new species for the garden in that time in the shape of Brindled Beauty and the Lunar Marbled Brown pictured right which was trapped on the night of the 24th April.
Out on the levels things have been ticking over nicely with no startling records but good birding most of the time. Best of the bunch by far was the Wood Sandpiper on Down level on the 26th creeping around in the reed fringed pools, also on the 26th my first Hobby of the year was on Horse-eye, and 2 Greenshank and a Ruff were on Down.
Today, the 2nd May, Down held Greenshank, Hobby, and Swift, while Mappins' had 2 Gadwall. All the residents and summer breeders now seem to be in and settling down to the business, hopefully the fragments of Lapwing shell I found in the week were indicative of newly hatched offspring and not predation though I am yet to see any youngsters.
On the mammal front Brown hare are an ever present and welcoming diversion from birding. Keep it real.

Woody and the Hudwits

A possible name for a beatnik retro sixties group or alternatively a summary of last weekends jaunts? Very occasionally the force leaves me and I slip into a state of temporary insanity which leads to me driving halfway across the country to see a rare bird. In my youth the insanity was almost uncontrollable and frequently led to bouts of melancholy as well as much joy and happiness and a (semi) respectable list, much of it pre-pager. Recently the madness has left me almost entirely and has been easier to control, until last Saturday morning....

When in my youth I first subscribed to British Birds the first rarities report from that august journal that I read contained the 1982 Hudsonian Godwit record. For some reason ever since, it has been one of the birds that I have hankered after, so when the news broke on Saturday morning I was keen to drop everything and head off to my date with destiny! Life is never that simple though and with the wife's leg still gammy I had to speed shop her round Waitrose first before picking up Nick and Greg and heading west. The drive was testing, a typical Saturday twitch, however we arrived on site early afternoon and quickly connected with the boy (well actually a girl apparently) feeding with a substantial flock of Blackwit at Meare Heath nature reserve. Mission accomplished we were able to enjoy the bird for getting on for a couple of hours before it suddenly decided to up and off with about 30 Blackwit, fortunately for those arriving later in the afternoon it has subsequently returned.

What a quality reserve though. I have never visited the Somerset Levels before but based on this visit hope to pay them a bit more attention as a destination when in the area. Bittern were seen on 4 occasions while we were on site and were heard booming throughout the afternoon (must be great at night). Great White Egret included the bird pictured left in smart spring white heron attire and Little Egret were also present. Other waders included a Greenshank and a spankmongous Wood Sandpiper in speckledy spiggledy summer plumage. A male Bearded Tit was a bonus for me (thanks Nick) and along with various Blackcap, Whitethroat, Willow Warbler, Sand Martins etc made for a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon out.
The main attraction though was the Hudwit, what a stunning bird, as Nick said not un-reminiscent of a giant Spotted Redshank. I was not expecting it to be quite so striking and when it flew, as it did on several occasions the overall darkness of the plumage along with the striking underwing contrast with the black axillaries and underwing coverts made it very easy to pick out with bins. So to the drive home and a celebratory pint at a little pub in Fontwell which was having a rave. Never mind, can't win them all.

On Larsen traps and garden moth ticks

                
Getting my goat this week is the fact that the countryside can be an unsavory place, as well as a beautiful one, and I am periodically reminded of this whenever I see Larsen traps on a local large landowners' land. For the unaware Larsen traps are a legal method of trapping, for the purposes of pest control, corvids by using a decoy bird in the trap to attract other curious individuals who are then also trapped. They are legal in England as long as certain criteria are met which include providing a perch, shade, food, and water, plus the trap must always be visited at least once every twenty four hours to despatch the unfortunates caught and release any bycatch. All very unpleasant and whilst legal one wonders exactly how much pest control this actually results in.
I grew up in the country and still enjoy fishing and whilst I do not shoot have no issues with people who do, apart from the idiot classes with more money than sense who stand still in various places while game is driven over their heads. Indeed there is far more skill and fieldcraft exercised in wildfowling or shooting game using a pointer or spaniel than you will see in the typical birder. I am also a passionate supporter of national hunt racing. Notwithstanding these statements I do not believe in control because it has always been done that way, nor because it is perceived to be of assistance to ground nesting birds, and can this actually be demonstrated?
In one of my favorite books John Marchingtons' "Sportsmans' Bag" he recounts how, when Woodpigeon cartridges were subsidised in the 1950's, in an effort to prevent crop damage, the net result was an increase in the number of Woodpigeon surviving the winter to breed the following spring. So what evidence is there that Larsen traps' are an effective method of crow control?
In any event I find it unpleasant to scan the levels and see these traps as invariably I do at this time of year. So what can I, or you if you care, do about it? The answer is lobby your MP to stop this practice. What you cannot do under any circumstances is interfere with a trap as in doing so you would be committing an offence, and neither can you leave a public right of way to check that a trap is legal. If you see a trap that you believe is illegal you should report it to the police or the RSPCA and allow them to deal with it.
Anyway enough said on that subject and on to happier things. Highlight of the week was a new moth for the garden in the form of the Brindled Beauty pictured above on the night of the 15th, the fact that this is not an uncommon moth makes it a little surprising that I have had to wait over ten years to add it to the garden list! On the same night my first Double-striped Pug of the year was also trapped as was the micro Monopis obviella. A nil catch on the night of the 18th was followed by just a single Early Thorn on the night of the 20th.
Butterflies are also picking up with my lunchtime walk around the industrial estate in St Leonards producing Holly Blue on the 14th and Comma, Brimstone, and Large White on the 21st.
Back on the levels the WEBS count on the 19th confirmed that winter is well and truly over with the only duck present being Mallard. Spring arrivals continue to trickle in though and Cuckoo, 2 Lesser Whitethroat, Whitethroat, Reed Warbler, and 7 Sedge Warblers were all singing at various points. Redshank remain on site as do at least 10 pairs of Lapwing that I could see and a couple of Snipe.
Finally a couple of mammal sightings in the form of 11 Fallow Deer on the edge of Manxey level on the 18th and a Brown Hare on Down on the 19th. Take care out there and keep it real.

Grip backs and year ticks

The beauty of working a local patch is that birds which would not usually excite can be the highlight of a visit. So it proved last weekend on the 5th when, having been slightly gripped by Mike having a Brent Goose the previous day on his patch, what was presumably the same bird put in an appearance on Down Level - patch tick - excellent! Also on Down was a second Blackwit of the spring, a more summer plumaged individual than the one seen on the 4th, and a Red Fox. Moth trapping in the week has seen little variety with the regulation Hebrew Characters, Common Quakers, and Early Greys' trapped in very small numbers. While the weather has been pleasantly spring like during the day, the temperatures overnight have been quite low which probably explains the low numbers.
Today (12th) dawned light and bright encouraging me to get the wheels out. Cycling along the lanes is the best way to get around the levels, the low hum of tyre on tarmac enabling you to listen and look whilst covering more ground than by foot alone in the usually limited time available. The usual hedgerow residents were all in good voice this morning with the added bonus of a singing Willow Warbler near Rickney. When it comes to bird song this has always been top of the pile for me ever since first hearing the descending cadence of notes, reminiscent of the trickle of water in a brook, whilst walking in the high weald as a ten year old.
At Rickney half a dozen or so Swallows were on the wing and in song, their curious mix of whistles, clicks, and chirps a happy reminder that spring is well and truly under way, and on Down Level further evidence of spring in the form of a couple of visually opulent Yellow Wagtail their shrill calls penetrating the cool breeze with strident ease.
Of the residents my first Mute Swan nest of the year was under construction near Downash today and the first brood of Mallard duckling was seen on Down on the 5th with 6 day or so old duckling. On the butterfly front Peacock and Small Tortoiseshell were on the wing on White Dyke this morning although no sign as yet of any Orange tips despite Cuckoo flower being in bloom - maybe later today...

Spring is in the air

Lambing is in full swing at the moment and every day sees new additions to the burgeoning sheep population. Indeed everything is turned on to the changing season with Chiffchaffs aplenty in the lanes, the occassional Blackcap singing since the 29th of March, Stockies collecting nesting material and courting, Skylarks ascending all over the levels, and the return of the Redshank. Today, Easter Sunday, dawned light and bright so I took myself off for the usual meander in the hope of a hirundine or two. In contrast to yesterdays mooch in a cold northerly birds were much more in evidence with all the residents singing or patrolling their territories. The Ravens are always easiest to see at lambing due to the easy pickings on offer and this morning there guttural croaks were an accompaniment to my walk. As I reached my favorite scrapes I was not to be disappointed, no hirundines but a quality alternative in the form of a male Little Ringed Plover feeding amongst the grassy pools, bold head pattern and yellow eye ring gleaming in the early morning sunshine. Nearby a Black-tailed Godwit was feeding, also my first of this spring, and a flock of 16 Shoveler and 2 Gadwall rounded my walk off nicely.
The moth trap has been kept under wraps mainly due to the inclement overnight weather and temperatures, however I managed an Ingrailed Clay, not common for the garden, on the night of the 28th, and the night of the 3rd of April produced singles of Early Grey, Small Quaker, and Light-brown Apple Moth.

Large falcon surprise

Early morning meandering across bitterly cold levels hoping for a Wheatear or Garganey I picked up the large falcon pictured on the left sitting in the fields at the back of Mappins on Horse-eye level. I am used to seeing the resident Peregrine sitting in the same area so was readily able to assess this bird as significantly larger and with the very pale head and ostensibly brown upperparts began to muse over the large falcon conundrum...
The bird shows heavy streaking on the underparts, the upperparts show warm buff fringes to the wing coverts and the primaries fall short of the tail tip. The tail is narrowly barred dark and light brown with the central tail darker. The trousers were pale to mid brown with diffuse streaks. Unfortunately the mantle and back had a slightly greyer brown cast. Legs yellow and grey cere. While to my mind possessing significant Saker genes in all likelihood the bird is probably a falconers hybrid of some type and reminded me in some respects of a bird I saw many moons ago around Tenterden and then on the Isle of Sheppey, although whatever its origin an absolutely stunning bird.
Other highlights this morning were 3 Jack Snipe, 8 Snipe, 15 Pintail (8m), 2 Shoveler, 40+ Wigeon, 80+ Teal, 44 Lapwing, Cettis', and 4+ Little Egret.
The highlights of the WEBS count on the 8th were 21 Pintail (11m), 10 Shoveler (6m), and a single Water Rail on White Dyke.
Since my last posting I have also managed to get the moth trap out on a couple of nights - 8th March adding a new micro to the garden list Acleris ferrugana or notana along with 4 Common Quaker, and the 16th March producing 2 Common Quaker and a single Hebrew Character. Keep smiling.

If I ruled the world...

...everyday would not be the first day of spring but Englands' cricket team would be a lot better than it currently is and the Arsenal would not press the self destruct button as they are inclined to do periodically! Still you can't have everything, fingers firmly crossed for the boys in Dublin later today.
Patchwork this morning took place in pleasant sunshine with brisk and blustery wind. Nothing special but a nice selection of winter ducks and residents with 100+ Teal, 20+ Wigeon, 6 Shoveler, 2 Marsh Harrier, 2 Peregrine, Buzzard, Little Owl, and Chiffchaff (1 on White Dyke). The Peregrine were in one of their usual places perched up on a small rise by Mappins' with the female seemingly catching a few rays with outstretched wings and spread tail twisted towards the low angled sun, the male was just perched in standard upright pose nearby occassionally calling. Of the rest there were at least 6 sinensis type Cormorant on Horse-eye as well as singing Skylark, Reed Bunting, and Mipit, perhaps spring is on the way after all...