Pectoral Sandpiper movement in Cornwall

The last couple weeks has seen a decent movement of Pec's through the county with no less than seven birds seen already in the period.  The early Autumn migrant at Maer Lake was presumably a failed breeding bird. 

 

(all sightings updated to 9th Sept)

1 Maer Lake, 8th and 9th July.

1 Treraven Meadow, Wadebridge, ad. 21st and 22nd Aug.

1 Walmsley Sanctuary, 26th Aug

3 Sibleyback Lake, 3rd Sept

1 Stithians Lake, Golden Lion end, juv. 5th Sept.

2 Upper Tamar Lake, 7-9th Sept

1 Gannel Estuary, 9th Sept

 

In addition, recent sightings of Lesser Yellowlegs and Buff-breasted Sandpiper bodes well for the Autumn ahead...

 

Pectoral Sandpiper at Davidstow in 2011 (C. Steve Rogers)

Basking Shark and Minke Whale on the Mermaid Pelagic off Land's End

Along with the seabirds seen today several interesting Basking Sharks and a Minke were seen from the boat today.  Also a Sunfish put on a decent display jumping out of the water whilst the Minke breached several times.  The Basking Shark came really close and was unperturbed by our presence.

Land's End Pelagic on the Mermaid today

Today I went on a Pelagic trip from Penzance, round Land's End and on to Pendeen.  The main intention was to search the large Manx flock which has been around the Pendeen to Land's End area.  There were several separate flocks totalling a few thousand birds, some including Balearic and Sooty Shearwaters.  One juv Black Tern was also seen.  Sadly no large shears were seen, or any petrels or skuas.  Presumably the static weather requires a change to bring in new birds.

Wagtail movement at Davidstow

I paid a visit to Davidstow on Thursday and stumbled on a decent movement of assorted wagtails.  I estimated around 300 Pied Wagtail with a few White Wagtail and at least three Yellow Wagtail. Two Northern Wheatear, 30 Ringed Plover and ten Dunlin added to the list but I couldn't connect with the Buff-breasted Sandpiper.

Peregrine GH

I photographed this juv Peregrine from the lower rocks at Pendeen a week ago.  It flew in from the sea directly towards me.  It had been chasing migrating Dunlins low over the sea near the three rocks.  A close crop of the image shows this bird to have a yellow ring with "GH" inscribed on it.

Citrine Wagtail at Marazion Marsh

A first year Citrine Wagtail was found on Friday by David Parker, frequenting the eastern end of the marsh.  I saw it today from the standing stone.  The species is not naturally shy but this bird was not the easiest to see.  It just preferred the reed bed margins around the juncus grass islands so was mainly obscured from decent view.  These are not exactly award winning images but they do show the important ID features, including the stout bill, necklace of dark spots creating a gorget and the pale supercilium extending round the ear coverts.  The bird called in flight and the distinctive call was heard well.

Silver-washed Fritillary

The three images below were taken last week at Cabilla Wood near Bodmin and the darker valesina form at Bentley Wood near Salisbury.  I went to Bentley Wood hoping to see Purple Emperor.  Sadly it was too windy and quite dull so I dipped.  A shame really as this year has been exceptional for the species with up to 100 individuals being seen at some localities.  Back to the Silver-washed... the valesina form is unusual but not rare.  I saw two of them on Sunday but this was the darker one.

valesina form at Bentley Wood

taken at Cabilla Woods, Bodmin

taken at Bentley Wood, Salisbury

A Day for Nature Sunday 4th August

Building on the success of last year’s event, ‘Cornwall Day for Nature’ on 3^rd and 4^th August promises even more opportunities to enjoy nature first hand.  The event is sponsored by South West Lakes Trust and will be held at Stithians Reservoir.

 

On Saturday 3rd August the event will start with an evening focused on Moths and Bats, where you can find out about nature in Cornwall at night with local specialists running moth traps and taking a bat walk (subject to weather).  Overnight on site camping is available.

 

Sunday 4th August will start with an early morning ‘Dawn Chorus’ walk to a bird ringing site and a small mammal trapping demonstration, which will be followed by a range of walks during the day.

 

Conservation Groups will exhibit and publicise their conservation work and activities providing a great opportunity to get find out more and involved!  Exhibitors will include Cornwall Bird Watching and Preservation Society (CBWPS), South West Lakes Trust, The National Trust, Natural England, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), Cornwall Wildlife Trust (CWT), Cornwall Bat Group, Cornwall Mammal Group, Butterfly Conservation and an introduction to the Robin Song Project, a South West Children’s Hospice Project to bring wildlife into the lives of children.

 

Fun for all ages! The National Trust, RSPB, Natural England and the Cornwall Wildlife Trust Fox Club will be offering nature themed fun for children of all ages. The National Trust will have with their arts and crafts marquee, together with demonstrations of green woodworking and bush craft. Come and talk to their Rangers about the ongoing work for wildlife on the spectacular Lizard coastline, where choughs and rare plants abound.

 

Try and buy the latest optical equipment for all price ranges! Trade exhibits will feature South West Optics, Leica, Swarovski, Nikon, Zeiss and Opticron.

 

Local wildlife artist, Griff, founder of the Robin Song Project for the South West Children’s Hospice, will be displaying his work in the marquee.

 

South West Lakes will be offering kayaking, archery  and climbing wall taster sessions  (a small fee will apply these activities to cover costs).

 

Refreshments will be available at the popular Watersports Cafe within the complex to eat and drink inside or on the lakeside.

 

It will be a free event but we do hope to raise some funds for a new proposed viewing screen  at College Reservoir and on going conservation work at Stithians Reservoir.

Two chasers

On Sunday I spent some time looking for dragonflies. In the morning I went east to Goss Moor and Breney Common.  Goss Moor was strangely quiet.  There was more activity at Breney with good numbers of Large Red Damselfly, fewer Small Red, one Golden-ringed, one Keeled Skimmer and just a couple Emeralds.  I also saw five Four-spotted Chasers.

In the evening I decided to look at Godolphin and check for any Crossbills, as there seems to be a bit of a summer eruption going on (ie 40 at Croft Pasco).  I was also hoping for Purple Hairstreak but saw neither Crossbill or Hairstreak.  I did manage to see a nice male Broad-bodied Chaser though. More images can be found here.



Male Broad-bodied Chaser at Godolphin Woods.

Four-spotted Chaser at Breney Common.

Dark greens and High browns

At long last I managed to finally find some Dark Green Fritillary's at Penhale sands last night.  Several observers have already seen them but it's taken me about six visits to finally find this species.  As it happens I counted between 50 and 60 insects spread around the dune system.  All were in pristine condition, except for the very last one I found!  The image below was taken at the very last moment before the sun dropped behind the dune, hence the warm hues.

This morning I visited  South Dartmoor to look for the rare High Brown Fritillary.  The species is ultra rare in Cornwall now with the last known record being one at Kynance in 1996.  Thus I had to do a bit of twitching.  In contrast, at Aish Tor I saw at least 20 insects flying around strongly, once the sun came out.  I arrived there at about 8am and managed to photo one or two fairly static individuals warming up on the bracken.

Dark Green Fritillary, Penhale, Cornwall.

High Brown Fritillary at Aish Tor, Dartmoor. 

Silver-studded Blue at Penhale, Cornwall

I visited Penhale sands last night, taking advantage of the stunning weather we are having at the moment.  Silver-studded Blue is by far the commonest butterfly here.  There must be several hundred.  I estimate about a quarter of them were females.  In addition, I saw seven Ringlets, approx. 75 Small Skippers, 50 Meadow Brown, one Small Tortoiseshell, two Small Heath and 20 Common Blue.  But still no sightings of Dark Green Fritillary.

 

Some more images can be found on my Flickr site here

Female Azure Damselfly

I took this image of a female Azure Damselfly last week, early in the morning.  The dew spots are readily visible on the grass and on the wings and body.  The weight of the dew is bending the leaf so that it is resting on the grass.  I guess the insect has been roosting here all night or walked up the stem waiting for the sun to warm up its wings.  Early morning or late evening seems to be the only time when they are so obliging.  Either way, it gave me time to compose the image and get the background just right.