Wednesday July 6 - A few surprises - Berrow Hill

An ill-judged moth-trapping session on a chilly Monday night gave me just 23 moths of 12 species, only one of which, Ancylis achatana, was new for the year.  

This morning I was keen to put that behind me and go birding. I chose the south-west edge of my Circle, and visited Berrow Hill. As usual it felt like I was breaking new ground when in fact I wasn't. I had visited twice in the early spring during the late 1990s.

My route took me down some quiet leafy lanes and across a rather nice meadow before swinging back around the south-west side of the hill. Over 100 Meadow Browns and about 20 Marbled Whites flitted about, but I only saw one Large Skipper, and one Small Skipper. So not as good as Morton Bagot's grassland.

The Meadow, full of Tufted Vetch and Yellow Rattle

An early surprise was a falcon which circled me for long enough to identify it as an adult Peregrine, scrabble for my camera, change its settings, and still get a shot before it disappeared.

Peregrine

I was quite sure that would be the bird of the day, but later on I found another strong contender. Before I get to that I'll mention that I spent a frustrating few minutes failing to see whatever it was that was making some Blackbirds extremely agitated. I assume there was an Owl involved, but I never saw it.

On reaching a complex of farm buildings, which I guess was Berrow Hill Farm, I was diverted by a small fishing pool. After grilling a Small Red-eyed damselfly, and also my first Common Blue Damselfly of the year, I noticed a small bird fly further up the fence towards the hill. This proved to be a male Redstart, a better candidate for bird of the day. I managed a distant record shot before it flew to the right, out of my lens view.

Redstart (you may need a magnifying glass)

I didn't see where it flew to, and couldn't find it again. I'm never sure what to make of early July Redstarts. Are they local breeders? I suspect it was heading south, the earliest of the early migrants.

I've recently become concerned by the lack of bees and butterflies in our garden, and it appears to be a problem common to many suburban areas this year. Today made me feel a bit better, but it seems to be the typical garden species like Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, and the Whites which are missing.

I hope its just a temporary blip, but I fear it probably isn't.