Monday 21 April 2014

Easter Mundane

Dan here.

Well, maybe it wasn't quite mundane today, but it wasn't as good as I'd hoped. I suspect that a few more Willow Warblers and Blackcaps were about, but with no new species there as indicators it felt like business as usual.

Morning passerine vis. seemed ultra minimal, with just a single northbound Lesser Redpoll noted!
Five or six White Wagtails were seen, but with the seeming absence of overhead passage I reckoned they were just lingering birds from last week's influx.

Goose news was limited to a string of nine Canadas with a tag-along Pinkfoot which dropped in from the east. Two Little Ringed Plovers were in evidence.

A pair of Red-breasted Mergansers were on the river, as was a pair of Eider.

A late afternoon visit was made to check for hirundine passage-- and about 25 Swallows and 6 Sand Martins sped through. In a reversal of what I usually observe here, it was the Sand Martins that were tacking into the prevailing (ENE) wind rather than heading to the pole-wards.

My first Speckled Wood butterfly of the year was by the aspen plantation, and 3 male Orange Tips, 2 Green-veined Whites and a male Brimstone were also working beats near the sewage works.

DH.

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