GARDEN TICK

Put the moth trap on for a few hours last night and managed a few year ticks and a couple of lifers:
Flame Shoulder 4
Shuttle-shaped Dart 1
Buff Ermine 1 MYL 38
Common Marbled Carpet 1 MYL 39
Green Carpet 3 MYL 40
Silver-ground Carpet 2 MYL 41
Bloodvein 1 MYL 42
PALE TUSSOCK 1 MYL 43
MARBLED BROWN 1 MYL 44
Treble Lines 1 MYL 45
Heart and Dart 1 MYL 46
Small Square Spot 3 MYL 47

Silver Ground Carpet


Treble lines


Pale Tussock


Marbled Brown

Up on 'station' at the top of the track this morning at around 0730 and at last finally managed to pin down Turtle Dove with three distant singletons seen flying in various directions. Also of note were 2 Cuckoo flying west, a pair of Hobby displaying over the ridge, a brief appearance by a Little Owl and 2 female Northern Wheatear. One of the singing Whitethroats eventually gave itself up for the camera.

Whitethroat

Garden was good for butterflies late morning with Large White, Peacock, Red Admiral, Holly Blue, Orange-tip and a Small Copper. A wander along the pond produced 6 Mallard (including the white one!) and my first Large Red Damselfly here. Just after a late lunch in the garden a glance up to the east revealled another two Persil- white birds , but these ones had their necks out-stretched!! (Egrets fly with their necks tucked in, like a heron) These were a pair of fantastic SPOONBILLS ! I watched as they thermalled between the village and Felbrigg Park but the lost the over the trees moving eastwards- top tick and my first garden tick of the year!

The Spoonbills fired me up to return to the top of the track during the late afternoon and produced a frther 2 Hobby, 3 Common Buzzard, another Turtle Dove and a very distant Red Kite cruising westward south of Gresham.

PYL 99 Turtle Dove

PYL 100 GYL 57 SPOONBILL (GL 127)