Over the Hills and Far Away

Overcast with very few sunny spells, 17°, fresh WSW.

A breezy day on the hill.

A steady movement of birds over the hill today with c40 Swift, 50+ Swallow, 20+ House Martin, at least 3 Sand Martin, 34 Lesser Blackback Gull, 57 Black-headed Gull and a single Curlew, all moving in a roughly southerly direction.

I wonder if these diurnal migrants are using hills as navigation markers in their migration as Wittenham Clumps, Cholsey Hill, Lollingdon Hill and Lowbury hill are in a rough north south route?

3 Kestrel on the hill, a Hobby drifted over and a few Red Kite and Buzzard present.

Nuthatch still visiting the garden.

Fewer insects around in the overcast and windy conditions.

Mammals: Muntjac Deer, Brown Hare.

Dragonflies: Brown Hawker.

Butterflies: Large White, Small White, Common Blue, Small Tortoiseshell, Comma, Speckled Wood, Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown and Ringlet.

Illegal hunting arrests in Oxfordshire

Thames Valley Police have arrested twelve men within a week in the South Oxon and Vale area on suspicion of hunting act offences.

Four men were arrested and their vehicle and five dogs seized in Longcot, Faringdon.

The men aged 72, 58, 47 and 23 from Pontypool, were arrested on Sunday (26/10) at 7am, on suspicion of illegal hare coursing on farmland in Longcot. The men have been released on police bail until 1 December 2014.

Three men were arrested in Cholsey on Friday (24/10) at 1.20pm, on suspicion of illegal hare coursing on farmland in Blewbury. One man age 36 from Surrey, and two men aged 29 and 21 from Wokingham, have been bailed until 29 November 2014.

Two men aged 20 and 22 from Reading were also arrested on Friday (24/10) at 3.25pm, on suspicion of illegal hare coursing in Woodcote on (24/10). Both men have been bailed until 29 November 2014.

Three men were arrested in Marcham, Abingdon. Two men aged 35 and 31 from Abingdon, and a 34 year old man from Sunningwell, were arrested on Wednesday (22/10) at 11.14pm, on suspicion of illegal hare coursing on farmland in Marcham. The men have all been bailed until 28 November 2014.

Marymead House Martins

The local House Martins appear to have left over the weekend. We had two nest sites at Marymead, one raised a brood but unfortunately, the two young died, the second proved much more successful with having two broods and at least 2 young fledged from each brood.

They will now have a journey of a few thousand miles to sub Saharan Africa to winter, returning next April.