Hirundines

Bunk line area today per Alan Dawson.

A good mixed Hirundine flock today of Swallow, House Martin and Sand Martin. Difficult to say how many but appeared to be made up of 3-4 family groups per species.

Greenfinch, Yellowhammer, Common Whitethroat, several Buzzard, a Kestrel and a distant Barn Owl.

Also a distant Red Fox noted.

Sand Martin (courtesy Alan Dawson)

Roesel’s Bush Cricket

Alan found a rare form of the above Cricket at Cholsey Marsh yesterday.

Wikipedia has this to say regarding the Long-winged form:

“Both male and female adults are normally brachypterous. However, a macropterous form, f. diluta (described by Charpentier 1825) also exists. These have much longer wings, and usually make up less than 1% of the total population, but in some populations occur in much higher numbers, usually in areas where the bush-cricket's range has recently expanded to.

They are more common in long, warm summers where populations reach higher densities. It has also been suggested that a very localised hostile environment may also produce a higher level of macropterous forms. The macropterous form is a dispersal phase, and it provides the advantage of reaching new, more favourable habitats, within which there is a lower density of Roesel's bush-crickets residing. Well established populations tend to be more highly brachypterous, as high dispersal ability is correlated with lower fecundity in Orthoptera.”

South West

Cloudy with a few sunny periods, 20°, light ESE.

A walk out towards Aston Tirrold via the Lees today.

Several Reed Warbler and Sedge Warbler seen with food along the “Reedy Ditch” and the occasional snatch of song heard.

Several Reed Bunting along the “Long Ditch” and nearby and a couple of Blackcap, a Chiffchaff and a Nuthatch at the Lees.

2-3 Yellow Wagtail, a couple of Yellowhammer and a Corn Bunting between the Lees and Manor Farm.

Mammals: Brown Hare.

Dragonflies: Beautiful Demoiselle, Banded Demoiselle, Azure Damselfly. Emperor Dragonfly and Four-spot Chaser.

Butterflies: Large Skipper, Large White, Small White, Small Tortoiseshell (50+), Comma, Speckled Wood, Marbled White and Meadow Brown.

A few Hoverflies around today including a Pellucid Hoverfly and a possible Ant-hill Hoverfly.

And if you have passed thru the Bull’s Hole you may have noticed the Hart’s Tongue Fern growing on a wall.

Sedge Warbler

 Hart's Tongue Fern

 2 butterflies (Large Skipper & Meadow Brown)

 Buff-tailed Bumblebee on Knapweed

 Pellucid Hoverfly

Batman Hoverfly (Myathropa florea)

 Young Swallows on the wing (courtesy Alan Dawson)

 Reed Bunting

 Small Tortoiseshell

Beautiful Demoiselle

Quiet times

Mainly cloudy with a few sunny spells, 21°, light S.

A rather uneventful walk out to Lollingdon and back today. A Goldcrest singing along Cholsey brook and a flyover Yellow Wagtail at Little Lollingdon.

Nothing much changed.

Common Tern along the Thames today. Per Alan.

Mammals: Brown Hare and Roe Deer.

Dragonflies: Banded Demoiselle, White-legged Damselfly (Alan).

Butterflies: Large Skipper, Small Skipper (Alan), Brimstone, Large White, Small White, Small Tortoiseshell, Speckled Wood and Meadow Brown.

Moths: Cinnabar, Scarlet Tiger (Alan), both these moths being noted frequently.

Insects: Stag Beetle (Alan), a lot of records in Cholsey this year. Good news, and a Hornet Mimic Hoverfly out at Lollingdon.

Common Tern (courtesy Alan Dawson)

 Stag Beetle (courtesy Alan Dawson)

 Brown Hare (again, running away)

 Hornet Mimic Hoverfly

 Large Skipper (courtesy Andrew McBirnie)

Scarlet Tiger (courtesy Alan Dawson)

Rain & Shine, Garden & River

A few photos of a Stock Dove in the garden having a shower in heavy rain yesterday.

A Green Woodpecker popping in for a drink.

and a Grey Squirrel on a daily visit

a Cinnabar Moth on Loren's Allotment (courtesy Loren)

and finally a couple from along the Thames from Alan today.

Egyptian Goose and Kingfisher.

All quiet 'cept for the weather

Overcast, 19°, breezy ENE with rain on the way.

Bird of the day was an adult male Hobby that went swooping thru out at Lollingdon. Both Tony Williams and I were alerted by Swallow alarm calls and looked up to see this bird pass by.

A few Swift feeding overhead and a flyover Yellow Wagtail.

Potentially 12 pairs of Yellowhammer breeding between home and Lollingdon Hill and represents good numbers locally.

Also 2 pair of Reed Bunting in the same area.

Mammals: Brown Hare and Roe Deer.

Butterflies: Small Tortoiseshell, Speckled Wood and Meadow Brown.

Yellowhammer

Jackdaw

 Blackcap family (courtesy Alan)

Emperor (courtesy Alan)

Bunk Line, Thames and a touch of Canada

Cloudy with sunny intervals, 18°, light SSE.

An afternoon walk along the Bunk line, several Yellowhammer still in song along with several Common Whitethroat, 2 Blackcap and 2 Chiffchaff.

A single Kestrel hunting along the line and 2 Green Woodpecker present.

Butterflies: a little better than of late, 1 Small Skipper, 2 Large Skipper, 1 Brimstone, 2 Large White, 3 Small White, 6 Small Tortoiseshell, 2 Speckled Wood, 5 Marbled White, 12+ Meadow Brown and 5 Small Heath.

Alan was down along the river today: with Black-headed Gull, Blackcap, Chiffchaff, Yellowhammer, Reed Bunting, Corn Bunting plus others.

Dragonflies: Emperor Dragonfly, Four-spot Chaser and Broad-bodied Chaser.

Butterflies: Small Tortoiseshell, Speckled Wood, Marbled White, Meadow Brown and Small Heath.

 The photo of these Canadian Luna Moths were sent to me by and ex Cholsey resident Malcolm Stephenson who now lives in Canada and is a regular reader of the blog. Thanks

 Small Tortoiseshell

 Marbled White

 Small Heath

Large Skipper

 Wolf Spider? (courtesy Alan)

Black-headed Gull (courtesy Alan)

Little Owl resurfaces

Light cloud with a few sunny spells, 15°, light NNE.

The Little Owl seen out at Lollingdon today for the first time in over a month! Was getting quite concerned that they had abandond the area or that some ill fortune had overcome them.

6 Swift, 14 House Martin and 8 Swallow feeding around Lollingdon hill today for a good hour or more before drifting off west.

There was a single gull associating with the corvids in the pig fields and although distant it looked like an adult Lesser Blackback Gull, unusual for this time of year. 

All the usual suspects present elsewhere.

Mammals: Brown Hare.

Butterflies: 1 Large Skipper, 2 Small Tortoiseshell and 2 Speckled Wood. 

Interesting that on Alans main walk he sees far more butterflies and insects in general than I do. Alans walk takes in a more diverse riparian habitat whereas my main walk takes in farmland monocultures that have been treated with pesticides and herbicides, therefore a more degraded habitat!

Moths: singles of Brimstone and Cinnabar.

 Little Owl

 Brown Hare

Large Skipper

A few from the weekend

A series of photos from Alan Dawson over the weekend.

House Martin, part of a flock of Swift, Swallow and House Martin near the 4-Arches.

 Large Skipper

 Brimstone

 Small Tortoiseshell

 Pyramid Orchid

 Marbled White ↕

 Lesser Stag Beetle (courtesy 7 year old Edward Dawson)

Ladybird Larvae