A brief review of wildlife in Cholsey for 2020. A difficult and unprecedented year for us all.
117 Bird species recorded: An average year with 2 exceptions. The wandering
White-tailed Eagle roosted in Cholsey one night and was seen the following morning flying north over Cholsey hill back in March by myself, Loren, Ian Lewington and Alan.
2
White Stork were seen in May drifting south west over the village.
The Eagle was an juvenile from the release scheme on the Isle of Wight and the Storks were assumed to be from the release scheme in Sussex but may well have been genuine migrants overshooting from the European mainland.
21 Mammals: An average year with no surprises but notable sightings of
Polecat and
Otter.
5 Reptiles & Amphibian species: An average year.
16 Dragonfly species: An average year but with an abundance of
Beautiful Demoiselle. This species was very rare in Cholsey and their range is increasing along the Thames corridor which probably accounts for a lot of sighting this year.
34 Butterfly species: 1 Butterfly (
Marsh Fritillary) caused some controversy as it was suspected of being released but it attracted a lot of visitors as it is a very rare species for this area. Whatever its provenance it was well received and hoping it may appear next summer.
Alan found a White-letter Hairstreak in Cholsey another rare butterfly and only known from one other site in Cholsey.
A good number of Moths and other Insects: 3 new Moth Species for Cholsey, including 1 that was a * new species for Oxfordshire.
Hornet Clearwing discovered by Evelyn and ClaireToal and a Yarrow Plume Moth and a *Gypsy Moth both found by Tony Rayner.
A good number of Stag Beetle noted around the village and the rare Hornet Robberfly seen in a couple of locations and a Kite-tailed Robberfly noted for the first time.
2 species of Oil Beetle also noted the Black Oil Beetle and the Rugged Oil Beetle. Both rarities and on the endangered list.
Several European Mantis were discovered in a garden, a new insect for the area. They may have been introduced or storm blown. Will be interesting to see if they emerge next summer.
The new gravel pits that are now appearing have created an environment of standing water in Cholsey and although not popular with residents has created an environment for wildlife albeit getting disturbed with the work going on. A Little Ringed Plover was found by Brian Wyatt in the spring and a Common Sandpiper and a Little Grebe (found by Alan) spent some time there in the autumn. This area now has the potential of turning up some new wader species at least for Cholsey so we will be keeping a close eye on it.
The Cholsey Wildlife Facebook group that was created in 2016 cruised along with around 70 members and has now blossomed to 346 Members this year.
The blog has been running for just over 10 years now with just over 670000 hits from over 40 different countries. Thank you.
A big thank you to all those who have participated over the years and particularly this year which has not been an easy one for most of us, for your photos, observations and comments.
A special thanks to Alan Dawson, an active birder and wildlife observer in general for his observational contribution and photos.
All these records help to give us a picture of the status of wildlife in and around the village and give us an idea how to move forward to conserve what we have.
Here's looking forward to 2021.
Gypsy Moth courtesy Tony Rayner
Hornet Clearwing courtesy Evelyn and Claire Toal
White-letter Hairstreak courtesy Alan
Hornet Robberfly
Marsh Fritillary
White Stork
European Mantis courtesy Giuseppe Morlando
Ring Ouzel, a scarce migrant courtesy Alan Dawson
