Gatwick Wildlife Day 2015

 Field Station HQ

 The River Mole. North West Zone - More here

 Long-horned Bee- what a beauty. A local speciality.

 Dingy Skipper

 Mesembrina meridiana

 Lesser Swallow Prominent

 Birch Mocha

Sid and Poplar Hawkmoth

Wood Mouse with Rachel (event organiser)

All good on the north west front from Sid

Attended the Gatwick Wildlife Day ( Biodiversity Gatwick Blog here) today with Sid and Andrew. The site is a local patch neighbour to Beddington farmlands.  The event was hosted by the Gatwick Greenspace Partnership and organised by the Gatwick airport biodiversity team (and several chaps all called Tom).  A great day - moth catching, mammal traps, reptile traps, camera traps - the works.

The Long-horned Bee was magic. 

BIODIVERSITY GATWICK

Windy

 This thing's got blown in from another planet?

 House Martin- a influx of hirundines and Swifts over last few days. 300+ Swallow yesterday, 40 House Martin, 10 Sand Martin and 40-50 Swift.



Been stormy conditions over last couple of days which has rather surprisingly brought in a load of hirundines which has not so surprisingly attracted the attention of one or two Hobbys.

Bank Holiday

 Female Whinchat

 St. Mark's Fly- an emergence today. This a female- smaller heads and eyes than the males.

 Syrphus sp on Euphorbia

 Scorpion Fly- the first one I've seen this year

Sphaerophoria sp (Yellow line on side of thorax)

Had a quick look over the farmlands before family day out (went to Morden Hall Park). A new Whinchat was the best bird. Also Little Ring, a couple of Common Sands, 2 Sand Martin checking out the bank, a few Swallows, a couple of Swift (30+ earlier) and the guys reported a Red Kite and Buzzards.

Orange-tip, Brimstone, Small White, Speckled Wood and Holly Blue along the path. Also a few Green Longhorns. Loads of St. Marks Flies. Still poor for moths in the evening- just a Brimstone yesterday.

Did a BBS-type survey on the fields north of Bedzed yesterday evening- 50 possible territories. Even though this area is within our recording area unfortunately it's not been systematically surveyed until now.  

Full of Promise

Today's Hobby (Yes I've got a new computer and updated software which I've been playing with. Nice shape.) 

 Whimbrel

Dunlin- birds this time of year on passage are most likely of the schinzii population heading from West Africa to up north

I would have put money on this producing locally. Frontal systems and an easterly airflow in early May. Perhaps the extent and orientation of the cold fronts have produced a block.

1 Whimbrel, 2 Dunlin, 1 Wheatear, 10 Swift (highest count this year so far), 1 Hobby, 4 Sand Martin, 6 Swallow and 1 Yellow Wagtail was not quite what we were hoping for today in these conditions. However it's a show of sorts so mustn't grumble. 

Bangers and Beans

Here's a track about what it's like to be a teenager without birding.

THEE BRYANS

May days

 Lesser Whitethroat- 3-4 singing males around at the moment

 Swift- a couple today and five over Beddington Lane later

 Immature Mute Swan- last year's young were driven off site by the 3 breeding pairs currently around. This bird has recently arrived and is hiding out on 100 acre so far undetected by the birds on territory.

Esperia sulphurella

Pretty quiet day (and cold too) considering the promising weather conditions (south easterlies with overcast).
My old laptop has finally packed up so I spent the rest of the quiet day purchasing a new laptop and now pulling my hair out trying to get everything set up and working out how to use windows 8. Lost all my apps too so downloading Photoshop Elements again (but unsuccessfully so far). Had to edit these pics on HP Photo. Doesn't help concentrating with all the noise going on of a police helicopter literally outside the window, a load of old bill and their dogs making a right racket while dragging one of the neighbours off.

Whitethroat numbers are building as the perennial vegetation grows up taller. There's probably 20+ singing males now. Also 3-4 Sedge Warblers, 8+ Reed Warblers and one or two singing Chiffchaffs.
The first brood of Moorhens are out, two broods of Canada Geese and still only one pair of Mallard (down to 11 surviving young from 13).

At times like this the words 'oh b#llox' spring to mind

MORE HERE: WHITE ARSE 2015