More unsettled weather here in the south.

Wednesday 10th June 2026.

The dark clouds rolled in this afternoon on my second shift in Pembroke Road. Then the heavy rain came!

Three days in a row now! Sunshine in the morning and then heavy showers in the afternoon yet again. Not only that, that cold westerly wind in the morning is starting to make me think, have we had our Summer?! Seriously, what on earth is happening to our weather? It’s June for F*** sake!

I did not put the Moth Box on overnight due to the fact I wanted a bit of a lay in and also it was going to be a clear dry night, but it will be on tonight. It was busy in Pembroke Road again with the traffic, but I still got a reasonable bird species total, the highest this week so far. Some excitement in Hampshire yesterday late afternoon when a fellow ‘Lazee Birder’ posted a photo of a (second summer?) Bonaparte’s Gull off Sandy Point, Hayling Island; but it seems it was only seen by the finder, though there was a good photo of the bird. Despite a few ‘Lazee’s’ trying to find the bird, there was no further sign, but a large Gull congregation off Sandy Point held Gannet, Fulmar and a Kittiwake among the Gulls.

Pembroke Road, Old Portsmouth:

I was surprised we never had any thunder and lightning as it got quite dark when the clouds rolled in this afternoon.

I picked up a total of 15 bird species from my two shifts today here at Pembroke Road and this time nearly all the usual species were either seen or heard today. Sadly, no House Sparrows were calling from the Bowling Green hedgerows, which was probably due to the Groundsman working on the Green. Though when they stopped, it didn't take long for the pair of Pied Wagtails to start chasing insects on the short turf.

Bird of the day had to go to the Jays and though they were showing well at times and quite vocal too in the two roadside Sycamore trees, I don't think the local breeding Blue Tits took too kindly with them here. The Blue Tits were giving off their alarm calls all the time the Jays were present. There has been no more activity this week with the nesting Wrens and so I can only conclude that the nest has been deserted or the chicks have fledged. I suspect the former.

Above, after one in my Moth Box recently, I found this Green Immigrant Leaf Beetle crawling on the bushes by where I  stand. Below, the colourful stand of Field Poppies on the opposite side of the road.

A few Buff-tailed Bumblebees were flying around the roadside gardens and on the opposite side of Pembroke Road, where the alleyway is located, a couple of Red-tailed Bumblebees were seen nectaring on the purple flowering Hebe plants. There was a good cluster of Field Poppies by the entrance of the alleyway. I always check the vegetation where I stand and I found my second Green Immigrant Leaf Weevil of the year, running around on the leaves of the bushes.  

In Hampshire today:

Two pale phased Arctic Skua's past Sandy Point late this afternoon. Photo by Andy Friend.

There was no further sign of the Bonaparte’s Gull today, though a pair of Arctic Skua’s flew past east at Sandy Point late afternoon. Sadly, little else to report, though I heard a singing Common Whitethroat off Kingsley Road, near Milton Common around midday.

Above and below, Razorbills.

Above and below, Puffins.

Above, Guillemot and below, a 'Bridled' Guillemot.

Above and below, Gannets.

Above, Matt & Emma Parkes took a trip to Bempton Cliffs RSPB last Sunday. These were just a few of the photos that Emma Parkes took.

Lower numbers, but four more Moths to my year list.

 Tuesday 9th June 2026.

Another day of two halves where there was a deluge of rain at the end of my first shift in Pembroke Road (Grrrrr!) and blazing sunshine in the afternoon shift! It was a repeat of yesterday and with a cool, blustery westerly wind; I cannot say that I really enjoyed the weather today.  The Moth Box was on again overnight, but the numbers were much lower than yesterday, but still produced a few Moths that were new for the year.

It's the last week of Spring Watch and watching it comfortably in the afternoon on the BBC iPlayer is always a bonus and it has been very good yet again. I mean, Honey Buzzard on the nest; incredible stuff. Bempton Cliffs is one of the locations this week and what an impressive place. My friends, Matt & Emma Parkes spent a good day there over the weekend; a place I have only been to once. It wasn't for the seabirds though as there was a Taiga Flycatcher there for about 5 days, but I actually ‘dipped’ on it! I left at 3am in the morning and went up to the site with a fellow birder Steve Hall, convinced we were going to see the bird (this all happened in my ‘twitcher’ days), but despite spending a long time at the site it was last seen, there was a no show!

My Moth Box:

My first Lackey moth of the year.

Four more Moths were added to my year list this morning and after seeing a couple of Lackey moth caterpillars on Sunday morning, low and behold, the adult moth turns up in my garden this morning! The other three moths were all ‘micro' moths' that included a Barred Marble (Celypha striana), Golden-brown Tubic (Crassa unitella) and the Birch Tortrix (Epinotia immundana); all annual moths to my garden.

This Barred Marble is a regular micro moth for my garden.

Numbers of Moths dropped considerably this morning compared to yesterday with just 32 moths of 19 species, but still a good variety. The only migrants were a Silver Y and a Rusty-dot Pearl, but I am sure more are to come especially when the weather gets warmer over the weekend this week. The Moths present this morning included the following:

MACRO MOTHS	MICRO MOTHS
Garden Carpet x1	Barred Marble * x1
White Ermine x6	Golden-brown Tubic * x1
Silver Y x1	Birch Tortrix * x1
Pale Mottled Willow x4	Ruddy Streak x1
Lackey * x1	Garden Mompha x1
Heart & Dart x3	Rusty-dot Pearl x1
L-album Wainscot x1	White-shouldered House Moth x1
Vine’s Rustic x2	Garden Grass-veneerx1
Marbled Minor agg. x1
Bright-line Brown-eye x2
Double-striped Pug x1

Two more micro moths new for the year included a Golden-brown Tubic (above) and this Birch Tortrix (below); the latter moth being quite scarce to my garden.

Pembroke Road, Old Portsmouth:

After getting a good soaking on this mornings first shift in Pembroke Road, it was far more pleasant in the afternoon.

Just 11 species seen or heard this morning during both shifts today here, but what a contrast in weather between this morning and this afternoon. I could only notch up 10 species this morning and a Black-headed Gull was heard and eventually seen this morning to boost today's total to 11! Yes, numbers were low, but watching the Blue Tits going back and forth to their nest site and Blackbirds chasing one another while working, surely cannot be all that bad! The pair of Pied Wagtails were again on the Bowling Green this morning and a male bird was seen searching the field east of the Bowling Green while I was sitting in my car this afternoon under the Holm Oaks.

Another Moth 'Lifer' among my highest total for the year.

 Monday 8th June 2026.

My first ever Brown Oak Tortrix was in the garden this morning.

A day of two halves where this morning, clouds had rolled in again and several hours of rain fell during the middle of the day. However, the clouds parted company in the afternoon and bright sunshine befell sunny Southsea once more. Huzzah! A light westerly blew across Pembroke Road with temperatures hovering around the 18 degree centigrade mark.

Three of the seven Dark Arches moths seen this morning.

The Moth Box was on again overnight, despite a few showers, a very large haul of Moths to look through and yet more moths that were new for the year. Pembroke Road was fairly quiet again regarding the birds, but the very active Blue Tits and a pair of Blackbirds kept me entertained.

My Moth Box:

My first Clancy's Rustic for the year.

The highest total of the year for Moths took place in my garden this morning with an incredible 83 moths of 35 species. True, Moth totals can get up to three times as many in the late summer months here in my garden; but I was well pleased with this total and not only that; a new Moth for my Moth Life List and five more for the year list!

Above, a Large Yellow Underwing and a Pale Mottled Willow were abundant this morning.

The new Moth in question was a BROWN OAK TORTRIX, which is a localised Moth that favours Oak, Lime, Ash, Sallow and Elm trees. I honestly thought it was a Variegated Golden Tortrix at first, but I did get curious and so checked on Obsidentify and low and behold, it was the BROWN OAK TORTRIX! 

The Twin-barred Knot-horn that was also new for the year.

Moths that were new for the year included an early Clancy’s Rustic (normally an Autumn species here in my garden), 2 Lesser Yellow Underwings and a cracking Heart & Club. My first Varied Coronet for the garden this year was in one of the outside egg trays, which incidentally were nearly full of Moths, as was the Box itself! Another Golden Twin-spot was on the white sheet and a large total of 11 Heart  & Darts were counted!

One of two Lesser Yellow Underwings today.

The ‘micro’s’ were also in very good numbers today with the likes of Twin-barred Knot-horn, Common Masoner and, of course, the BROWN OAK TORTRIX added to the year list. The Moths present this morning included the following:

MACRO MOTHS	MICRO MOTHS
Garden Carpet x1	White-shouldered House Moth x1
White Ermine x4	Twin-barred Knot-horn * x1
Large Yellow Underwing x7	Common Masoner * x1
Lesser Yellow Underwing * x2	Garden Grass-veneer x1
Willow Beauty x2	Box Tree Moth x2
Varied Coronet x1	Garden Pebble x1
Bright-line Brown-eye x2	Ruddy Streak x1
Vine’s Rustic x3	Rusty-dot Pearl x2
Pale Mottled Willow x8	Apple Leaf Miner x3
Clancy’s Rustic * x1	Brown House Moth x1
Shuttle-shaped Dart x2	Blushed Knot-horn x2
Dark Arches x7	BROWN OAK TORTRIX * x1
Heart & Dart x11	Light Brown Apple Moth x1
Heart & Club * x1	Large Pale Masoner x1
Golden Twin-spot x1
Cabbage Moth x1
L-album Wainscot x2
Marbled Minor agg x2
Green Pug x2
Yellow-barred Brindle x1
Riband Wave x2

Other insects attracted to the Moth Box included one Lacewing, 2 Cinnamon Sedge Caddisflies, a Marmalade Hoverfly and another Candy-striped Spider.

Pembroke Road, Old Portsmouth:

I recorded just 12 bird species today at Pembroke Road and to be honest, all the usual species although some omissions today with no Wren, Magpie or Med Gulls seen! No Swifts either; but on that subject, they really have gone down in numbers around Portsmouth and Southsea, with very few seen of late. Maybe not enough food supply perhaps and have wandered off elsewhere?

Above, a Buff-tailed Bumblebee in the roadside bushes and below, the Migrant Hoverfly (Eupeodes corollae). 

The Blue Tit pair were busy going back and forth to their nest site and only the one Pied Wagtail on the Bowling Green this morning.

A lot of interesting insects in the Cemy today.

 Sunday 7th June 2026.

The Cemetery was lush with various types of grasses and flowers.

After yesterday's awful weather, it was good to get out to do a bit of birding and it was over Highland Road Cemetery with the dogs, that I took the opportunity for a nice slow walk around my ‘local patch’. The weather was much better with occasional sunshine and high clouds. A light south-westerly wind blew over the Cemy with temperatures around 15 degrees centigrade. Though I didn't expect anything unusual today here, I did see a few species that were new for the year. I didn't have the Moth Box overnight due to the strong winds and possible heavy rain.

Above, the Cemetery Workers seemed to have left the grass to grow but, below, some of the graves themselves have been sprayed with harmful weedkillers.

I was surprised that the Cemetery workers have let the grass around the graves grow long and it does look good, with a variety of different grasses growing and many clumps of Ox-eye Daisies and other plants flowering around the site. Sadly, I have noticed that the Cemetery workers have started spraying weedkillers on the graves and only made them look awful (see photo). The weedkiller not only kills the plants growing on the graves, but also the insects and snails that feed on the weeds and quite possibly, the birds that feed on the snails and insects!

Highland Road Cemetery, Southsea:

My first sighting of Lady's Bedstraw growing in the Cemy.

The birdlife within the Cemetery was far and few between, though most of the birds would be searching for insects to feed their young and most likely going to remain hidden in the bushes and tall grass looking for food. However, a small group of Starlings showed well searching for insects in the grass; with a mixture of both adult and the browner juvenile birds. A Blue Tit showed briefly, but apart from this bird and a few Wood Pigeons and overhead Herring Gulls, all was pretty quiet bar a few singing Wrens and Blackbirds. A lady walking her dog asked me if I had seen the Green Woodpecker recently and explained to her that I had only heard the bird and that it was from my garden!!

Above, a Holly Blue butterfly nectaring on the Privet flowers and below, Cultivated Oat grass growing on one of the graves.

Above, a 7-spot Ladybird larvae on an Ox-eye Daisy and below, my first Hornet-mimic Hoverfly of the year; also on the Privet Bush.

One particular flowering Privet bush held several insects that grabbed my attention and that included my first Hornet-mimic Hoverfly nectaring on the plant. A few inches away from it was a Tapered Dronefly and next to that was a Holly Blue butterfly, all nectaring on the flowering Privet Bush. Other notable insects found along my walk were False Blister Beetles on Yarrow plants and a 7-spot Ladybird Larva on an Ox-eye Daisy. I even found a couple of Lackey Moth caterpillars on the move; one on an Ox-eye Daisy and another on a gravestone. So, in conclusion, if the birds are quiet here, then there are always the insects and plants to keep me entertained. What a place!

Above, a huge swathe of Wall Barley was growing near the main entrance and below, a Tapered Dronefly sharing the Privet Bush with the Holly Blue butterfly.

Above, Common Knapweed was growing again in the southern half of the Cemy and below, one of the juvenile Starlings searching for food with the adults.

As mentioned, a lot of the Cemetery was a bit overgrown with various Grasses including Yorkshire Fog, Cultivated Oat and False Oat-grass; but I expect there were several more species. Wall Barley was growing in large areas, especially by the main entrance. This species, I remember when I was a kid, we used to pick off the tops and use them as darts as they would stick to your clothing! 

Above, another photo of the Hornet-mimic Hoverfly with the Tapered Dronefly. Below, a Lackey moth caterpillar was seen crawling up this gravestone.

Above, Yarrow was in bloom and below, an adult with a juvenile Starling in search of food.

As well as the usual Grey Squirrels around the area, it was nice to see the Fox within the Cemetery again. I just happened to be looking in the right direction, looking north from the southern end of the Cemy towards the Mausoleum and there it was, just enjoying the sunshine before sneaking off back into the vegetation.

Above, this 7-spotted Ladybird larvae was on this Ox-eye Daisy and below, a Fox was watching this Magpie. Breakfast perhaps?

Above, the Fox contemplating where to go and below, I found another Lackey Moth Caterpillar.

Though the weather was poor yesterday, birding pal Geoff Farwell still braved the weather and took a trip to Queen Elizabeth Forest and although he took a soaking and was very cold, he saw a Hawfinch and at least 4 singing Firecrests, 3 Chiffchaffs, Blackcap, Siskin and also heard a Tawny Owl.

In Hampshire today:

There have been a few sightings of Cuckoo's today in Hampshire. This one was by Pete Appleton recently.

Sea-watching off Sandy Point, Hayling Island this morning produced three Arctic Skua’s flying together eastbound and an immature Kittiwake through as well. A Quail was heard calling at Martin Down again and a female Black Redstart was seen at Kings Barton, Winchester. Nationally, the Western Reef Heron was once again seen at Caermarfon, North Wales. A big thank you to Callum Gray who allowed me to put some of this photos on my blog.

Above and below, the Western Reef Heron at Caemarfon, North Wales. Photos by Callum Gray.