Hummingbird Hawk-moth in the Moth Box and a Tree Pipit over.

Thursday 1^st October 2026.

After last nights rain, a nice sunrise over Highland Road Cemetery as I walked past with the dogs.

The heavy rain overnight had all but disappeared by dawn arrived, leaving behind a bright blue start to the day and some visible migration going on overhead too. It was a tad cooler than yesterday with a light westerly blowing over Southsea and Old Portsmouth; but I had to wait till around 7.15am before I could switch off the Moth Box light to check the Moths.

My Moth Box:

This Hummingbird Hawk-moth within the Moth Box was a lovely surprise.

Despite the heavy rain, the Moth Box certainly provided a few surprises, notably the Hummingbird Hawk-moth perched on one of the egg trays within the Box. I think this was the second one this year I had in my Moth Box and always most welcome. I carefully placed the egg tray with the moth on our garden furniture nearby and by the time I turned my head, it was gone.

Above, a head on view of the Hummingbird Hawk-moth and below, the Diamondback Moth.

There were just 4 macro moth species this morning, though among them was the migrant moth Small Mottled Willow and a more familiar moth for this time of year, a Lunar Underwing. That left just a Willow Beauty that was perched on the garden fence nearby.

Above, the Fig-leaf Skeletonizer micro moth and below, the Tree-mallow Tortrix.

A whopping 33+ Light Brown Apple Moths (Epiphyas postvittana) were recorded this morning and boy, don’t they come in various guises! One individual even looked like the colour of the brick it sat on! My third Fig-leaf Skeletonizer (Choreutis nemorana) of the year was just inside the Box when I lifted the lid off and a pristine migrant Diamondback Moth (Plutella xylostella) was perched on one of the egg trays. Other migrant micros included 3 Rusty-dot Pearls (Udea ferrugalis) and an Olive-tree Pearl (Palpita vitrealis). All in all, 45 moths of 11 species were better than expected after last nights poor weather. The Moths recorded this morning included the following:

 

MACRO MOTHS	MICRO MOTHS
Hummingbird Hawk-moth x1	Rusty-dot Pearl x3
Willow Beauty x1	Light Brown Apple Moth x33
Small Mottled Willow x1	Tree-mallow Tortrix x1
Lunar Underwing x1	Diamondback Moth x1
	Ruddy Streak x1
	Fig-leaf Skeletonizer x1
	Olive-tree Pearl x1

 

While checking the Moth Box, there was some visible migration going on and that included not only a trickle of Meadow Pipits, but a Tree Pipit was heard somewhere high overhead but sadly not seen. Both Pied and Grey Wagtail were also heard as well as a Song Thrush going over. A Chiffchaff was calling in neighbouring gardens.

 

Pembroke Road, Old Portsmouth:

Governor's Green with the Royal Garrison Church in the background.

It was bright and sunny on arrival for my first shift in Old Portsmouth this morning and the bird species came thick and fast as soon as I got to my normal spot looking south over both the Bowling Green and Governor’s Green. A Cormorant was probably the most unusual species this morning, with two birds seen at separate times of the morning flying over Old Portsmouth. The only visible migration was a couple of Meadow Pipits calling as they flew off south-west, but picking up any calling high flying birds is difficult because of the drone of the passing traffic. The Chiffchaff was again heard down the footpath adjacent to the Bowling Green, though no sightings of the bird.

This superb image of a Kingfisher taken at Titchfield Haven recently. Photo by Daz Gorman.

Up to 16 bird species were recorded this morning on my first shift in Pembroke Road. The species that were heard only included the Wren, Robin, Great Tit but the Pied Wagtail was seen and heard on the Bowling Green again and up to 3 Blue Tits flew out of the trees and over my head heading north.

The bird species seen or heard today included the following:

• Magpie
• Carrion Crow
• Herring Gull
• Black-headed Gull
• Great Black-backed Gull
• Great Tit
• Blue Tit
• Chiffchaff
• Pied Wagtail
• Dunnock
• Wren
• Meadow Pipit
• Robin
• Wood Pigeon
• Feral Pigeon
• Cormorant (2)

 

A quieter day in Pembroke Road and a Brent Goose flock back in the harbour.

Wednesday 30th September 2026.

A wet start here in Southsea where I took a bit of a soaking while walking my dogs at 6.30am. However, the weather did improve a little as the rain had stopped by the time I got to my first shift in Old Portsmouth, though it was dark and cloudy with a blustery southerly wind. But what was most noticeable was how mild it was as temperatures were around 19 degrees.

On the BBC news this morning, the local edition reported a male Pallid Harrier seen and photographed over Testwood Lakes last year by a chap with the same name as one of our ‘Lazee Birders’ and a bit of confusion reigned. Sadly, this bird was suppressed by the finder and not the first time this person has done this. It also begs the question that should I find a major rarity in Highland Road Cemetery, my ‘local patch’. should I put it out to everyone to see the bird and risk idiots trampling all over the graves to get that ‘money shot’?  I shall ‘cross that bridge’ when I come to it. I would obviously discuss this with the appropriate Hampshire Recorders.

I started listening to the Birdguides Podcast for the first time yesterday and after an hours listening, I was beginning to get a bit bored. OK, I was hoping for a variety of topics about birding in the UK, but it was mostly aimed at ‘twitching’ and the various rarities that has turned up over the past few months. However, on a positive side, they did bring up some interesting memories when I was ‘twitching’ including the Black Lark at South Stack in June 2003 and various other rare birds. I shall be listening to future editions of the Podcast as it could be more interesting as time goes on.

 

Pembroke Road, Old Portsmouth:

Thankfully the rain had stopped when I arrived at Pembroke Road, but there was still a lot of heavy dark cloud around.

Thankfully, the rain had stopped by the time I got Pembroke Road, but it was quite dark with the thick heavy cloud overhead. A band of blue sky could be seen way over in the south and by the time I finished my shift, a lot of the cloud had moved on leaving behind a lot of blue sky and again, so very mild for this time of year.

Once again, the usual bird species were present, and the only birds of note included a pair of Pied Wagtails on the Bowling Green and the lovely sound of a Robin in full song nearby. Black-headed Gulls, normally scarce here, were arriving from the coast in numbers again this morning, though only one Great Black-backed Gull was seen flying over towards Curtain Moat.

Sadly, there were no new species added to my day total here and in fact, there were hardly any birds seen bar the usual Crows, Magpies and Herring Gull. At least the weather was nice with warm sunshine and a gentle breeze.

The bird species seen or heard today included the following:

• Magpie
• Carrion Crow
• Herring Gull
• Black-headed Gull
• Great Black-backed Gull
• Blackbird
• Great Tit
• Blue Tit
• Pied Wagtail (2)
• Robin
• Wood Pigeon
• Feral Pigeon

 

In Hampshire today:

A juvenile Black Tern was reported past Hill Head this morning by ‘Franno’ and a very early Purple Sandpiper was found at Southsea Castle yesterday. The first flock of Brent Geese were also seen in Langstone Harbour yesterday, signalling the return of these fantastic birds from their breeding grounds in the high Arctic.

This Osprey was seen last weekend at Pennington Marshes. Photo by Emma Parkes.

The Semi-palmated Sandpiper was still present at Pennington Marshes and should it still be here on Saturday, I will probably take the long drive down to view the bird myself and hopefully, some other interesting birds will be present.  A Ruff and a Curlew Sandpiper were on nearby Normandy Marshes.  A few Ospreys were reported in Hampshire today.

Personally, though I never saw any notable birds between my Pembroke Road shifts, I did hear a couple of Chiffchaffs calling from people’s gardens. I also saw a Clouded Yellow butterfly flying down a street in Eastney and a few Red Admirals on the wing there while driving along. As its the last day of September, I can conclude that I saw 71 species of Moths for this month and although nowhere near as many as last month, it was still a reasonable total with the likes of Delicate, Centre-barred Sallow and Straw Underwing being the most noteworthy.

A new release out soon by the Funky Wardens. Also in picture disc.

A lot more Moths in the garden and plenty of birds in Old Portsmouth.

Tuesday 29^th September 2026.

A bright start to the day.

A fine start to the day here in Southsea with some high cloud overhead, but plenty of blue sky around and sunshine this morning. It is getting cloudier this afternoon with a few possible showers on the horizon. A light easterly blew across the coast here which could possibly bring in a Yellow-browed Warbler or something similar?

The Moth Box was a bit more active overnight with a good selection of Autumnal moths present and my first shift in Old Portsmouth had a reasonable number of bird species around the trees and overhead today.

My Moth Box:

Always good to get the migrant Small Mottled Willow in the garden.

This morning was by far much better than Sunday mornings moth total though I wasn’t the only one reporting such low totals that morning. Today, I recorded 33 moths of 13 species that included some very nice moths. Vestal, Small Mottled Willow, Golden Twin-spot and Clancy’s Rustic were most appreciated.

Above, one of three Feathered Ranunculus moths this morning and below, my first Golden Twin-spot for the week.

Above, a Blair's Mocha within the Moth Box.

Even Lunar Underwings and Feathered Ranunculus were on the increase, and I hope some more new species will be gracing my garden soon. It was the micro moths that produced the most for their species with 6 each of Rusty-dot Pearls and Light Brown Apple Moths and I would not be surprised that there were many more hiding away in my garden under the leaves and cracks of the garden fence. The moths present this morning included the following:

 

MACRO MOTHS	MICRO MOTHS
Clancy’s Rustic x4	Rusty-dot Pearl x6
Lunar Underwing x2	Light Brown Apple Moth x6
Double-striped Pug x4
Small Mottled Willow x1
Small Dusty Wave x1
Vestal x1
Feathered Ranunculus x3
Golden Twin-spot x1
Blair’s Mocha x1
L-album Wainscot x1
Lesser Yellow Underwing x2

 

Visible migration was quiet this morning here over my garden, though a few distant Meadow Pipits were heard flying over and a lone Pied Wagtail was seen heading south.

 

Pembroke Road, Old Portsmouth:

Bright and sunny here this morning with some high cloud overhead. Again, a good total of bird species this morning.

Thirteen bird species were seen or heard this morning on my first shift here in Pembroke Road, Old Portsmouth as the shift kicked off here with three Pied Wagtails seen searching and chasing insects on the Bowling Green. I’m glad to say that the Wagtails are starting to show more regularly now either here on the Bowling Green or on Governors Green. There was no sign of any Grey Wagtails this morning.

The Chiffchaff was heard again calling from the pathway between the Bowling Green and the house opposite. A couple of Blackbirds were seen chasing one another close by and I could have sworn that I heard a Song Thrush calling in the Holm Oaks but simply could not see the bird. All the usual birds were present, though there were a few omissions that just might turn up this afternoon here.

The bird species seen or heard this morning included the following:

• Magpie
• Carrion Crow
• Herring Gull
• Black-headed Gull
• Blackbird
• Great Tit
• Blue Tit
• Pied Wagtail (3)
• Chiffchaff
• Wren
• Robin
• Wood Pigeon
• Feral Pigeon

This afternoon, on my second shift, the weather changed considerably where cloud had now rolled in and the threat of rain was a probability. Thankfully, the rain stayed away but the wind had increased. The only new bird species seen for the day was a Great Black-backed Gull flying over Curtain Moat with another perched on a roof in nearby Penny Street; to make it 14 species for the day. 

There has already been many reports of Convolvulus Hawk-moth this month including one today in Lymington, Hampshire. I had this individual in my back garden a few years ago and hopefully, another will not be too far away.

A good total of bird species in Old Portsmouth.

Monday 28^th September 2026.

Trust me, I am not religious in anyway, but I do like a nice sunrise over Highland Road Cemetery.

Though the cold I have is still here, I went to Pembroke Road, Old Portsmouth to start my working week. It was to be a bright but overcast start to the day with a very light westerly wind. I didn’t have the effort to set up the Moth Box last night as I was desperate for a good night’s sleep; though I wished I did. I shall make up for that tonight.

It was a good day at Pembroke Road with not only pleasant weather, but a very good species total of birds; all of which were seen on my first shift.

Pembroke Road, Old Portsmouth:

The Bowling Green where up to 5 Pied Wagtails were present briefly this morning and oh, the stuffed Crow that is supposed to deter the birds here. Just laughable! The Magpies were playing football with it this afternoon!

Up to 18 species were recorded this morning with at least 10 of those within the first 10 minutes of my arrival. The Bowling Green nearby held at least 5 Pied Wagtails for around a few minutes until they dispersed, but leaving behind a pair that continued to search the short grass for the next 20 minutes. A Grey Wagtail was in the area for most of my time there, seen several times flying low overhead.

Not an awful lot of visible migration overhead, but two Meadow Pipits flying together headed off westbound. A Chiffchaff was calling in vegetation between the Bowling Green and Governor’s Green and seen flying off south while I checked the Bowling Green to count the Wagtails. A single Jay flew out of the trees opposite and headed off west.

The bird species seen or heard today included the following:

• Jay
• Magpie
• Carrion Crow
• Herring Gull
• Black-headed Gull
• Great Black-backed Gull
• Blackbird
• Great Tit
• Blue Tit
• Pied Wagtail (5)
• Grey Wagtail
• Meadow Pipit (2)
• Chiffchaff
• Wren
• Robin
• Dunnock
• Wood Pigeon
• Feral Pigeon

In Hampshire today:

The Semi-palmated Sandpiper was still present today at Pennington Marshes and a Little Stint was on the lake at Farlington Marshes. There were two reports of White-tailed Eagles with one at Portchester and another over Blashford Lakes. The long staying Osprey was reported again at Fawley Refinery.

Other news:

A lovely portrait of a Curlew at Keyhaven Marshes last Saturday. Photo by Emma Parkes.

During my travels today, I heard and saw my first Skylarks moving overhead when a pair of birds were seen flying very high over Eastney heading eastbound. At least two more Chiffchaffs were heard calling in the Eastney area later this morning.

A Wheatear at Stanpit Marshes. Photo by Emma Parkes.

Yesterday, birding pal Geoff Farwell went to Farlington Marshes where he recorded the following sightings: Merlin, Peregrine, Sparrowhawk, Raven, 16 Greenshank, 55 Great Crested Grebes, 2 Med Gulls, Kingfisher, 4 Stonechat, 3 Chiffchaff and heard both Bearded Tits and Yellow Wagtails. A Spotted Redshank was seen at the same site earlier in the morning by another birder.

Meanwhile, back over at Cowplain Marsh, Mr Andy Fisher had a Hobby over his garden at 6.30pm last Saturday. A Great Spotted Woodpecker was on the peanuts while overhead there has been daily sightings of Swallows, Martins and Meadow Pipits. A few Grey Wagtails over too.

A Black-tailed Godwit having a scratch at Hook-with-Warsash Reserve. Photo by Emma Parkes.

 

A new 'Patch tick' this morning.

Sunday 27^th September 2026.

The flock of Canada Geese flying south over the Cemy.

The damn cold continues as I spent most of the night downstairs sleeping with the dogs! I had the Moth Box on overnight and I started to wish I didn’t bother as it was such a poor turn out. A fairly bright start to the day with a breezy southerly wind blowing over the garden. I wanted to give the dogs a good walk this morning seeing they didn’t get one last night and so took them for a good stroll around Highland Road Cemetery.

My Moth Box:

One of 3 Double-striped Pugs this morning.

I was rather disappointed with the number and variety of Moths this morning with nothing new for the year either. Earlier this week, I was getting around 50-60 moths but just 15 moths of 6 species was hardly anything to write about. On a positive note, we are only a stone’s throw away from October and moth numbers do decline. I read on Hants Moths Facebook that someone got their first Black Rustic, which really is a true sign of late Autumn.

A Box Tree Moth was under the lid of the Box.

The Moths present this morning included the following:

MACRO BOX	MICRO BOX
Double-striped Pug x3	Light Brown Apple Moth x7
Small Dusty Wave x1	Rusty-dot Pearl x2
Large Yellow Underwing x1	Box Tree Moth x1

 

Highland Road Cemetery, Southsea:

The view of the south-west corner of the Cemetery.

Arriving at the Cemetery around 8am, I wasn’t at all surprised to see several dog-walkers already there and a few familiar faces (and dogs). It was quite bright overhead with plenty of high cloud, though the early morning wind had dropped, it was still quite mild as the high pressure over the south coast continues. There is talk of rain heading this way, but not this morning it seems.

Above, one of the Horse-chestnut Trees now turning brown and below, a couple of Ivy Bee's nectaring on the flowering Ivy.

A total of 18 species were recorded during the hour I was there and apart from the usual birds, there were few surprises in store. I have been recording wildlife, including the birds here on my ‘local patch’ for at least 17 years, but it was the first time I have ever seen a flock of Canada Geese fly over the site; my 82^nd bird species recorded here at Highland Road Cemetery. The birds were heard calling as they flew south over the Cemetery.

Above, Common Knapweed still in bloom and below, a Great Tit picking at a seed.

A couple of Goldcrests were heard this morning here and one was actually seen flying out of the Monkey Puzzle tree in the south-west corner of the site. A few Chiffchaffs were also calling at the site, but there were no sightings of the birds today.  A small flock of five Swallows flew south low over the trees and a Meadow Pipit was heard calling high over, but again, no sighting of the bird.

The Honey Fungus was still growing where the old Beech Tree once stood and below, looking east from the south-west corner.

As I was leaving the Cemetery, I heard the Jays calling within the trees but they remained hidden unlike the many Magpies and Wood Pigeons seen this morning.

The following bird species were recorded there this morning:

• Goldcrest
• Swallow
• Meadow Pipit
• Chiffchaff
• Blackbird
• Wood Pigeon
• Feral Pigeon
• Herring Gull
• Black-headed Gull
• Starling
• Wren
• Robin
• Blue Tit
• Great Tit
• Magpie
• Jay
• Carrion Crow
• Canada Geese

 

Back Garden Birding!

Saturday 26^th September 2026.

One of the Chiffchaffs near my garden this morning.

My heavy cold took its toll on me and so I had to forgo a day’s birding with the guys and as it turns out, both Andy Fisher and I had a sick note from Matron to take the day off birding! Birding pal, Geoff Farwell went on his lonesome to Old Winchester Hill while I done some Back Garden Birding instead.

Above and below, the Hornet-mimic Hoverflies were in my garden today.

I was very tempted, should I have been feeling a lot better, to take the long trek to see the Semi-palmated Sandpiper on Pennington Marshes and thankfully to all those who went for the bird, it remained loyal to the pools at this lovely site today, unlike the Lapland Bunting that done a runner overnight. The weather was amazing and it even got into the 70’s in the bright sunshine. My wife and I done a load of washing, making the most of the warm sunshine and in between all this, I sat in the garden enjoying both the birdlife and insect life my garden attracts.

Above, a Syrphus species of Hoverfly and below, one of the Solitary Bee's species. I shall get a true ID later.

Most of the bird action took place early in the morning with at least two Grey Wagtails and two Pied Wagtails low over the rooftops. Meadow Pipits were trickling through all day, though picking them out in a clear blue sky proved challenging. Up to two Chiffchaffs, possibly three birds, were skulking around the gardens and seen occasionally in neighbouring trees and bushes.

Above, the Speckled Wood seen in my garden yesterday. Below, a Holly Blue nectaring on the Jasmine Nightshade.

Ivy is now flowering in my garden and this in turn attracted a lot of insects. The flowering Ivy attracted my first Ivy Bees (Colletes hederae) of the year, but also a few Batman Hoverflies (Myathropa florea) were seen along with at least two Hornet-mimic Hoverflies (Volucella zonaria) seen in the garden.

Above, several Ivy Bees were present today although, below, they still had to run the gauntlet of avoiding the webs that contained False-widow Spiders! This Ivy Bee wasn't that lucky.

A few butterflies were also noted and that included a Holly Blue enjoying the Jasmine Nightshade growing at the back of the garden and a Red Admiral popped in occasionally and rested on the garden fence, but a Small White was a brief stayer. Yesterday, I had a Speckled Wood butterfly also resting on the garden fence. My garden is a good suntrap and most certainly attracts many insects, so if the birds are scarce, the insects always entertain.

Above, another photo of one of the Chiffchaffs in the neighbouring gardens. Below, Matt and Emma Parkes took the long trip down to Pennington Marshes to see the Semi-palmated Sandpiper and also had this bonus Osprey there.

Birding pal Geoff Farwell had a good walk around Old Winchester Hill today and notched up the following sightings: Marsh Tit, Redstart, 2 Stonechat, 5 Chiffchaff, 3 Blackcap, Siskin, Raven, Sparrowhawk, 3 Red Kites and 2 Common Buzzards. There was also a good number of Clouded Yellow butterflies still around also.

 

A good friend of mine sent me this!