Monday 26th September 2022.
There was overnight rain which I did not expect early this morning and having not covered the moth box up, I feared the worst; however, I was pleasantly surprised on how many moths were present this morning. It remained overcast during the early morning and breezy and I had a job to make sure the egg trays did not blow away or fall into any water.
There were 38 moths of 14 species present this morning, but I think the rain had a lot to do with the lower numbers. Clancy’s Rustic, Turnip Moth and 2 Angle Shades were the migrant moths today. No visible migration this morning regarding the birds, though an unseen Pied Wagtail did fly over.
The moths present this morning included the following:
- 11 Lesser Yellow Underwing
- 7 Large Yellow Underwing
- 2 Lunar Underwing
- 1 Clancy’s Rustic
- 1 Brimstone Moth
- 2 Angle Shades
- 3 Square-spot Rustic
- 1 Turnip Moth
- 1 Vines Rustic
- 1 Pale Mottled Willow
- 2 Eudonia angustea
- 3 Common Plume
- 1 Box Tree Moth
- 2 Light Brown Apple Moth
Having today off, I was most interested if yesterday's Red-backed Shrike was still at Medmerry RSPB Reserve and so I gave Andy a text to see if he was interested in making the trip into West Sussex? Yes, he was up for it and I was more than happy that he had put his moth box on overnight, which in turn attracted a few moths to enjoy. I could not grumble about his small catch around his box that included a late Swallow-tailed Moth, TWO Black Rustic and a Blair’s Mocha! If he had a moth box like mine, I wonder what numbers and other goodies it might attract in his garden?
The following moths were present in and around Andy’s moth box this morning:
- 1 Large Yellow Underwing
- 4 Lunar Underwing
- 1 Pale Mottled Willow
- 2 Black Rustic
- 1 Blair’s Mocha
- 1 Swallow-tailed Moth
- 2 Square-spot Rustic
- 1 Common Plume
Lunar Underwings and Black Rustics in Andy's garden this morning.
After packing the moth box away, we made our way to the car park by Medmerry RSPB Reserve and joined a few people already looking for the Shrike. Birdguides had reported it being around the hedge opposite the car park around 10am, which was encouraging, but despite a lengthy 90 minutes, there was no sign of the bird. Even Barry and Margaret Collins came down for the bird and joined in the search as did Selsey stalwart Owen Mitchell, but to no avail.
By 11.30am, Andy and myself were getting a bit hungry and so we decided to take a drive back to the Garage to get some refreshments and as I raised the boot of my car up to put my birding gear in, Andy spotted something long-tailed and light coloured fly up from the scrub in front of us and into the hedge. He was convinced it was the juvenile Red-backed Shrike and so we waited patiently for the bird to hopefully show itself. And it did! Out it popped and we were literally around 20 feet away from the bird as it sat there out in the open, showing superbly while I took both photos and video footage of this superb bird.
Top photo: a Wheatear on the main path. Bottom photo: a pair of Roe Deer grazing in the field to the south of the main path.
I told Andy to tell the others and so he went back to the main road and gave them the shout it had returned. We think it must have been in that scrubby area in front of my car all the time, while we searched all the fields and hedges nearby! Still, it was well worth the wait as we eventually watched the bird fly up to the top of the hedge and then flew off behind and out of view. We then made our way to the Garage and picked up something to eat and drink and returned to the car park again.
Top photo, an Avocet between a couple of Black-headed Gulls on the Stilt Pools.
After lunch, we made our way to the Stilt Pools, keeping an eye out for anything interesting. During our search for the Shrike, we enjoyed good numbers of both Swallow and House Martins flying over the fields and hedgerows in the blustery conditions, although the sun did come out behind the large clouds overhead now and then. A Tree Pipit was heard and then seen flying overhead and soon landed in a distant field, while small flocks of both Linnet and Meadow Pipit also flew over. A Common Buzzard was seen perched up in a conifer nearby and a very brief view of a Sparrowhawk on a distant hedge was added to our raptor list for the day.
Making our way to Marsh Barn, we had sightings of a distant female Marsh Harrier over the fields and also at least one, possibly two, Kestrels. A Wheatear was on the footpath ahead of us and showed well till it flew off into the neighbouring field. A large puddle beside the Barn held several small Frogs that were nowhere near adult size yet, but cute nonetheless as they dived to the bottom of the puddle.
Top photo: Wildfowl and Lapwing on the Stilt Pools. Bottom photo: one of three Cattle Egrets by the Pools.
As we neared the Stilt Pools, several Stonechat were seen around the Gorse area and also a few around the barns to the west. Another Wheatear was seen perched on a fence post, but there was no sign of any Dartford Warblers around the Gorse area. The Stilt Pools looked busy with birds, which was mostly dominated by wildfowl that included Teal, Wigeon, Mallard and at least 6 Egyptian Geese. A pair of Common Snipe flew up and flew off west, which left only Lapwing to represent any waders left on the pool. While checking out the wildfowl, a female Peregrine swooped down to try to grab a bird, but failed and then it flew off east over the reserve at speed. A few Little Egrets were seen wading along the edge of the water and a pair of Cattle Egrets took flight and also headed off east.
Once we reached the sea, we noticed the tide was up, but there was very little to be seen here. However, I did pick up a very distant Gannet flying east and a pair of Med Gulls flew together westbound over the sea. Walking back, three Cattle Egrets were now present by the edge of the Stilt Pools, attracted by the small herd of Cattle feeding on the reserve. More Stonechats and another Wheatear was seen and then our fifth raptor of the day was seen, a female Sparrowhawk flying low over the main footpath and then heading off east. Looking east, I was impressed by the high tide flooding a lot of the area, creating a perfect area for wildfowl to rest and in the distance, another distant female Marsh Harrier was seen quartering the fields.
Two more photos of the superb juvenile Red-backed Shrike within the car park this afternoon.
A large flock of Goldfinches showed well by the main footpath and Andy spotted a Clouded Yellow butterfly of which it eventually landed and allowed us a very close approach. In fact, it actually allowed Andy to literally poke it with his finger before it flew off! Not a great deal else was seen on the way back because we were hoping we would be in the car before the rain came. Lucky for us, it stayed dry as we neared the car as we noticed a female birder taking photos of something within the car park. That was to be our second ‘bite of the cherry’ as the juvenile Red-backed Shrike was showing very well again in exactly the same place as before. A cracking way to end our trip here.
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