Moth in my kitchen!

Friday 22nd December 2023.

The Bloxworth Snout moth that flew about my kitchen yesterday afternoon.

As we near Christmas, work got busier and therefore I didn't really have the time to do any serious birding of late, but I did get an unexpected  moth fluttering in my kitchen yesterday! After a short while, it eventually settled down and almost immediately, I recognised it as a Bloxworth Snout; a species that seems to turn up in any month it seems. Outside its normal haunts of Portsmouth, this moth is particularly sought after by fellow moth enthusiasts. Below, some superb photos have been taken of late from some of my friends including the following photos:

A female Hen-Harrier in the New Forest. Photo taken by Graeme Loader.

Above, a Fieldfare photographed by Pete Appleton. Below, a Redwing that was photographed by Emma Parkes.

An immature Sparrowhawk photographed by Pete Appleton.

Apart from that, I have heard some Redwing while walking the dogs in the evening, but sadly, very little else of note. The drake Ring-necked Duck is still present on Linbrook Lake, Blashford, today and most likely, that will be where I will be heading tomorrow. Three Waxwings were reported in someone's garden in Southampton on Thursday, but no sign whatsoever today. Could they still be around? A Christmas edition of Painting birds by Jim Muir (Vic Reeves) was on last night and he and his family were watching Waxwings in Finland (I wouldn't mind his job, though I cannot paint as good as him!).