Probably lowest moth numbers for June ever?

Thursday 20th June 2024.

Heart & Dart.

I was up very early this morning as I ventured into the garden at 4.45am hoping for a decent haul of moths before the Sparrows had their breakfast! However, we are now in the last third of the month and all I got were 10 moths in total (I found a few more later) and one in the kitchen! As mentioned earlier in the week, this year has been very disappointing with the moth numbers and I don't think it's the Bats over my garden in the evening keeping the numbers down. All relatively common stuff today of which I rescued a Beautiful Plume from a spider's web and the White-shouldered House Moth was on the ceiling within my kitchen. The only other insect of note was a Harlequin Ladybird on one of the egg trays.

• Heart & Dart
• White Ermine 2
• Bright-line Brown-eye
• Ruddy Streak
• Blushed Knot-horn
• Brown House Moth
• Barred Marble
• Beautiful Plume 2
• White-shouldered House Moth

Harlequin Ladybird.

Yesterday, I got up to 16 species for the day at Pembroke Road that included the usual four species of Gull again. A pair of Sparrowhawks were displaying high over my house yesterday afternoon; the first time I have seen them this week. It didn't take long for me to check the moth box with that low number of moths and so I took the dogs for a walk around the block at 5.15am. The ever hungry Herring Gull chicks on the rooftops were calling endlessly and I was pleased to see Swifts (about 8 birds) swooping low over the road checking out the nest boxes in our road. How many will use them is anyone's guess, but let's hope it's a good year. Another Swift Box is being installed further up the road this Sunday.

Sedge Warbler on the Canal Path, Titchfield. Photo by Emma Parkes.

Fairly quiet at the moment in Hampshire although it seems a few ‘Lazee’s’ are ‘ticking off’ the Ruddy Shelduck on Petersfield Pond. A genuine wild bird is anyone's guess, but a very smart individual though and in this lovely sunshine, it's definitely worth taking a photo or two of this smart bird. I shall be going to Durston Head in Dorset this Saturday for my annual Puffin quest. We failed to see them last year so hopefully, we might have better luck this time. The weather is looking very good for the weekend and so should be a very good day out as per usual there.

This Wood Warbler was in the New Forest recently. They are becoming very scarce in the Forest lately. Photo by Rob Porter.

Above, one of the young Herring Gulls on a roof in my road. At least three nests can be seen while I am walking my dogs.