Wednesday 24 May 2017

Another quiet day. There were just five Whimbrels, five Turnstones and one Curlew on the Narrows, and again early morning mist hampered any hopes of seawatching. 185 Manx Shearwaters did however pass in the afternoon. A small overhead hirundine passage featured 55 Swallows and 31 House Martins, alongside two Lesser Redpolls that passed south over Pen Cristin mid-afternoon. Five Goldfinches was a slight increase, and perhaps one or two had arrived. However, no other migration was suspected on a quiet day. Two Meadow Pipit nests were found, with four and two juveniles, while a Magpie nest near Ty Pellaf had one well-developed youngster. All over the island birds are to be seen carrying food now, and soon there'll be plenty of fledglings! 

17 Moths of nine species was our best haul since 7 April (it's been a very slow spring for Lepidoptera on Bardsey!). Shears (six) and Small Square-spot (4) again provided the numbers, while singles of Buff Ermine and White Ermine provided an excellent opportunity to compare the two species for the guests present. A single Dark Sword Grass was the only immigrant, while a Chrysoteuchia culmella (a common Micro Moth of grassland habitats) was our first of the year.

White Ermine on the left, and Buff Ermine on the right

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