03/05/2026
Another round of butterfly counts. When I left the house, it was sunny and a Holly Blue flew past (my third at the house, so far ths spring), but butterflies were few and far between.
14C. Full Cloud Cover. Wind felt on face
Site A: No butterflies in count zone, but with a Small Tortoiseshell/Peacock was spotted next to site. Common vetch coming into flower. Buttercup and Dandelion.
Site B: No butterflies again. Rowan tree was in flower, along with some Dandelion,
Site C: One Speckled Wood at site. Hawthorn in the flower with clusters of Wild Mustard (Charlock), and some Common Vetch around the site.
At the pond, there were a couple of Orange Tips, but these were the only other butterflies seen.
More interesting was songbirds.
Site A: Wren, Blackbird, Robin, Teal, Jackdaw, Song Thrush, Goldfinch, Greensank, Oystercatcher, Redshank, Kittiwake (?)
Site B: Blackbird, Sedge Warbler, Whitethroat, Linnet, Hooded (Carrion) Crow, Stonechat, Robin, Song Thrush, Dunnock, Blackcap, Grey Plover
Fen: Blackbird, Reed Bunting, Robin, Song Thrush, Blackcap, Linnet, Grey Plover, Dunnock, Redshank, Meadow Pipit, Skylark, Whitethroat
Site C: Blackbird, Robin, Chaffinch, Goldfinch, Greenfinch, Blackcap, Wren, Goldcrest, Song Thrush, Meadow Pipit, Grey Plover, Dunnock, Linnet, Mistle Thrush, Jackdaw, Magpie, Chaffinch
Pond: Robin, Meadow Pipit, Goldfinch, Blackbird, Wren, Sedge Warbler, Dunnock, Sand Martin, Blue Tit, Barn Swallow, Hooded Crow, Jackdaw, Reed Bunting
At the pond were a couple of Moorhen and a Mute Swan.
There were a couple of Whitethroat, one in the large Hawthorn tree in the Gorse behind Site B, but couldn't get a good photo. Also a first was a Grey Plover getting regularly picked up in the Fen; typically it's a brief pickup on the wind from the estuary.
Also heard near the pond was a possible Grasshopper Warbler. While the song was distinctive (and picked up the app), to the point I thought it was very early in the season to hear what I thought were actual grasshoppers, it proved to be elusive to spot despite its close proximity to the path. Hopefully, it can be verified. The presence of so many Sedge Warblers made ever warbler sighting a false alarm. To add the malaise, I didn't save the recording I had, and furstratingly, the app has no autosave and autodeletes unsaved recordings. Of course, when I went to make a new recording, I didn't hear it again. I gave it about 60 minutes in late afternoon before phone battery became an issue.
Other birds picked up at the Racecourse were Willow Warbler, Chiffchaff, Long-Tailed T**s, Wood Pigeon, Collared Dover, and Goldcrests.
