June and July

A filler post. Been busy and without laptop at home. Excuses etc...

June

Had one afternoon visit, Sunday 2nd. Nothing much to report but a couple of new Lesser Whitethroats - bringing the spring total in the area to a healthy eight. There was still a Cuckoo calling around Kelk. A Little Owl (year tick) was also at Kelk and has been seen fairly regularly all summer by various people. Such activity is a reasonable indication of nearby breeding.

July

A visit over the weekend of 13-14th produced a few goodies including a surprise year tick of a Common Tern heading south along the beck. These are scarce in the area with only one other record since 2007.

Also seen were 3 Cormorant, a Marsh Harrier, a Hobby, a juvenile Oystercatcher with the local pair, 2 Green Sandpiper, 2 Barn Owls, a Kingfisher, several young Yellow Wagtails, and 3 or 4 different Corn Buntings in the same field (possibly 1-2 young birds).

Butterflies were more visible than previous months, the majority being Ringlet (200+), Meadow Brown (40+), Small Tortoiseshell (30+), whites (20+) and Small Skipper (15+). A single Large Skipper was the only other species seen.

Year list lands at 100. Will add some pictures later.

099 Little Owl
100 Common Tern