Sep 212024
I ran my 20w Actinic moth trap from my South Derbyshire garden on 20th September – results as follows – Lesser Treble-bar (1); White-point (2); Short-cloaked Moth (1); Brimstone Moth (6); Box Tree Moth (9); Large Yellow Underwing (19); Lesser Yellow Underwing (4); Lunar Underwing (1); Willow beauty form perfumaria (2) – male & female; Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing (1) female; Setaceous Hebrew Character (7); Garden carpet (1); Light Emerald (1); Common Marbled Carpet (2); Vine’s Rustic (1); Orchard Ermine agg (1): 16/59
Sep 182024
I ran my 20w Actinic moth trap from my garden overnight on 16th September 2024 – Results as follows- Large Yellow Underwing 3, Box Tree Moth 3, Pale Mottled Willow 2, Brimstone Moth 1, Light Emerald 1, Small Blood-vein 1, Dusky Thorn 1, Small Dusty Wave 1, Stigmella species (possibly atricapitella on appearance).
Sep 072024
My very first Scilly Pelagic took place during 15th -19th August 2024. John and I attended five pelagics, all very well organised by Scilly Pelagics (https://www.scillypelagics.com/). During the trips we saw 41 Wilson’s Petrel; 145 European Storm Petrel; 147 Cory’s Shearwater; 489 Great Shearwater; 20 Sooty Shearwater; 5,300 Manx Shearwater; 8 Bonxie; 1 2cy SOUTH POLAR SKUA; 3 Arctic Skua; 1 Pomarine Skua; 3 Mediterranean Gull; 1 Kittiwake; 1 Common Gull; present Herring Gull; Lesser Black-backed Gull; Great Black-backed Gull; Fulmar; 19 Arctic Tern; c20 Whimbrel; c700 SB Common Dolphin; 1 Risso’s Dolphin; 5 Fin Whale (inc i calf); 1 Minkie Whale; 12 Bluefin Tuna; 2 Blue Shark; 2 Sun Fish. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get a photograph of the South Polar Skua, but others did, and it was well watched and photographed. Many thanks to Bob Flood and Joe Pender for a fabulous few days at sea and for the South Polar Skua, a new British bird for me. If you want to see seabirds up close and personal, get yourself on a Scilly Pelagic, simple.
Sep 032024
I ran my usual garden light trap overnight on 27th August 2024 in Melbourne, South Derbyshire. Whilst processing the trap on the morning of 28th August I discovered an unfamiliar Olethreutinae species. I managed to pot it and put it to one side for viewing later. I had a second Olethruetinae species, this time one that I had seen before, but couldn’t put a name to it. So this was also potted and put to one side. These two moths were the last ones to be processed. I then spent the next three hours trying to ID both of them., in the end I gave up. One I thought was Large Marble (Phiaris schulziana) but the patterning didn’t look right despite my moth having a very distinctive white spot about two thirds in the centre of the forewing. I even looked at False Codling Moth, but when I discovered it was an Afrotropical species, often being occasionally imported as a larva in oranges and other fruits and seeds, I decided this was too far fetched.
I consulted with one of the members of our records team and good friend Will Soar. He very quickly identified one of the moths as Eudemis profundana, but was very intrigued by the second, saying that the moth was something far more interesting. A False Codling Moth, Thaumatotibia leucotreta. After checking photos on Lepiforum.org, it was a perfect match. A first record of the species for VC57 and for Derbyshire. This was the third that Will has identified in Britain, one in Norfolk and Essex and now this one.
Aug 112024
I ran my 20W Actinic Moth Trap from my garden, overnight on 23rd July 2024 – Results as follows – Dusky Sallow (1); Leopard Moth (1); Pale Prominent (1); Small Phoenix (1); Riband Wave (18); Chinese Character (1); Marbled Beauty (4); Common Carpet (2); Brimstone Moth (1); Common Rustic agg (2); Uncertain/Rustic agg (3); Scalloped Oak (1); Cloaked Minor (1); Flame Shoulder (1); Common Footman (4); Buff Footman (1); Dingy Footman (1 x f.stramineola) (3); Large Yellow Underwing (3); Bright-line Brown-eyes (1); Small Blood-vein (1); Willow Beauty (3); Small Fan-footed Wave (1); Single Dotted Wave (1); Chrysoteuchia culmella (Garden Grass-moth) (7); Galleria mellonella (Wax Moth) (2); Yponomeuta (Orchard/Apple/Spindle) agg (17); Crambus pascuella (White-banded Grass-moth) (4); Aphomia sociella (Bee Moth) (1); Hofmannophila pseudospretella (Brown House Moth (1); Lyonetia clerkella (Apple Leaf-miner) (2); Spilonota ocellana (Bud Moth (1); Pyrausta aurata (Mint Moth) (1); Blastobasis adustella (Common Masoner) (2); Bryotropha affinis (Dark Moss Moth) (3); Bryotropha domestica (House Moss Moth) (1); Acleris forsskalleana (Netted Tortrix) (1); Plutella xylostella (Diamond-back Moth (5); Epiphyas postvittana (Light Brown Apple Moth) (3); Yponomeuta evonymella (Bird Cherry Ermine) (1); Hypsopygia glaucinalis (Double-striped Tabby) (1); Yponomeuta rorrella (Willow Ermine) (1); Udea lutealis (Pale Straw Pearl) (1); Pammene fasciana (Acorn Piercer) (1); Agriphila straminella (Straw Grass-moth) (2); Coleophora sp (1); Coleophora trifolii (Melilot Case-bearer) (1); Acrobasis advenella (Hawthorn Knot-horn) (1); Scrobipalpa acuminatella (Common Thistle Miner) NFG / lifer (1); Ancylis achatana (Hedge Hook-wing) (1). 119/49 species
Jul 072024
I went back to India on 15th April 2024, flying out of London Heathrow to Delhi. A return trip for Tigers, as on my last trip some 20 years ago, I lost all my images due to X-Ray scanning. My good friend John Van-der-dol organised the trip through Asian Adventures, and during our 13 day stay, we visited Delhi, Little Rann of Kutch, Gir National Reserve, and Velavadar National Park, all in Gujarat State, then travelling to the Tiger Reserve at Bandhavgarh, in Madhya Pradesh for the last four days. My full album on the India trip can be viewed at https://www.flickr.com/photos/spinney_birder/albums/72177720317394470/
The Little Rann of Kutch is a desolate area of desert steppe and scrub, and is one of the last places that the endangered Asiatic Wild Ass exists in the wild. Highlights at Little Rann of Kutch were, the herds of the endangered Asiatic Wild Ass, Nilgai Antelope, 100’s of thousands of Rose-coloured Starlings going to roost, large flocks of Greater & Lesser Flamingo, Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse, Red-necked Falcon, a brief sighting of a Desert Fox, large flocks of egrets, storks and herons, and a variety of waders and other birds.
From the 18th April we spent the next three days at the famous Asiatic Lion Reserve at Gir National Park. Also known as Sasan Gir, it is a forest national park and wild life sanctuary, established in 1965 to protect the rare and endangered Asiatic Lion. Outside of Africa, it is the only place in the world where you can see a lion in its natural habitat.
The Asiatic Lion has a bigger tail tassle, bushier elbow tufts and prominent belly folds, than the African Lion which has a much bigger mane. The entire forest area in the park is dry and deciduous, which is the perfect habitat for Asiatic Lions. Gir is also home to 40 species of mammal and over 400 species of bird. We had several superb encounters with the lions, including a mother with 3 baby cubs. Also several sightings of Leopard, and a single Jackal, which felt a little safer, very close to our Jeep, after almost walking right into the lion family that we were watching.
Indian Nightjar and Savanna Nightjar were discovered roosting and we also had Mottled Wood Owl, Brown Fish Owl, Indian Scops Owl and 4 Spotted Owlet. A wide variety of birds were seen during our time in the Gir Park.
The 21st & 22nd April were spent at the Velavadar Blackbuck National Park. in the Bhavnagar District of Gujarat State. A 34 squrae mile grassland reserve famous for the Blackbuck Antelope, Indian Wolf and Striped Hyena. There are around 1800 Blackbuck in the park, and we saw several adult males and herds of females and young males. A family party of Indian Wolf and a single Striped Hyena, as well as a brief sighting of a Jungle Cat and several parties of Nilgai Antelope.
The 23rd April was a travel day from Ahmadabad to Jabelpur and on to Bandhavgarh in Madhya Pradesh. We then spent 24th – 27th at this fabulous Tiger reserve. The National Park is spread across the Vindhya Hills, and has a core area of 105 sq km and a buffer zone area of 400 sq kms. The habitat varies from deciduous forest and steep ridges, to huge grassy meadows, and is famous for the Royal Bengal Tiger. We had a number of good Tiger sightings as well as seeing a large family party of Indian Elephant, a Sloth Bear, Wild Boar, Chital (Spotted Deer), Samba Deer, Barking Deer and Gaur or Indian Bison. Many species of bird including Jungle Fowl, Red-headed Vulture, White-backed and Indian Vulture, Peafowl, Malabar Hornbill, Greater Racket-tailed Drongo, Indian Roller, Black-rumped Flameback, Orange-headed Thrush, to name but a few.
I flew back to UK on 28th April from Delhi, after a quite remarkable and memory filled trip.
Apr 102024
I ran my 20W actinic light trap in garden overnight on 5th April 2024 – Results as follows: 1 male Brindled Beauty; 1 Oak-tree Pug; 1 Grey Shoulder-knot (NFG); 1 Chestnut; 4 Hebrew Character; 1 Clouded Drab; 1 Common Quaker:
Apr 102024
I ran my 20W actinic trap in my garden overnight on 30 March 2024 – results as follows: – Early Grey 2; Clouded Drab 1; Small Quaker 1; Hebrew Character 3; Common Quaker 2:
Apr 102024
During 19 – 26 March we spent a week on Fuerteventura, the third year in succession we have visited this island. On the 21 March I spent an afternoon with my good friend Alan Conlin and his wife, who, just by coincidence, happened to be staying at the northern end of Fuerteventura, birding the Tindaya Plain.Â
One of my target birds and one I’ve never seen on the island was Cream-coloured Courser, and I was also keen to see Houbara Bustard again. Well, we had a great few hours birding, basically cleaning up on the target species. Several Cream-coloured Courser, a male Houbara Bustard, 14 stunning Black-bellied Sandgrouse, small flocks of Trumpeter Finch, several Berthelot’s Pipit and Mediterranean Short-toed Lark.
One morning two Hoopoe performed in the garden of the Hotel and also 2 Plain Swift and 2 Ruddy Shelduck as flyovers. An enjoyable few days away in warm spring sunshine……
