14th July, 2016 Beachy Head Sunny periods cool NW 3

A cool morning with quite a strong NW breeze. We covered Birling lane, Shooters Bottom, Old Trapping Area, Hotel Garden, Icky Ridge and Belle Tout wood. Good numbers of Sand Martins generally moving W over the Headland with the highlight being a showy Nightingale.

Common Buzzard 5
Swift 8 W
Sand Martin 254 mainly W
Swallow 15
Nightingale 1 Juv/1st W
Wheatear 1 Juv Birling
Lesser Whitethroat 1-2 Shooters Bottom
Common Whitethroat 12
Blackcap 1 singing still
Willow Warbler 1 adult
Raven 1
Small numbers of Butterflies with an extremely worn Chalk Hill Blue (see below)

(Taken by DRC)

John and David at Birling-David will be returning to Unst this 

evening

Juvenile Wheatear at Birling (our first this Autumn)

A tatty Common Buzzard-5 Buzzards were seen today

Male Stonechat posing for its picture

 

 

 A very showy early morning Nightingale, probably a juvenile

going into 1stW plumage, showing a conspicuous gape and

buffish markings on the wing coverts.

A very worn Chalk Hill Blue (Our first for the year, and strange

it should be so worn this early in their season)