Month: June 2023

Light Sw winds first thing and a slight Haze gave the morning a Raptor feel and sure enough just after 09.30 I picked up a dark phase male Honey Buzzard coming low over the fields above Fan bay.

I ran as fast as I could in an attempt to get closer but I needn’t have bothered as the bird came right over head, circling over the cliff edge for a few minutes before heading straight out South East towards Calais, I lost it as a speck way out over the Channel, a failed breeder perhaps? had enough of England!

One of the better encounters here with one of my favourite species. The Last days of June and into July seem to be an ok time to see migrant HBs along the coast here. In other news just under 200 common Swifts and my first 11 Sand Martins of the ‘Autumn’ headed South West along the cliffs. A Curlew flew low over the Valley and a White Wagtail went West along the cliffs on Lighthouse down.

Looking South West over Fan Bay

2 Weeks away in Switzerland with work and a week back home with daily coverage and not an awful lot to report.

I returned to find that my local Peregrine pair had impressively fledged 5 chicks, a noisy summer ahead. One of the other pairs that I keep an eye on have successfully fledged a single chick whereas another seem to have failed.

A flock of 21 Crossbills flew over the garden the morning of the 26th and I came across a Large Tortoiseshell in Langdon hole later the same day. A brief encounter with a fast moving butterfly, covering a large area so only record shots only were taken, nice though!

A Turtle Dove was purring somewhere in the valley on the 27th, I couldn’t pin down its exact location but heard it several times, perhaps a failed breeder from elsewhere? The same day an unseasonal juvenile Yellow wagtail was feeding along the cliff top path, where from I wonder?

Swifts, and Swallows have been moving SW in small numbers, the breeding season seems to have gone well for local Yellowhammers, Skylarks and Corn Buntings.

Still no change to the wind direction but an interesting day on the headland. three small flocks of Crossbills moved North up the coast, 2 Spotted flycatchers and a Reeling Grasshopper warbler at Langdon were the supporting cast to a Serin which was darting around the area under the Radar station, very mobile but came back to the same area a couple of times. A Hobby was over the valley and c20 Swift and similar numbers of House martin were noted.

Juv Crossbill