May 2020

31st. We walked from Nancledra to Rogers' Tower, and saw a golden-ringed dragonfly.

Rogers' Tower

golden-ringed dragonfly

30th. Red kite, heading east over the house 09:00 – 9:30h. For an account of the 9-11 May invasion, involving hundreds of young non-breeding birds, see

https://www.cbwps.org.uk/cbwpsword/red-kite-map/

mobbed kite

doghead

29th. 3 red kite, heading east over the house 09:00 – 9:30h.We visited Paul and Cilla Racey at Cadgwith now that we are allowed to meet with two people from another household outdoors. We walked from Mullion Cove (2 choughs just S of cove) to Predannack, and saw this four-spotted chaser form praenubila.

four spotted chaser

 

28th. 2 red kites E over house 09.00-09.30h.

27th. A second wave of red kite movement. One circling over the house at 15:30. Ca. 20 sanderling on the beach at Marazion, and 3 singing Cetti's warblers and a sedge warbler at the marsh. A nightjar churring distantly near Carn Galver at dusk. Another crazy sunset there.

Carn Galver

Carn Galver

Carn Galver sunset

Carn Galver

25th. Repeated short bursts of song from a shrub in St Erth along the River Hayle was either from a nightingale of a Cetti's warbler. I went back the following evening and heard the coctact calls of Cetti's warbler, making that more likely.

pencilled cranesbill

24th. Walked from Zennor towards Gurnard's Head. Just where we turned inland at the bottom of a track back to the coast road we saw several small pearl-bordered fritillaries.

Gurnards Head

small pearl-bordered fritillary

Zennor

23rd. St Ives Island: 2 great northern divers, one summer plumage, one winter plumage. An amazing sunset at Porthmeor Beach that evening.

Porthmeor sunset

21st. Red kite E over house 15.00h.

20th. Godrevy Point was quiet, but the nearby road was covered in cars and lots of people were surfing. About 5 grey seals in Mutton Cove.

Godrevy

thrift

grey seals

19th. Carn Galver – Porthmeor: 2 singing cuckoos, female merlin.

Bosigran

Penwith fields

17th. Peregrine over house.

16th. As lockdown becomes lifted gradually, we are allowed to travel unlimited distances to exercise. So I drove to Hendra near St Just to see the TAWNY PIPIT. It took me a couple of hours to find it, but eventually got there.

tawny pipit

15th. Male peregrine divebombing a female over house.

14th. First day in the car for almost two months. The Merry maidens stone circle and Lamorna Cove, where a huge grey seal was hauled out.

Merry Maidens

grey seal

grey seal

grey seal

12th. St Ives Island: 4 whimbrel. Peregrine from house.

10th. St Ives: 4 swift, greenshank (heard from garden), curlew (also heard from garden) and a summer plumage dunlin on the Island. Between 16.30 and 17.30h 15 red kites flew E over the house, with up to 3 together. 9th. Oak eggar caterpillar Clodgy Point.

oak eggar larva

Male linnet.

linnet

7th. St Ives Island: 4 purple sandpiper, 26 turnstone, 35 linnet; 5 whimbrel and 30 Manx shearwater flew W.

turnstone

3rd. Buzzard just E of Porthminster beach in tree,

2nd. A long bike ride on the electric Brompton: 6 whimbrel on the Hayle Estuary, 16 at Marazion. Thirty purple sandpiper still at Penzance. The second calendar year Iceland gull is still at Newlyn Harbour, together with a razorbill and a guillemot.

Marazion

Iceland gull

Iceland gull

guillemot

January 2020February 2020March 2020April 2020June 2020July 2020August 2020September 2020October 2020November 2020December 2020