Smooth Hedgehog & Friends

Almost a week since my last post and despite coming down from the White-throated Robin fuelled high it has been a fairly busy one. Friday found me heading north into some little watched inland areas, a Cuckoo at Foumart Knowe, Spotted Flycatchers at Chillingham along with breeding Herring & Lesser Black-backed Gulls at Holburn Moss were the highlights.
At the coast a Little Egret was again south of the Holy Island causeway.

 Small Copper - Holburn Moss

Red-legged Partridge - Holborn Village

Friday night added a new moth species to the garden list, a common one but that shouldn't detract from the rather impressive Buff-tip that acts as a stunt double for small silver birch branches when they are called for.

Sadly despite hanging onto it for 2 days the light was never good and every time I tried to grab a picture it seemed to rain.

Buff-tip

An early start Sunday produced a single Spoonbill at Castle Island along with a Little Ringed Plover. I'd been poring over a 1st-summer Lesser Black-backed Gull and in the process skipped over a 1st-summer Med Gull that was picked up by STH.and crew further downriver. A 1st-summer drake Goldeneye continued the theme. Further up the coast at Cresswell another Spoonbill slept on the spit whilst at East Chevington I was lucky to be sat just a couple of minutes when a Bittern got up and dropped into the NW corner of the north pool before briefly clambering up the phragmites. A 'white-winged gull' here appeared to be a leucistic Herring Gull or possibly a hybrid with some glaucoides influence. I thought the bird was a 3rd-summer showing a non-adult type washed out looking bill with dark rather than orange/red on the lower mandible.

Monday found the kids and I at Cresswell where four Spoonbills fed briefly before flying off SSW; eight 1st-summer Little Gulls were also hanging about. Monday night was a decent moth night with at least two new moths for the garden, a so far unidentified micro and the aforementioned smooth hedgehog (copyright S Sexton) a Drinker amongst 30 species, 87 individuals. Large Yellow Underwing and Common Wainscot were new for the year.

Drinker