SE Nature Notes - w/e May 2nd
3 May 2010
Portsmouth & Portsdown
A velvet scoter was on Spider Lake in Portsmouth Harbour on Tuesday. Also in the harbour 4 red-breasted mergansers and 2 whimbrels were seen. The scoter was still present on Sunday 2nd May. Milton Common has produced good birds again this week including a yellow wagtail, sand martins, 25 whitethroats, a common sandpiper, unusually 2 shelducks, 6 sedge warblers, 12 reed warblers and 50 swifts.
On Wednesday and Friday there were large collections of birds over the sewer outfall off Eastney. On Wednesday the flock included common and Sandwich terns and on Friday around 100 common terns. At Farlington Marshes there were 3 greenshanks on the lake and a garganey on the stream on Friday.
Havant, Hayling & Emsworth
A walk in the north of Hayling Island on Tuesday produced a few nice butterflies including a green-veined white and a small tortoiseshell. On Gunner Point Hayling Island the green-veined orchids are beginning to look good. Other flowers noted on the Wednesday walk included spring beauty, fumitory and lots of sea sandwort but only one in flower. Two arctic skuas were in Hayling Bay on Wednesday and another on Friday. On the same day there was a Cetti’s warbler and 8 swifts at Budds Farm Bedhampton.
Four whimbrels were on the bar at the mouth of the Langbrook Stream at lunch time on Thursday. A hen harrier and a hobby were seen at Sandy Point Hayling Island on Friday. There was also a whinchat and 5 wheatears. On Saturday there were 25 whimbrels on the shore alongside the Billy Trail and 10 common whitethroats and 1 lesser whitethroat moving north along the trail. A mistle thrush sang beautifully from the top of a Leigh Park Gardens’ tree this week. Swifts were flying over Emsworth on Sunday 2nd.
Fareham and Gosport
Gosport’s butterflies this week have included small tortoiseshells, brimstones, small coppers, holly blues, peacocks, speckled woods, green-veined, small & large whites, commas and orange tips. A little gull was at Titchfield Haven on Tuesday. A common scoter and a little gull were off Hill Head on Wednesday. Swifts were seen over central Fareham on Thursday.
Waterlooville and South Downs
On 25th and 30th a cuckoo was heard at Denmead where cuckoo flowers are showing in several ditches. Another cuckoo was at Catherington on Tuesday 27th. Swallows have arrived in their usual garage site in the village. There were lots of butterflies on Chalton Down on Wednesday including holly blues, very active dingy and grizzled skippers and a burnet companion moth. In Lowton’s Copse, Catherington at the end of the week the bluebells were superb and toothwort still in good shape. A garden warbler was prominent on the northern edge of the copse.
