Saturday 19th June 2021

After yesterdays deluge this morning was damp, cooler & with a northerly influenced airflow. Offshore 3 drake Eider south & 2 Sandwich Tern north was it. Overhead 2 Swift screaming & a Swallow went north along the beach. Good to trap a juvenile Black Redstart although whether it is an offspring of one of the pairs here or whether it is a dispersing youngster from other pairs breeding in the dock this year is not known.

The number & variety of moths was suppressed by the weather conditions. Small Elephant Hawk-moth is a regular here.

Ringing: 3 Linnet, 1 Black Redstart, 1 Dunnock, 1 Greenfinch.

Friday 18th June 2021

Rain, heavy at times & as the forecast isn't much better its an early bath today. Starring out into the abyss produced a Gannet but literally nowt else going past in several hours observation.

Brown Oak Tortrix has only been noted here previously in 2019 & is surprisingly scarce in Suffolk.

Ringing: nil.

Thursday 17th June 2021

Lesser Whitethroat - we have 5 pairs across the site with some now feeding young out of the nest.

Wet & muggy morning. Southbound 9 Curlew, 8 Sandwich Tern & Whimbrel with northbound 9 Common Scoter & Fulmar. A single Sand Martin south is the first of the autumn. Finally an adult Mistle Thrush is odd for the time of year as if we get any at this time then they are usually juvs.

Tawny-barred Angle is an inhabitant of coniferous trees and, as such, is infrequent here.

Ringing: 1 Goldfinch

Wednesday 16th June 2021

Freshly hatched chick heading back under mum. 

A warm onshore breeze brought no grounded migrants. Single Swallow, Swift, Tufted Duck & Whimbrel headed south, Fulmar north & a Kittiwake over the observatory into the river.

Cydia microgrammana is another Landguard speciality. This nationally scarce species is rarely recorded away from areas of Restharrow.

Ringing: 3 Linnet.

Tuesday 15th June 2021

Rose-coloured Starling

 Completely overcast through the morning for a nice change with the cloud breaking up from lunchtime to produce another warm afternoon albeit with a cooling easterly breeze; the day's highlight was an adult Rose-coloured Starling which was present out on the point with Starlings on and off all morning - presumably / possibly / probably a different individual from the bird last seen on the 9th.

Other birds comprised 2 Black Redstarts, 5 Common Scoter, a Fulmar, 4 Mediterranean Gulls, a Reed Warbler and 8 Swifts.

Ringing: Reed Warbler 1, Starling 1, House Sparrow 1, Linnet 5

Elachista biatomella is a nationally scarce species with Landguard one of the few Suffolk sites

Monday 14th June 2021

Mute Swans

 Sunny and humid throughout although cloud built up from mid-afternoon; birds highlights were few and far between but included another 13 Curlews heading south at sea - while always nice to see, it is somewhat sad to think that these early returning birds represent failed breeders, 4 Black Redstarts, a Chiffchaff, a Fulmar, a dispersing juvenile Coal Tit, 2 Jackdaws, 2 Mediterranean Gulls, 2 Sandwich Terns, a Swallow and 3 Swifts.

It was though, a notable day for Odonata with the first site record of Lesser Emperor - a female hawking around on The Butts along with another Norfolk Hawker (still <10 records here but with the species colonising southern Suffolk at a fair rate over the last few years and four records in the last three days, we're sure there'll be more to come), a female Broad-bodied Chaser ovipositing in The Butts pond and a Four-spot Chaser.

Ringing: Chiffchaff 1, Coal Tit 1, Linnet 3

Pugs are traditionally a difficult-to-identify group of moths but V-Pug here is one of the easiest

Sunday 13th June 2021

Never had a Pheasant here for so long, but as we occasionally see a female, that is probably the reason why.

Hot & sticky morning. Very much the time of year when its a case of "hunt the migrant". 4 Jackdaw paid a visit & single Fulmar & Swift flew south. Lots of busy adults are tending for their young & baby birds on site at the present time which is good, as a lot of the earlier attempts this year didn't get very far due to the cold drought in April followed by a cold & wet May.

Two Norfolk Hawker this morning including one quartering the area right down on the point near the jetty. With the plant with which it is associated in the new pond by the cottage will it colonise ?

We do quite well for Sand Dart. It is a nationally scarce species restricted to habitats like this, which accounts for its rarity.

Ringing: 1 Blackbird, 1 Linnet.