Owen's lifetime of wildlife in a year. (1 Viewer)

[Owene]

March 19th

Popped up to the local churchyard to have a look at the reptile mats. Mainly woodlice but one sleeping baby slowworm

One of my main aims for the year was to see the final 2 native reptile species I’ve not seen (smooth snake and sand lizard) but I’d quite like to see the lot this year and slowworm was one I didn’t really have a plan for so pleased with this one. They’re so cute and shiny as well

5 slowworm

Birds 151 Mammals 11 Herp 5 Butterflies 9 Total 176 Lifers 20

 

[Owene]

Still March 19th

Had a little walk around the local park hoping for a peacock (butterfly 😀) and to maybe get a red admiral or brimstone photo.

Did just fine with the peacock and also got a singing Willow Warbler. First bird in a while

Edit
While walking the dog my wife mentioned seeing bats so I popped out to try out my newish bat detector. Very windy and not totally up on how it works but had solid hits on noctule for the one I saw

152 willow warbler
10 peacock.
12 noctule

Birds 152 Mammals 12 Herp 5 Butterflies 10 Total 179 Lifers 20

 

[kb57]

Still March 19th

Had a little walk around the local park hoping for a peacock (butterfly 😀) and to maybe get a red admiral or brimstone photo.

Did just fine with the peacock and also got a singing Willow Warbler. First bird in a while

Edit
While walking the dog my wife mentioned seeing bats so I popped out to try out my newish bat detector. Very windy and not totally up on how it works but had solid hits on noctule for the one I saw

152 willow warbler
10 peacock.
12 noctule

Birds 152 Mammals 12 Herp 5 Butterflies 10 Total 179 Lifers 20

That would be a really early willow warbler for me, up here I rarely hear one before mid-April - 200m elevation, up in NW Durham makes a big difference I guess.

 

[Owene]

Yeah. We’re quite low down and even if it’s not much of a sea crossing from Devon/Somerset we do seem to get quite a few birds stopping and then moving on. There was one reported in the local reserve four or five days before mine

 

[Owene]

March 25th

A bit of a slow week this one. Saw my first U.K. small whites yesterday but they are about the only common species that isn’t split on the Canary Islands so not one for the list.

Went across to Goldcliff this morning. Absolutely glorious sunshine and plenty of birds, small whites and tortoiseshells. A guy I was with saw an orange tip through his scope but I missed it. I also missed a ruff and a garganey that earlier birders had seen. Still managed a few fairly easy additions to the list though.

Covid allowing I’ve got a trip to extremadura in a fortnight so I’m trying not to travel too much for year ticks at present. There’s still a few wintering birds around I’ve not seen but I think I’ll leave them until the autumn


153 skylark
154 avocet

Birds 154 Mammals 12 Herp 5 Butterflies 10 Total 181 Lifers 20

 

[Owene]

March 26th

Nothing new on the butterfly or bird front despite some family time in the park today. Did have a close encounter with a feeding heron though. After a few hotter days I decided to have a proper go at getting to grips with the echo acoustics phone bat detector that I picked up in the winter when there were no bats to try it on

Despite a few times when a bat was visible directly above me and the detector was playing it’s calls without an ID I still managed quite a few hits on noctule, common and soprano pipistrelle at the local church. All species I’ve had there with regular bat detectors in the past. Managed some pipistrelles in the garden when I got home as well. I don’t really have too many mammal targets this year so increasing my bat list might be really good.

13 common pipistrelle
14 soprano pipistrelle

Birds 154 Mammals 14 Herp 5 Butterflies 10 Total 183 Lifers 20

 

[Owene]

March 27th

Went out this morning with a local wildlife group. Was hoping for grass snake or toads or newts and maybe a speckled wood or blackcap.

Which I guess teaches me about the expectations and why wildlife is brilliantly unpredictable. No sign of those species but what I saw was a very pleasant surprise

Despite the reptilian focus we saw just one adder and some tadpoles. Both already listed.

I did learn a lot about bees and bee flies and flies that mimic bees but aren’t bee flies. Always great to come across other areas of wildlife enthusiasm.

But one of the reptile mats did house a Common Shrew and after a largely butterfly free morning I had a Holly Blue in the car park. A very enjoyable walk with some very nice people

Had a second Holly blue in the afternoon on a family walk around penarth

15 common shrew
11 holly blue.

Birds 154 Mammals 15 Herp 5 Butterflies 11 Total 185 Lifers 20

 

[Owene]

March 31st

Bitterly cold day despite the sunshine that brought an end to me focussing on butterflies, although I did briefly see a Small White that must have been flushed from hiding.

Good numbers of Sand Martin at Cardiff Bay and very vocal Cetti’s and Chiffchaff but no blackcaps for me.

Did at least hear some as Cosmeston and saw my first Swallows but also had a brief flurry of snow. Not much return for the walking today.

155 swallow

Birds 155 Mammals 15 Herp 5 Butterflies 11 Total 186 Lifers 20

 

[Owene]

April 8th.

Early start to make a Gatwick to Sevilla flight to meet up with a naturetrek Donana and Extremadura tour tomorrow

Lots of roe deer on the drive up the m4 including some in Reading services. But nothing new for the list.

As soon as I got on the runway shuttle bus in Sevilla I saw nesting house martins. We get them nesting in our house but haven’t even seen one yet in the UK

That feeling of being a month or so ahead was very evident once I got out and about in some city centre parks. Ducklings, swifts and mating sparrows Nothing unusual just a few weeks ahead of home.

I’d hoped for some butterflies so only took my camera rather than bins so I’m sure I missed a few small birds. Pretty sure I had Iberian chiffchaff outside my hotel.

Not many butterflies though. A dozen or so red admiral and one large white.

Dozens and dozens of ring necked parakeet making the whole place sound like the most annoying squeaky dog toy.

I eventually managed to find some Monk parakeet. Looking at Sevilla ebird lists it’s about the only bird in the city that doesn’t turn up on naturetrek’s donana trip lists so very glad I got it.

Also added house sparrow, tufted duck and green finch to my Spanish list and got a few poor photos of warblers that may yet deliver a few more species

Oh and loads of Muscovy ducks.

156 house Martin
157 common swift
158 monk parakeet
12 large white


Birds 158 Mammals 15 Herp 5 Butterflies 12 Total 190 Lifers 21

 

[KC Foggin]

Quite a collection Owene!

 

[Owene]

Quite a collection Owene!

Thanm you. I'm hoping tomorrow adds quite a few more

 

[KC Foggin]

Fingers crossed for you

 

[Owene]

April 9th

159 Pallid swift

Birds 159 Mammals 15 Herp 5 Butterflies 12 Total 191 Lifers 21

 

[Owene]

April 9th

I’ll do birds later if I get a chance.

A bit overwhelmed by species in el Rocio We just set up by the side of the lagoon and then had a bit of a wander near our hotel. You kind of have to let somethings go unidentified, as I typed this I just had a tiny damselfly that I will never get to put a name too

I think my role on this tour is the person who wanders off after butterflies while everyone else gets their scope on things. But that’s fine

Had multiple Clouded yellow. Presumably just the regular kind but have some photos to check at some point. Lots of large and small white. Bath whites, small copper and langs short tailed blues. Oh and a cool skipper that I’m trying to keep in my head as I don’t have a photo or a name

None of them stopping very often but I did manage some photos.

On the herp front there we’re multiple lizards and some very cool pond tortoise. Also Iberian pond frogs. Getting quite close to my target of equalling my pre 2022 life list for reptiles and amphibians in a year

Oh and some red deer

Phone photos only for now

6 large psammodromus
7 Iberian wall lizard
8 moorish gecko
9 Iberian pond tortoise
10 Iberian pond frog
13 lang’s short tailed blue
14 bath white
15 small copper
16 clouded yellow
16 red deer

Birds 159 Mammals 16 Herp 10 Butterflies 16 Total 201 Lifers 28

 

[Owene]

April 9th

My first time spending a day dedicated to birding in mainland Spain so the year ticks and lifers came thick and fast. Great guiding and spotting from the other guests meant that a lot was called out in quick succession but I think yellow wagtail was the only thing I really missed. I did miss out on booted eagles while I was chasing a small copper but luckily that got pulled back later on

Butterflies apart he personal birding highlight was probably spotting an iberian pied flycatcher and getting people onto it or the alpine swift I managed from the van. Actual highlights were probably the huge flocks of glossy ibis, the flamingos and the soaring Griffon vulture. Or the bee eaters but I want to see them closer

I'm going to break my no heard only rule for nightingale
I'll do the lifers first

160 alpine swift
161 iberian magpie
162 White stork (on the list after seeing knepp birds)
163 crested lark
164 squacco heron
165 Black kite
166 greater flamingo
167 Griffon vulture
168 booted Eagle
169 bee-eater
170 purple heron
171 glossy ibis
172 red rumped swallow
173 nightingale
174 sedge warbler
175 reed warbler
176 pied flycatcher
177 Black winged stilt
178 collared pratincole
179 night heron
180 Garden warbler
181 whiskered tern

I've probably forgotten loads as the guide had the day list at 67 and I only wrote down 40
Birds 181 Mammals 16 Herp 10 Butterflies 16 Total 223 Lifers 38

 

[KC Foggin]

Still going strong on your collections Owene!

 

[Owene]

Still going strong on your collections Owene!

Yes. Been a great day of wildlife watching today. So amazing to just be able to focus on it all day

 

[Scridifer]

Looks like the tour is going well Owen, I hope it continues!

Chris

 

[Owene]

Looks like the tour is going well Owen, I hope it continues!

Chris

Thanks Chris. Just heading out again but had 2 ticks before breakfast

182 spotless starling
183 purple swamp hen

Birds 183 Mammals 16 Herp 10 Butterflies 16 Total 225 Lifers 40

 

[Owene]

April 10th

Another amazing day working around a large lake in donana. So many new birds with most of the regional specialties secured. Having two white headed ducks appear from the reeds in front of us was amazing.

Close views of a beautiful male Montagu’s Harrier and a calling Great Spotted Cuckoo were probably the two bird highlights but the day did well for year ticks as well as lifers.

On the butterfly front the first swallowtail I’ve seen since I got into butterflies was great, I’m not 100% which species I saw previously so have never counted it. but spotting a tiny Provence hairstreak as we walked was another highlight.

One of my stated aims at the beginning of the year was to work on my western palearctic list and I think today and yesterday really took great strides with classic Western European species.

Lifers first
184 montagu’s harrier
185 lesser kestrel
186 short toed eagle
187 marbled duck
188 white headed duck
189 red knobbed coot
190 serin
191 great Reed warbler
192 great spotted cuckoo
193 calandra lark
194. Iberian grey shrike
195 woodchat shrike
196 black headed weaver
17 swallowtail
18 Provence hairstreak
197 corn bunting
198 greenshank
199 green sandpiper
200 ferruginous duck (probably my first wild one)
201. Red legged partridge (first cat a one)
202 woodlark
203 red crested pochard (first cat a ones)
204 black necked grebe
19 painted lady

Birds 204 Mammals 16 Herp 10 Butterflies 19 Total 249 Lifers 55