MY AUTUMN ALMANAC

 September has been and gone in a flash or so it seems,I have done the rounds of the usual places of East Kent,and of course I normally end up in the right place at the wrong time to get the goodies.However I enjoy my time out whatever the outcome as my varied interests invariably lead to something of interest turning up.

WHEATEAR AT SAMPHIRE HOE

ADONIS BLUE MALE AT SAMPHIRE HOE

ANOTHER WHEATEAR

THAMES BARGE ALICE ON THE SWALE.

WASP SPIDER

CATTLE EGRET AT DUNGENESS

LOVELY WEATHER FOR DUCKS

PINTAILS FROM THE HANSON HIDE ARC PIT

GREAT WHITE EGRET -HANSON HIDE

GW EGRET

CURLEW SANDPIPERS -RESTHARROW SCRAPE

CURLEW SANDPIPER

PORTRAIT OF A RAVEN -FOXHILL DOWN.

LESSER WHITETHROAT 

GREEN SANDPIPER STODMARSH

BRIMSTONE

RUSSIAN FRIGATE 722

HMS IRON DUKE KEEPING AN EYE ON 722

SMALL COPPER

WHEATEAR SHOWING ITS WHITE RUMP.

THE CHOUGHS SEEM TO BE DOING OK AND ARE BECOMING MORE ADVENTUROUS

STONECHATS HAVE HAD A VERY GOOD BREEDING SEASON AT SAMPHIRE HE.

BLUE TIT

FEMALE ADONIS BLUE

-

AVRO ANSON AT ABBOTSCLIFF

CLOUDED YELLOW HAVE BEEN WIDESPREAD THIS YEAR,

CMACGM LOUIS BLERIOT SAILING DOWN CHANNEL RATHER THAN FLYING OVER IT.

SHAGGY INKCAP

TONIJN A SAFETY VESSEL SAILING UNDER THE FLAG OF SAN MARINO ARRIVING AT DOVER

SPECKLED WOOD

COMMA

WALL BROWN 77 WERE COUNTED BETWEEN CASTLE COOTE AND THE SPORTSMAN AT SEASALTER.

JUVENILE RINGED PLOVER

MEDITERRANEAN GULL

JUV RINGED PLOVERS AND A SANDERLING AT SEASALTER.

A SAD END FOR THIS YOUNG GANNET  NEAR SHAKESPEARE CLIFF.

AUGUST FLY THEY MUST.

 August the last month of summer when birds begin their long journeys South,the last butterflies emerge and we look forward to Autumn and its unexpected bounty in the form of vagrant birds and insects.

August was generally fairly quiet on the bird front with just a trickle of the usual migrants and I have managed to avoid most of them.

The last butterfly to emerge locally is the Silver Spotted Skipper which I eventually found at Temple Ewell.Clouded Yellows have  had a reasonablr year and have been quite widespread.Chalkhill Blue numbers seemed to be down and the second generation of Adonis Blue have been poor.

RAVEN AT FOXHILL DOWN

MIGRANT HAWKER

CHALKHILL BLUE

CHALKHILL BLUE MALE

CHALKHILL BLUE FEMALE

CLOUDED YELLOW AT SAMPHIRE HOE

SILVER SPOTTED SKIPPER

SILVER SPOTTED SKIPPER

 

COMMON BLUE

WASP SPIDER AT SAMPHIRE HOE

A SOUTHERN HAWKER IN MY GARDEN

A BIRD IN THE HAND IS WORTH THREE IN A BUSH  - WHINCHAT WHEATEAR AND WHITETHROAT NEAR THE SAILING CLUB SANDWICH BAY

TRES HOMBRES OFF THE HOE-A SAILING VESSEL FROM VANUATU

TRES HOMBRES AND LITTLE CLOUND A YANKEE CATAMARAN.

WHINCHAT AT BOCKHILL

JUVENILE GREAT CRESTED GREBE AT DUNGENESS WATCHING THE PARENT BIRD FISHING.

ONE OF THE FEW ADONIS BLUES AT SAMPHIRE HOE{ FEMALE}

ADONIS BLUE {MALE }

THE CLOSEST YET TO GETTING A SHAG COMPLETELY OUT OF THE WATER.

ADULT MALE BLACK REDSTART ON THE ROCKS AT THE HOE.

RECORD SHOT OF THE SPOTTED CRAKE AT NEW DOWNS SANDWICH.

ADULT DOTTEREL AT ST MARGARETS

ONE OF TWO JUVENILE DOTTERELS 

ADULT DOTTEREL.

SOMETHING FOR THE MOTHERS ,THE SUMMERS MOTHS FROM MY SMALL TRAP.

STRIPED HAWKMOTH A NEW MOTH FOR MY GARDEN.

MOTH OF THE YEAR.

JERSEY TIGER

ELEPHANT HAWKMOTH

COPPER UNDERWING

BLACK ARCHES

MAPLE PROMINENT

LESSER SWALLOWTAIL PROMINENT

COPPER UNDERWING

CAMPION

CANARY SHOULDERED THORN.

September has started very wet and windy thus ending the summers drought  here in Kent.....