28th June

Although the Common Rosefinch was still at Southwell the persistence of the day's rain meant that birding activities were severely limited and the only other worthwhile report was of 70 Swifts over the Bill.

The rain might have spoilt the birding but it was instrumental in dropping a fine arrival of immigrant moths, particularly at the Bill, where the overnight catch at the Obs was easily the best of the year to date and included 177 Diamond-back Moth, 27 Bird-cherry Ermine, 23 Cock's-head Bell Zeiraphera isertana, 20 Silver Y, 12 Dark Sword Grass, 8 Small Mottled Willow, 4 European Corn-borer, 4 Cream-bordered Green Pea, 3 Rush Veneer, 3 Double-lobed, 3 Dark Spectacle, 2 Large Beech Piercer Cydia fagiglandana, 2 Bullrush Veneer Calamotropha paludella, 2 Latticed Heath, 2 Pearly Underwing, 2 Small Marbled and singles of Waste Grass-veneer Pediasia contaminella, Warted Knot-horn Conobathra repandana, Dark Pine Knot-horn Dioryctia abietella, Tawny-barred Angle, Barred Red, Fen Wainscot and Red Admiral butterfly, with a couple of other potentially interesting micros still to confirm.  

Unfortunately we had too many other commitments today to be able to photograph many of the night's moths but this rather lovely green prasinaria form of the very infrequently-caught Barred Red was a first for the island © Martin Cade: