May 2025 part i

First day of the month, I called in at Fort Hommet before work and was greeted by a trio of flycatchers in the pines - 2 Spotted and a Pied. These few trees are definitely the best place to see flycatchers in Guernsey. There were also two Common Sandpipers on the beach. It was one of those days when you wish you could just drive on past school and carry on birding.

Pied Flycatcher - Ft Hommet, 1 May 25

Spotted Flycatcher - Ft Hommet, 1 May 25

On 2nd May there was a notable influx of Painted Ladies and I counted 12 along a short stretch of Thrift along Pulias headland after work, and a few more by Rousse car park. The winds on the day were not particularly southerly but I think the butterflies must have been pushed up the previous day by the warm breeze from the south.

Painted Lady - Pulias, 2 May 25

After work on 6th May I went down to Rue des Bergers/Grand Mare to specifically look for a Red-footed Falcon as there had been a big UK influx. The boldest gamble but you’ve got to aim high. There were quite a few hirundines and raptors in the air and I gasped slightly when a falcon swooped in to view. However, in the bins it was a Hobby - not quite as hoped but never to be sniffed at, it was a cracking bird.

Feeling liberated on 9th May, I heard of a White Stork on the grapevine flying about not too far away, no doubt the Knepp-ringed bird that had been seen the previous day. So I took my bins into the back garden and, surprisingly, it very soon came in from the south and flew past the house. We seem to be getting Knepp birds regularly at the moment and I don’t feel ready to tick them yet, not even for my garden list. I saw the bird a second time, flying over the car at Saltpans on our return from the supermarket, and then a third time late afternoon flying to the north of the house towards Oatlands. Quite an exciting bird to see despite its jewellery.

White Stork - over the garden, 9 May 25

The following weekend was pretty wet, but I tried Pleinmont anyway with little success, mainly dodging the heavy showers. A summer-plumaged Bar-tailed Godwit on the beach at L’Eree at first light was the pick of the birds seen. Migration had pretty much stopped for the spring, but Fort Hommet had another Spotted Flycatcher, a Grey Plover and a Reed Warbler over the next few days.

Bar-tailed Godwit - L’Eree, 11 May 25

Grey Plover - Vazon, 12 May 25

With the temperatures warmer, the invertebrates started to appear in numbers. The conditions were not great for moth trapping but it seems to be a good year for Little Thorn with a couple in the trap and a couple also seen in the field. I had only my second Guernsey Golden-brown Fern Moth (Musotima nitidalis) at the window on 13th May, a species which is no doubt on the cusp of proliferating on the island.

Tropidia scita - Grand Pre, 10 May 25 - a common springtime hoverfly although a new species for me

White-shouldered Shieldbugs - Grand Pre, 10 May 25 - these recent arrivals appear to have spread throughout the island

Nursery-web Spider - Grand Pre, 10 May 25

Blue-tailed Damselfly - Grand Pre, 10 May 25

Woodpigeon - Garden, 9 May 25

ffff

April 2025 part ii

Late April had a nice variety of migrants and new species to see for the year, which was especially promising since we needed to bring our Bird Race day forward by a week from the official day, so it was to be on the last weekend of April this year. The Easter holidays were late this year so I was able to pop out more regularly to see what was about.

On 21st April I was up on Pleinmont headland where it was very busy with common warblers, but not-so busy for scarce birds. A newly-arrived female Redstart perching atop the fully-blooming gorse was the only uncommon species I could find.

Redstart - Pleinmont, 21 Apr 25

On 23rd a quick look at Pulias revealed a Yellow Wagtail feeding on the beach and a Reed Warbler singing from the small reedbed. After dark on 24th it was really calm and clear, and from the back garden I heard both a flyover Greenshank and a screeching Barn Owl, which hopefully means the local pair are back in their box. Another Pulias visit the next day and the Reed Warblers had increased to 2 singing birds, and another Greenshank was observed flying up and down the coast a few times. There were also Manx Shearwaters flocking offshore out to sea.

Juvenile Raven - Vale, 25 Apr 25 - Just fledged from the nest in the quarry near Bordeaux

Early morning in Sausmarez Park

27th April came around and we met for the bird race before first light but were not expecting a big total due to the uninteresting weather forecast, and that is what indeed occurred. As usual, a very enjoyable day in the field but not many unexpected birds, and migrant numbers were familiarly low. We tried Saumarez Park very early morning to try to see woodpeckers before it got busy but we were not successful there.

We then followed the coast west searching for shorebirds but we had to make do with scraps. Whimbrels were in in numbers, but a couple of Common Sandpipers and a Bar-tailed Godwit were all we could find - a very poor show. At Claire Mare, a Snipe took off when we looked out of the screen (hard to come by on bird races nowadays) and a Sedge Warbler sang amongst the Reeds. Up at Pleinmont, the birds were low in number and nothing was passing overhead, but we did eke out a Whinchat and a briefly reeling Grasshopper Warbler. Surprise of the morning was a high-flying Bullfinch over the top fields, a species which seems to be decreasing a lot locally.

Whinchat - Pleinmont, 27 Apr 25

Down at the Reservoir we ticked off the breeding Great Crested Grebes, which was a new species for the bird race, and we were surprised to see a scruffy young Common Gull on the raft, a bird was had been present at Perelle a few days prior. More searching the middle of the island failed to produce many new species apart from the expected and we eventually found the Cattle Egrets down at Rue des Bergers.

Cattle Egret - Rue des Bergers, 27 Apr 25

Marsh Harrier - Rue des Bergers, 27 Apr 25

Marsh Harrier - Rue des Bergers, 27 Apr 25

We searched the seas off Fort Doyle for terns and auks. There were none of the former, but we did see both Guillemot and Razorbill, as well as a surprising Great Northern Diver. As we’d seen 2/3 of the auks and we were not expecting a big total, we didn’t think it was worth heading to Herm for Puffin, which also meant we no doubt missed Brent Goose as we could find none of the mainland. The rest of the day was spent touring various spots, ticking off a few known species like Little Grebe and Goldcrest. We finally found a single flock of small waders at Vazon which consisted of Dunlins and Ringed Plovers which are usually pretty easy, but we never found a Turnstone or a Sanderling. Our final bird was a Tree Pipit at Pleinmont in the evening which meant we finished on 79 species. Migrants are such a scarce commodity nowadays, getting a good bird race total can only really be achieved by being totally flexible with the date. If the weather conditions aren’t perfect, it isn’t going to happen, and even then it probably still won’t!

The Mighty Sultans of String - still going strong after 25+ YEARS of bird-racing

Back to work, the next week, the best bird was a super, singing Garden Warbler in the fig tree at Fort Hommet/Vazon on 29th, only the second record for my patch.

Painted Lady - Les Tielles, 27 Apr 25

Chocolate-tip - Garden, 24 Apr 25

A saw of a sawfly - not something I’ve seen before, now its clear where they got their name.