Spurn ~ 14 October

A thoroughly enjoyable day, the highlight of which was undoubtedly the Siberian Accentor (UK325) opposite the Easington Gas Terminal.

A walk down the point was profitable with a self-found and very showy Dusky Warbler along with SEO, 30+ Mealy Redpoll, 20 Ring Ouzel, 10 Woodcock, Little Gull, 100 WF Geese, 2 Bean Geese. Perhaps most impressive was the fall of thrushes and finches across the spit, including 60+ Brambling on the beach.

New Forest ~ 30 June

A day spent in the New Forest with 2 primary targets: Bog Orchid & pumilio. The former was out in reasonable numbers at the usual site near Stoney Cross.

A trip to Mill Lawn Brook was unproductive with high water levels eliminating any chance of pumilio and just one mercuriale was found. Onto Latchmore Brook where pumilio were out in force with approximately 150 on the two usual flushes 1mile or so east of the main car park. These included ~8 aurantiaca. Just 6 mercuriale were found - it appears to have been a very poor year for this species.

Thursley Common & Hankley Common ~ 19 June, 20 June & 26 June

2 visits to new areas of Thursley Common away from the popular Moat Car Park. Effort was concentrated towards the southern end, where mosaic-style management seems to be a lot more prominent and consequently the area is a lot more biodiverse.

Dartford Warbler, Woodlark, Tree Pipit & Redstart are all in good numbers, the latter appearing to have had a particularly good year.

Silver-studded Blues are thinly distributed with the exception of one dense population on the western edge. A ~50m transect yielded 48. Numbers of Bombus lucorum across the site are very impressive along with smaller numbers of hypnorum & terrestris.

Bombus lucorum (M)

Silver-studded Blue

Ammophila wasps were abundant and consequently one lone Mottled Bee-fly (Thyridanthrax fenestratus) was found on my latter visit.

Mottled Bee-fly ~ Thyridanthrax fenestratus

A trip to Hankley Common Golf Course on the 20th June was notable for 1 Mottled Bee-fly but most impressively for Textrix denticulata, seemingly a first for Surrey and a very rare sighting in the SE of England.