Signs of Spring are arriving with the first butterflies and bees arriving. Orange Tip Butterflies are often the first seen but they do not light and pass swiftly through the garden.
Usually I see a Brambling or two during the winter months but the first one I saw this year was in April. They are usually not around in the summer months. The Blackcaps and Fieldfares have moved on. A male Bullfinch had come to the feeders in January but I had not seen it since. However, a pair of Bullfinches have arrived and usually they hang around for quite while until nesting time.
The summer visitors are beginning to arrive. Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs can be difficult to distinguish until you hear their call. In May the Swallows and House Martins arrive and many of the garden birds have fledged. Stonechats can be seen at any time of the year either at the coast or on the moorland. If you are lucky you might see a Whitethroat singing beautifully – another summer visitor.
The Great Crested Grebe was taken on Lake Zug in Zug, Switzerland while I was there on holiday in the summer.
We have a variety of moths which come into our moth trap. Too many to display but here are three from June – a Silver Ground Carpet, a Sandy Carpet and a Common Marbled Carpet.