Bardsey's Wildlife

Tuesday 8 July 2014

The last two days has seen the continuation of a very settled period of weather conditions, with clear skies, warm temperatures and very little wind. The daily censuses around the island have revealed one or two migrants, including one Dunlin, four Redshanks, 14 Curlews, and a total of three Common Sandpipers on the 7th, which increased to seven individuals on the 8th. 16 Common Scoters flew past out to sea on the 7th, and three Swifts flew overhead.

With very little precipitation over the last few weeks, running water and small ponds are becoming increasing scarce around the island. A handful of select pools and puddles fed by wells are greatly appreciated by the island's birdlife. In the hot and dry conditions experienced at the moment, the rate of water loss in birds is increased, as they lose water through the skin and through panting to speed evaporation through the lungs. Drinking is therefore essential to replace lost water. In addition, bathing in the water actively maintains the bird's plumage. One particular small pool along the track has been attracting a whole host of species from around the island, including Linnets, Meadow Pipits, Goldfinches, Stonechats, Swallows, Pied Wagtails, Blackbirds and even Magpies. Here is a selection of images from this tiny oasis:

Juvenile Linnet

Male Linnet

Juvenile Linnets

Male Linnet

Male Stonechat

Swallow

The scabby and very tatty-looking breeding Meadow Pipits (top two), to compare with a recently-fledged Meadow Pipit (lower)

Some Wheatears have managed to fledge second broods around the island- this particular individual fledged in the last day or so

Contrary to our expectations, it appears that the number of auks breeding on the East Side has not been adversely affected by the large loss of birds overwinter. In fact, the numbers appear to be higher than in previous years, with Puffin counts reaching record highs in comparison to the last ten years. Counts of up to 140 birds on the north-east side of the mountain is much higher than last year's maximum figures. However, we do not know what effect the causalities from winter have had on the age structure of the birds on the east side

The 7th was one of the best days so far this year for moths, with over 200 individuals in each of the four traps which were set out. Species counts of as many as 38 in one trap were also observed. Particular highlights from the 7th included the island's second records of Bordered Sallow, Buff Arches and May Highflyer, as well as the Nationally Scarce Eana penziana. The first Bee Moth of the year was trapped, whilst Pyrausta despicata reached counts of over 200 on the East Side.

A comparison between two quite similar species: Double Square-spot above (note the straighter leading edge, the overall paler colour tone and less rounded appearance), and Triple Spotted Clay below.

Buff Arches. Although this is a very common garden moth on the mainland, this is just the second record for Bardsey

Bordered Sallow- the two records this month are the only Bardsey records of another common garden moth

You guessed it...Scarce Footman

3 comments:

david wright8 July 2014 at 16:58
Seriously Ben, those toes are not fit for website publication!
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SHIRLEY ROULSTON9 July 2014 at 20:40
Apart from the toes the rest of the photos are superb, love the bathing birds.
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Ben Porter10 July 2014 at 21:33
Haha David, you'll be pleased to know that they are not my toes...thanks Shirley for the comment!
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Click to see inside!

Edited by Mike Archer, Mark Grantham, Peter Howlett and Steve Stansfield and published by T & AD Poyser, this fabulous book describes how much has changed since the first edition of Bird Observatories in Britain and Ireland was published in 1976. There are detailed accounts of the history and work carried out at each of the 18 observatories, with personal accounts by wardens and staff of the excitement of discovering a rarity, watching thousands of migrants attracted to a lighthouse after dark, and the pleasure and experiences that working at some of the country’s most remote and beautiful locations can bring. Click the picture of the book to see inside or to buy your copy.

Migrants

Being sited on the main migration route of many species, Bardsey (or Ynys Enlli in Welsh) is a well-known site for migrant birds, turning up many scarcities and rarities, as well as large numbers of common migrants. The island’s list now stands on 326, after the recent addition of Citrine Wagtail in October 2012.

Although Bardsey’s reputation for rare birds may not quite match that of some observatories, it is almost certainly the best site in Wales for rarities. Among Bardsey’s rarer visitors are the first Summer Tanager (1957) and Yellow Warbler (1964) to have been recorded in Britain and Ireland, as well as American vagrants such American Bittern, Sora, Kildeer, Spotted Sandpiper, Grey-cheeked Thrush, American Robin, Song Sparrow, Dark-eyed Junco, Red-eyed Vireo, Black-and-white Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Rose-breasted Grosbeak and Blackpoll Warbler. To add to this impressive list of rarities, Black-winged Stilt, Lesser Yellowlegs, Lanceolated Warbler, River Warbler, Western Orphean Warbler, Booted Warbler, Blyth’s Reed Warbler, Eyebrowed Thrush, Thrush Nightingale, Red-flanked Bluetail, Isabelline Wheatear, Black-eared Wheatear, Collared Flycatcher, Blyth’s Pipit, Pine Bunting, Rock Bunting, Yellow-breasted Bunting and White-throated Sparrow have all been recorded.

Besides the rarities, Bardsey regularly attracts large numbers of weary migrants during 'fall' conditions in Spring and Autumn, largely a consequence of the fully operational Bardsey Lighthouse. In 2011, for example, a single grounding of migrants resulted in over 1000 Willow Warblers making groundfall on the island in August. In the not-so-distant past, a single attraction of 40,000 Redwings occurred in late October at the end of the last century.

Breeding birds

Bardsey is home to some 26, 000 pairs of Manx Shearwaters, which can be heard on dark nights from mid-March to August. They breed in their excavated burrows, which are scattered all over the island. Chough is the most important species of conservation concern, with between four to eight pairs nesting around the coastal cliffs most years, and a wintering flock of up to 50 individuals. A pair of Peregrines breed on the island, and a 1-2 pair of Ravens also nest most years. There are several species which nest only occasionally, such as Sparrowhawk and Little Owl, along with Afro-Palearctic migrants like Sedge Warbler, Blackcap, Chiffchaff and Willow Warbler. Up to ten pairs of Stonechats can nest in the isolated gorse patches around the island, along with many Linnets and Meadow Pipits. Corncrakes were once a common breeder on the island, although since 1970 there have been no confirmed pairs nesting. In recent years the likes of Lapwing, Yellowhammer, House Sparrow and Starling have also all become extinct as breeding species. In contrast, Shelduck, Puffin, Long-eared Owl, Grasshopper Warbler and Goldcrest have been added to the breeding bird list since 1998.

Ringing

Ringing is a very important part of the observatory’s role on the island. Since 1953, the observatory has ringed over 315,00 birds of 198 species. The highest number ringed in a single year was 1988, with a total of 11, 301 birds ringed of 93 species. There have been many days in the observatory’s history when several hundred birds have been ringed in one day; these occasions have mostly involved breeding seabirds, although these numbers can also easily occur with migrant species.

Lepidoptera

A total of 561 species of moths have been recorded on the island. Bardsey is not an overly good location for scarce moths, although the existence of Thrift Clearwings (Nationally scarce) has been established on the Thrift plants around the coast in recent years, after first being recorded in the years 1980 and 1996. Migrant moths arrive in small numbers every year, for example the annual arrival of Hummingbird Hawkmoths in the autumn; rarer immigrants in the past have included Death’s Head Hawkmoths, Vestals, Crimson Speckled and Red-necked Footman.

In recent years, a greater emphasis has been placed on recording and identifying the so-called ‘micro-moths’, which has resulted in the finding of 41 new species for Bardsey since 2011. In 2012, the coastal subspecies of Eana penziana (E.p.colquhounana) was re-found on the island, which was the first time that this Nationally Scarce species had been recorded on Bardsey since 1966. Apotomis semifasciana is also amongst the scarcer species of micro-moths to inhibit the island (also Nationally Scarce).

Butterflies are present on the island in small numbers, with species such as Common Blue, Small Copper and Small Tortoise-shell being the most common. A scarcer breeding species is the Grayling, which can be found in small numbers on the top of the mountain. Migrant butterflies such as Painted Lady can arrive in their hundreds, although other migrants such as Clouded Yellow and Dark-green Fritillary are quite rare.

Bardsey's Wildlife

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Tuesday 8 July 2014

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