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A bank holiday: do we tidy up the garden or go birdwatching?  Well fortunately we can do both, because August Bank Holiday traditionally turns up migrants at home.  Today was no exception, with a couple of Spotted Flycatchers feeding from the wires over the field next to us.  We also had a Dark Bush Cricket that needed rescuing from the large amount of hedge trimmings.

Earlier on in the week a Latticed Heath added itself to the house list.  It’s not very heathy around here, so this was presumably a migrant.

Latticed Heath, another new moth for the house list

Dark Bush Cricket

Spotted Flycatcher

Free of the athletics, we got a chance to see a bit of wildlife this weekend, starting with a trip to a friend’s in Worthing to see the Convolvulus Hawkmoth that she had.  (It would have been ours if it had flown a mile further north.)

A  juvenile cuckoo in midweek avoided the camera, so it was left to Volucella zonaria, a large hoverfly, mimicking a Hornet to provide a bit of garden interest.

Pagham Harbour today yielded a Cattle Egret, but not the hoped-for Spoonbill, although a Whimbrel did at least stay put for long enough.

Convolvulus Hawmoth

Not really cooperating

Volucella zonaria, a large Hornet-mimic hoverfly

Whimbrel

Common Darter looking down on us

Brown Argus

Our last visit to the World Championships was the last for Usain Bolt and Mo Farah too.  If you had told us that Mo wouldn’t win and that Bolt would pull up after 10 m we’d have thought that it was going to be a massive disappointment.  Far from it.   The British silver in the women’s 4×100 relay picked us up immediately after Mo’s disappointment, and Bolt’s injury was missed in the excitement and jubilation of a British gold, so we had a fantastic night.  It’s a shame to see the greatest of them all go out so cruelly, though – a great champion and a great character.

Once more with feeling: our third visit to the World Championships

The Irish Guards announce the start of the Javelin Final (we were in amongst the coaches)

Sally Pearson after a surprise victory in the 100 m hurdles

The king and the heir apparent: Mo couldn’t beat Edris in his final championship race

Public property

Reflections on retirement and “only” getting a silver

Just when things were getting flat, the women’s sprint relay did us proud

Desiree Henry cadges a flag

Dina Asher-Smith

Once more with feeling: Usain Bolt warms up for his final race.

Down and out: a cruel end to a stunning career.

Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake, Chijindu Ujah, Adam Gemili and Danny Talbot win an amazing gold

Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake

Another evening at the World Championships, near the women’s pole vault, which was excellent.  On Monday we went round the excellent Pink Floyd exhibition and then we actually found a new bird for the year.

A great athlete and the only one all night to remember that the bulk of the crowd was looking at his back at the medal ceremony.

Holly Bradshaw on a third attempt:

Up…

And…

Over!

Two world champions, one a pole vaulter, one a shot putter – which is which?

A stained glass version of a famous album cover

Hey! Teacher!

Learning to Fly

The figures from the Division Bell

A bird at last! Just a Ring-necked Parakeet coming to a feeder in Hyde Park

It’s been quiet birdwise of late, but things have started moving a bit recently, so obviously we’re doing something else for the  next two weeks.  Our first visit to the World Athletics Championships was excellent (better than the photos).

More excitement in the form of another new moth for the house list, and this one, a Dark Arches, is rather more photogenic.  One of the young Green Woodpeckers finally sat in front of the camera; not brilliantly, but it does a neat levitation trick.

Yet more danger in the garden, as one of our many young House Sparrows became lunch for our female Sparrowhawk.  If you’re upset by the sight of an animal suffering in the talons of another don’t look at the last picture, but what did you think Sparrowhawks eat, asparagus?

Dark Arches

Young Green Woodpecker

Look mum, no hands

Sparrowhawk and Sparrow

Still not much going on bird-wise, although we do have a family of Green Woodpeckers, which are noisy, but hiding from the camera.  There has been a changing of the guard with the moths, with the excitement of a new moth for the house list, Haworth’s Pug, a real stunner…

Haworth’s Pug, a new moth for the house list

A pair of Ears

This young Robin is well on the way to its adult red plumage

Pale Prominent

Peppered Moth

Small Ranunculus

The birding’s a bit quiet at the moment, so here’s a selection of invertebrates from the garden over a weekend that held 10 species of  butterfly

Enoplognatha ovata has a big breakfast on an Azure Damselfly

Garden Tiger.

Gatekeeper

Rosy Footman

Small Skipper

The garden’s getting to be a dangerous place at the moment.  On Friday I had one of my best birding moments when I witnessed a Peregrine take a Starling out of the air, and today I almost trod on a Grass Snake trying to swallow a large frog.  Unfortunately for the snake, the disturbance allowed its dinner to escape.  The frog didn’t croak, although it was bleeding from some tooth marks in its back, and the snake legged it.

A walk around the New Forest while Karen went riding was limited bird-wise, with a Spotted Flycatcher and a couple of Redstarts being the highlights, although camera shy.

These Keeled Skimmers were a bit more cooperative.