Wood Warbler & Spotted Fly (Luccombe)

May began with more rain. Today (3rd), drier but overcast, with breezy westerlies: on my early morning walk from home to Luccombe/Haddon's Pits I came upon a singing Wood Warbler in Luccombe Copse, that sounded like it was gradually filtering northwards along the wooded part of the downs; a species that was very much on my radar and nice to hear; the island gets a few records annually (usually spring) but not many...Also, whilst making way back saw my first Spotted Flycatcher of the spring pretty much in same area, near Bonchurch Road/Lodge footpath. [Winds are about to go more south and SE this wknd]. 

Bank holiday weekend (Sun 5th), shortish (slow-going) Ventnor sea watch, light S/SE winds/showers, 16:10-18:00, heading East: 1 Arctic Skua, 6 Manxies (incl. a single west), 6 DB Brents, 33 Gannets. 

Tuesday, 07/05: roaming Red kites in numbers (double figures) got the local bird news network going; I managed to see a few over Ventnor Downs lunchtime; otherwise: Sedge Warbler (heard only/fairly low-key/A.M), Redstart (f), and Spot FC x2, of note, Luccombe area.

Sat, 11/05, Sunny, Easterlies, Luccombe area: one (poss two) Garden Warblers seen and heard; Swifts x2. 

Wood Warbler - fortunate to hear one these days - purely a passage migrant here, and in ever decreasing numbers it would seem....

Glanville Fritillary melitaea cinxia (caterpillar) 

And a Minotaur Beetle:

typhaeus typhoeus

Singing unseen acro - probably a Sedge Warbler (07/05/Luccombe Farm area)

Singing Whitethroat/early morning soundscape - Luccombe Farm - 09/05

White Wagtail - a smart example of an alba - Laundry Lane, Brading 10/05.

And a singing migrant Garden Warbler along Bonchurch Road:

Iceland or the Isle of Wight?🤔

Check out these amazing photos, taken by local photographer @islandvisions, of last night's #auroraborealis over the #IsleofWight.😍

📌 Gurnard, Bembridge Lifeboat Station & @ntisleofwight's Bembridge Windmill pic.twitter.com/JHSr8CxMkM

— Visit Isle Of Wight (@VisitIOW) May 11, 2024

Sound up for a lonely Wood Warbler. Relatively few females have arrived in the forest, and so this male does not have a mate. He is singing constantly, for much of the day, and flitting between the perches around his display arena, which is about 10 x 10 m. pic.twitter.com/JwsNxQbUpH

— Richard Broughton 🇺🇦 (@woodlandbirder) May 11, 2024