I was welcomed back from holiday today by lovely warm and sunny weather, some great birds and a rather nice lepidopteran surprise!
Today's birds include -
2 little ringed plovers on Phase 2
An avocet on silt lagoon 6
Redshank and lapwing on Phase 2
Little egret on Phase 2
Up to 3 pairs of shelduck
2 sand martins over Phase 1
Buzzard over Phase 2
Chiffchaffs, yellowhammers, reed buntings and skylarks singing
....and today's butterflies include -
Stunning male brimstones on the public footpath
Peacock on Phase 1
....and an early painted lady! Painted lady's are usually migrant butterflies in the UK, making their way to our shores from North Africa usually arriving in April and later on in the summer from southern Europe. This is the earliest I have ever seen this species in the UK - compare with 2009 and 2010 when I didn't record any until the end of May! Painted lady's do not usually survive UK winters (especially those as severe as that of 2010/11), so I suspect that this insect may be an early migrant - especially considering the presence of a clouded yellow butterfly (another migrant species) in Cornwall at the weekend (thanks to Butterfly Conservation for this info!), suggesting migration of butterflies into the UK at the moment.