Winter visitors linger on, whilst spring migrants are still slow coming are the main headlines from this week.
Goldeneye, wigeon, teal and pochard are still present on site and there are large numbers of fieldfare feeding on field east of the Cromwell trail. A merlin over the visitor trails last week was also great to see. The only spring migrants we have picked up so far are a handful of sand martins and up to 4 singing chiffchaff. Even resident species seem to have been a bit quiet on my recent breeding bird surveys - perhaps not surprising considering the cool temperatures and strong winds.
Insects are also very scarce still, however I did see my first tree bumblebee, Bombus hypnorum last week. This species was first recorded in the UK in 2001 and since then has spread north rather rapidly. Lovely to see them at Langford. No further butterflies have been reported - hope this changes soon, with the start of the annual butterfly transect season this week.
Keep an eye on the grassland near the Beach Hut in the next few days, as the cowslips are about the come into flower, providing a spectacular show and a welcome splash of colour!
Chiffchaff, one of only two species of spring migrant we have had on site so far this year. Mike Lane (rspb-images.com)