1st Jolly Up Hod Hill 2022

Mrs PB at work, me on a day off, forecast no wind and glorious sunshine... must be time for a butterfly hunt up Hod Hill

Stepped out of the front door, whizzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.... the House Martins were in full flow

At the base of the slope up to Hod Hill itself, I spied a flash of colour on a tree trunk.... Red Admiral drying off, with a neighbourly bee

On the ground, just off the sheep trail I was following, snails!

There's some woodland alongside the trail up to the hill, inhabited by the usual folk, Robins, Blackbirds, Great and Blue Tits, and I also spied a Treecreeper, that stayed very elusive, unfortunately

Quick quiz....any thoughts what this is please? (Possibly a Whitethroat, I think I heard one singing in the rough area this chap was in)

There was a lot of Skylark song in the air, and I think this is one, but I'm not 100% because of the white collar

Another pair I'm not sure of... possibly Wheatears (grey head and an eyestripe), but perched up a tree which I'm not used to seeing them doing

Hawking low over the grass was a Swallow

There were a few Skylarks in song flight

Going solely by the tail, the next flier is a Wheatear

Skylark on one of the forts' ridges

Red Leg Partridge flushed by the farmer on his quad bike whilst he was counting bullocks!

High in a tree a Goldfinch sang

And from the same tree a Yellowhammer flew a short distance to a neighbouring tree

Again, not 100% sure, because of unusual markings, but Mistle Thrush?

And who flies in an odd manner, like this?

Finally, another butterfly... Small Heath

And then the sun went away and a massive bank of cloud rolled in, so I headed back to the car, spotting a Linnet

And finally a pair of Yellowhammers Slight smile

I hope you enjoyed the elevation of Hod Hill, without the effort!! I'll be back later in the summer hopefully for a more butterfly-y day!!

Thanks for reading

Stay Safe All

  • Looked like a great days sightings PB and you'll have to wait for the experts to ID correctly but the possible whitethroat looks facially a bit like a Spotted Flycatcher - perhaps ! agree with Skylark and Mistle Thrush but once again wait for those in the know ! Glad to see the House Martin that are on the decline and the Yellowhammer is stunning, thanks for sharing your wonderful day's sightings.
  • Well done PB a great selection the only one I could guess at was the Mistlethrush, looks like you had a good day loved the yellow hammers and the skylark and the red legged partridge. Still not seen a skylark or a red legged partridge or a small heath butterfly the list goes on but one day, one day ?
  • Wow to the Yellow Hammers, not a bird we often see on the Island. I think your 'plummeter' might be a parachuting Meadow Pip
  • Hi PB,
    An excellent selection of great photos. The highlights for me are the flight shots, very well done..
    We've not not seen any sort of Partridge for ages.
    Trevor
  • Thanks everyone, especially with ID help. That's a good shout Cin, because I had 3 or 4 images looking the same as that, and a bird flying would have flapped at least once between shots, so free-falling mipipet it is!
    Hazel, good thought on the Spotted Flycatcher (having just looked it up!!) not knowingly seen one I don't think :o)
    ILR, that's only the 2nd partridge I've seen, there were a pair where Mrs PB used to work that I saw once :o)
    I was pleased with how some of them came out, Trevor, espcially once I'd managed to get the sun at my back...silhouettes aren't too exciting to look at lol

    To be honest, I was a bit disappointed as I was hopeful of a butterfly hoard, but all the bramble and nettle patches appear to have been cleared. To make matters worse, I had toyed with going about a further 15 minutes to Fontmell Down, and they had every butterfly you can imagine on the wing...without having to suffer the lung busting climb too lol....I know, I know, the exercise did me good!!
  • Jeez av only been absent a day or two and already missed loads!!! Super stuff PB.
    Your birds are certainly performing for you in the air!
    Hod Hill was a well worth a visit...thanks for sharing;-)
  • Any post is good that gets a Yellow Hammer :-) and the Thrush is always good to see also. Flight shots on the House Martin I can appreciate as there are a couple of Swallows dipping around here and they sure don't wait for anyone to catch up with them on camera. Good to see a clear shot of the Linnet too, thanks for posting PB.
  • Thank you ladies Blush
    Let that be a lesson to you Linda... No more shirking forum duties lol
    The yellowhammers were certainly a bright spot Gaynor Grin
  • A lovely set from your day out, thanks for sharing