Photos taken in this set are of: 1. Arctic Tern, what a joy to get exquisite views of a great number of these iconic birds nesting today, always such a thrill to see. For only the third year ever I’ve seen this shiny and imposing species and it’s a very welcome 204th addition to my year list. A big part of my year so far. 2. Another tern species key to today which I’ve had a top year for, Sandwich Terns with a lovely chick. 3, and 7-10. Views at this attractive and varied coastal spot. 4. My first ever purple sandwort at the car park, a pretty one to see. 5. Yellow-tail moth caterpillar which was lovely to see, another first for me. 6. Mute Swan.
Other highlights as we took in the smell and sound of a seabird colony that I adore as my favourite type of birds were of course Common Terns too in the colony and Black-headed Gulls and their bigger chicks that it was interesting to see swimming around the lagoon, Mediterranean Gull and a single Kittiwake. Black Guillemot, great views of male and female Red-breasted Merganser, Oystercatcher, Little Egret and Grey Heron, brilliant views of Sand Martins, Meadow Pipit and Red Admiral, Meadow Brown and Common Blue butterflies, Five-spot Burnet and Silver Y moths, Swollen-thighed beetles and briefly Common Lizard were other highlights here on a day we saw so much. It was an epic day of flowers too and other highlights here were wall pennywort, my first ever sea plantain, restharrow, wild cabbage, wild carrot, red and sea campion, herb-Robert, foxgloves, my first lady’s bedstraw of the year, thrift, bird’s-foot trefoil, honeysuckle, English stonecrop and amazing yellow-horned poppies at the shore which I was over the moon to see. I’d seen their leaves before but never the flower so this was a big moment today. A fantastic and precious time spent here on our much anticipated return after this wonderful wild site wowed us two years ago.
