Micro-miners and Chocolate-tip

Another warm day following on from another warm night and so one that was good for moths. As well as the usual more recognisable species there was one tiny moth that I did not recognise, actually I can't recognise many of these tiny ones. This one looked quite distinctive so I took a picture in the hope of being able to identify it later. Skipping quickly to later I can report that it seems, if I have it right, to be a species without a common name called Ericrania chrysolepidella the larvae of which feed by mining the leaves of Hazel, it is apparently quite scarce in Hampshire, but it also says "possibly overlooked", given how small it is this comes as no surprise at all.
Some of the other of last night moths included two rather fine Purple Thorn, these rest with their slightly curled wings slightly open.

There were also Great Prominent and another Chocolate-tip, this time I got a picture, yesterday's one flew off before I could snap it.

On Ibsley Water today, two summer plumage Dunlin were looking very fine as I opened up the Tern hide, although they were just about the only sign of any "new" birds. The Little Ringed Plovers were displaying noisily, a second male seems to be trying to muscle into the territory by the hide and it is leading to a lot of competitive flying and calling. A quick call into the hide to eat lunch gave me a chance to get a picture of one of 2 Common Sandpiper, for a change it was standing still making focusing a little easier.

Probably the most notable sighting was of at least 345 Herring Gulls, almost all first summers, they flew in from the south in the late morning, when I noticed them flying over the Centre.

In the afternoon I went over to Shaves Green to look at some proposed drainage works, although unplanned the wet and I mean really wet, woodland that has grown up there is a rather fine bit of habitat. There were Speckled Wood, Orange Tip and Green-veined White butterflies flying about, all species that hatch out in spring as well as several of the hibernating species such as Comma and Peacock. Hopefully the work will achieve the improvements needed without losing the interesting habitat that has developed.