2nd July 2011 Birling Gap Seawatch 6.45am - 7.45am SE1 Clear

Fulmar 6

Gannet 50 mainly moving W
Scoter 4E
Bonxie 1E
Mediterranean Gull 1W adult Summer
Herring Gull c.250
Sandwich Tern 11E
Common Tern 1E
Auk sp. 1E
Cuckoo 1 adult ex.
Swift 3W
Sand Martin 1
Swallow 6
Stonechat 4
Lesser Whitethroat h
Whitethroat 12
Blackcap 3
Starling c.350
Corn Bunting h

Marbled White 60
Small Tortoiseshell 1
Small Heath 15
Small Copper 5
Small Skipper 10
White-lettered Hairstreak 1 ex.
Dark-green Fritillary 40
Comma 1
Red Admiral 1
Gatekeeper 5

Bonxie east past Birling Gap

Dark-green Fritillary at Birling

Marbled Whites at Birling

Adult (3CY+) male Continental Stonechat S. t. rubicola at Beachy Head, East Sussex. July 2011.

Female Continental Stonechat S. t. rubicola at Beachy Head, East Sussex. July 2011.

This female was seen feeding the juvenile male that was accompanying the adult male. It is a very close match to that portrayed in Plate 110 in (Hellstrom and Waern 2011) labelled as a probable female. Some female rubicola are extraordinarily dark, especially in Summer, an effect that becomes more pronounced due to wear, and may result in a rather male-like appearance. Female British Stonechat S. t. hibernans shows no white on sides of neck (Urquhart 2002) and it is interesting to note that the breeding female portrayed on p. 295 therein lacks a white inner-wing covert patch.

Dally, A. 2001. Stonechats in Essex. Birding World Vol. 14 No. 7: 305.

Hellstrom, M and Waern, M. 2011. Field identification and ageing of Siberian Stonechats in spring and summer. Brit. Birds 104: 5: 236-254.

Siddle, J. 2001. Apparent Continental Stonechats on Scilly. Birding World Vol. 14 No. 9: 389.

Stoddart, A. 2009. An unusual Common Stonechat. Brit. Birds 102: 3: 137-8.

Urquhart, E. 2002. Stonechats: a guide to the genus Saxicola. Christopher Helm, London.

Walker, D. 2001. Apparent Continental Stonechats in England. Birding World Vol. 14 No. 4: 156-158.

White-lettered Hairstreak at Belle Tout

Pyramidal Orchids