April 2026 was another in a series of unpredictable spring months. Despite the dry and generally sunny conditions, cold winds meant migration was mainly a trickle.
The earliest Chiffchaffs had been seen in March but the
first significant arrival was on 4th with a dozen records of singing
birds around the village that day…
Sand Martins were very late this year with the first seen on
the 6th April but it was almost the end of the month before they
were present in any numbers.
The first Swallow was reported on 8th and a House
Martin the next day. There was a gap then before the next find, at least three
Yellow Wagtails along the river on 12th…
A Willow Warbler the next day was then followed surprisingly
by an early Swift over Swalefields on the 18th (I still haven’t seen
one at the time of writing!)
Finally, a Whitethroat was scratching away on the 21st.
There were no reports of either Lesser Whitethroat or Garden Warbler by month
end.
A surprising record early in the month was a flock of 129
Stock Doves, by a very wide margin the highest count for the parish. This is despite
the local birds being well into breeding so it’s unclear what the source of
these birds is…
It was also good to get my first garden Tree Sparrow for some
time…
Away from birds, April saw the emergence of all the expected
butterfly species but generally in low numbers so far. The one exception is
Holly Blue with a definite upturn in April sightings compared with recent years…
I also found an Alder Leaf Beetle and got quite excited as it
was only re-found as a British species in 2004. The latest list of Yorkshire
beetles (published in 2020) showed no records for north-west Yorkshire (VC65).
In fact, and as stark evidence of the pace of change in the natural world at
the moment, it is now apparently widespread in the lowland areas of Yorkshire…
If other records are a bit sparse it’s because I missed a chunk
of April as we were on holiday on Dungeness. Despite lovely sunshine each day the
winds stayed relentlessly northerly, so migration was slow. It did mean some
good sea-watching though, with literally hundreds of Whimbrels passing and my first
Pomarine Skua for a couple of years.
Highlight on the land was my first Early Spider Orchids at
Samphire Hoe, fantastic little plants…
Also, my first Grizzled Skippers after a long search in the Dungeness trapping area…
And on the way home my first Oxlips in a Cambridgeshire wood…
I’ll finish this month with a lovely backlit Hare in the Bottom Fields a couple of days ago…
