07 May 2016 Lucy Hill

It was a lovely sunny spring morning for the meeting at Lucy Hill led by Duncan.

We had a delightful walk in warm sunshine,with fresh green foliage coming to the Birch and Oak trees. A Wood Warbler was heard singing and being a declining species in our part of the world was perhaps the best bird of the day, although it couldn't match the excitement of the Cuckoo that was heard and seen as we neared the outskirts of Burley. For some it was the first of the year and sadly is yet another declining species. 

Common Buzzard

Seeing a Shelduck out in the middle of a damp area covered with golden Marsh Marigold flowers was perhaps a bit of a surprise, but a Song Thrush feeding young in a nest hidden deep in Ivy that smothered the trunk of a conifer was less so. A Buzzard (left) soared over the canopy and during the walk we recorded a number of the commoner woodland birds.

The new-born foal

In deep puddles along the edge of the track though the main area of woodland we discovered newts, tadpoles and also found several species of fungi along the way. The only butterfly was the conspicuous Brimstone. Was the mammalian star a very young foal with its mother?