Quick catch up with spring now springing

The Safari yet again has had only a few opportunities to get out this week and even when we have its been very much time constrained during the day. We've added Swallows to all our various patch lists now (P1 #33) P2 #45 & Garden #25) with the last one being over the garden this arvo while waiting for a delivery. A Willow Warbler (Garden #24) quietly sub-songing at the bottom of the garden at Base Camp before work yesterday was a bit of a bonus; the first here since 2012! There must have been a bit of an overnight arrival as there were two on Patch 1 too (P1 #32). Patch 2 yesterday gave us our first Manx Shearwaters (133) of the year when two sped northwards almost at the horizon, not entirely sure how we're going to get these on our Year Bird Challenge. The sea has been mostly very quiet.

We've been reminded to record some of the plants on Patch 1 but rarely taking the camera with us we have been having to rely on phone-pics. Nothing really outstanding...yet...

Cowslips

Cuckoo flower and Cowslip

Common Figwort

Ploughman's Spikenard - pick of the bunch as there's no others nearby

Sweet Vernal Grass - one of our favourite grasses, tastes like American Cream Soda you know. Quality phone-pic...NOT

 There's also several Yellow Meadow Ant mounds, a couple are about a foot high and two in diameter and must have some age about them.

We took the camera on Monty's walk this morning and came across several Speckled Wood butterflies, only of of which settled for a pic.

One of the smaller species of white butterfly was the first seen there this year but remained unidentified. We took the camera in the hope of coming across a Blackcap or a Willow Warbler or even a Greenfinch but there were two very shy singing males of the former and not a sniff of either of the latter. The only bird we could point the camera at was a Collared Dove sat atop the butchered remains of a formerly nice mature Ash tree in a roadside garden.

Back at Base Camp with having to wait in we had a look at what was on the cards from the Stealth Cams...Nothing of note again and still barely a cat - where are they??? The best is our female Blackbird with the little bit of leucistic mottling.

Where to next? A big day out on Safari up north tomorrow.

In the meantime let us know who's building mounds in your outback.