Back on Bardsey!

It has been a great couple of weeks away in Corsica, relaxing and seeing some fantastic wildlife on the sun-baked island. However, we flew back from Bastia airport on Sunday; after a frantic drive down the A55 we managed to reach Porth Meuddwy for 1700, and shortly after were taken across a bouncy Bardsey sound by Colin to our wind-battered home.

It is great to be back on the island, despite a myriad of jobs associated with our return. The wildlife is blooming, with the wetlands in a particularly pretty phase- Red Clover, Ox-eye Daisies, hundreds of Common Spotted Orchids and Hard Heads are all flowering. I was very pleased to be handed a pot which contained the island's first SCARLET TIGER- it had been found earlier on Sunday in the obs garden. A fantastic specimen, it was a new one for me, and a scarce visitor to the island.

I will resume regular (ish) updates here as we progress through the summer, although for now here are a few images from the last couple of days. I will work on some trip report- style blogs on the Corsica trip too, which I will hopefully get done in the next week or two.

The superb Scarlet Tiger. A new species for Bardsey (and me). Interestingly, there are number of records of this species from the Lleyn Peninsula, especically near Abersoch. The larvae will feed on Nettles, but I believe they prefer to feed on Comfrey

A slightly different angle on this Bluebottle

There seem to be an awful lot of Hoverflies around. It was great to see Volucella plumata in good numbers around Nant, along with Syrphus sp. and Marmalade Flies. This individual, however, I cannot ID as yet

Buff Tip was a nice addition to an otherwise slightly uninspiring moth trap catch

Juvenile Meadow Pipit