Wednesday, 3 April 2019

News - first hirundine of the season seen

Tuesday, 2nd April

This year's first report of a hirundine (swallows and martins) in The Abingtons came on Tuesday morning.  A group of five Sand Martin was seen swooping low over Granta Park lake, travelling westwards.

Whilst dependent on the weather and location, Sand Martin are generally the first of the hirundines to arrive in the UK, starting in March and peaking by late-April. Swallow generally arrive during April, with House Martin arrivals being more spread out from mid-April to late-May, and Swift not arriving until May. Unsurprisingly, typical arrival dates in Scotland are 2-4 weeks later than in southern England.

So ,,,, keep your eyes peeled - and let Derek know when you see your first!

The BTO have this interesting and useful identification guide:
https://www.bto.org/about-birds/bird-id/bto-bird-id-hirundines-and-swift


















Arrival data from BTO website
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The Aims of Abington Naturewatch

At their meeting on 9 April 2005 the members approved this revised version of the aims of Abington Naturewatch:

  • To monitor and record the wildlife (fauna & flora) within the borders of the Abingtons;
  • To encourage protection of our wildlife, maintain its quality and foster its diversity;
  • To promote awareness of the richness, potential and problems of the natural environment of the Abingtons;
  • To cooperate in improving access to the local natural environment for the benefit of all Abington villagers.

Pat Daunt, Founder

The organisation is informal and communication is by email if possible; members are notified of events from time to time. Contact details are maintained by a small "project team". There is currently no membership fee as costs are covered by voluntary contributions at events.

Members are encouraged to report notable sightings of flora and fauna within the Abingtons to the appropriate sector coordinator and an illustrated record is published annually.

A map of the area covered, with some features noted, is available here: http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=213774935674882866424.00000111dca2be9f06ab8&z=13>

For more information or to join, please contact David Farrant on (01223) 892871.

Contributions to our records should be sent to sector contacts or either of the above. Photographs may also be submitted to Andy Merryweather (amerryweather61@gmail.com)