Birdwatching, Butterfly-watching and Moth Evening around Cornwall

Location: 
Godrevy Head, Gwithian
RSPB Hayle Estuary Nature Reserve
Windmill Farm Nature Reserve
Lizard Point, The Lizard Peninsula
Kynance Cove, The Lizard Peninsula
Loe Bar, The Lizard Peninsula

Photographer: Rowena Castillo Nicholls
​Videographer: Rob Nicholls

Went out early to search for 2 rare birds: White Stork and Brown Booby. Our first stop was at Godrevy. The birds were no show but we saw Seals, Gannets, Black Tern, Sooty Shearwater, Whimbrel and a lot more...

Our 2nd stop was at RSPB Hayle Estuary. Not many species. Just the usual ones.

Our 3rd stop was at Windmill Farm. The only notable species we saw was this gorgeous Barn Owl.

Our 4th stop was at Lizard Point. As always, I am delighted to see 3x Cornish Choughs showing off their acrobatic flight.

Our 5th stop was at Kynace Cove, one of the most scenic spot in Cornwall.

Our last stop was at Loe Bar to see the rare Sandhill Rustic Moth lead by Adrian Spalding. We've seen 21x in total.

​Adrian Spalding is the author of the "Loe Bar and the Sandhill Rustic Moth: The Biogeography, Ecology and History of a Coastal Shingle Bar" and other wildlife books.

In Loe Bar and the Sandhill Rustic Moth, Adrian Spalding examines the survival of plants and animals on Loe Bar, a shingle beach on the coast of Cornwall, in the context of its history, geomorphology and exposure to the Atlantic environment. He develops these themes within a detailed study of the Sandhill Rustic moth that endures this harsh environment where storm surges, high salinity, high temperatures, strong winds and burial by sand affect the wildlife that occurs there.

​Adrian Spalding MA (Cantab), PhD (University of Aberdeen), FLS, FRES is a former Director of the Cornish Biological Records Unit (University of Exeter) and currently Director of Spalding Associates (Environmental) Ltd. He has had a lifetime passion for moths and butterflies.