October

 

Tuesday 2nd October

First autumn squill found, mid south side of shepherd's trail, small stand

sunbird singing in garden midday hours,  house sparrows, feral pigeons about.

hooded crows, jackdaws about, calls.  Ring neck parakeet early morning visit,  Akiva heard bee-eaters sometime in the afternoon.  In valley, several glimpses and calls of jays, blackbird noticed but quiet.  Some graceful warbler calls.

Gazelle.. three east field betw olives and hill, male chasing female followed by another female. Several down in Pistacia grove area, up to half a dozen, headed over to euc grove and pines east of cistern.


Saturday 27 October 

Has been a quiet month.   Some more squll found by north watercourse dirt road near shaft, north side.. no luck finding autumn hyacinth.. no crocuses yet.. just one day in which intermittant showers, other days dry and a week of unusual warmth mid Oct.. over 30 every day early afternoon

Sunbird song regular in garden,  also calls.  Activity and vocal several places in the valley also

have not heard ring neck parakeets since last record, nor bee-eaters.

hooded crows and jackdaws active as usual, Eurasian jays active in valley.

Graceful warblers regularly active and vocal,  occasionally in or near the garden.

Laughing doves very little cooing in last few weeks, only a few sightings but pair foraging on street today.

White wagtail heard and glimpsed flying over the street last week.  Akiva noticed in town previous week. 

No sightings of stonechats nor black redstart yet.  Chiffchaffs perhaps, some chiffchaff like calls. Did think I'd heard a stonechat a few weeks ago but were a number of masked shrikes about that week and may have heard one of those in the lower east field  

Gazelle: today four subadult gazelle in lower east field.  Hyrax activity recently quite normal by valley road, twilight barks and various other vocalizations. Bat seen this evening over valley road.. fairly regular this month in evenings.