Praa Sands: This week number 75 turned up, a Green Woodpecker, heard calling but not seen, otherwise very quiet. (Matt Southam)

Garden Listing 14th July 2021

Feock: After a long gap a pair of Ravens flew over the garden today bringing my total to 39. (Rosalind Smith)

Garden Listing 7th July 2021

Polbathic: Two Garden Warblers spent a short while around our pond, this morning, taking our total to 62. (Andy Blonden)

Garden Listing 4th July 2021

Constantine: It’s most of a month since I added anything to the garden list (seems longer!), but a Curlew calling over the house this afternoon is the first sign of autumn here, and brings the total to 61. (David Collins)

Creegbrawse, Chacewater: Siskin, Swift and Linnet for 46. (Brian Toms)

Praa Sands: After all this time suddenly a Curlew (no.73) arrives, two calling as they flew over. (Matt Southam)

Garden Listing 22nd June 2021

Praa Sands: Sitting out very early on Tuesday morning I heard a wader calling, it took me a moment of looking before the bird appeared flying down the coast towards Marazion – Black-winged Stilt (no.72). I’ve not found one before, let alone from the garden. (Matt Southam)

Garden Listing 19th June 2021

Trethurgy: Turtle Dove coming into garden – first for the garden and Trethurgy ! Feeding on Sunflower hearts from feeders above. A female Sparrowhawk came in and put up every bird that it was feeding with but we don’t think the Sparrowhawk caught anything and the Turtle Dove later returned to our garden. (Geoff White)

Praa Sands: Strange how birds are coming in twos. No 70 was a Whitethroat singing from scrub on the Green. They’ve been there a while but at the far end since arriving. Next day, a Willow Warbler (no.71) feeding in the garden, a first for me as a garden bird. (Matt Southam)

Coverack: Total now 68. (Dan Beadle)

Liskeard: Male Bullfinch feeding on leftover sunflower seeds amongst the flower border this evening. A stunning number 37. (Deena Sharp)

Constantine: Saw this Barn Owl last night bringing my total to 61. First sighting of this species here for some years. (Tim Pinfield)

Barn Owl – Tim Pinfield

Garden Listing 9th June 2021

Tresillian: One more for my list – Tufted Duck. (Andrew le Masurier)

It’s time for another Cornwall Garden Listing League roundup, and this one is a double roundup for April and May. The last few months have seen a few changes at the top of the leader board, with the top 11 gardens separated by only 9 species at the end of May. Matt Southam at Praa Sands now leads the way, ahead of Dave Parker at Marazion and Dan Beadle at Coverack in joint second. Reuben Veal at Crowlas is still the top inland garden, now tied with John Holmes at Penryn on 63 species, whilst Andrew le Masurier now rounds out the top 6 with 62 species from his Tresillian garden.

Bird of the month for April was probably the Osprey seen by Stu Bearhop on the 12^th, whilst May’s top bird could be one of several – Rosalind Smith’s Black-tailed Godwit at Feock, Dan Beadle’s brief early-morning Spotted Flycatcher, Tony Wilson’s drake Mandarin that turned up at Callestick on 17^th May, or Andrew le Masurier’s garden-tick Hobby on the 28^th.

The Cornwall Garden Listing League combined list now stands at 128 species, and many of the recent additions to the list were spring migrants: Helen Norton had both the first House Martin on 3^rd April and the first Swallow at the end of March, Rob Nicholls at Grampound Road had the first Swift on 24^th April and Tony Wilson garden-ticked the first Sedge Warbler of the year the following day. Phil McVey had a Grasshopper Warbler, an impressive bird to record from a garden, on the 26^th, and four days later the first Cuckoo was heard by David Collins at Constantine. What may well have been the same bird was noted by Tim Pinfield at Constantine on 2^nd May, with Cuckoos also being recorded from gardens at Lanlivery (3^rd), Penryn (24^th; only the second from John Holmes’s garden in 9 years) and Coverack (30^th).

Red Kite was a popular addition during the period, with 8 gardens adding this impressive raptor. 19 gardens have now added Swallow, 16 have added Swift and 15 have added House Martin. Gary Healey at Crowlas became the third lister to record Sand Martin this year, and Whimbrels turned up for Matt Southam at Praa Sands and Andy Blonden at Polbathic on 18^th and 20^th April respectively. Manx Shearwater was one of 7 additions to the combined list in May, with the first seen by Matt Southam on 5^th.

Moving away from migrants, David Collins got the eighth garden tick bird of prey species in four years in the form of a Kestrel on 29^th May, as well as adding Shelduck on the 9^th. Andrew le Masurier also added Shelduck, on 15^th May, and on the same day became the second lister to record Little Grebe this year. Another highlight from Tresillian was a Firecrest on 1^st April, whilst Phil McVey added a Yellowhammer on 23^rd March.

Looking forwards, it’s perhaps surprising that no garden has yet recorded Whitethroat, whilst only 5 gardens have recorded Willow Warbler, so these are species to keep an eye out for. Whilst spring migration fades out into June, there are a number of potential scarcities or rarities that might turn up, such as flyover Bee-eater or Crossbill, or perhaps even the Black Stork that’s been roaming parts of the county in recent days. Rosy Starling is another potential garden addition with the currrent influx… Good luck!