On Sunday I had a wander around the lanes leading to Dale airfield from Marloes, some nice weedy brassica or beet fields that were jumping with linnets and pipits, with a few reedbuntings and stonechat, plus a single whitethroat and a Whinchat. A couple of the pipits were picking up little green caterpillars which must have been pretty abundant. Pausing at one gateway I just managed to see the orange rump and tail of a Common redstart before it disappeared. The airfield, apart from lots of meadow pipits and skylarks was pretty quiet. 8 Wheatear and a few snipe the only waders. A young peregrine was sat on something near the intersection which probably explained the quietness. There were a couple hawkers doing circuits of the pond, one looked good for a Southern migrant hawker but it didn't settle, the other was a Migrant hawker.
Out again this morning, starting from Marloes Mere for a lap of the peninsula. Skylarks more obvious than of late with lots of chirrupping in the calm air. 2 lapwing and a dunlin on the mere. Flock of around 50 goldfinch and linnets. A great spotted woodpecker. Flock of 20 chough by the earthworks. A sparrowhawk flicked over the hedgetops. 3 snipe. Lots of cranefly again, must be 1,000s in the rough grassland. A couple of chiffchaff and a female blackcap was all I could see in Martin's Haven. Whilst checking again in vein for a wryneck on the Deer Park the clear blue sky began to look more threatening around 10am as heavy cloud rolled in from the west, there was a noticeable movement of swallows moving inland ahead of it and skylarks and a few chaffinch and best of all a Lapland bunting flew over giving its explosive spluttering twitter followed with a chew. I followed it in the binoculars and it seemed to descend so may have come down near Martin's Haven. After a bit of lunch and a few errands inspired by the lap bunting I headed up for a look at the airfield but nothing significant, a jay in the lane was all. Supposed to be a good acorn year so most likely there'll be a few more soon.