As 2025 has now come to an end, I thought I should show my December highlights, which have been more varied than usual. December is usually a quiet month for me as the butterfly season is all but over. This year though, the milder weather for much of December has brought a few butterfly sightings, as well as some good bird encounters.
Earlier this year I had my first ever Brown Hairstreak sightings on my local patch, something I thought would never happen, but this year the Brown Hairstreak has had a great year and has spread further into East Sussex. With 3 sightings of the butterfly, I was hoping that through the winter months I would find some Brown Hairstreak eggs on the patch too. On December 3rd I found a couple, but I didn't have the camera, so the following day I went back to the site to get some proper images of them.
Water Pipit.
Three days later Lisa and I went to try again. The Water Pipit was seen again, but once again proved difficult. The Scandinavian Rock Pipits were there again, but were not quite so approachable, however, I did get one that posed in a nice way.
Scandinavian Rock Pipit.
On the 21st I came across a small group of Stinkhorn. It was the first time that I had found these on my patch. Once again I had to call back the following day with the camera. One day I will remember to always take it with me!!
Stinkhorn.
On Boxing Day Lisa and I went to Ashdown Forest. We saw very little until we were almost back to the car, when Lisa spotted a male Crossbill in a tree, feeding on Pine Cones. Lisa had her 600mm but I had only put the 100-400 zoom on mine. I regretted not having a better reach, however, a few images were still pretty good. There was also a female Crossbill feeding alongside the male, but she kept hidden amongst the foliage.
Male Crossbill.
Following this we went to a lake near East Grinstead which we had heard was good for Starling murmurations. Here we met up with Dom, and it wasn't long before we saw groups of Starling coming in, and gradually the group grew to an enormous number of birds. The murmurations became very impressive.
Starling Murmuration.
Starling Murmuration.
On the 28th we tried to get some images of the garden birds at home. I have done this a few times over the years, but not for some time. I was really hoping for one of the Greenfinches to settle on the Hazel, but only Goldfinches performed for me.
Goldfinch.
Following the fabulous murmurations at East Grinstead, we decided on the 30th to try again, especially as the weather was forecast for full sunshine. so we hoped for some colour in the sky. The sky was fantastic, although the murmurations were not quite as impressive as the first trip. However, a few good shapes were seen, including one that could have been a whale. We also saw a Peregrine hoping to get lucky!!
Starling Murmuration with Peregrine hunting.
On the final day of the year, I headed up to my local patch in the late morning as it was a glorious sunny day with light wind. I was pushing my luck really as I was hoping for a final butterfly sighting for the year. I have seen a Peacock on the 31st December before in 2020, so I knew it wasn't impossible, but unlikely. However not only did I find a Peacock, but I found a 2nd one that stayed around for a quick photo. So, here is my final butterfly sighting and photo of 2025.
Peacock. 31st December 2025.
Following this we went to Eastbourne to look for Jack Snipe. We did see one, but as usual it saw us before we saw him. We also saw a Water Rail and had some good views of a couple of female Reed Buntings.
Female Reed Bunting feeding.
After this we wanted to see more murmurations, so we headed to Eastbourne Pier that is well known for Starling Murmurations. It was a lovely backdrop with the pier, but the numbers were not so impressive as East Grinstead. It was still a fabulous experience though, and the Mince Pies and Mulled Wine was also rather nice as we watched the spectacle. On the last day of 2025 we felt we could celebrate what had been a very good wildlife year for us both.
Starling Murmuration at Eastbourne Pier.