23 Aug 21

Sweethill Farm, Top Fields, Wallsend Cove and Southwell Business Park

A very overcast day, but still quite mild.. Not too many highlights, which was a bit of surprise, especially as I met a couple who had seen Wheatear, Whinchat and Willow Warblers further north up the island.

Incredibly I only came across 3 butterflies, 2 Wall Brown and a lone Gatekeeper.

Birds Recorded:
1 Buzzard

1 Kestrel

Herring Gull

Great Black-backed Gull

Stock Dove

Wood Pigeon

Collared Dove

House Martin

Swallow

Meadow Pipit

Pied Wagtail

Dunnock

Blackbird

Magpie

Carrion Crow

Jackdaw

Raven

Starling

House Sparrow

Chaffinch

Linnet

Goldfinch

Common Buzzard

This Common Buzzard was being very vocal up until I started videoing it.

Stock Dove

Butterflies Recorded:
2 Wall Brown
1 Gatekeeper


Bees Recorded:
Honey Bees (Apis mellifera)
Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
Common Carder (Bombus pascuorum)

Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)

Ichneumon Wasps Recorded:
Ichneumon sp

Ichneumon sp

As above

Hoverflies Recorded:
Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)

Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)

Flies, Craneflies, Gnats and Midges Recorded:

Parasitic Fly (Eriothrix rufomaculata)

1 - Fly sp.

2 - Fly sp.

Parasitic Fly (Eriothrix rufomaculata)

1 - Fly sp.

2 - Fly sp.

Sawflies Recorded:

Sawfly sp.

On the left a Sawfly sp. and on the right a fly sp.

Crickets and Grasshoppers Recorded:
Common Field Grasshopper (Chorthippus brunneus)

A Common Field Grasshopper (Chorthippus brunneus)

Plants:

Common Toadflax (Linaria vulgaris).

A mass of Common Toadflax. It is also known as Yellow Toadflax and Butter-and-eggs

Ted:

A quick look to see where I am. I'm coming Ted.

Ships Today

This is the Italian Vehicles Carrier "Grande Texas" on its way from Ford Otosan (Turkey) to Southampton. More on this vessel Here.

This is the Panamanian Container Ship "Mol Truth" on its way from Rotterdam to the Suez Canal (Egypt). More on this vessel Here.

This is the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary Ship "Mounts Bay" just off Portland. More on this vessel Here.

This is the British Aircraft Carrier "HMS Prince of Wales" just south of Portland. More on this vessel Here.

My initial thought was that this fishing boat had sprung a leak, with what looked like fuel on the surface.

However zooming in, you can just make out two floats, a red and then a white one just off the stern. The oily slick is a Chum trail to attract sharks. Rubby-dubby, which it is also known as, is a mixture of mashed up fish, guts and other oily ingredients placed in a bucket with a lid with lots of holes in the side, which is then lowered into the water to allow the fishy bits and oils to seep out slowly. The idea is that sharks will catch scent of the "Rubby-dubby" and make their way up to the source. If the anglers are lucky they might catch Tope, Blue Shark or Porbeagles using this method. Most sharks nowadays which are caught are now tagged and released.