6 May 22

Old Quarry Lane, Wakeham Meadow, Wakeham Railway Cuttings and Bumpers Lane

Well it might have been sunny and warm in sheltered spots, but out in the open it was absolutely freezing, with a bitter south-westerly.

No real highlights today, not like yesterday's warbler feast. In fact the best I could do was 3 Common Whitethroats, 2 Lesser Whitethroats and 3 Blackcaps.

On the insect front I had a new beetle to add to my Portland List. A Common Grammoptera (Grammoptera ruficornis), which is one of our smallest longhorn beetles in the UK.

Birds Recorded:
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Wood Pigeon
Collared Dove
3 Swallow
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
3 Common Whitethroat
2 Lesser Whitethroat
3 Blackcap
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Linnet
Goldfinch

A Common Whitethroat in the meadows.

The Lesser Whitethroat is still along Wakeham Railway Cuttings.

And as I was photographing the White-tailed Bumblebees in this "wild" Apple Tree a male Chaffinch dropped in briefly for a photo shoot.


Reptiles Recorded:
Wall Lizard
Slow-worm

A Wall Lizard above the Cuttings

And close to Wakeham Meadows were these 4 Slow-worms

Butterflies Recorded:
Orange-tip
Large White
Small White
Green-veined White
Wall Brown
Speckled Wood
Small Tortoiseshell

A Wall Brown in the meadows

A Speckled Wood along Old Quarry Lane

Bees Recorded:
Honey Bees (Apis mellifera)
Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
Common Carder (Bombus pascuorum)
White-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lucorum)
Red Mason Bee (Osmia bicornis)
#1 bee sp.
#2 bee sp.
A White-tailed Bumblebee

And its rear view.

A Red Mason Bee (Osmia bicornis) on the "wild" Apple Tree along Bumpers Lane.

And another view of the Red Mason Bee

#1 bee sp.

#2 bee sp.


Hoverflies Recorded:
Cheilosia sp. (Possibly)



Cheilosia sp.!!


Flies, Craneflies, Gnats and Midges Recorded:
St Mark's Fly (Bibio marci)
Noon Fly (Mesembrina meridiana)

Noon Fly (Mesembrina meridiana)


Bugs and Beetles Recorded:
Common Grammoptera (Grammoptera ruficornis)

As is often the case, whilst you photograph one thing, you end up photographing something else as well. In this case I was photographing the Red Mason Bee (top left) and unbeknown to me I had photographed this beetle as well. The closest I can get to ID'ing it is that it is most likely the Common Grammoptera - Grammoptera ruficornis. More on this beetle Here.


Ted:

Ted sea watching

A sad Ted, as he realises I dont have anymore treats.

Aircraft Today:

This is G-SACI Piper PA-28-161 flying over Portland. Its Flightpath from today can be seen Here. More on this aircraft Here.


Ships Today:

This is the Dutch General Cargo Ship "Waaldijk" on its way from Renteria (Spain) to Poole. More on this vessel Here.

This is the Dutch Oil/Chemical Tanker "Stella Polaris" on its way from Rotterdam to Dublin. More on this vessel Here.

This is the British Law Enforcement boat "Solent Guardian" on its way from Dartmouth to Portland harbour. More on this vessel Here.