After yesterdays gale force easterlies, it was off to the Western Ledges, to the north of Portland Harbour. My quest, to find a Yellow-browed Warbler.
The actual walk was from just above Bincleaves Groin Here to Castle Cove Here, via the old coastal path which takes you through the woods, with the return walk along the beach.
There was no sign of any Yellow-browed Warblers, but there were plenty of Chiffchaffs and Goldcrests about.
Out in the harbour was a lone Great Crested Grebe, with several Cormorants and a Little Egret for company.
Back on the coastal path I came across a couple of Jays and at least 5 Siskins.
It was warm enough for a few butterflies, plus plenty of bees and hoverflies on the flowering Ivy bushes.
Mammals Recorded:
Grey Squirrel
Birds Recorded:
1 Great Crested Grebe
8 Cormorant
1 Little Egret
Black-headed Gull
Herring Gull
Wood Pigeon
Meadow Pipit
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
12+ Chiffchaff
5+ Goldcrest
Long-tailed Tit
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
2 Jay
Magpie
1 Rook
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
5 Siskin
Goldfinch
Butterflies Recorded:
1 Green-veined White
2 Speckled Wood
Bees Recorded:
Honey Bees (Apis mellifera)
Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
Common Carder (Bombus pascuorum)
Ivy Bee (Colletes hederae)
Wasps and Gall Wasps Recorded:
Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris)
Hoverflies Recorded:
Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)
Fungi:
There was no sign of any Yellow-browed Warblers, but there were plenty of Chiffchaffs and Goldcrests about.
Out in the harbour was a lone Great Crested Grebe, with several Cormorants and a Little Egret for company.
Back on the coastal path I came across a couple of Jays and at least 5 Siskins.
It was warm enough for a few butterflies, plus plenty of bees and hoverflies on the flowering Ivy bushes.
Mammals Recorded:
Grey Squirrel
One of two Grey Squirrels I came across on my walk
1 Great Crested Grebe
8 Cormorant
1 Little Egret
Black-headed Gull
Herring Gull
Wood Pigeon
Meadow Pipit
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
12+ Chiffchaff
5+ Goldcrest
Long-tailed Tit
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
2 Jay
Magpie
1 Rook
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
5 Siskin
Goldfinch
A lone great Crested Grebe in the harbour. No doubt there will be plenty more in weeks to come.
A trio of Cormorants facing the sun.
A Little Egret crossing the harbour.
And one of a dozen or so Chiffchaffs in the woods.
1 Green-veined White
2 Speckled Wood
The warm sun was enough to entice this Speckled Wood to do a bit of basking.
Honey Bees (Apis mellifera)
Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
Common Carder (Bombus pascuorum)
Ivy Bee (Colletes hederae)
A Honey Bee
A Common Carder bee
An Ivy Bee with an out of focus Common Wasp to the left.
Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris)
And the now focused Common Wasp
Hoverflies Recorded:
Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)
Plants:
Purpletop Vervain (Verbena bonariensis)
Holm Oak (Quercus ilex)
Purpletop Vervain (Verbena bonariensis)
Holm Oak (Quercus ilex)
Sisal (Agave sisalana perrine) - Possibly
Purpletop Vervain
The flower heads of the Purpletop Vervain
And one of the leaves of the Purpletop Vervain. More on this herbaceous perennial Here.
Holm Oak
And the leaves and an acorn of the Holm Oak. More on this tree Here.
Possibly Sisal (Agave sisalana perrine)
#1 - fungi sp.
#2 - fungi sp.
Ted:
Ships Today:
#1 - fungi sp.
#1 - fungi sp.
#1 - fungi sp.
#1 - fungi sp.
#2 - fungi sp.
General Shots:
Looking north-east along the Western Ledges
And looking south-west towards Sandsfoot Castle.
Along the "Ledges" plenty of trees and bushes for migrants.
Looking south-east towards the Isle of Portland
More Ted's again
Here he is heading..........
..............down to the beach
A bit of "Rock Pooling". Why not.
Ships Today:
This is the British Tug "MTS Victory" returning to Weymouth Harbour. More on this vessel Here.