14 Sep 23

Bumpers Lane, The Cuttings, The Cuttings Quarry, Wakeham Railway Cuttings, Wakeham Meadows and Old Quarry Lane

Ted and I had an extended walk today, with the main highlight being my first Ivy Bees for this Autumn. I have obviously been looking in the wrong places.

On the Autumn bird front I came across at least 8 Blackcaps, 2 Yellow Wagtails and 2 Chiffchaffs.

Mammals Recorded:
Brown Rat


Birds Recorded:
Buzzard
Herring Gull
Great Black-backed Gull
Wood Pigeon
Collared Dove
2 Yellow Wagtail
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
8 Blackcap
2 Chiffchaff
Long-tailed Tit
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
2 Raven
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Linnet
Goldfinch

This male Blackcap was one of at least..........

..............8 seen feeding in amongst the brambles along my walk.

It looks very much like this female Linnet has a large tick on her.

And a presumed pair of.........

................Ravens flying over Penn's Weare.

Reptiles Recorded:
Wall Lizard

This Wall Lizard has an eye on me

Butterflies Recorded:
8+ Large White
5+ Small White
3+ Green-veined White
1 Clouded Yellow
6 Speckled Wood
1 Meadow Brown
15+ Red Admiral
2 Common Blue
1 Chalk Hill Blue

A female Green-veined White

Clouded Yellows are so difficult to photograph. They hardly ever rest up and the best I could do was a grab shot of this one disappearing over the brambles. Yes its that yellow blob to the left of the arrow. Moving on.

A Meadow Brown. This was the only one I came across today and........

..............likewise with this male Chalk Hill Blue.

I did however come across two Common Blues, this male and another close by.

Moths Recorded:
Silver Y (Autographa gamma)

A Silver Y

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

And the star of the day goes to my first Ivy Bee this Autumn. This seasonal bee was first seen in the British Isles in Dorset in 2001, having arrived from continental Europe. For me this is a real stunner of a bee and a species that is solely dependent on Ivy flowers and is the reason why it can only be seen between September and the end of October/early November, depending on the amount of Ivy still in flower.


Wasps, Ichneumon Wasps, Parasitic Wasps and Gall Wasps Recorded:
Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris)


Hoverflies Recorded:
Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)
Dead Head Hoverfly (Myathropa florea)
Hornet Plumehorn (Volucella zonaria)
Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus)
Plain-faced Dronefly (Eristalis arbustorum)

Hornet Plumehorn (Volucella zonaria)

Bugs and Beetles Recorded:
Dock Bug (Coreus marginatus)
Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form succinea
Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form spectabilis

A Dock Bug (Coreus marginatus)

Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form succinea

Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form succinea

Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form spectabilis

Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form spectabilis

Ships Today:

This is the American Container Ship "Maersk Iowa" on its way from Norfolk (USA) to an unknown destination. More on this vessel Here.

This is the Panamanian Container Ship "NYK Venus" on its way from the Suez (Egypt) to Rotterdam (Holland). More on this vessel Here.

This is the British Commercial Fishing Boat WH5 "Tina Louise" returning to Weymouth Harbour. There is a close-up shot of it in Weymouth Here