15 Sep 23

Lower Horse Paddock, Higher Horse Paddock, Broadcroft Butterfly Reserve, Broadcroft Quarry Lane, Bumpers Lane, Silklake Quarry, The Cuttings Quarry and Wakeham Railway Cuttings (east)

After a pretty warm day, I left it quite late for a walk so that it wasn't too hot for Ted. And now that Autumn is upon us, I decided to walk down Broadcroft Quarry Lane, as this is a pretty good location for autumnal birds.

And this evening started off pretty well with 4 Chiffchaffs calling along the 150 metre stretch. Also in the lane was a Sparrowhawk, 5 Long-tailed Tits, a Robin and 2 Blackbirds


Birds Recorded:
1 Gannet
Sparrowhawk
1 Oystercatcher
Herring Gull
Wood Pigeon
Collared Dove
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
1 Blackcap
7 Chiffchaff
Long-tailed Tit
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Linnet
Goldfinch

An adult Gannet..........

................makes its way up Portland's east coast towards Portland Harbour

A very obliging Long-tailed Tit in Broadcroft Quarry Lane

Also in the lane was this Goldfinch.

Reptiles Recorded:
Wall Lizard

There were a few Wall Lizards basking in the evening sun.

This has to be one of the longest Wall Lizards I have ever come across

And a large head as well.

Butterflies Recorded:
Large White
Small White
Green-veined White
2 Speckled Wood
2 Meadow Brown
4 Red Admiral
1 Painted Lady

A male Small White

Speckled Wood

Meadow Brown

And a Red Admiral

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

Three Ivy Bees on the Ivy near the Cuttings

On the right are two more Ivy Bees and slightly hidden on the far left is a Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form spectabilis

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

Hoverflies Recorded:
Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)
Dead Head Hoverfly (Myathropa florea)

A Common Dronefly (Eristalis tenax)

And a Dead Head Hoverfly (Myathropa florea)

Flies, Craneflies, Gnats and Midges Recorded:

Cluster fly (Pollenia agg.)

Possibly Cluster Flies!!

Bugs and Beetles Recorded:

Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form succinea

Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form spectabilis

A very distant record shot of a Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form succinea

Spiders Recorded:

Garden Spider (Araneus diadematus)

A Garden Spider wraps up its next meal

Plants:

"white" grape (Vitis sp.)

This years grapes are looking........

..........pretty good in the garden of one of my neighbours.

Ted:

Which way Ted!!

Ships Today:

This is the British Sailing Vessel "Cara of Bute" on its way from Saint Peter Port (Guernsey) to Weymouth Harbour. More on this vessel here.

This is the British Pleasure Boat "Dart Hound" on its way from Plymouth towards Weymouth Harbour. More on this vessel here.

Aircraft Today:

This is a Van's RV-8 - Registration G-XRVB. More on this aircraft here and here. Plus a close-up photo here.