30 Apr 24

Old Quarry Lane, Wakeham Meadows, Wakeham Wildlife Site, Lower Horse Paddock, Higher Horse Paddock and Broadcroft Butterfly Reserve.

I was up with the sparrows this morning and out for a walk between 6:45am - 8:45am. Unfortunately it proved to be a bit of a disappointment, with the only Spring migrants noted being:

Common Whitethroat: 1 in the Lower Horse paddock, 2 on the reserve
Lesser Whitethroat: 1 in Wakeham Meadow and 1 on the reserve
Blackcap: 1 close to the Wakeham Wildlife Site
Chiffchaff: 1 Old Quarry Lane, 1 Lower Horse Paddock, 1 on the reserve


Birds Recorded:
1 Buzzard
1 Pheasant
Herring Gull
1 Stock Dove
Wood Pigeon
Collared Dove
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
2 Song Thrush
3 Common Whitethroat
2 Lesser Whitethroat
1 Blackcap
3 Chiffchaff
Long-tailed Tit
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Linnet
Goldfinch
Greenfinch

A Robin with a beakful of caterpillars for youngsters somewhere on the reserve

And a "bendy" Lesser Whitethroat......

............in Wakeham Meadow.

Bees Recorded:
Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)


Flies, Craneflies, Gnats and Midges Recorded:
Yellow Dung Fly (Scathophaga stercoraria)

A male Yellow Dung Fly (Scathophaga stercoraria)

Slugs and Snails Recorded:
Garden Snail (Cornu aspersa)

There were quite a few Garden Snails about, after last nights rain.

Ted

One happy dog.

29 Apr 24

Old Quarry Lane, Wakeham Meadows, Wakeham Wildlife Site, Lower Horse Paddock, Higher Horse Paddock and Broadcroft Butterfly Reserve

I'm still none the wiser as to why my thigh muscle aches as much as it does, and though I managed a walk this morning, I did suffer in silence for a few hours after. Hopefully the anti-inflammatory tablets and strong painkillers I collected from the pharmacy today will do their magic and I can stop complaining!!!

So what were my highlights today:
Sand Martin: 3 over the reserve
Swallow: 2 over the reserve
Meadow Pipit: 2 over the reserve
Garden Warbler: 1 singing on the reserve
Common Whitethroat: 2 on the reserve, 1 in Wakeham Meadow
Lesser Whitethroat: 1 on the reserve, 1 in Wakeham Wildlife Site
Blackcap: 1 in Wakeham Wildlife Site
Chiffchaff: 2 on the reserve, 1 Old Quarry Lane


Birds Recorded:
1 Buzzard
Herring Gull
1 Great Black-backed Gull
Wood Pigeon
3 Sand Martin
2 Swallow
2 Meadow Pipit
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
1 Garden Warbler
3 Common Whitethroat
2 Lesser Whitethroat
1 Blackcap
3 Chiffchaff
Long-tailed Tit
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Linnet
Goldfinch
Greenfinch

A male Common Whitethroat in Wakeham Meadow

Butterflies Recorded:
1 Speckled Wood


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

Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius)
Grey-patched Mining Bee (Andrena nitida)

Chocolate Mining Bee (Andrena scotica)
Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)

Chocolate Mining Bee (Andrena scotica)

Hoverflies Recorded:
Dead Head Hoverfly (Myathropa florea)

Dead Head Hoverfly (Myathropa florea)

Bugs and Beetles Recorded:
7-spot Ladybird (Coccinella septempunctata)

Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form succinea
Bloody-nosed Beetle (Timarcha tenebricosa)

Dock Bug (Coreus marginatus)
Common Green Shieldbug (Palomena prasina)

7-spot Ladybird (Coccinella septempunctata)

Harlequin Ladybird (Harmonia axyridis) - form succinea

Bloody-nosed Beetle (Timarcha tenebricosa)

Dock Bugs (Coreus marginatus)

Common Green Shieldbug (Palomena prasina)

Ted:

Has anyone lost a Sheep!!

Ships Today:

This is the Cypriot Container Ship "BG Ireland" on its way from Rotterdam to Cork. More on this vessel here.

28 Apr 24

Ferrybridge Sandflats

It was not quite the day I had in mind when I woke up, as I ended up visiting Weymouth Hospital with a very painful thigh muscle. I've no idea how it occurred, but on a scale of 1 - 10 the achiness I was experiencing was an 11.

Needless to say it looks like long walks are out the window for awhile, as I begin a course of anti-inflammatory tablets and strong painkillers. 

So on the way back to Portland I stopped for a "brief" look across The Fleet at Ferrybridge. Highlights here were 20 Little Terns and 13 Sandwich Terns.

Birds Recorded:
20+ Herring Gull
20 Little Tern
13 Sandwich Tern
1 Pied Wagtail
1 Raven

Quite a few of the Little Terns were...........

...........sat on these buoys 

Also here on The Fleet were quite a few Sandwich Terns, which were either chasing each other or......

........looking for a.........

...............buoy to sit on.

On the building site at Ferrybridge this............

.............Raven decided to land close to me.

Ted:

Make the most of this walk Ted, as other walk are going to be few and far between for awhile.

27 Apr 24

Old Quarry Lane, Wakeham Wildlife Site, Wakeham Meadows, Lower Horse Paddock, Higher Horse Paddock and Broadcroft Butterfly Reserve.

The weather might have been pretty dire again, but unlike yesterday when there was very little about, today was a complete transformation with many highlights.

Today's highlights:
Swallow: 10+ over the reserve
Meadow Pipit: 1 over the reserve
Yellow Wagtail: 1 over the reserve
Common Redstart: 1 male and 2 females on the reserve
Wheatear: 1 male and 2 females on the reserve
Reed Warbler: 2 on the reserve
Garden Warbler: 1 on the reserve
Common Whitethroat: 6 on the reserve, 2 Lower Horse Paddock and 1 Higher Horse Paddock
Lesser Whitethroat: 1 Wakeham Wildlife Site and 1 on the reserve
Blackcap: 4 Wakeham Meadow, 1 Wakeham Wildlife Site and 2 on the reserve.
Chiffchaff: 2 Wakeham Meadow and 2 on the reserve.
Willow Warbler: 4 on the reserve


Birds Recorded:
1 Fulmar
Kestrel
Herring Gull
Wood Pigeon
Collared Dove
10+ Swallow
1 Meadow Pipit
1 Yellow Wagtail
Dunnock
Robin
3 Common Redstart
3 Wheatear
Blackbird
1 Song Thrush
2 Reed Warbler
1 Garden Warbler
9 Common Whitethroat
2 Lesser Whitethroat
7 Blackcap
4 Chiffchaff
4 Willow Warbler
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Linnet
Goldfinch
Greenfinch

A Fulmar over Wakeham again

And a female Common Redstart.

And another female, Unfortunately the male flew off before I could photograph it

A male Wheatear and his......

.........mate

And another female.

A female Common Whitethroat in the Lower Horse Paddock

And a Chiffchaff in Wakeham Meadow.

And these two Willow Warblers were..........

..........in the butterfly reserve.

A male Linnet in amongst the Daisy's and Buttercups.

A Goldfinch

Butterflies Recorded:
1 Orange-tip


Moths Recorded:
Green-longhorn Moth (Adela reaumurella)

A male Green-longhorn Moth (Adela reaumurella)

Bees Recorded:
Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius)

Hoverflies Recorded:
None


Flies, Craneflies, Gnats and Midges Recorded:
fly sp.

fly sp.

Bugs and Beetles Recorded:
Bloody-nosed Beetle (Timarcha tenebricosa)
Dock Bug (Coreus marginatus)

A Bloody-nosed Beetle (Timarcha tenebricosa)

And a Dock Bug (Coreus marginatus)

Crickets and Grasshoppers Recorded:
Dark Bush-cricket (Pholidoptera griseoaptera)

And my first Dark Bush-cricket nymph of the year.

Spiders Recorded:
Nurseryweb Spider (Pisaura mirabilis)

A Nurseryweb Spider (Pisaura mirabilis)

General Shots:

Broadcroft Butterfly Reserve (west)

Looking south and.......

.......then north.

26 Apr 24

Old Quarry Lane, Lower Horse Paddock, Higher Horse Paddock, Broadcroft Butterfly Reserve, Broadcroft Quarry Lane, Bumpers Lane, Wakeham Railway Cuttings (east), Wakeham Railway Cuttings and Wakeham Meadows.

Yet again it was another cloudy cold day, with the occasional spot of rain. Main highlight was a pair of Swifts over Bumpers Lane, my first for the year.

Other highlights were:
Fulmar: 1 over Bumpers Lane
Swallow: 20+ heading north over the reserve
Common Whitethroat: 2 males on the reserve.
Blackcap: A male singing in Wakeham Meadow
Chiffchaff: One singing again along Old Quarry Lane and another on the reserve.
Willow Warbler: 2 on the reserve
Greenfinch: A male on the butterfly reserve, 2m, 1f in Broadcroft Quarry Lane and 1 male Wakeham Railway Cuttings (east)


Birds Recorded:
1 Fulmar
2 Kestrel
Herring Gull
Wood Pigeon
Collared Dove
2 Swift
20+ Swallow
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
1 Song Thrush
2 Common Whitethroat
1 Blackcap
2 Chiffchaff
2 Willow Warbler
Long-tailed Tit
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Linnet
Goldfinch
4 Greenfinch

A Fulmar over Bumpers Lane

And a male Kestrel looking for its next meal.

An inquisitive Wood Pigeon keeps a wary eye on Ted who was walking under the tree it was sat in.

Along the Wakeham Railway Cuttings (west), a Robin stops for a break from collecting food for youngsters.

A Song Thrush looking for food on the reserve.

And one of the two Common Whitethroats on the reserve.

A bird that is always good to see and that is a Greenfinch. Sadly since 1979, Greenfinch numbers have dropped by 66% and made worse by birds contracting Trichomonosis, a parasite-induced disease in 2006, that prevented the birds from feeding properly. With a rapid decrease in numbers they were added to the red list in the 2021 Birds of Conservation Concern report. On Portland it does seem there are a few about, so hopefully their numbers will start to increase. More on Trichomonosis here.

A good dozen or more House Sparrows having a dust bath in Broadcroft Quarry Lane. On the far right, in the green foliage, a pair of Greenfinches look on.

And on the opposite side of the lane from the House Sparrows were these three Goldfinches

Butterflies Recorded:
None.


Bees Recorded:
Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)
Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius)

A Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)

And a Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius) both on Wall Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster horizontalis)

Hoverflies Recorded:
1 Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare)

On one of the Wild Strawberry's was this Chequered Hoverfly (Melanostoma scalare). The only hoverfly I came across today.

Plants:

Wild Strawberry (Fragaria vesca)

Horseshoe Vetch (Hippocrepis comosa)

Wall Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster horizontalis)

Cowslips (Primula veris)

Red Clover (Trifolium pratense)

Meadow Buttercup (Ranunculus arvensis)

Common Daisy (Bellis perennis)
Herb Robert (Geranium robertianum)

Pendulous Sedge (Carex pendula)

Horse Chestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum)

This is Wild Strawberry (Fragaria vesca) and.......

............not only is it in flower but it's also has a few strawberries forming. More on this plant here.

Horseshoe Vetch (Hippocrepis comosa) flowering in amongst the Wall Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster horizontalis)

These Cowslips (Primula veris) in the butterfly reserve are just starting to "go over".

In this little patch in Wakeham Meadow we have Red Clover (Trifolium pratense), Meadow Buttercup (Ranunculus arvensis) and Common Daisy (Bellis perennis)

This large clump of flowers is Herb Robert (Geranium robertianum). It is............

...............also known as Red Robin, Death come quickly, Storksbill, Fox Geranium, Stinking Bob, Squinter-pip, Crow's Foot and Roberts Geranium.

This is Pendulous Sedge (Carex pendula), a common sedge............ 

...........which can be found in wet woodlands and riversides. More on this sedge here. 

I've never noticed this before in Wakeham Meadow, but.........

.............this is a small Horse Chestnut tree (Aesculus hippocastanum). More on this tree here.

Ted:

Yes I know what that look means Ted. I'm coming!!

Ships Today:

On the left is the Cypriot Container Ship "Samskip Endeavour" on its way from Waterford (Ireland) to Rotterdam and on the right is the Dutch General Cargo Ship "Elisa K" on its way from Amsterdam to Liverpool. More on "Samskip Endeavour" here and "Elisa K" here

This is the British Fishing Boat - WH757 "Freeliner". There is no further info on this vessel.