26 May 24

Old Quarry Lane, Wakeham Meadows and Wakeham Wildlife Site

I think we did pretty well weather-wise. Yes it was pretty blustery, but the showers that were forecast for the day, never materialised.

Highlights today were 3 Swifts over Wakeham, and both the "resident" Song Thrush and Chiffchaff singing from around the meadow; though today the Song Thrush was singing deep from within a Budleia bush, and not in the windswept Sycamore tree.


Birds Recorded:
Herring Gull
Wood Pigeon
Collared Dove
3 Swift
Dunnock
Robin
Blackbird
1 Song Thrush
1 Chiffchaff
Long-tailed Tit
Great Tit
Blue Tit
Wren
Magpie
Carrion Crow
Jackdaw
Starling
House Sparrow
Chaffinch
Goldfinch

The resident Song Thrush in Wakeham Meadow, has for the time being, switched song post. Normally he would be high up in the Sycamore, but with the stiff breeze blowing the branches about, he's opted for this Buddleia bush.


Reptiles Recorded:
Slow-worm

Under one of the corrugated metal sheets next to the wildlife site was this Slow-worm minus its tail.

Butterflies Recorded:
1 Speckled Wood
1 Common Blue

Just the one male Common Blue in Wakeham Meadow and........

............today I managed to photograph it with his wings open.

Moths Recorded:
3 Silver Y (Autographa gamma)

You can just about see the y on the wing of this Silver Y moth.

Bees Recorded:
Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris)

Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius)
Buffish Mining Bee (Andrena nigroaenea)
Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)

A Buffish Mining Bee (Andrena nigroaenea) on Cow Parsley (Anthriscus sylvestris)

Hoverflies Recorded:
Pellucid Hoverfly (Volucella pellucens)

Here are a couple of...........

..............photographs of a Pellucid Hoverfly (Volucella pellucens). My first this year.

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

Dagger Fly (Empis tessellata)

A male Yellow Dung Fly (Scathophaga stercoraria)

Dagger Fly (Empis tessellata)

Bugs and Beetles Recorded:
4 Dock Bug (Coreus marginatus)
10 Lesser Thick-legged Flower Beetle (Ischnomera cyanea)

One of the 4 Dock Bugs still remaining on the Curled Dock (Rumex crispus). Ten days ago there were 50+ on this plan there.

And these tiny beetles in the Meadow Buttercups (Ranunculus arvensis) are........

..................Lesser Thick-legged Flower Beetles (Ischnomera cyanea)

Plants:
Common Teasel (Dipsacus fullonum)
Ivy Broomrape (Orobanche hederae)

These tall plants are.........

.......................Common Teasel  (Dipsacus fullonum).

And my first Ivy Broomrape (Orobanche hederae) of the year.

General Shots:

A butterfly's view of the meadow............

Ted:

.................and Ted's by the looks of it!!