2 Oct 25

Old Quarry Lane, Wakeham Meadows, Wakeham Wildlife Site, Wakeham Railway Cuttings, Penns Wood, St Andrew's Church, Church Ope Cove, Penn's Weare, Penn's Copse, Rufus Castle, Silklake Quarry and Bumpers Lane

I stretched my legs a bit further today, though it would have been more had the County Council not placed a metal gate across the path, 60 steps or so up from the beach. Apparently it's there to stop the public from being hit by falling rocks.

However as good as the gate is......................

................., somebody forgot to put a fence either side of it to stop the public walking past it. I do wonder sometimes, I mean its quite obvious there's at least a 2 ft gap on one side of it, so the gate is completely useless!!

Mammals Recorded:
2 Grey Seal
1 Grey Squirrel

In the surf just..................

............off the beach at Church Ope Cove were these two Grey Seals

One of the Grey Seals having a good look around.

Birds Recorded:
1 Cormorant

3 Kestrel

Herring Gull

Wood Pigeon

Collared Dove

2 Meadow Pipit

Dunnock

Robin

Blackbird

1 Blackcap

8 Chiffchaff

1 Goldcrest

Great Tit

Blue Tit

Wren

Magpie

Carrion Crow

Jackdaw

1 Raven

Starling

House Sparrow

Chaffinch

Linnet

Goldfinch

A male Kestrel over the meadow

A Chiffchaff preparing to catch an insect.

Escapees, Ferals, Possibles Etc.
Feral pigeon

Butterflies Recorded:
Large White Pieris brassicae
Small White Pieris rapae
Speckled Wood Pararge aegeria
Red Admiral Vanessa atalanta

A Small White Pieris rapae

A Speckled Wood Pararge aegeria

Bees Recorded:
Honey Bee Apis mellifera
Ivy Bee Colletes hederae

On top an Ivy Bee Colletes hederae and below a Honey Bee Apis mellifera

Wasps, Ichneumon Wasps, Parasitic Wasps and Gall Wasps Recorded:
Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris
German Wasp Vespula germanica

A Common Wasp Vespula vulgaris

Hoverflies Recorded:
Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax
The Footballer Helophilus pendulus

Dead Head Hoverfly Myathropa florea
Long Hoverfly Sphaerophoria scripta
Hoverfly Syrphus sp.

A Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax

The Footballer Helophilus pendulus

Dead Head Hoverfly Myathropa florea

A Long Hoverfly Sphaerophoria scripta

Hoverfly Syrphus sp.

Flies, Craneflies, Gnats and Midges Recorded:
Many unidentified flies
Muscidae fly

European Cranefly Tipula paludosa

A Muscidae fly

An European Cranefly Tipula paludosa

Bugs and Beetles Recorded:
2 Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis

Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis - form succinea

And another Harlequin Ladybird

Crickets and Grasshoppers Recorded:
1 Dark Bush-cricket Pholidoptera griseoaptera

A male Dark Bush-cricket Pholidoptera griseoaptera

Spiders Recorded:
4 Garden Spider Araneus diadematus

A Garden Spider Araneus diadematus and...............

.............the business end of another Garden Spider.

I'm not sure why this Garden Spider is in a tight ball. It may have recently caught something.

Plants:
Alexanders Smyrnium olusatrum
Blackthorn Prunus spinosa
Bramble Rubus fruticosusa
Buddleia Buddleja davidii
Common bird's-foot-trefoil Lotus corniculatus

Common Knapweed Centaurea nigra
Common Poppy Papaver rhoeas
Common Ragwort Jacobaea vulgaris
Dog Rose Rosa canina
Elder Sambucus nigra
Hawthorn Crataegus monogyna
Honeysuckle Lonicera periclymenum
Horse Chestnut Aesculus hippocastanum
Ivy Hedera helix
Sycamore Acer pseudoplatanus

Common bird's-foot-trefoil Lotus corniculatus