Crash bang wallop

The Safari had a short ten minutes on Patch 2 this morning. A few Gannets, Common Scoters and Sandwich Terns were going through at varying distances.

For the first time in a long time it actually felt cold standing there in the wind – which being southerly should have been warmer.

Seawatching stalwart MJ was stood a few hundred yards away but we didn’t get a chance to go and chat to him so will find out what we missed later...please, please, please not another Sabine’s Gull.

Half way through the morning there was a right royal commotion from the gulls outside that had ‘raptor’ written all over it! Like a flash we jumped from our desk and dashed outside; everything was in the air, the Starlings were bunched up tight, feral Pigeons wheeled round unsure whether to land or not and the gulls circled still calling loudly but we saw nothing that might have been the cause of the disturbance.

Lunchtime came round and we popped overt he road again. It was much warmer now but along the horizon loomed a huge sinister looking, brooding dark blue-grey mass of cloud.

It didn’t look good out there but the sunshine picked out a distant flock of terns dancing for fish in front of it. After several attempts at counting we got at least 79 terns, a dozen or so Gannets and three darker spots were, from their jizz, skuas. Small parties of Common Scoters ‘fled’ from its path, mostly southwards. None of ‘our regular’ dolphins could be seen although at that range it is possible they were around but unseeable. Best of all was the flash of lightning, not often you get one of those in the scope’s field of view...a taste of things to come!

The wind was south south-easterly but the cloud drew ever closer from the west as the wind changed and once over the beach we could see its ominous form – it looked a real devil...better get some pics then!

 We went out to the front and then the back. 

Whilst stood at the back door a friend turned up to show us the truly awesome picture with his phone from the other side of the road, looks like we’d come in a few minutes too soon. As we were chatting a flash of lightning struck very close by, no time to count 1000, 2000...before the thunder crackled then boomed.

A few more flickers were more distant as the storm rolled inland where it looked like they were getting a pasting. We just got a short heavy shower. Then the sun came out and it was summer at last!

After the sun had been out for an hour or so walking down the corridor we noted a Small Tortoiseshell and a Small White nectaring on the Ragwort on the other side of the window. By the time we’d done what we had to do and gone back to the office to get the camera they’d both gone but the large numbers of hoverflies entertained us for a few minutes. A very quick and probably highly inaccurate count revealed at least 110 individuals of a variety of species including bees and one very small unusual looking hymenopteran – no pots in the pocket today :-( . 

A comparison count on the ‘tidy’ side towards the car-park gave us only 19 insects, almost all of those on a large Yarrow we planted as a small wildflower plug a couple of years ago that has somehow survived the ravages of the ‘tidy brigade’. Beneath it and just coming in to flower is a small patch of Sea Holly which again should be much larger but has variously been dug up and sprayed as a weed but has still just about managed to hang on and is doing quite well so far this year - the patch should be huge by now though!

Untidy but buzzin with birds n bees n hovers n butters etc etc - those Formiums will have to go sooner rather than later though

Tidy but more or less lifeless

Yarrow

Sea Holly - 7 years old and this is all there is due to 'weeding' & spraying!

Where to next? Hopefully more good stuff on Patch 2.
In the meantime let us know what's enjoying the nectar in your outback.