Good grief - shock, horror probe!

The Safari just came across this
New hides at the saltmarsh - whatever next!!!
Went out for a couple of hours sans Frank looking for the White Letter Hairstreaks - no joy with them but lots of other good stuff seen including two more Tree Bees, but again no chance of a pic.

Tried to find one of the Meadow Browns that have the double eyespot but none seen today. Other butterflies included lots of Speckled Woods, Holly Blue, Green Veined White, Large Whites, Small Skippers and a Small Tortoiseshell.
Lots of other good stuff saving them to show you tomorrow in case we don't get anything in the morning.
Where to next? Not sure what we're up to tomorrow, could be on the beach.
In the meantime let us know if it was warm enough for butterflies in your outback

Swimming in Greece?

A far flung safari to report on this time. A trip to the lovely island of Rhodes. The swimming bit in the title was great with tepid calm water and a multitude of fish - all of which seem to like bread even more than Stanley Park ducks. Sadly, I do not know the names of any of them so if there is a reader out there who can suggest a good field guide to the fish of the Mediterranean the safari would be very grateful. Med fish aren't as bright as those from tropical reefs but there are some subtle beauts down there.

The first creature of note was this lovely Preying Mantis who posed very nicely for her picture.

After seeing the Red Backed Shrike family in Poland it was rather sad to find this youngster covered in ants dead on the road.

However some of it's siblings were alive and kicking and eating the rather large Hornets that were flying around all over the place.

I'm not sure if they were migrants or a resident family that nested somewhere nearby but this was the only male I saw all week and boy was he wary, he wouldn't let me anywhere near him for a better shot. I saw him for a few minutes on just one morning's walk.

The cliffs at the end of the bay had a selection of fossils including several of these perfectly preserved Scallops.

The sunset before the big storm was a picture - the storm itself was a humdinger, the first rain for five months apparently.

Other highlights included single Cory's and Yelkouan Shearwaters out at sea, four Eleanora's Falcons together in off the sea, 2 Long Legged Buzzards and a very obliging Kingfisher. I only managed to track down three species of lizard, Starred Agama, Anatolian Rock Lizard (juveniles have stunningly blue tails) and Levant Skink.

Amongst the insects the stars were Humming Bird Hawk-moths, and Long Tailed Blue, Oriental Meadow Brown and Southern Swallowtail butterflies. The former wave their long tails like pretend antennae and with the eye-spots look like the head, I've never noticed them do this before and not realised that the tails could be deliberately moved. Cunning eh?

Where to next? Could be anywhere! There are high tides and strong winds coming this week....not Stormies this time but Leach's Petrels......tiny, but enigmatic, ocean wanderers.

In the meantime let us know what you have found in your outback.

Last of the summer sunshine?

Two safaris today!

First up was a not too early trip to the seaside. With a north by northwesterly wind there wasn't much about, it would probably have been better yesterday with the gentle southerly that was blowing. All we found was a Grey Wagtail, at least three Wheatears and a Meadow Pipit. Out to sea the only birds seen were two Gannets and a small number of very distant Common Scoters. As the tide came in and the fishermen began to arrive a roost of just over fifty each of Redshanks and Turnstones developed on the wall of the old boating lake. The central pool of this mass of concrete has become a mini salt marsh with grasses and huge patch of Sea Aster which would have been beautiful a couple of weeks ago when in full flower. I had some photos for this section of the blog but managed to inadvertently format the memory card in the camera - - what a numpty!!!!

I hope today's fishermen are tidier than last night's - the prom was a disgrace of discarded line, bait packets, beer cans (empty) and food wrappers - take it home with you please!

Later on with blue skies and balmy temperatures the safari headed the Land Rover northwards up the motorway. The idea was to scout around and see if we could find any Adders basking in the afternoon sunshine. We thought it might be their last chance to get nice and warm and ready for feeding before the weather cools down and it's hibernation time again. We had a good poke around in a favoured area but the Sunday sunshine had brought out ramblers and dog walkers by the thousand so finding somewhere quiet and undisturbed was proving to be difficult. After about an hour we gave up; all we had seen were a few Common Darter dragonflies and a couple of washed out Speckled Wood butterflies. There was no sign of any snakes, not even a Common Lizard so the Land Rover was pointed in the direction of the Otters.

As soon as we were ensconced in the hide by the reedbed a Water Rail showed very well but all too briefly. In the distance a Marsh Harrier snoozed in a bush. Not much was happening but we were there for the waiting game. Two Stoats dashed across the mud right in front of us (right family - wrong species!), their black tipped tails showing they weren't Weasels.

The Marsh Harrier eventually took to the wing and had a short spin round the reedbed before disappearing off over the hill opposite. Later it or a different one was putting the terrors on the local ducks before plunge diving into the reedbed and flushing a Snipe and two Reed Buntings. As the afternoon turned to evening we were treated to a very nice sunset, the colours reflecting beautifully in the water of the lake. The temperature dropped and four Little Egrets came in to roost, but by the time darkness had fallen they had been joined by about another 25 or so making a scene more reminiscent of the Mediterranean than north Lancashire - how times are a-changing.

By now it was too dark to see and the Otters still hadn't appeared so reluctantly it was time to leave.

Was this really the last of the summer sun?

On the way back to the Land Rover a Tawny Owl was heard hooting in the distance and just before we reached the tarmac we flushed what sounded to be 3 or 4 Deer (probably Red Deer) from the reeds just to the side of the path, they crashed through the reeds away from us with much more noise that you normally associate with Deer.

Where to next? You'll have to wait and see - could be anywhere.

In the meantime let us know what you have found in your outback.

Wet wet wet in north Lancs

The Met Office promised sunny spells with showers so the safari drove out to north Lancashire on the trail of Adders in the sunshine. The rain was torrential and the skies an unblemished steely grey so we adopted Plan B. Where does it not matter if it's raining - a wetland of course! A wetland with the chance of Otters is a bonus. We hiked through sodden woodland to the watersedge. On the way we came across a large party of mixed tits with plenty of Marsh Tits, a Chiffchaff and a Goldcrest thrown in for good measure.

At the water there was little showing, the usual Mallards and Coots and skimming low over the water around a 100 Swallows, House Martins and Sand Martins. This young Moorhen pecked around the shallows in front of us.

We waited patiently for the Otters but no sign - we will be coming back - we haven't given up yet!

On the way back to the Land Rover there were a few surprises we didn't notice on the way in. We startled a young Red Deer stag with a pitiful set of antlers. He went haring across a field of bullocks sending them scattering in all directions. He gave us great views when he stopped to look back to see if he had out-distanced us.

Then we came across this lichen encrusted tree - a beautiful mix of shades and textures.

Finally rounding a corner we couldn't fail to notice this enormous fungus growing from the base of an Ash tree. I've no idea what it is perhaps someone could enlighten us. (Jack from Lancashire Nature might be our man - see blog links on right)
Leaving the wetland for a disused quarry we had a mooch around turning stones on a desperate hunt for Slow Worms. Desperate indeed as it was far too cold and wet for any lizards to be active. The surroundings are impressive - weird to think all that solid rock used to be a coral reef in a tropical sea, the fossils of the creatures that lived there are visible on the rock face. Old yes but far from fossilised is this patch of sn*t. It is a strange life form called Nostoc. when dry it resembles a cross between cardboard and a crisp. when wet - well judge for yourselves.
It is actually a colonial Cyanobacteria. "A what?" I can almost hear you ask. It's a type of Blue-green alga that gets its energy from sunlight by photosynthesis. They are present in all habitats; ocean, freshwater, bare rock and temporarily moistened rocks in deserts, inside lichens (see above) and even inside the fur of Sloths. They are closely related to the Stromatolites of 2.8 billion years ago (Stromatolites are still found alive and well today but only in Shark Bay, Western Australia and the Bahamas). The ancient Stromatolites were responsible producing the oxygen in the earth's atmosphere and so set off an evolutionary explosion of life. Nostoc doesn't look much but without it's ancestors we wouldn't be here today!
Getting wetter by the minute we returned to the wetland. A Grey Heron huddled against the weather. In a small copse a majestic Red Deer stag sheltered from the elements. What a set of antlers he had, probably over 6 feet (2m) across. Sadly he wouldn't leave the shelter of the trees for a photo. Breaks in the weather allowed birds of prey brief opportunities for a flight and we had a good selection, Buzzard, Marsh Harrier, a gi-normous female Peregrine and a dashing Merlin pretending to be a Mistle Thrush. Icing on the cake was a spectacular fly past by an Osprey. Who says you won't see stunning wildlife in inclement weather!
Sorry about the quality of these shots...doh me and my camera aren't the best of friends at the moment. But this little Hoverfly (species?) is an absolute beaut. I apologise for the fuzziness; maybe I should wear my specs more!
With the weather improving, if only slightly, and the super Red Deer stag under our belts it was time to track down the other two species of deer. Before long we had seen a splendid Fallow Deer buck (not stags for this species), but again he was too well hidden in the trees for a photo. try as we might we couldn't find a Roe Deer, which should be the easiest of the three. This herd of hinds and young male Fallow Deer spent more time looking at us than we spent looking at them. There were eight in all. Superb and definitely worth the days soaking. And then we had a very young Spotted Flycatcher flitting about between a bush and the fence right next to us, which I didn't notice at first because I was too busy watching a Chiffchaff down to about 5 feet, so close my binoculars wouldn't focus on it.
At the end of the safari we crossed the field and noticed these two trees worthy of recording on the Ancient Tree Hunt (see link on right). The first is a Crab Apple of huge proportions, the second an Ash with a well formed root bole.

By the end of the day we had seen just shy of 60 species of birds, 5 mammals, zero reptiles - surprise surprise, 2 butterflies, 2 dragonflies, and don't forget the Nostoc! An excellent day's safari in atrocious conditions.

Where to next? Does more bad weather = more good wildlife? Wait and see.

In the meantime let us know what you have found in your outback.

Forest, moor and lakes. (Updated 02/09/08)

The safari visited the wilds between Blackburn and Bolton on a warm muggy day this weekend. We had a traipse around one of the many reservoirs in the area before heading back to our temporary Base Camp for a superb full English breakfast...fried bread and all!

There wasn't much around. The forest was very quiet, the only birds calling were Robins, Wrens and a few Coal Tits. A Great Spotted Woodpecker was heard calling near the dam.

There almost no fungi to be found under the trees despite the recent warm wet weather, but the wild flowers did not disappoint. A reasonable selection were still flowering. A damp patch had Common Bistort and wild, rather than garden, Yellow Loosestrife while higher up the hill on drier ground was a large patch of Field Scabious.

I've no idea what species this little Weevil is but he looks quite cute.

The pink flower is the very invasive alien Himalayan Balsam. Beautiful but trifid like. It has colonised huge lengths of watersedge in this part of Lancashire to the detriment of the native flora. However the bees like it and smells good but they aren't good enough reasons to keep it. I doubt very much it could be eradicated now even if we wanted to.

A large pile of old quarry stones surrounded by a fair sized patch of Bracken suggested Adders. We had a poke about and turned some of the smaller stones but didn't find anything of note. From research later that evening it transpired that there are no Adders in that whole area. If anyone knows different please pass on the information. There must be one somewhere; there is a huge amount of potential habitat to search through.

Along the side of the paths the Bilberry bushes had been picked clean, the only berries remaining were either very new or just out of reach.

Bilberry is the food plant of the spring flying Green Hairstreak butterfly.

The warm day had butterflies flying. Speckled Woods, Large Whites and a Peacock were seen. The only dragonfly spotted was a Brown Hawker.

The black spots on this Sycamore leaf are Tar Spot Fungus. This species is very intolerant of polluted air and its presence shows that the air quality in this area is very good.

This bumble bee is the Tawny Backed Carder Bee on Rosebay Willowherb. Several years ago I was with a very well known botanist, a large, jolly fellow with a beard, who mis-identified Greater Willowherb as this plant...hmmm..elimentary my dear Watson!

Below is another alien plant, Turkey Oak, however recent studies of lake and peat sediments seem to show that this tree was native beween the last two Ice Ages, about 150,000 years ago and wasn't able to recolonise after the last Ice Age. It is easy to tell from the two native Oaks by its fully cut leaves and the acorns sit in hairy cups.

Sneezewort is one of those humourously named plants. I suppose it was once used to cure colds and sneezing. It looks superficially like the more common Yarrow but has fewer larger flowers.

The Rowan berries aren't a sign of a cold winter to come, but evidence that the weather was fine when the flowers were out in the spring and there were plenty of insects about to pollinate them.

These Mallard ducklings are very late but should survive the winter. There are plenty of people about with bags of bread for them.

And finally..at last... some think...the only Heron we saw all day.

And I never realised the Strawberry Duck pub is actually the Strawbury Duck! Would you credit it!!!!!

Where to next? A mid-week jaunt could well on the cards. And there is now the added pressure of getting certain 'target' species on camera...could be a new site or maybe return to a previous haunt.....not sure yet let's see what the weather is going to do.

In the meantime let us know what's in your 'outback.

North Lancashire 31st May 2008

An early start saw us at Warton Crag Quarry before 8 O'clock. arriving at the car park and opening the Land Rover's doors we staight away heard the yik yik yik of the Peregrine Falcon. A quick scan of the cliff face revealed the female resting on a ledge close to the nest. A view through the telescope revealed two fluufy white chicks, technically known as eyas'. Totally unphased by their illustrious neighbours the large Jackdaw colony 'chacked' its way through its daily routine, perhaps enjoying the safety of having such a powerful predator in their midst. A Little Owl called from the right hand side of the cliff face but we were unable to locate it.

The morning was warming up and we had sightings of Common Blue and Green Veined White butterflies and a really bright Speckled Yellow moth. Willow Warblers and Chiffchaffs sang from the bushes.
On the verge of the car park was a single specimen of Early Purple Orchid.

The next site visited was Woodwell. In the well itself Greater Spearwort was in flower. A Chiffchaff was heard singing and a Nuthatch called from the woods. The information board at the start of the path declared that some of the Small Leaved Lime trees were actually older than Stonehenge! There was the strong scent of Wild Garlic under the canopy of the woods. A fallen log had an impressive collection of unknown species of bracket fungus (any ideas anyone). A pair of Large Red Damselflies were in tandem by the well.

Back at the Land Rover a very hopeful and daring Robin hopped under the open door waiting for crumbs to be thrown from our breakfast. As (s)he was pecking at her titbits a Green Woodpecker was heard 'yaffling' in the distance.

We then moved from the woods down to the estuary. whilst we were manoevering the Land Rover in to a suitable car parking space (it doesn't fit under the low bridge) a Kingfisher flew right over the bonnet.
The estuary was more like southern Europe than north Lancashire. 3 Spoonbills, 2 Little Egrets and several Avocets graced the pools. 2 huge Ravens were out on the marsh. back along the track to the car park Sedge and Willow Warblers were watched taking food to hungry nestlings.

Our nest stop was the RSPB reserve, Leighton Moss. Here the feeding station was a little quieter than usual but still amnaged to give us fantastic close up views of a pair of Bullfinches and 3 Grey Squirrels, one of which had sussed the squirrel proofing on the bird table and was happily sat with a fine male Chaffinch munching the
sunflower seeds..

The rest of the reserve was also fairly quiet, which is typical for mid day at this time of year. But we couldn't fault the show the 5 Marsh Harriers put on for us, gently wafting their elegant way over the reed beds. Making our way down to the Tim Jackson hide we had a couple of brief sightings of Bearded Tits as they shot overhead to and from nest sites. Looking out from the hide we saw a magnificent set of antlers looking like a giant hat stand, but as the reed is so tall we didn't see the owner. However we did connect with two of his younger brothers lurking under the bushes. A the same time a Kingfisher, perhaps the same one as earlier, gave a masterclass in diving from height. It was difficult to watch the nearby patrolling Emperor Dragonfly for fear of missing the Kingfisher's next dive. we were able to make a younsters day by showing him a lifer - Reed Bunting - how times have changed now that the under 10's are seeing Marsh Harriers before 'common place' birds like the Reed Bunting, good luck to him - may his life list grow ever longer!
The walk back to the Public Hide gave us more and better views of the Bearded Tits.

The Public Hide was very quiet, a few Tufted Ducks and Pochards and the ubiquitous Coots, but little else. A Great Black backed Gull broke the tranquil scene sending the few nesting Black Headed Gulls into a state of raucous panic as it popped in for a snack - on their chicks! We waited patiently hoping that we might fluke a sighting of the Otter but fluked a brief flight view of a Bittern instead.
A Red Deer hind made her way out of the woods and across the fields to the reed bed in the distance.

All in all a great day with over 75 species of birds and good views of Red Deer.

Where to next?