Come down come down where-ever you are

The Safari was pleased to see another Little Egret on Patch 2 yesterday, we saw another but we're pretty sure it's the same one as last weeks, it fished in exactly the same places. We first saw it sail gracefully past at eye-level only a few feet the other side of the seawall and watched it come to land in the pool at the southern end of the patch. Nipping back into the office for the camera once back out it had saved us a walk by coming much nearer. Off we went to get a closer look but even as stealthy as we were being we still managed to flush it again, it is so flighty! But it didn't disappear just relocated to the pool right below our normal watch point. We were able to cautiously peer over the wall and fire off a few shots before it spotted us and was off again, this time well away and well out of range.

If the Little Egret keeps up this rate of sightings it'll become a more regular visitor to Patch 2 than the Collared Dove we saw whip over the seawall up over the office and away inland, only the second sighting of this very common and widespread species here this year!

Mid-morning we were working on the wildlife garden with our volunteers when a bit of Cleavers pulling (we leave some just in case any Hummingbird Hawkmoths turn up) revealed a recently departed nest which we'd not noticed before but might have been built and used while we were down in Wales and Cornwall and off recuperating after our operation. We think it's from a pair of Goldfinches.

Minutes later a bearded bloke wearing a green hi-vis vest and very expensive looking builders wellies wandered past and said a cheery hello to which we replied summat like 'al-reet mate' and carried on working ('working' - we're not allowed to do that anymore cos of our hands so it's more like standing and pointing watching the others do all all the work) and that was that. He went to sit on the bench by the 'Solar System' in the garden and was joined in a short while by a film crew - it was TV presenter Nick Knowles and we hadn't recognised him. We didn't get a chance to go and have a chat to him about his Wildest Dreams programme a few years ago for which we were offered a part but unfortunately had to turn down. 

Nothing else of note was found during our morning work party although a bright fresh Small Tortoiseshell flew through as we were packing up the tools, it didn't linger.

Butterflies were order of the day later. CR txtd to offer a lift to Patch 1 after work, to look for the recently reported White Letter Hairstreaks, which we gratefully accepted.

It was warm and mostly sunny down in the 'Butterfly Zone' and the Cleggs were hungry, just as well we'd juiced up with Jungle Formula before heading out. The target butterfly's favourite tree was being blown around a bit too much by a stiffish breeze which we couldn't feel down at ground level.

Down in the shelter  it was insect heaven - apart from the Cleggs! - There were plenty of butterflies on the wing including several Meadow Browns.

Plenty of fresh Small Skippers

Male

Female - no scent brand on the wing

 And some now getting rather tatty Large Skippers

We looked up at regular intervals but saw no sign of any White Letter Hairstreaks. Below us on the Brambles there was a multitude of hoverflies of numerous species and bees galore. From the depths of the long grass we heard the chirping of grasshoppers. A Large White butterfly flitted through the now impenetrable due to excessive Bramble growth glade and a couple of Speckled Woods danced around but refused to settle.

Eventually all our neck straining paid off and we did see a single White Letter Hairstreak but it was only a brief view as it chased some other large insect round the tree top and never reappeared. Good but not good enough.

Just before it was time to leave another species of butterfly showed up and did settle just long enough for its pic to be taken, a nice bright Comma. 

Seven species of butterfly in an hour all within a few yards of each other is never to be sniffed at even if the holy one didn't show itself properly.

As CR was putting his kit back in the boot of the car he spotted a Field Grasshopper sat on the wall about a foot above the top of the grass along the verge. After hearing so many but nor seeing a single one it was nice to be able to point the camera at one out in the open.

Today we have ransacked the beach, pond and wildlife garden with a class of children from a local school. We've seen all the old favourites but been too busy to be able to take any pics for you. Best thing they found? Probably the ?Common Darter nymph in the pond, their favourite? The poisonous black and yellow stripey Cinnabar moth caterpillars...or maybe that Black Ant's nest that the little fellas will have to rebuild tonight!

As soon as the ysat down to lunch not one but three Small White butterflies appeared over the garden, one of which we were able to net and bring over to show them. We were also able to net a very busy White Tailed Bumble Bee with huge pollen sacs which was met with more squeals of terror than stares of curiosity. Parent's have a lot to answer to for giving their kids irrational biophobias. OK it's a bee and it might, just might sting, and that'll hurt a bit for an hour or so but is really worth screaming the house down and running round in a blind panic over? Once the terrors had subsided a little some of the 'braver' children noticed it was quite hairy and when calmly walking over the net rather than flying even asked if they could stoke it - good on em, but we did refuse just in case. We don't mind getting stung during a demo, although we have to say we'd rather not, but it's probably best if the children don't.

Where to next? We're back out for a couple of hours with the Biodiverse Society again tomorrow morning. At a different site to last weeks but close by, wonder what goodies they'll find this time. We've found Annual Wall Rocket at work too after being shown it for the first time by the team last week.

In the meantime let us know who's not leaving the treetops in your outback.

Where'd they all go?

The Safari has a little quiz for you first up today, two screen-grabs from Stealth-cam, can you ID the LBJs? They may or may not be the same species. Not the Blackbird silly!

Same or different? - what do you reckon?

Sensibly we didn't bother with the mothy last night so had a lie in listening to the wind hammering rain against the bedroom window hoping Frank wouldn't wake up and ask to go out until it had passed - he didn't wake up...phewwwwwwww!

Mid-morning gave us the chance to get down to Chat Alley and have a look at the rising tide - we were very optimistic about seeing something as reports of unprecedented numbers of Manx Shearwaters from further south were being posted on Twitter all morning.

As soon as we put eyeball to eyepiece a Manxie shot through the field of view...this was going to be a good session!

Oh no it wasn't! We struggled to find another dozen in the next hour and a half, our grand total was 10 north and four south along with four Kittiwakes, while others almost within view to the south - just over the horizon - had QUADRUPLE figure counts along with Gannets, skuas, Fulmars etc. No-one seems to have had the hoped for Storm Petrel yet today, maybe tomorrow but we won't be able to get an early Patch 2 watch in unfortunately.

It was a bit rough out there...

The Beach Patrol guys weren't too impressed with this cyclist, they'd been stopping people thinking about going down to the lower level and even had a word with us while we were getting these pics advising us not to go down to 'nearer the action'. There's usually at least a couple of casualties/fatalities a year in conditions like this.

Back in the safety of  Base Camp the wind was still wrecking the garden so we decided to take a look at the now empty Wren's nest by taking a pair of scissors to the defunct and rotting hanging basket they were living in.

Lovely - about the size of a tennis ball.

Whilst doing all this surgery we noticed that the feeders were low so went to fill them up when we spotted this little lady struggling on the ground.

Apparently we should have given her a drink of two parts sugar to one part water in a saucer and place scrunched up kitchen towel on top so she doesn't fall in.

We struggle to get good pics of bees with their dark unconstrasty faces and their often Frank-like nose down posture - might need a ring flash or something to highlight the minor dimples.

Patch 1 got a new tick for the list this arvo. We were doing nowt in particular just looking out of the window at the garden being ravaged by the wind when two terns flew over just beyond our airspace so unfortunately can't count as a garden tick under this year's rules. They whizzed by that fast we didn't get a decent look and we were so taken aback at them but if we had to plumb for any species in particular we'd go for Common Terns on their slender jizz.

Where to next? Only a slim chance of an early look at the sea tomorrow and the high tide is a high one at lunchtime so we'll probably be sprayed off. Might have an evening look somewhere at Chat Alley after picking Frank up from his minders.

In the meantime let us know who's struggling in the wind in your outback

Hitting the higher ground

The Safari has been out testing lungs, heart and calves to their limits...well we're not as fit as we used to be!

We went first to the river where we hoped to find a Dipper. We quietly sat for over half an hour listening to the sound-track of the day, Willow Warblers! Fish, probably Brown Trout, jumped taking emerging Mayflies from the surface. Green Veined Whites fluttered by. A Robin played at being a flycatcher and a pair of Pied Wagtails skipped around the weir looking for insects for their growing brood. A female Mallard came out of the undergrowth with half a dozen very well grown youngsters while a Chiffchaff sang with a beakful of bugs above our head - all very nice but no Dippers - yet!

We moved to another nearby site and soon had cracking views of a singing Garden Warbler, views much better than these two pics suggest.

If Willow Warblers were the sound-track for the day then May Blossom, Hawthorn, was the scent of the day. We spent ages watching the river again but only found several Grey Wagtails, no Dippers, just this nest that looks to be in use but no-one visited and no sound was heard not surprisingly seeing as how its under the busy motorway and above the babbling river.

Time to move to another site and this is the one were we tested our legs by trundling up hill and down steep dale on the search of what we might find.

We turned a lot of rocks and found two of these...

This was the small and more slender of the two the other had lost the end of its tail not too long ago. We found them difficult to wrangle for a pic on our own. We really like Slow Worms but we couldn't find any Adders. On a warm muggy day like today Green Tiger Beetles are often out at this site but we didn't see any :-(

More Green Veined Whites were seen and a single male Orange Tip. 

Overhead a Lesser Redpoll was song flighting and up the hill in the Heather we watched a Red Legged Partridge giving it some serious vocal welly, but we refuse to put it on our Year List Challenge.

There were some others about on the main path, including some young families which was good to see,  but we were well away from that and well away from all the modern world entails, we had no mobile signal, could here no cars and saw no planes going over - bliss!!!

Just before it was time to turn round and head back to the Land Rover and Base Camp to get Wifey's dinner on we saw a crackin little butterfly, a pristine Small Copper.

The walk back took us past a lovely patch of Bluebells, still out very late into the late spring.

Final sighting of the trip was a Peacock butterfly but we would really have liked to find a Green Hairstreak or two.

So no Dipper - dipped out; have to save them for another trip out this way.

Only one moth in the mothy this morning - and a lot of rain water :-( an out of focus phone-cammed Garden Carpet.

Where to next? Not sure what's happening tomorrow, chores n other stuff but no doubt there'll be something of interest in the garden here at Base Camp.

In the meantime let us know if you're fit for nothing in your outback too.