SNAKES ALIVE! MONDAY 11TH APRIL 2011

I met Greenie of Greenie in the wild fame today for a walk around the North Downs looking for reptiles, and in particular, Adders. He told me that we would almost certainly find some, and as usual he wasn't speaking with a forked tongue! The picture above shows two of the seven that we found during our wanderings. I think i'm right in saying that the female is in the front and the male, with the piercing blue eyes, which means he'll soon be sloughing his skin, is at the top. You wouldn't want to be a small mammal and see him coming towards you, would you. Left click to see what I mean!

Talking of sloughing skin, here's one that Greenie spotted in the undergrowth further along. This is a complete Adder skin and the tail end was still wrapped around a piece of vegetation which allowed the snake to slip out, so to speak.

Common Lizards like the one pictured above were, as their name suggests, in abundance. Some basking on pieces of wood and many more along the edges of the paths or anywhere that was catching the sun. This one has flattened himself to present as much of his body to the rays as possible. These would and probably do, make a nice meal for the local Kestrels, two of which we saw, but today they were more interested in displaying and calling to each other overhead.

Butterflies were well represented and I saw my first Speckled Wood of the year. It's pictured above, but the shot was taken from below, if you get my drift. And the one below was pictured from above, confused, so am I.

Without doubt the most prolific butterfly species of the day was the Brimstone. They were everywhere, mostly females but with the quite a few males thrown in the mix. Greenie told me that the females were looking for Buckthorn to lay their eggs on. We watched and waited for a female to land on a small piece with newly emerging leaves and I managed to get the picture below of her actually laying a single egg on the leaf bud. This is a first for me and I must say, I was thrilled to see, at first hand, the beginning of the next generation of this super butterfly.

The picture below is of a Buckthorn leaf bud with a Brimstone butterfly egg, the small white grain of rice to the right, laid a few seconds earlier. I've never seen one before and i'm very grateful to Greenie for showing me all this super stuff. In case you're wondering, the pink thing in the background is Greenie's hand, any palm readers out there?

Soon after we arrived Greenie said that we might possibly get a Green Hairstreak today, given the location and conditions. I've only ever seen a couple, including one at New Hythe last year. Well we saw seven in all! You just run out of superlatives with some of this stuff. I'll just say they're fantastic, there, i've run out! They flutter past you, a small dull looking thing, more like a day flying moth or something. Then they land. Then you see their true colour. Enough said.

And don't you just love their stripy socks and matching antenna.

We saw lots of Slow Worms, always a favourite of mine. They have friendly faces, well fairly friendly. This one was a bruiser, the picture doesn't do it justice. It's a male I think and although you can't see from the picture, it has some quite nice blueish spots along it's back.

Another first butterfly of the year was the Grizzled Skipper pictured above. It was the only one we found but I'm sure there were more. The trouble is they are so small and they fly so erratically, that they are easily overlooked. Plus they look to me more like moths on the wing as well. Other butterflies seen included Orange Tips and a few Peacocks.

I was amazed at how many different species of Bees we saw. The one above was seen quite regularly but i'm by no means sure what it is. Another unidentified small Bee had a red tail and we watched for ages as it built a nest from small lengths of dry grass which it ferried in like a helicopter. Greenie managed to get a shot of it in action I think, check out his blog to see if it came out and if he managed to ID it, unlike me.

The day wouldn't have been complete without a Grass snake or two and the two pictured together below fitted the bill. They were entwined, rather intimately, at the base of a wood pile. I'm not exactly sure which is which but I think the male is the one whose head is in the shot. They slipped lazily away after a while, seemingly unabashed at being caught in a romantic embrace. Or maybe i'm just imagining it.

As we walked back to the cars we heard the unmistakeable mewing of a Buzzard. We looked up into the bright blue sky and watched as no less than four drifted over together. There were a couple of half hearted talon locks before they gained height and were lost to sight. That would have been a great way to end the day, but soon after it was probably surpassed by the appearance in the roadside verge of a male Adder in superb black and white breeding plumage, not sure what the term is, but he looked magnificent. Unfortunately we were still in Buzzard mode and didn't react fast enough to get a picture.

This has by no means been an exhaustive account of a great day but hopefully you get the drift.

Thanks Greenie, looking forward to the next one!

NEW HYTHE THURSDAY 24TH MARCH 2011

The Bee-Fly pictured above was one of at least eight which were all in a six foot square area of undergrowth adjacent to Brooklands lake and there were lots more close by. They're harmless of course, but when you see the long proboscis you can understand why people think they might not be.

The sunken marsh is still holding a lot of water, topped up recently I suspect by some very high tides, courtesy of the closer than usual moon. Water Rails can still be heard calling from there but I still haven't managed to spot one of the elusive little blighters. But I did manage to see Starling, Pied Wagtail, a Jay and a flyover of three Mute Swans. Which were all additions for the month at NH and boosted my total to 55 species so far. I also noticed increased numbers of Reed Buntings which have been scarce here for much of the winter.

The Chiffchaff above was one of many seen and heard during the two and a half hour visit, this one was in the small trees along the railway path. I crossed the railway line and started crossing the East Scrub which was very quiet, maybe it was the twenty strong group of people taking part in the Thursday 'healthy walk' in front of me, or maybe it was just the March doldrums. I had more luck with Slow Worms though, finding these two cosying up together under a piece of refugia. I think they are male and female, the female being to the right with the dark back stripe.

It was here that I bumped into Dennis and Doreen Capeling who told me they'd just seen a Terrapin, so I walked back with them and managed to get the picture below. This will probably be a pet that was bought when the Ninja Turtles were so popular and released into the lake when the novelty wore off. The throw away society even extends to live creatures. Although they survive in our climate, thankfully, they don't breed or we'd no doubt be having the usual problems with introduced species.

We walked back towards the river, calling in at Abbey Mead first where there were three Shovelers and some Gt Crested Grebes but not much else. The tide was very low on the river which suited two Oystercatchers (below) who were pleased to poke around for tasty morsels in the margins. But not as pleased as me because that's another new species at NH for March (56) and better still the year (77). A couple of Gadwall, a pair of Teal, a single Kingfisher and a fly by Redshank, heard but not seen, were all added to my day list, along with a pair of Shelduck (57).

On the way back to the car park we saw a single Buzzard which was being harangued by the Gulls and bizarrely, three Pied Wagtails. Shades of David and Goliath. This was followed by a Gt Black -backed Gull (58), well spotted by Doreen.

Butterflies seen today included Peacock, Comma, Small Tortoiseshell and a superb Brimstone.

Finally, seen from the garden, two Sand Martins flying over 'our' lake yesterday afternoon at approximately 2pm were my first of the year and bring my New Hythe total to 78.

New Hythe 13th October

It was grey, cloudy and refreshingly cool when I arrived at Brooklands this morning where I was immediately greeted by two smart Grey Wagtails. I was half hoping to kick off Autumn with a Redwing or two. It didn't happen. But I did add to my New Hythe October list so all was not lost.

Brooklands lake maintained it's poor recent showing with nowt but a few Tufties a pair of Mute Swans and a handful of Coots as is the norm recently. On the river the tide was ebbing but still fairly high. Mallard, Moorhen, Heron, Cormorant, LBB Gull and five Teal were all spotted. The sunken marsh was pretty quiet as well. But a Great Spotted Woodpecker clinging to a telegraph pole, sending morse maybe, a nice male Blackcap, and a Sparrowhawk spiralling tightly upwards with an attendant Magpie making an unlikely looking pair, all added to the interest. Further on where the path opens out and leaves the marsh I heard the now familiar call of a Goldcrest and with a little patience I managed a quick glimpse of it, bringing my tally of these little gems here to four in the last couple of weeks. Still a long way to go to reach the numbers of 2008/09 but it's getting there. One more sighting of note, just before I crossed the railway line was a surprise hen Pheasant (46). I haven't seen one for a while and never before in this particular area.

The East Scrub was my main hope for a Redwing but as I said earlier it wasn't to be. The closest I came was a Song Thrush and much as I tried I couldn't turn it into one of it's cousins. Goldfinch, Jay and Green Woodpecker were also seen here as was a small flock of Greylags. I wondered if they were the same ones that I heard honking noisily over our house in the early hours this morning! It seems like bird photo's are harder to find than Hen's teeth at the moment. But two creatures that did oblige today were the Newt eft above, found with a couple of it's friends under a piece of wood. And the young Slow worm below which was only about five inches long and was very striking with his light coloured top half and solid black lower half.

It was on the edge of the Scrub that I met Den and Doreen Capeling who accompanied me over to Johnsons lake in the hope of finding some Pochard (47) which we did, eight of them in all and in the same area was a single Gadwall, which bought the October NH list to 48.

The return trip along the river path and back through the sunken marsh swelled the day list with the addition of two Little Egrets, a couple of Little Grebes, a Greenfinch, a small flock of Swallows, a distant Kestrel and a Pied Wagtail (49) on the papermill roof.

There's a lot of different fungi around the lakes at the moment. I'm not really into them, I've got enough on my plate trying to ID everything else, but this one caught my eye. If anybody recognises it i'd be pleased to hear from them.

Thanks again to Greenie for IDing it as an immature Parasol Mushroom and to Jan for confirming it. Click on the names to visit their blogs.

Yes, I know i've posted lots of Lizards lately but it really surprised me today to see this one just by the entrance to the car park in such cool conditions. He's shedding his skin as well by the looks of it. I can't imagine i'll find any more this year. But if I do I promise not to post a picture of it!

Lastly, I nearly forgot to mention a Mistle thrush in the top of the tree by the newly opened Brooklands Cafe and a fly by Collared Dove which was species number 42 for the day and 50 for the NH October list.

And on a personal note, a quick hello to Stephanie who became my 21st 'follower' recently. Thanks Steph, hope all is going well at Uni and hope to see you soon.

New Hythe Wednesday 15th September

I only had a couple of hours today so I got to Brooklands car park almost at the crack of dawn, which is 08.00 in British Summer Time...............


It was a great morning, a bit cool to start with but then the September sun began to work it's magic and it warmed up nicely and turned into a proper hop picking morning, I could almost smell the aroma of the hops wafting up from memory lane. Only trouble is hop picking mornings were notoriously damp underfoot and today was no exception, so it was on with the gaiters, it only seems like five minutes ago I was packing them away for the Summer.


A pair of Mistle Thrushes, a Great Spotted Woodpecker and a flock of House Martins all made the notebook before I left the car park so that was a good start. I noticed that the river was fairly high although the tide was ebbing so I didn't go down to the small wood where i'd seen the two Kingfishers from on monday. As I walked along the Sunken Marsh path I looked back to the wood and saw three Grey Herons perched in the trees facing the river, basking in the early sun so i'm glad I didn't disturb them. I haven't seen them there before. A dunnock, a pair of Linnets, and a small flock of Greenfinches were in the marsh as was a Chiffchaff which was singing it's Chiff-chaff song and this, coupled with the sun and the now warmish breeze, made it feel positively Spring like.


There were maybe 150 Hirundines spread over Brookland and Abbey Mead lakes, mostly House Martins but with a good sprinkling of Sand Martins and the odd Swallow. As I watched them a Sparrowhawk flew over creating panic and a Kingfisher called from Brookland lake, I went to investigate and saw two bolts of blue flying characteristically low over the flat calm surface, at least it was calm before the Swan pictured below came in for a high speed crash landing.

I checked out the railway path because it was here that I found a Spotted Flycatcher at about this time last year. No luck today though, just a few dragons one of which allowed me a picture, I think it might be a Common Darter? And a Magpie which I snapped while waiting for a Jay to reappear after flying into an Oak tree. I didn't get the Jay picture, I never do!

The East Scrub was quiet, only brightened by the familiar Green Woodpeckers and a small charm of Goldfinches. The mixed flock that I saw there on Monday had moved on but luckily I managed to find a similar (or the same) flock, this time in the West Scrub. Blue Tits, Great Tits, Long tailed Tits, as pictured below, Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps and other LBJ's which were too quick to ID all busied themselves roaming from tree to tree continually calling and feeding in earnest.

With time running out I cut through the small copse alongside the Bittern viewing area on Streamside lake. As I emerged I once again nearly stepped on a Slow Worm. This one was right on the edge of the path in the shade of the trees in the copse. I took a couple of quick pictures and was about to move on, but it was in such a vulnerable position and it hadn't moved an inch while I was there, so I thought I would move it somewhere a bit safer. It offered no resistance to me picking it up and made no effort to escape so I guessed it was too cold. I moved it to a warm sunny spot about six feet away, where it seemed to revive very quickly and soon slid off into the undergrowth.

Also in this area I found this nice little flower which I think is Common Toadflax and below that is a Shaggy Inkcap, one of many that have sprung up across the site almost overnight.

Now, as if there weren't enough reasons to visit New Hythe there's now a new one. It's a nice little bench that's been provided by the Country Park Management I think. It's a welcome place to rest weary legs along the Millstream path before returning back to the car park. You might want to eat your lunch before you get there though, as it also offers great views and aromas of the sewage plant just 40 or 50 feet away across the stream. How thoughtful is that? I haven't seen anybody use it yet.....................I wonder why?

Eyes down at New Hythe

My walk around New Hythe lakes today took place under cloudy skies and a fairly stiff breeze. I'm not going to bang on endlessly about the weather but come on, it's August, what happened to the summer?

The tide was low and still ebbing when I got to the river but the previous high tide must have been a big one as I could see evidence of water coming over the raised track and spilling into the sunken marsh. The high tide today reached 4.6 mtrs and I wouldn't mind betting the last couple of days were slightly higher due to the new moon on the 10th. It's this new moon that should allow us to have great views of the Perseid meteor shower tonight...........................except of course we won't, because of those damned cloudy skies. But never mind there's always next year. I said that last year, and the year before that.

I ended up seeing just 32 species of birds today and none of them gave themselves up easily. I couldn't find anything out of the ordinary so again it was a case of eyes down and see what was around nearer the ground.

A quick look in the East Scrub produced three Slow Worms, two of which were very big and also this young Grass snake and his mate who were snuggled up together in the cool mid morning.
This shows nicely the difference in skin texture between the two, the individual scales of the Grass snake and the glassy smoothness of the Slow worm (left click it). Also apparent is the round pupil of the Grass snake as opposed to the vertically slit pupil of Adders.

There's a small clearing between the railway line and Abbey Mead lake where there is a large Oak and Ash tree. In previous years there has been a colony of Purple Hairstreaks here. With this in mind I waited here a while in the hope of seeing one. Needless to say in the overcast conditions none were seen. But after a while the sun came out and flooded the sheltered clearing with warmth and I was amazed at the instant transformation. Speckled Woods, Holly Blues, Large and Small White butterflies. Damselflies of various shades, hawkers, darters, flies and hoverflies all took to the air in an instant. What a difference the sun makes.

Talking of hoverflies the edge of the lake here was home to quite a few and I spotted a couple of different species I think to those I have posted before. The first two pictured below are (hopefully) Myathropa flores, distinguished by the horizontal stripes on the thorax. These were quite big and could easily be mistaken for wasps.

And finally..................................

The handsome beast below is either Leucozona lucorum or Volucella pellucens but I think it's the former. Either way it's an unusual and interesting looking chap. As I photographed him the sky got even darker and it looked like rain was on the way so I cursed the clouds and headed for home. See, i'm still banging on endlessly about the weather, I just can't help it!

The above has now been ID'd as Volucella pellucens. As ever thanks to Greenie and again thanks to Greg for their help.

New Hythe Monday 26th July

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The first thing that caught my attention as I donned my boots and rucksack in Brooklands car park was the excited screaming of Swifts. I looked up to see about thirty of them wheeling high above me before inevitably disappearing to the south. Great to see and hear but also a sad reminder of their departure and also a hint of the passing summer.

My companions along the northern edge of Brooklands lake were mostly Goldfinches, more here than i've seen of late, their numbers boosted by numerous juveniles. Hopefully they will have had a good breeding season and judging by the Thistles (above) and the seeming abundance of Teasels across the site there will be enough food to sustain them through the winter.

The tide was at it's lowest point when I arrived at 09.00 so I made my way through the thick vegetation to the small wood by the river. I haven't been there for a while now and I was struck by the darkness from the overhead canopy of leaves and what was also a rather dull and grey morning.............it was a bit spooky!

I scanned the large island exposed by the water's rush back to the sea and immediately noticed the dorsal and tail fins of what must have been a really big shoal of Grey Mullet continually breaking the surface of the shallow water as they 'grazed' on the rocks and mud on the riverbed. They had also been spotted by two Cormorants and a couple of juvenile Grey Herons who were drooling over this feast of fish, swimming virtually between their legs and which were far too big for even the most optimistic beak. I watched in amusement as the Cormorants dived among them causing the surface to boil as the fish panicked but each time they came up empty handed, or beaked, and eventually they gave up and climbed back on the island and watched grumpily as lunch continued to lunch, so close yet so far.

While I watched all this unfold a small wader flickered across the river and landed on the far bank. It was a Sandpiper and I'm pretty sure it was of the common variety but either way it was good to see, albeit fleetingly.

GREENFINCH

And so to the sunken marsh where a rather punkish looking Greenfinch sang from the top of a bush and a mixed flock of Long-tailed Tits and Blue Tits noisily leapfrogged their way from bush to bush along the northern edge in a manner reminiscent of a winter feeding flock. A Chiffchaff also joined the fray and posed briefly to allow me to take a poor shot of him, I don't think he would like it much if he saw it but I would definitely blame it on the poor light and battleship grey skies! The only other bird of note along the river was a lone Lapwing, I checked it out to make sure it hadn't got a white tail, just in case.

CHIFFCHAFF

The previously mentioned grey conditions meant that Butterflies were at a premium, the ever present Gatekeepers, or Hedge Browns as I believe they were once referred to were the most abundant species but I did see a Peacock, a couple of Red Admirals, two Speckled Woods and a solitary Ringlet which I believe are just about at the end of their flying time now.

GATEKEEPER

RINGLET (A BIT WORN)

Over the railway line and the Railway lake provided the usual suspects in the shape of Gt Crested Grebes, Tufties, Coots and Greylags and a flyover Lesser Black -backed Gull. The East Scrub only managed to present me with Dunnocks, Blackbirds and Common Whitethroats but a Green Woodpecker brightened up the grey picture as did a singing Willow Warbler which although only a few yards from me had taken the art of invisibility to a new dimension. I wish I could do that!

I managed to find these two Slow Worms under a piece of refugia, I don't know why they are referred to as slow though because they certainly aren't. Some people still think of these super critters as snakes but of course they're not. For one thing they have eyelids which snakes don't have and unlike snakes they shed their skin in bits as opposed to one piece. They are also autotomic like some other lizards i.e. they are able to shed part of their body, in this case their tail, to escape predators. So although they are harmless and nice to handle you have to be very careful how you do it. Probably best not to really.

SLOW WORMS

The return along the river yielded a few more species to the list including the family of Shelducks, still looking good, a Reed Warbler and a singing Blackcap or two. I was pleased to see a Common Tern fishing gracefully and successfully at Brookland lake as I headed back to the car and also two Pied Wagtails which were bouncing along the roof of the mill seemingly oblivious to the noise and steam generated by this blot on the landscape.

And finally................................a reminder below that the foraging season is nearly upon us again, and you know what that means don't you...........................Autumn!!

Lake District & New Hythe

Lake District and New Hythe all in one post! You saw it here first folks!


On the way back from the Isle of Mull we stopped at the Lake District in Cumbria for a few days. This is another of our favourite destinations and we have been walking the fells here for many years. The picture below is of Slaters Bridge in the tiny hamlet of Little Langdale. The bridge was built somewhere between the middle of the 17th & 18th centurys and was originally intended to carry packhorses over the river Brathay, thereby connecting Little Langdale and Elterwater.

SLATERS BRIDGE LITTLE LANGDALE

The wildlife in the Lake District is not on the scale to be found in Mull but what it may lack here is more than made up for in sheer natural beauty and grandeur. I am looking forward to two weeks walking around the lakes and up and down the fells here in August.

The picture below is a Red Breasted Merganser which was patrolling the shallow margins of Derwent Water and diving for the huge numbers of fry to be found in the warmer water there.

RED BREASTED MERGANSER

Further on during our walk from Derwent Water to Watendlath Tarn we spotted this Buzzard (below) flying into the trees just off the path and was surprised when it allowed us fairly close views before eventually deciding enough was enough and buzzing off.

LAKE DISTRICT BUZZARD

Yesterday I found myself back at New Hythe lakes in the hope of adding to my year list there which has pretty much ground to a halt of late. I didn't find anything new but it was nice to be back anyway. The lakes themselves were pretty much deserted just the odd Coot and a few Great Crested Grebes with their stripey headed young in tow staying just far enough away to deny me a picture...........this time! I noticed the Swan was off the nest at Brooklands, presumably they have Cygnets now but I couldn't see them.

I stopped along the Sunken Marsh footpath next to the river and noticed a large bird of prey approaching from the East and heading straight towards me. I was pretty sure it was a Buzzard and hoped it would fly along the river nice and slowly, straight into my waiting lens. And i'm sure it would have done if a couple of Carrion Crows hadn't decided to run it out of town leaving me with just a long distance shot as compensation. I had a feeling this might be an immature bird, any idea anyone?

BUZZARD AND CARRION CROW

The young Herons have fledged now from the Heronry and there was a group of them on the mud banks exposed by the low tide and a Little Egret was there also, haven't seen one here for some time before now. The picture's a bit poor because I had to creep up to it behind some reeds, a couple of which insisted on being in the picture too!

JUVENILE GREY HERON

ADULT HERON

The dragonfly below was one of a few seen but the only one who stayed still long enough to snap and then only head on. I think it's a Black Tailed Skimmer, either female or immature male..............?

Across the site there were plenty of singing Blackcaps, Willow Warblers, Chiffchaffs and the odd burst of Nightingale but all much more difficult to see now due to the leaf growth which seems to have increased tremendously in the short time i've been away.

The Slow Worm below was one of five seen all under one piece of refugia on the East Scrub, it was a good sized specimen and looked in really good condition.

SLOW WORM

Finally, since getting back I've been getting visits in the garden from a lovely Grey Wagtail, unfortunately I haven't been able to get a picture yet because a female Blackbird has taken a deep dislike to it and sees it off before I can get the camera out!