Tuesday 25 July 2017

Gem, Balearic Shearwater and Arctic Skuas

 
Gem - an immigrant species that I get occasionally but usually in the autumn. Other immigrants last night included a couple each of dark Sword Grass and European Corn-borer, Silver Y and Rusty-dot Pearl.
 
Despite fine conditions and a near flat-calm sea, there were a few birds offshore early this morning. In a half-hour spell I recorded 3 Arctic Skua, c70+ Manx Shearwater (rafting in the bay), 1+ Balearic Shearwater, 7 Common Tern, c10+ Sandwich Tern, 27 Common Scoter, 1 Little Egret, 1 Curlew and 13 Canada Geese.
In the estuary there were up to a dozen Common Tern and a small number of Mediterranean Gulls.
Around midday I went for a run up on the common with the dog. There were only about half a dozen gulls on Blackhill Quarry but one was a juvenile Yellow-legged Gull. I contemplated running back to the car for the camera but decided against it.
 

3 Arctic Skua 'dots'. They hammered into the bay, showing only minimal interest in the terns before vanishing.

 
Flame Carpet


Magpie


Maple Slender - Caloptilia semifascia - the larvae feed on Field Maple but I'm struggling to think where the  nearest maples are to me.

 
Sycamore Piercer - Pammene aurita

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