Wednesday 10th July 2013
Elusive Butterflies!
Bob Lind 1966
You might wake up some mornin'
To the sound of something moving past your window in the wind
And if you're quick enough to rise
You'll catch a fleeting glimpse of someone's fading shadow
Out on the new horizon
You may see the floating motion of a distant pair of wings
And if the sleep has left your ears
You might hear footsteps running through an open meadow
Don't be concerned, it will not harm you
It's only me pursuing somethin' I'm not sure of
Across my dreams with nets of wonder
I chase the bright elusive butterfly of love!
Wednesday 10th July 2013
So there I was, pursuing something I wasn't sure of - reports from Richmondshire of butterflies I've never seen in my life at Ellerburn Banks and Fen Bog. Unfortunately the day was perhaps breezier and duller than it had been the day before. I saw no lifer butterflies but at Ellerburn Banks I did see 7 species of butterfly. Pretty good going! Here are pictures of some of them.
Male ringlets have less prominent rings than the females.
There were orchids too.
Common spotted
Bee orchid
The fly orchids were almost over.
I was quite early but soon other butterflies were on the wing, including common blues.
The females can indeed be elusive.
Some of the common spotted orchids were very tall...
...and some were almost white.
Which cues the appearance of marbled white butterflies - quite a few on the wing.
Small heath butterflies appear orange in flight but never alight with wings open.
I was pleased to spot small scabious scabiosa columbaria - a dainty little thing compared with field scabious...
...and carline thistle just coming into flower.
More ringlets.
The following species were also seen but proved lens shy and kept flying away!!
Small white; meadow brown; speckled wood.
En route back to Tiggy some vaguely bee-like insect was hovering motionless in the air in front of me. Eventually I managed this shot.
On to Fen Bog but rain set in out on the moors and I saw little - indeed I had to retreat and head back west into the dry. Harebells [campanula rotundifolia] were flowering on the edge of the heather.
I was due in Huby for 3.30 to see a man about a bird. Here it is: Savannah hawk from Central & South America.
Return to Ellerburn
Friday 12th July
The weather seemed more favourable for butterflies and so, determined to see the rarities Ellerburn bank so tantalisingly promised, I set off again.
A large skipper was an excellent beginning. Don't know why I'd never seen one before - I'd seen many small skippers or had I overlooked the large skipper with its shade-patterned wings? This is a male from the brands on his wings.
This was seen on the path from the car park. Next I came across ringlets and small heaths.
A flash of high speed orange caught my eye. A large confident flyer, I knew this must be the prize I sought: dark green fritillary.
Pyramidal orchids had appeared in the last few days.
On then to Fen Bog again as the two sites are quite close to each other. Someone was out in the bog with a big lens photographing dragonflies.
I walked everywhere looking for the 'plentiful' small pearl-bordered fritillary. Disapppointed I headed back to the car. It was very warm and I was feeling the heat. Suddenly, with Tiggy in view, a smaller orange butterfly crossed my path. Then more, all over. Plentiful but hard to photograph. Small pearl-bordered fritillary. Great!
My first shot shows the ''pearls' on the underwing.
Seawatch
Saturday 13th July
Barry needed a puffin for his year list. As you'll see by the end of this rather long blog, he eventually saw thousands! Anyway we went to Flamborough and, with our chairs on the cliff top, we watched. I got a year tick in the form of an arctic skua. Barry got a puffin or two. A meadow pipit perched on a post. 'What kind of warbler is that one?' I was asked. I told them it was a meadow pipit. After that the couple ignored me and spoke to Barry! Maybe there was something in my tone of voice that drove them away...
Photogenic gannets floated by. New name for the species: photogenic gannet!
Some linnets were busy on the upper cliff. 'What are those little birds?' I was asked.
'Linnets,' I replied.
'Are you sure?'
'No, they might be gentoo penguins,' I replied again. Another couple I'd upset! They left too.
Gentoo penguin:
Burnet moths were seen on the vegetation - this is marsh orchid.
Barry's penguin.
Oh well....
We drove on to Wharram Quarry. Carline thistles [carlina vulgaris] were showing well. Flowers can't fly away.
Another thistle - I think - woolly thistle cirsium eriophorum...
...and meadow cranesbill geranium pratense.
I tried to photograph quaking grass.
Common twayblade.
The twayblade itself was nicely clear of the other vegetation.
The small heath was translucent in the bright light.
On my last visit there was no sign of pyramidal orchids: now they were everywhere. A beetle hides in the flower spike.
Bee orchids had appeared too, later perhaps than at other sites.
Clustered bellflower: campanula glomerata.
Goatsbeard or Jack-go-to-bed-at-noon or tragopogon pratensis makes a fine seedhead.
I spotted small skippers.
The marbled whites were easy to spot but photographically challenging!
Common blue.
In search of graylings and dragons
Thursday 18th July 2013
A colony of grayling was established at Greathem Creek. Taking the northern path with the macro lens on, I soon found them and was soon throwing myself onto the clinker in my attempts to get a decent photograph. In the end my efforts were very satisfying...
...but there were small heaths as well...
...and meadow browns...
I think this is a rather tatty latticed heath moth...
...but this is a grayling!
Just showing the 'eye'.
Centaury was in flower.
Burnet moths have a predilection for knapweed and thistles.
I drove the mile and a half to Saltholme RSPB to see what might be about. It was obviously a good day for dragonflies. Four spot chasers, I think.
Emerald damselfly. My first ever.
More chasers.
This is a common darter [until someone says I'm wrong!!]
Final image from Saltholme. Lunch in Phil Stead hide: godwit fly past.
North Cave afternoon
Saturday 20th July 2013
Unusually my wife came too! Barry suggested North Cave for dragonflies so off we went. There were lots of common blue damselflies about...
...and gatekeeper butterflies.
Small skipper.
Burnet moth caterpillar.
More damsels...
...and butterflies. Dappled ringlet...
...and small tortoiseshell.
I swapped lens to photograph dragonflies as I find the macro little use with dragonflies: you can't get near enough without disturbing them. So with the 400mm on I caught this large white up in the trees...
...and then got to work.
Bridled joy!
Sunday 21st July 2013
Decision made at North Cave: Barry and I would go to Inner Farne for my second attempt [and his first] at seeing the bridled tern. We were up very early. The harbour was quiet. Flowers clung naturally to the harbour wall.
The sea was like a millpond.
As we set off some local puffins flew off...
...others paddled furiously out of our way.
The arctic terns tolerate the visitors invading their jetty.
Puffins were flying past all the time on their trips to fetch food. Getting a sharp photo isn't easy.
Ringed plover were on the rocks close by.
Whilst we waited in hope of seeing the tern we did see some roseates and plenty of sandwich terns too. Arctic terns were very close even around our feet at times.
By lunchtime we hadn't seen our target bird. We headed back to Seahouses.
Looks almost alien!
Young shag.
Here we go!
Angel of the North!
After the winter wrecks it was good to see so many puffins just bobbing about like colourful children's toys.
Not long after our return in the afternoon the cry went up as the bird disappeared behind the stone tower, seen by only a few. But it came back and landed where it habitually lands...it's just right of dead centre. Can you spot it?
I'll go in closer.
Time for a sandwich!!
As we had seen the bird we finally allowed ourselves to leave the jetty and go for a walk round the island, camera at the ready!
Inner Farne is far from barren: lush vegetation abounds.
Arctics remonstrate with every visitor from any available perch.
And puffins seem to have no trouble bringing home the fish for their young.
No rush to go back down the burrow.
Outside the National Trust shop.
Shortly before we left the bridled tern flew off chasing a sandwich tern. I fired off shots at what I hoped [!!] was the right bird. Here are the best of onychoprion anaethetus!
So it's goodbye from me...
...and it's goodbye from him!
UK 2013 242. Life list 395.