Out of sight, out of mind...

On a hot and sunny Saturday in July, you dont really expect to be seeing new county birds, so a bit of gardening and sitting outside was the order of the day. At lunchtime, I quick glance at Twitter and I saw that Jack Bucknall was punching the air at seeing a summer plumaged Spotted Sandpiper, just down to road from me at Foxton Bends, Alnmouth! A nice bird, thinks I, but didnt even think of it being a county tick until I arrived on site and it was suggested by Bob Dack, Of course it is, the only other one in our area was just over the border at Derwent Reservoir several years ago - bonus.

The bird was showing well quite close in on the riverside mud with two Common Sands and two Greenshank. It was in nice spotty breeding plumage, as have been the other few I've seen, quite unusually.

So alls well that ends well, but it might have been nice to get a text off someone.

[Full on whinge deleted]

Ho hum...

Spotted Sandpiper field scribble.

Northumberland List 330.

No Moths, Cows instead!

Well what a turn up. Apparently thanks to my blogging exploits, I am now considered 'PRESS' and have been invited to a special viewing of the Chillingham Wild Cattle!

Now, despite being a Northumbrian born and bred, I have never seen these, so was very pleased to accept their kind offer of a guided trip after the park closes. I'll update with some pics afterwards.

No more Moths..

Right heres the thing. Moths are clogging me up, so they're going back to The Orthosia Enthusiast. 
That way I can just post the catches and pics, and leave the real wildlife to From the Notebook...

Done.

Its a record!

A massive record catch for me here all crammed into one Robinson Trap...
Plum Tortrix and Bordered Pug were both new for the garden and there were a few year ticks as well...

Bordered Pug

Taxa
0014 Ghost Moth (Hepialus humuli) 1
0015 Orange Swift (Hepialus sylvina) 1 NFY
0246 Tinea semifulvella 2
0464 Diamond-back Moth (Plutella xylostella) 6
0647 Brown House Moth (Hofmannophila pseudospretella) 2
0724 Metzneria lappella 3
0873 Blastobasis adustella 1
0874 Blastobasis lacticolella 1
0886 Mompha ochraceella 19
0905 Blastodacna hellerella 1 NFY
0937 Agapeta hamana 1
0945 Aethes cnicana 5
0946 Aethes rubigana 1
0970 Barred Fruit-tree Tortrix (Pandemis cerasana) 4
0972 Dark Fruit-tree Tortrix (Pandemis heparana) 1 NFY
0994 Clepsis consimilana 1
1020 Grey Tortrix (Cnephasia stephensiana) 2
1021 Flax Tortrix (Cnephasia asseclana) 2
1076 Celypha lacunana 2
1082 Plum Tortrix (Hedya pruniana) 2 NFG
1201 Eucosma cana 2
1293 Garden Grass-veneer (Chrysoteuchia culmella) 3
1302 Crambus perlella 1
1304 Agriphila straminella 91
1305 Agriphila tristella 18
1316 Catoptria falsella 14
1332 Scoparia subfusca 1
1333 Scoparia pyralella 4
1334 Scoparia ambigualis 8
1336 Eudonia pallida 1
1338 Dipleurina lacustrata 4
1376 Small Magpie (Eurrhypara hortulata) 4
1388 Udea lutealis 1
1392 Udea olivalis 3
1405 Mother of Pearl (Pleuroptya ruralis) 4
1428 Bee Moth (Aphomia sociella) 2
1640 Drinker (Euthrix potatoria) 3
1653 Buff Arches (Habrosyne pyritoides) 6
1665 Grass Emerald (Pseudoterpna pruinata) 1 NFY
1702 Small Fan-footed Wave (Idaea biselata) 4
1708 Single-dotted Wave (Idaea dimidiata) 3
1713 Riband Wave [non-banded form] (Idaea aversata ab. remutata) 6
1722 Flame Carpet (Xanthorhoe designata) 1
1727 Silver-ground Carpet (Xanthorhoe montanata) 1
1734 July Belle (Scotopteryx luridata) 1
1738 Common Carpet (Epirrhoe alternata) 2
1758 Barred Straw (Eulithis pyraliata) 34
1764 Common Marbled Carpet (Chloroclysta truncata) 1
1765 Barred Yellow (Cidaria fulvata) 3
1768 Grey Pine Carpet (Thera obeliscata) 1
1776 Green Carpet (Colostygia pectinataria) 4
1802 Rivulet (Perizoma affinitata) 4
1803 Small Rivulet (Perizoma alchemillata) 11
1808 Sandy Carpet (Perizoma flavofasciata) 21
1809 Twin-spot Carpet (Perizoma didymata) 3
1817 Foxglove Pug (Eupithecia pulchellata) 2
1819 Mottled Pug (Eupithecia exiguata) 1
1830 Wormwood Pug (Eupithecia absinthiata) 1
1832 Currant Pug (Eupithecia assimilata) 1
1837 Grey Pug (Eupithecia subfuscata) 3
1839 Bordered Pug (Eupithecia succenturiata) 1 NFG
1848 Ash Pug (Eupithecia innotata f. fraxinata) 1
1860 Green Pug (Pasiphila rectangulata) 2
1862 Double-striped Pug (Gymnoscelis rufifasciata) 2
1884 Magpie Moth (Abraxas grossulariata) 1 NFY
1887 Clouded Border (Lomaspilis marginata) 1
1906 Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata) 1
1922 Swallow-tailed Moth (Ourapteryx sambucaria) 2
1931 Peppered Moth (Biston betularia) 1
1937 Willow Beauty (Peribatodes rhomboidaria) 11
1941 Mottled Beauty (Alcis repandata) 8
1961 Light Emerald (Campaea margaritata) 12
1962 Barred Red (Hylaea fasciaria) 1
1981 Poplar Hawk-moth (Laothoe populi) 1
2000 Iron Prominent (Notodonta dromedarius) 1
2007 Swallow Prominent (Pheosia tremula) 1
2038 Muslin Footman (Nudaria mundana) 1
2050 Common Footman (Eilema lurideola) 21
2057 Garden Tiger (Arctia caja) 12
2089 Heart and Dart (Agrotis exclamationis) 10
2098 Flame (Axylia putris) 6
2102 Flame Shoulder (Ochropleura plecta) 7
2107 Large Yellow Underwing (Noctua pronuba) 14
2111 Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing (Noctua janthe) 6
2118 True Lover's Knot (Lycophotia porphyrea) 2
2120 Ingrailed Clay (Diarsia mendica) 1
2123 Small Square-spot (Diarsia rubi) 3
2128 Double Square-spot (Xestia triangulum) 21
2130 Dotted Clay (Xestia baja) 10
2133 Six-striped Rustic (Xestia sexstrigata) 3
2154 Cabbage Moth (Mamestra brassicae) 2
2160 Bright-line Brown-eye (Lacanobia oleracea) 10
2173 Lychnis (Hadena bicruris) 3
2176 Antler Moth (Cerapteryx graminis) 3
2193 Clay (Mythimna ferrago) 16
2198 Smoky Wainscot (Mythimna impura) 67
2199 Common Wainscot (Mythimna pallens) 6
2284x Dark Dagger / Grey Dagger (Acronicta tridens/psi) 1
2293 Marbled Beauty (Cryphia domestica) 7
2321 Dark Arches (Apamea monoglypha) 19
2322 Light Arches (Apamea lithoxylaea) 1
2326 Clouded-bordered Brindle (Apamea crenata) 1
2337x Marbled Minor agg. (Oligia strigilis agg.) 16
2340 Middle-barred Minor (Oligia fasciuncula) 8
2343x Common Rustic agg. (Mesapamea secalis agg.) 7
2345 Small Dotted Buff (Photedes minima) 5
2382 Rustic (Hoplodrina blanda) 5
2387 Mottled Rustic (Caradrina morpheus) 1
2434 Burnished Brass (Diachrysia chrysitis) 36
2440 Lempke's Gold Spot (Plusia putnami) 1
2442 Beautiful Golden Y (Autographa pulchrina) 9
2443 Plain Golden Y (Autographa jota) 15
2444 Gold Spangle (Autographa bractea) 1
2450 Spectacle (Abrostola tripartita) 5
2474 Straw Dot (Rivula sericealis) 14
2477 Snout (Hypena proboscidalis) 54
2489 Fan-foot (Zanclognatha tarsipennalis) 2

816 Moths of 117 sp

Seawatching...

I wandered down to the coast path for an hours look at the sea at 5pm tonight.

Flat calm, it was quiet with only a few birds loafing about, Puffins, Guillemots and Razorbills mainly with other common seabirds thrown in.

After about half an hour things began to pick up and Manx Shearwaters began trickling through. I ended up with 62 of those, plus a nice adult Pomarine Skua, with tail spoons, going north, a dark Arctic Skua south, 11 Common Scoter N, Common, Arctic and Sandwich Terns...

A Porpoise and 3 Grey Seals fished close in too...

No sign of the 'brown' one...yet.

Newbies....

Another couple of garden firsts...

Green Arches

Eudonia pallida

The garden mothing is excellent at the minute with the good weather. It looks set to continue for the next few days at least with overcast skies and 15 degrees overnight til Weds, so maybe there will be more to come.

I think the thermals must  lift moths high in the air on warm days then as it cools they can drop anywhere, so theres a chance of species from different habitats...fingers crossed.

Birthday...

The 15th July 2006 I started this blog...here

A few things have changed on here in the last seven years thats for sure...since I moved to Howick in 2009 I have branched out from birding, as many of my friends keep reminding me, into all things natural. This isnt the big change that some people think, I have always been a naturalist rather than a birder right from childhood, but most people know me through birding, thats all.

I can recommend it to anyone, especially those who grumble about summer doldrums between migration seasons. These days I never have a quiet day out, there is always something to go in the notebook.There is a whole lot of wildlife out there to look for yet....

Who knows, I might do another seven years...or maybe I'll get the itch and think it time to change.

Corn Spurrey

No time for birding....

Twin spot Carpet, never seen one of this form before.

Clouded Brindle, scarce in the county, not even annual and new for me.

Double Dart, another new macro for the garden.

Biggest catch so far and unlikely to be beaten but who knows....

Some nice moths including my first Double Darts, Pinion streaked Snout 19 Garden Tigers, July Belle etc

Taxa
0018 Map-winged Swift (Hepialus fusconebulosa) 5
0018 Map-winged Swift (Hepialus fusconebulosa f. gallicus) 1
0385 Anthophila fabriciana 3 NFY Netted
0464 Diamond-back Moth (Plutella xylostella) 3
0874 Blastobasis lacticolella 1
0886 Mompha ochraceella 5
0970 Barred Fruit-tree Tortrix (Pandemis cerasana) 3
1021 Flax Tortrix (Cnephasia asseclana) 2
1076 Celypha lacunana 2
1083 Marbled Orchard Tortrix (Hedya nubiferana) 1
1174 Epiblema cynosbatella 1
1201 Eucosma cana 1
1293 Garden Grass-veneer (Chrysoteuchia culmella) 13
1302 Crambus perlella 1 NFY
1304 Agriphila straminella 1
1316 Catoptria falsella 2 NFY
1332 Scoparia subfusca 1
1333 Scoparia pyralella 11
1334 Scoparia ambigualis 1
1338 Dipleurina lacustrata 1
1356 Garden Pebble (Evergestis forficalis) 1
1376 Small Magpie (Eurrhypara hortulata) 2
1392 Udea olivalis 2
1428 Bee Moth (Aphomia sociella) 2
1483 Phycitodes binaevella 1
1640 Drinker (Euthrix potatoria) 7
1653 Buff Arches (Habrosyne pyritoides) 1
1702 Small Fan-footed Wave (Idaea biselata) 1 NFY
1708 Single-dotted Wave (Idaea dimidiata) 1
1713 Riband Wave [non-banded form] (Idaea aversata ab. remutata) 1
1722 Flame Carpet (Xanthorhoe designata) 1
1727 Silver-ground Carpet (Xanthorhoe montanata) 18
1734 July Belle (Scotopteryx luridata) 1
1738 Common Carpet (Epirrhoe alternata) 4
1758 Barred Straw (Eulithis pyraliata) 24
1764 Common Marbled Carpet (Chloroclysta truncata) 1
1776 Green Carpet (Colostygia pectinataria) 10
1802 Rivulet (Perizoma affinitata) 5
1803 Small Rivulet (Perizoma alchemillata) 5
1808 Sandy Carpet (Perizoma flavofasciata) 3
1809 Twin-spot Carpet (Perizoma didymata) 2 NFY
1817 Foxglove Pug (Eupithecia pulchellata) 2
1827 Freyer's Pug (Eupithecia intricata) 1
1832 Currant Pug (Eupithecia assimilata) 1 NFY
1834 Common Pug (Eupithecia vulgata) 1
1837 Grey Pug (Eupithecia subfuscata) 3
1848 Ash Pug (Eupithecia innotata f. fraxinata) 1
1887 Clouded Border (Lomaspilis marginata) 1
1894 Latticed Heath (Chiasmia clathrata) 1
1906 Brimstone Moth (Opisthograptis luteolata) 1
1931 Peppered Moth (Biston betularia) 2
1937 Willow Beauty (Peribatodes rhomboidaria) 1 NFY
1941 Mottled Beauty (Alcis repandata) 4
1981 Poplar Hawk-moth (Laothoe populi) 4
1994 Buff-tip (Phalera bucephala) 1
2008 Coxcomb Prominent (Ptilodon capucina) 2
2050 Common Footman (Eilema lurideola) 2
2057 Garden Tiger (Arctia caja) 19
2060 White Ermine (Spilosoma lubricipeda) 5
2061 Buff Ermine (Spilosoma luteum) 1
2089 Heart and Dart (Agrotis exclamationis) 2
2098 Flame (Axylia putris) 11
2102 Flame Shoulder (Ochropleura plecta) 3
2107 Large Yellow Underwing (Noctua pronuba) 2
2114 Double Dart (Graphiphora augur) 2 NEW
2118 True Lover's Knot (Lycophotia porphyrea) 1
2123 Small Square-spot (Diarsia rubi) 7
2128 Double Square-spot (Xestia triangulum) 18
2130 Dotted Clay (Xestia baja) 1
2154 Cabbage Moth (Mamestra brassicae) 1
2158 Pale-shouldered Brocade (Lacanobia thalassina) 1
2160 Bright-line Brown-eye (Lacanobia oleracea) 6
2173 Lychnis (Hadena bicruris) 2
2176 Antler Moth (Cerapteryx graminis) 3 NFY
2193 Clay (Mythimna ferrago) 3
2198 Smoky Wainscot (Mythimna impura) 15
2199 Common Wainscot (Mythimna pallens) 4
2293 Marbled Beauty (Cryphia domestica) 8
2302 Brown Rustic (Rusina ferruginea) 1
2321 Dark Arches (Apamea monoglypha) 5
2326 Clouded-bordered Brindle (Apamea crenata) 2
2334 Rustic Shoulder-knot (Apamea sordens) 1
2337x Marbled Minor agg. (Oligia strigilis agg.) 14
2340 Middle-barred Minor (Oligia fasciuncula) 25
2343x Common Rustic agg. (Mesapamea secalis agg.) 1
2382 Rustic (Hoplodrina blanda) 3
2387 Mottled Rustic (Caradrina morpheus) 1
2434 Burnished Brass (Diachrysia chrysitis) 12
2440 Lempke's Gold Spot (Plusia putnami gracilis) 1
2442 Beautiful Golden Y (Autographa pulchrina) 11
2443 Plain Golden Y (Autographa jota) 7
2444 Gold Spangle (Autographa bractea) 1
2450 Spectacle (Abrostola tripartita) 5
2474 Straw Dot (Rivula sericealis) 2
2477 Snout (Hypena proboscidalis) 48
2484 Pinion-streaked Snout (Schrankia costaestrigalis) 1 NFY
2489 Fan-foot (Zanclognatha tarsipennalis) 1

428 Moths of 96 sp

Photos can help...

..to review older records of natural history sightings.

In 2008 we went to Cornwall in September. I blogged about our trip here and recorded a new species for my fish list - Ballan Wrasse. I have just fluked a discovery that my identification is wrong and the fish illustrated is in fact Corkwing Wrasse, a much better result!

I still haven't caught a Ballan, though, but this is a much more likely species to catch up here than the Corkwing....

Without the photo's this fish would have just remained incorrectly identified. Great combo the digi camera and t'internet...

24 years....gone.

Ian Fisher called me today with the news that a Bridled Tern was on Inner Farne.

Northumberland has had a few records of this mega from tropical oceans, and each time one turns up I get a  panic on. Not because I am dying to see it and add it to my list, oh no, the exact opposite in fact - I'm gutted in case other county listers add it to their lists!

The reason is, that Bridled Tern is about the only massive 'blocker' I have on my Northumberland list that a lot of county birders are still missing. I was lucky enough to see the bird in '88 at Hauxley, then almost a year on, to the day, jammed in on it again at the exact same spot in '89. On the 12th and 16th July respectively.

But, now, after 24 years, my blocker has finally been unblocked and all of those who wanted it, sailed over to the Farnes this evening and got great views near the boat landing.

Oh well, congratulations to the lads who have waited a third of a lifetime for a twitchable one, I'm glad you finally caught up with it.

(Now what will I talk about when I'm pissed? Bastard! :)