Wednesday, August 31, 2011
The Park Lane car park is now permanently closed; and Pumpkin Hill is temporarily closed for road repairs. This made it impossible to get into Burnham Beeches without a massive detour; so I turned back this afternoon and had a walk on Littleworth Common where I saw a buzzard, a chiffchaff, a queen hornet and this tiny but distinctive Scorpion Fly.
An early morning visit to Dorney Common brought four yellow wagtails near the road; the cattle were widely scattered so there could well have been more.
This dragonfly was in the garden a day or two ago. It's probably another Southern Hawker, the thicker body making it a female. She remained on the holly for a good half hour.
The Hummingbird Hawk-moth paid a quick visit to our honeysuckle this morning.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Dungeness
It was a toss-up between Pagham Harbour and Dungeness; Greger favoured Dungeness because he fancied buying some crab.
A female marsh harrier came cruising across Burrowes Pit, seen to advantage against the grey backdrop of the nuclear power station.
At Denge Marsh, I was absorbed in watching a Sandwich tern that had landed on a small island among the common terns. Swinging the scope across the pit I was amazed to see a great white egret fishing on the far side; I then realised that everyone else in the hide was already looking at it! Greger managed the best record shot in dull conditions.
He also spotted this tern with a large fish. A lot of screeching then issued from the juvenile bird on the raft; but whether in excitement at the prospect of a meal or from terror at the size of it, I do not know. Another adult came shrieking in and amid all the clamour, the fish got dropped back into the water. 
In strong winds we saw very few small birds, a handful of yellow wagtails being the best. Waders seen were dunlin, sanderling, ringed plover and several common sandpipers.From the beach we saw gannets and one shearwater - species unknown. And finally we went to the fresh fish-shop where Greger bought a dressed crab and some prawns while I watched the little train on the Dymchurch-Hythe railway go past.
An enjoyable if wind-blown visit, and a tasty fish starter when we got home.Saturday, August 27, 2011
A moth and a butterfly
A Hummingbird Hawk-moth was in the garden this morning. It flew over to check me out, (a blur of red moving at incredible speed), zoomed over the wall and was gone.
Swinley Forest and Wishmoor provided a nice walk with patches of purple heather, a few warblers and eight stonechats. A large, rather sombre, grey-brown and orange butterfly caught my eye at the woodland edge. It flew strongly and with less fluttering than most butterflies; and when it landed it immediately closed its wings and seemed to lean over to one side.
This was my first Grayling butterfly. It's relatively common, widespread on coasts and southern heaths. The tilting to one side has "authorities" divided as to whether this is done to maximise exposure to the sun or to minimise the insect's shadow on the ground. I think the second is a bit suspect while the first seems more reasonable; but either way it's a characteristic of the species.Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Portland Bill
We left fairly early yesterday morning and drove down to Dorset and onto the Isle of Portland. In pouring rain we pulled into a free car park near the Bill to eat lunch. Several gannets were flying elegantly over the sea in the gloom and Greger pointed out a willow warbler in a nearby bush.
By the time we reached the Bill it had stopped raining, and the big grassy area opposite the car park was alive with wheatears. I counted nineteen and thought this was great; but I would later learn from the Portland website that 150 wheatears were counted at the Bill!
Stopping to look at four oystercatchers on a flat shelf of rock, I realised there were turnstones and sanderlings there as well.
We saw four common sandpipers, a little egret, and several rock pipits.
As we walked past the huts and the paddocks, it was difficult to look in any direction and not see a wheatear.
Coming back past the paddocks we had good views of a spotted flycatcher on the fence; and we decided on a quick walk down to the rocks beyond the lighthouse, despite the crowds of people and the deafening fog-horn.
A greyish wader was asleep with its back to us. People clambering on the rocks and unaware of the bird were getting dangerously close, and I thought if it was going to be flushed anyway I might as well get a better look. We advanced carefully until we could see the greenish legs and took turns studying it through the bins. I knew now that it was a knot and later I would identify it from the book as a juvenile.
The knot suddenly roused itself and looked all round, quite indignantly, as if to say "Who woke me up?" I thought it would be off, but it just gave its feathers a shake and went back to sleep. 
Beyond the knot, a dark bird came flying low and landed on the water. I wondered if the head wasn't a bit too knobbly for a cormorant; didn't it have the steep forehead of a shag?
Regaining the grassy bank, we found the bird drying itself on the rocks. Again, I thought it would fly off when a couple of boys came scrambling past but it seemed completely oblivious to them. When we walked away, both it and the knot were still there, yards away from the throng and seemingly less bothered than us by the fog-horn. (Just as we got round to the other side of the lighthouse, they turned it off. Typical!)
We drove to the hotel Greger had booked in Weymouth and ate a good dinner. Greger had a pint of lager beforehand, and we shared a bottle of red wine. Afterwards, he decided on a whisky nightcap and ordered a double of Glenfiddich. For some reason he paid with his card, but when he'd done so the barman realised there wasn't enough in the bottle for a double. Not only that, but they didn't have any single malts left at all. Rather than going through the kerfuffle of crediting him, the lads behind the bar suggested they could make it up in a cheaper brand. They worked out that this would amount to a quadruple measure and gave him quite a large glass of whisky!
Greger thought this a fair deal, but back in the room he got through just half and then fell fast asleep, propped up on the pillows with his reading glasses on. When I woke him up he couldn't face the rest of the whisky and poured it away. The sad thing, I pointed out, was that he probably never even got down to the expensive stuff. :o)
Today we drove up onto the (free!) National Trust car park at South Down. This gives great views over Weymouth and the Isle of Portland.
A peregrine was in wheeling, plunging dispute with a kestrel and having seen him off, drifted over to check us out.
On this stretch of the coast path the chalk cliff overhangs the sea like a snow cornice on a mountain ridge. The great green scoop to the left, known as The Warren, held at least fifteen wheatears and a family party of four or five stonechats.
Perhaps they were feeding on grasshoppers; when we sat down for lunch, they were everywhere.
A bit further on, several more wheatears and another stonechat were along the fence.
This is the undercliff at White Nothes. It was probably packed with warblers but we didn't have time to explore it today.
The undulating cliff path lures you on but we decided to turn back once we had Durdle Door in sight. Although it was a fairly sunny day, the wind had been strengthening and now made walking more tiring. 
Back at Ringstead Bay we crossed a field and stumbled on this radar station.
As we made our way past the farm, the hedgerow next to the path was full of house sparrows, many adults carrying food. A familiar call from among the cattle preceded the eruption of a flock of yellow wagtails; Greger reckoned about twenty. A handful landed on the path ahead for a wash.
Then it was a stiff climb back up to the car park, where swallows were swooping low and apparently coming to a standstill against the extremely strong wind. We had a last look at the view and began the long drive home.Saturday, August 20, 2011
A wet walk in West Berkshire
We should have known we were not meant to walk when Greger missed the turn-off for Hungerford on the A34 and we had to go on to the next exit and double back. However, we got to Walbury Hill in the end and set off in dry though dull weather. A migrant wheatear was a nice beginning.
We wouldn't have cared if scores of willows tits had been weaving ribbons above our heads; we just trudged on, eyes on the muddy ground. At the top of Sheepless Hill the rain faded to drizzle and we heard and then saw a couple of marsh tits.
A bit further on, a usually productive hedgerow didn't disappoint, with a fly-catching willow warbler, a family of whitethroats, a juvenile blackcap and at least two young stonechats out in the barley. Down in the wooded valley a raven croaked and grumbled away as if putting the world to rights.
Back at the car park I left Greger to have a coffee and did the first stretch of the walk again in warm sunshine. Two whinchats were my reward; but I'm afraid I flushed them from the fence and they flew to bushes a field's width away where they perched together looking oddly lovey-dovey.
A peregrine was also briefly seen.
Back at the car park I left Greger to have a coffee and did the first stretch of the walk again in warm sunshine. Two whinchats were my reward; but I'm afraid I flushed them from the fence and they flew to bushes a field's width away where they perched together looking oddly lovey-dovey.
A peregrine was also briefly seen. Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Taplow
I glanced out of the kitchen window this morning to see something large zooming about round the honeysuckle. The black tail was very conspicuous but I can't say I noticed the reddish wings - probably because they were whirring too fast. It was the first Hummingbird Hawk-moth I've recorded in the garden.
Even as it nectared, the moth was clearly aware of me; but it continued to visit each flower at breakneck speed - and then it was gone.
The frustrating thing is that there are very few flowers left on the honeysuckle, so there's probably not much chance it will return. Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Bad news in the Beeches. The Park Lane and Pumpkin Hill car parks are to close, so there'll be no parking on the western side of the woods.
And in case you get any ideas about parking on the side of the road, they've heaped ugly banks of gravel up on the verges to stop you. 
I'm suspicious because they've given several reasons for the closures - perhaps one too many, that one being litter. I've never seen litter in the Park Lane car park, and believe me, I notice litter! I have no objections to the car parking charges they are going to introduce at the weekend, but I object to being herded up near East Burnham Common with the zillions of dogs. Sunday, August 07, 2011
Storm-chasing
One moment I was walking across Dorney Common in sunshine, the next there was an ominous rumble of thunder and black clouds were billowing up in the sky. Lightning flashed in the distance.
In the car, I sat and watched the cattle leave the drinking trough where they'd been loafing and head purposefully towards the trees. Dry bits of straw and thistle-heads went spinning across the ground like tumbleweed in a western movie. The wind began to whistle and then to roar, and the car rocked from side to side until the first large drops of rain were flung, rattling, against the windows.
A dramatic end to my walk - but, like all the video clips on my blog, this one has disappeared.
Saturday, August 06, 2011
As we sat eating lunch a male Montagu's harrier came flying strongly up the wheat-field and was joined by a second, darker bird that could have been a female.
A quail sang from hill-top barley, and halfway down the slope a second one sang from a tangle of grass and wild flowers.