(Nearly) 6,000/hour

Yesterday was spent tackling the remaining samples of critters from last year, I got through one tray's worth. All were water beetles which I'm just learning to do so it is a bit of a struggle. Mike Hackston's online keys are just brilliant when they exist for a particular family - but when they don't.... I'm going to have to invest in the new water beetle keys, I'm struggling along using a beta version of Friday that I was given years ago. (£70 for the two keys and the atlas - I'm close to a bit of online shopping.) Anyway, the Helophorus aequalis are quite familiar, there were 7 of those including a rather small one which I keyed out twice but it came out ok, just a runt I guess. Now I've seen H.grandis I'm confident about aequalis. However, there were three much smaller Helophorus in there. Eventually I got these out to flavipes, a nice common species that occurs here, so I can be fairly confident.

 

The next customer was a Dytiscidae, and a small one at that, these can be a bit hard.... but two hours later I'm pretty confident that it is Hydroporus planus which would be a good record, I think there are just two previous records in the county.

Hydroporus planus (I hope)

I do feel a bit more confident about these than the slugs I've been attempting. I posted a couple of records on iRecord last week and had made a complete pig's ear of the whole mularky. Effectively I confused House Sparrow with Redshank, that kind of order of error. Fortunately the national recorder is very helpful and extraordinarily tolerant and put me right, gave me a few tips, and asked for more records. I will try to do better next time.

Arion subfuscus (orange body mucus)

 Decoceras reticulatum (milky foot mucus)

A bit of a northly blow overnight sent me scuttling to the coast this morning. Fulmars were scudding past at near 6,000 an hour.

There was also a gull movement, the hoped for outcome from the weather. in amongst 216 Great Black-backed Gulls there were 2 Glaucous, a 2cy and an adult. As I drove home another adult Glaucous flew by the car at the Northside crossroads.

Not a Glaucous Gull (2cy Geeb)

Got home, had some breakfast (bread and butter pudding I made yesterday!) and decided to head back there +Louise and the hound for a walk.

Fulmars and Geebs were still doing their thing but a bit of a walk and we came across the hoped for Otters. The adult was feeding but the youngster did not look very happy, out of the water and sheltering from the massive sea.

The other mammal I've come across this week, other than Brown Hare and Rabbit has been House Mouse. We seem to be facing a bit of an invasion and I can only find one trap, effective mind.

House Mouse

This was an adult, probably good I caught that. The youngsters are just very cheeky, even getting on the worktop during the day (Stacked the supper trays put them on the side, put the kettle on, took top tray off bottom tray, mouse in the bottom tray!). The cats have now forced them out into the garage I think, no sign today, and more traps are on order.