Literate herring, this way.: VT and other matters.

Tuesday, 2 November 2021

VT and other matters.

Noooooo, I haven't been. Will I go? Maybe, if I can also get to a seawatch for the Banana-bills. (This post written Sunday to Tuesday, VT still present Sunday and Monday, not on its usual lawn Tuesday, so far.) Grey Phal and Hawfinch today, it's quite tempting, I'll have to see what the winds are like mid-week, jobs to do the morn. (P.S. It might have gone now anyway.)

November Moth, Epirrita dilutata.

Have worked through the Yorkshire stuff now, except for the caddis, that'll be a bit of a job. Had a go at gen det and have eventually succeeded in getting enough to identify November Moth, tick. Not Varied Thrush but, all fauna and flora are equal to the pan-lister. (Aside: I have no idea what my pan-list is, and working it out will be very complicated, there are many historical things that I will include, but can I find the notebooks with the evidence... possibly.)

Anyway, got home, perfect weather for trapping so lit up. The first night was pants, WSHMoth, Depressaria radiella and Blastobasis lacticolella. Perhaps the Common pipistrelle ate them all... But the next night was bloody excellent.

Brindled Ochre.

Mottled Umber.

First saw Mottled Umber here last year, also, still evading a proper photo, Acleris hyemana, also first seen here last year.

Star of the show, Scarce Umber, NFM and thus NFS. All three macro moths were on the outside of the trap or on the wall.

Scarce Umber.

The Scarce Umber is the first thing I've photographed with the new 30mm macro lens. Perfect for studio stuff (BTW the moth flew off strongly after its portrait stint). And I'm in the process of trading the Canon G3X and its very expensive viewfinder for another used OM E-M5 Mkii body. The quality from the Olympus kit and the 100-300 zoom is so much better than the Canon which all in all was a bit of a disappointment, although a step up from the SX range. My cheapo Olympus PEN EL-5 Lite and 17mm lens (both 2nd hand) far outdoes the Canon on landscape shots as well, and I prefer working with a prime lens where I have to spend time and brain composing the shot a bit more, cropping in the software does still occur however! I have bought new Olympus kit, but most of it is used, from either WEX or MPB, both companies, to this point, I recommend.

Further on the recycling front. I spent a happy hour or so getting all the broken bits of bird feeders that I've collected and kept over the years to make two replacement seed feeders and three small tree protectors for the Downy Birch that have managed to avoid the attention of the lagomorph population. I was on the point of ordereing a couple of new seed feeders when I had a rummage in the back shed.

I'll probably say something about COP26 over on my other blog, at some point soon. Alarming news from Bosnia as well.

It's not that I have no interest in rare birds, its just that twitching other folks' stuff holds no interest, unless there is some ID challenge or info. So I would travel for a few waders, Western Sand, Least Sand and L-t Stint, Red-n Stint as well, and a good pile of others that I haven't seen and would like to. But finding something, that's different. Yesterday, we went to Warbeth again as we had to drop a vehicle off for service in Stromness. There were at least 200 Ringed Plovers on the beach. I've not seen Semi-palmated Plover, I would love to find one.

They're an attractive wee wader. Listen as I might I couldn't hear anything other than RP. However, this juv looked a bit different. I applied some scrutiny.

Ringed Plover a 1cy and four ads I reckon.

Wondering if I can find semi-palmated footprints.....

Also at Warbeth a nice selection of other waders, lots of Rock Pipits and some rather tame Rooks.

Dunlin.

Rockit (slight cheat, taken the day before at Birsay Links).

Rooks.

Also at Warbeth a lot of plastic on the beach. The previous day we'd shifted a lot of fishing and shipping waste above the high tide line at Birsay Links, there was a lot at Warbeth too. We really need to go down with the trailer, or at least with bags.

This flip flop with Goose Barnacles had likely come a long way.

Lepas anatifera on flip flop.

On the local patch the birding has been interesting if not too exciting. A large Chaffinch flock has appeared and yesterday there were at least 85 smashing the previous record. Also around one or two Brambling, some Redwing, with a max of 100 or so a day. The first Fieldfares, extraordinarily late at a guess, I must check my data, were on Sunday with two. On Sunday there were 19 Blackbirds and there were 8 today in the Hawthorn hedge alone, so movement is occurring. Goldfinch are now at 7 but Greenfinch still at a low 5 or 6 by the feeders although there were 20 or so in the birdcrop on one occasion.There has been Merlin, fewer Sproghawks, Hen Harriers and one Short-eared Owl. Just across the road from the patch there appeared to be a single Carrion Crow, although it wasn't scrutinised sufficiently to eliminate a hybrid.

Some of the Chaffinch flock.

Whilst scrutinising the Hawthorn hedge I did give it a bit of a bash, in the hope of Hawthron Shieldbug it has to be said. Instead I got a lot of this aphid, which I must try to run down, and a late Chilenocaecilius ornatipennis, a Psocopteran.