Wowzer. Pt. 2, Red Alert

Continuing the fun at Emsworthy.

 

 

When out and about, it's not just eyes down, [and over there, and over there and... You get the idea.]

You needed heads up, too.

Oh look, 'tis 1100;

Up Sun,

of course...

All that tail

And it got better, at 1400

Ok, it was going away...

Kite-alicious up there

Not just kites on display.

Four-spotted Chaser

Andrena sp.

Cuckoos [2 male and a female] were about but feeling VERY unhelpful. Heard repeatedly, seen in flight a couple of times.

Never mind, eh?

Can't be Bluebell-less

Ah, those Bluebells, those kites....

What a day.

Be Seeing You...

Wowzer. Pt.1, Got The Blues

Out with the Folks and Canis horribilis bicolour, and a nice amble about Emsworthy was the order of a sunny day.

We'd timed it quite well;

Bluebells!

They were everywhere

Just... everywhere

 

Not just Bluebells in flower, of course.

Cuckooflower

Pink Purslane

Ivy-leaved Crowfoot

Greater Spearwort

Another post, with the more mobile elements of the day, is Out There Somewhere.

But until then... Just, the Bluebells!!

:D

Be Seeing You...

Another Amble

Still trying to yomp my way thin[ner], I took a toddle by what turned out to be an accidentally more scenic route to Ryder's Hill*. You've seen very bad pics from up there too often, so let's put something else up,

Half-decently sharp!

Stonechats don't usually behave like that.

Mardle valley Cuckoo

[normal service resumes]

Willow Warbler

[or does it!]

Ahem.

I then headed past Snowdon

The Middle Cairn

Snowdon doesn't seem much, just a lump on a ridge, but it's one of the ones you have to suffer to get to. A maze of deep gerts to the West, a very steep side of the Mardle to the East, a steep ascent from the South, and Snowdon Plain to the North. 'Plain'? That's Moorspeak for bog, of course... It's not a dangerously deep one, but it is very very wide. Right up to the edge of a deep gert, for those trying to get around it, oh ho ho.

Views are almost as good as Ryder's, plus you have some actual shelter from the wind.

I pressed on to my pet skywatching point on Outer [stuff the OS, the outside of the ridge is Outer and I don't care what anybody says] Puper's.

I saw no kites.

I did see this

Bit of a view

And

"Where's that figgin'

Cuckoo?!?"

Three Buzzards had a slight discussion about whose territory it was, and a Cuckoo was not seen.

Spot the Hawthorns

Eventually I tore myself away. I had a river to cross, after all.

But first, joy and satisfaction;

Joy!

You've already seen the satisfaction, getting that darned Cuckoo - albeit on the other side of the valley - I also got across the Mardle without getting wet feets, which wasn't bad as my traditional crossing point's been scoured out and is now quite deep in spots...

Another one..!?!

This is getting a bit silly now. Though this one was sitting on a track, clearly picked up and dropped by someone, so not much archaeological value.

Finally, an insect, as we need one.

Sphecodes sp.!

[need a lens to tell them apart..]

Anyways, twas a not bad day.

Be Seeing You...

[[* An embarrassing case of watching the path not where it was going... In my defence, I wasn't expecting a new one to have been walked in in the couple of years since I last took the short cut up Ryder's, especially one following a similar line to the one I thought I was on. ]]

About The Patch

Aside from Swifts above, a few other things of note while failing to find anything sexier than a Stonechat [sorry]

Some sort of flower

that grows hereabouts*

I tried an evening seawatch [spurred on by the hope of maybe finally seeing a nice Arctic Skua this year {of even a Bonxie??}] and was rewarded with 2 Puffins [don't be envious, they were bill to tail, 1km out, and flying past as fast as their whirring little wings could carry them...] and 14 Manxies in an hour.

Worth a try, anyway.

Also, close inshore,

A tad weathered...

A handful of Kittiwakes, fishing in the Lead Stone channel. 52 passed by further out in something of a passage.

Looking less like a BHG

Perhaps the most interesting sighting was this little group;

Mute Swans.

NE of the Lead Stone.

Nope, no idea either.

More pics of things in slightly better focus,

Gromwell

Wood Spurge

Borage

Plum Tortrix

Cut-leaved Cranesbill

Still hoping for something nice [which will stay put for the camera]

Be Seeing You...

[[* White Rock Rose. Bit rare. ]]

Off Bug Hunting

Sunshine, light winds, May, what's a boy to do?

Welp, this one went off bug hunting.

For these little beauties;

Pretty Bluebell

[and some sort of butterfly..??]

40 odd had been reported the day before. I got low twenties, but well over 40 of these;

Brimstone!

A few other things caught the lens.

Tiger Beetle

Xanthogramma citrofasciatum

Itsa bee!

Yup, definitely a bee

Er... Carder Bee?

Brown Silver-line

Strike a pose

Possible Bustard hybrid?!?

Ahem.

Right, more Pearl-bordered Goodness!

Sluuuuurp!

::milkshake sound::

"Argh! A cloud..."

Pearl-bordered Frits aren't the most helpful of butterflies [as you may have gathered by the paucity of wingspreads up there], but it was lovely to be up there without having to spend at least half my attention on avoiding Horseflies....

And on tha loveliest of thoughts, I shall

Be Seeing You...

Oh Yeah... It's Summer, BTW

Due to being a forgetful fool, I neglected to post my traditional notification of seasonal change on the due date.

'Tis somewhat late, but hey, hardly news on this blog, right?

[Ahem...]

So,

"It's Suuuuuuuuummer!"

SWIFTS!

Arrived back on the 10th [same date as last year].

As of right now, there are at least 5 screaming about the local rooftops.

Well, I got 2 at once...

That's it for now.

More postage due.

Be Seeing You...