Girls on Film - Duran Duran

Over the past couple of weeks we have continued 'feeding' both the Irrigation Pond and Gravel Pit in hope of enticing a few more Wildfowl into our zone. At the same time it was realised that we have also been neglecting the Trail Cameras and came up with the notion of combining the two! Over a 2 days period one of the cameras returned no fewer tan 452 images/video clips with 78 of these having been taken of the deckhead and bookshelf within Slight Return II, good job we hadn't invited anyone round!!!! Here for your delectation are the 'filtered few'.

 CARRION CROW

CARRION CROWs and MALLARD

with Sub-Sea Barley visible.

GADWALL

male preening.

MALLARD with WIGEON right

TEAL

and distant

MALLARD

 Female

TEAL

Male

TEAL

and

increased wave movement with may have activated the cameras and

reason for so many shots.

A couple, or three, shots from the stills camera at the 

Irrigation Pond.

 Male

GADWALL

 Female

GADWALL

Pair of GADWALL in company with male WIGEON.

Entry	Pageviews
United States	409
United Kingdom	271
Germany	109
Netherlands	23
China	17
France	17
Estonia	13
Malaysia	13
New Zealand	9
Canada	6

Going to My Hometown - Rory Gallagher

HAPPY BIRTHDAY 'JIMI' R.I.P.

A dull old day was Thursday with a dank feel throughout complete with an equally persistent and gusty North Easterly breeze. However, that aside, it was the day designate for the Strange Rover's annual dry-docking so it was a visit to Weymouth (my former hometown) and a couple of hours at my old stomping ground Radipole Lake. With a recent positive report of its continued presence there, high priority was given to the Hooded Merganser which is now in its 9th year of residence.

Given the conditions just about anything that stuck its head above
the parapet was considered 'fair game' to the lens, and started with

FERAL PIGEON

COOT

which have now disappeared from Parley Court Farm,
hardly any Gulls on the car park, which was considered unusual,

and a few dozen

TUFTED DUCK

with all the females keeping their heads down.
Having plied the track between Visitor's Centre and Sluices 3 times with
no sign of the illusive Duck we decided to walk the circular track
soon finding a resting

GREY HERON

and considered very lucky

although distant views of c2

MARSH HARRIER

We could well have done without the ever stiffening breeze

but the effect it was having on the 'dead heads' of the
COMMON REED
seemed therapeutic, while we don't think the passing

CORMORANT
even clapped eyes on us??
Next in the log was a first of the Autumn

COMMON GULL
but by no means as the name suggests back at PCF, just 5 records.

Back at the car park and there were a few more Birds to sort
through and included

MEDITERRANEAN GULL

a sightly closer
COMMON GULL
with a few
 BLACK_HEADED GULLs

HERRING GULL

along with

a couple more

MEDs

CORMORANT

LITTLE GREBE

and a far more active and obliging female

TUFTED DUCK
Just about to give up in favour of a few chores in town

and what should appear but the

HOODED MERGANSER

even catching Fish.

Where they went we cannot fathom, but the 2 best video clips

were lost in transit!

Finally, a Blast from the Past and

2008 when this fine Duck was first discovered!

Entry	Pageviews
United States	391
United Kingdom	322
Germany	101
France	28
Estonia	21
Netherlands	21
China	17
Malaysia	12
Singapore	11
Lithuania	7

Emerald - Thin Lizzy

We hadn't considered that at this late stage in the year that Moths and other Insects would continue to predominate these pages, but still they come. Not so the more northerly Birds though as it seems, like most other places in Dorset, that Redwing, Fieldfare etc are still to get this far south in any sort of numbers. They will also come when ready!
Emerald? That's a

 GEM
get it?

Lizzy Link

 GREEN-BRINDLED CRESCENT

ICHNEUMON MOLITORIUS

with a much smaller possible

PRISTIPHORA ABIETINA 
John Gifford never ceases to amaze me with his ID skills, was
only expecting the Big Lad to have been given a name - should have known better.

 DECEMBER MOTH

 SPRUCE CARPET

 and in the Oak Tree (looking splendid) trap

 BLAIR'S SHOULDER-KNOT

and hopefully the last

WASP

While we were stung 4 times last season by there beautifully marked

creatures, so far this year we have avoided such a pleasure.
Hope we haven't spoken too soon as there's still time yet!

At the Irrigation Pond the 'ringed'

MUTE SWAN

proved to be a little bolder, while a combination of other

Waterfowl there included

GADWALL, MALLARD and TEAL

with the male of the latter progressing nicely into

Winter Plumage

(first signs of the 'gold' quarter patches)

On the Heath we noted a comparison of leaf-fall between

 SALLOW

hardly changed and the

ASPEN

 which are all but totally bare, which was when c3 extremely vocal

GREEN SANDPIPER

flew overhead.

Entry	Pageviews
United States	379
United Kingdom	313
Germany	97
France	21
Estonia	19
China	16
Singapore	16
Netherlands	11
Spain	7
Lithuania	7