The Bagsy Blog

Saturday, 18 June 2016

No Quarter - Page and Plant

A couple of addition to the

Moth Year List

overnight included

the very delicate and tiny

ROSY FOOTMAN

BEAUTIFUL HOOK-TIP

at long last

a discernible image of

SHOULDER-STRIPED WAINSCOT

and what would happily be described by us 'mere mortals' as a

MARBLED MINOR

This however would not suffice for the authorities as the only way

of being certain it is not an example of a closely related Insect

is by 'genital examination', a painstaking exercise well outside of my own sphere.

We often talk of, and report from 'behind' the ECO RECYCLING WORKS which is an integral part of Dampney Ltd and about the most undisturbed section of our whole Recording Area! Here, among many others, Little Ringed Plover, Lapwing, Swallow, House Martin, Sand Martin, Stonechat breed annually, while it is also a stopping off point for migrant birds such as Whimbrel, Cuckoo and Whinchat to name but a few.

THE MAIN PROCESSING PLANT

Some of the Heavy Plant, Stock Piles of Hard Core

plus Sand and Gravel as part of the virtually untouched Rubble Strewn Area.

The wettest part of this area

holds water at most, if not all, times of year

but in the Winter it usually become flooded

and of great benefit to visiting Wildfowl such as

Greylag, Canada and Egyptian Geese, Teal, Mallard,

Shoveler and even the occasional Mandarin Duck and a few

This is also a 'hot-spot' for both

Common and Jack Snipe.

Recently a Soil Bund

has been built around 2 of the sides

in an effort to damp down the noise from the variety of machinery here.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

a male

STONECHAT

and

MISTLE THRUSH

Feeding Their Young

and after yet another Hard Day at the Office it was back to

Slight Return II

to watch the young

STARLINGs

Feeding and Preening

to the accompaniment of

(Jimmy) PAGE and (Robert) Plant

with the title track of their combined effort

NO QUARTER

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Friday, 17 June 2016

The Final Countdown - Europe (in or OUT)

UNDOUBTEDLY, THE MOST FANTASTIC 'MANUFACTURED'

POP/ROCK RECORD OF OUR GENERATION, PERFORMED BY

THE 'PRETTIEST' BAND IN THE WORLD!

The Final Countdown Link

While the 2 days of the weekend were in the main given over to Mothing, there was still plenty of time for looking around all the likely spots across the Recording Area which we publish as the third and final part of the Unmarried Moth'er Trilogy. Having identified and logged all the Moths in the 8 Mercury Vapour Traps, a long, pleasant but painstaking job, our first stop as the Irrigation Pond, where the 'springing' Wader was immediately recognised by the bold flash of white to the rump as likely the first 'returning'

GREEN SANDPIPER

but far too quick for me, however it did head for the Gravel Pit

where it was thought to have landed, still a chance yet!

In the meantime we concentrated more on the

COOT'S NEST

while both parent birds were busying themselves elsewhere,

while we saw what looked like 7 eggs.

Before leaving a search around the margins found

WHITE-LEGGED DAMSELFLY

along with a good number of

YELLOW-WINGED DARTER

with one found to be in a 'teneral' state which is to say

recently emerged and not having attained its full adult colours yet.

There was also a

COMMON SHREW

on the path but unfortunately engaged in the everlasting sleep!

Or suspicions were right, the

GREEN SANDPIPER

had landed on the Gravel Pit edge but only at great distance.

We agreed not to waste time waiting

so these 2 images were clawed from the Archive.

Also there the pair of 'summer plumage'

LITTLE GREBE

continue to frolic with the only noticeable difference being the

'female' taking up, and maintaining this 'submissive' stance for lengthy periods?

There was no sign of copulation!

Our next port of call was the area of what could easily be mistaken for waste ground, but is a haven for all sorts of Creatures especially Insects. In the distant past a General refuse Tip which in later time some attempt was made to regenerate the Heath there. Gramps (Janet's father) and a host of willing helpers sourced and planted 100's of naturally wild Heather plants among others, but over the years the Sallows and Gorse have predominated. With no more than a dozen paces behind us this Fabulous Beauty