Are You Going to Gooseberry Fair, Parsley, Sage, Rosemary & Thyme

A mammoth milestone was reached today as far as this blog is concerned as the 150th country joined our readership. I am further 'tickled pick' to announce that the country is Cuba a destination Andy Lindsay and I visited back in the late 90's a visit we still discuss to this day. A huge welcome is extended to our new readers and hope you will extend an invitation to you friends to become readers too! Thank You & Welcome.

Believing the readership was let down by the 'poor' images of Scaly Cricket yesterday, we aim to redress that by publishing this superb shot taken by my friend and fellow Wildlife lover Bob Ford.

After a couple of overnight showers of rain, it was thought that any overflying birds may have been forced to land but on an early walk to the Portland Bird Observatory there was nothing to photograph at all. However, despite the continuing overcast sky and the novelty of a south easterly wind, rarely experienced here, the day was about to take a dramatic change for the better.

With the Warden on holiday the helm has been handed to Professor Peter Morgan while tenure of the Moth Traps is being ably overseen by fellow member John Lucas. If that were not enough of a 'boost' to the day some dear friends had also arrived on their southerly and annual migration who it is always a bonus to spend time with.

Front left is Dave the Fungal Punk (http://www.fungalpunknature.co.uk/), with daughter Katie and wife Gill behind, John Lucas (studying Moths) right and Simon and Deborah Earwicker in the background.

One of today's prized finds was this Dor Beetle and this is where The Punk comes into play. Apart from his love of that music genre, he also has a wide ranging knowledge of most things wild especially Fungi, Insects and Flora.

After identifying this magnificent creature, he went on to turn it over and show us the parasitic small Spiders that live on its underbelly.

With such a gathering, now joined by new friend Patsie Keen (right), a guided 'nature walk' was inevitable, and with the opportunity of visiting the Gooseberry Fair in the village of Weston later on. Even I could identify the first Butterfly to show up,

Red Admiral, but that was about my lot as Dave started to point out

White-lipped Banded Snail

Strawberry Clover (the dying flower heads taking the form of that fruit),

Agrimony,

Pineapple Weed (named from its scent),

Hop Trefoil,

and Ivy Broomrape.

There was also on of the Arion Species of Slug, with Dave pointing out the small dark patch on the neck which is a ;breathing pore' while later on Barleycrates Lane we uncovered

this Ants Nest. Under the same boulder was an insect he called a Devil's Coach Horse, which he described as 'vicious' (Sid I wouldn't be surprised knowing Dave) which was all too quick for me to photograph.

This Swollen-thigh Beetle Odemara nobilus was seen on Hedge Bindweed

While what he described as a Marmalade Hoverfly - Episyrphus balteatus was a brand new species to all of us.

Finally, reaching the end of the lane, he pointed out Pellitory of the Wall a strangely named but common plant, before we joined the revellers

at the Gooseberry Fare.

The whether stayed dry and not too sunny

as the 'Award Winning' Juno Bellydancers took center stage

much to the delight of an attentive audience,

putting on a fine display of their art under the direction of Michelle Moss (front left).

Next on were The Second Edition Majorettes Troupe from Portland,

who's ages ranged from 7 to 14

and delighted the crowd with a few of their polished routines. There were also many other attractions, with the visitors winning all the prizes on the Tombola etc, consequently none of them have been invited back. Saying our goodbyes to the 'Punks', Simon, Debbie and I enjoyed a pint of cider together before I too departed to the mainland. There is a chance that I'll see these people again before they leave, but if not here's wishing them Bon Voyage and Be back Soon!

and finally having been 'pipped to the post' with the £75,000 bottle of Chateaux 'dYquem, I have some great news for one lucky reader who buys Stephen Williams' next exclusive offer. Yours for the bargain price of £600,000, I am available for 'tasting' at the drop of a hat.

AWC HK" height="109" width="598">Facebook" border="0" height="24" width="31">Yquem" height="184" width="598"> Château d'Yquem Vertical – 1890 to 2007 Château d'Yquem stands alone at the summit of the wine world. As the only wine to be classified as Premier Cru Supérieur (Great First Growth), it is ranked above all other Bordeaux wines, including all of the most legendary reds. Known for its exceptional purity and longevity, d'Yquem is a wine of unmatched luxury. In the words of Managing Director Pierre Lurton, who we recently interviewed at the château, d'Yquem is defined by how fresh and lively it tastes, decades or even centuries after bottling. It is, as M. Lurton noted, 'pure cashmere.' This unusual vertical collection was acquired from the pristine cellars of one of our top private clients. It includes: Single bottles of every Château d'Yquem vintage produced between 1890 and 2007. A total of 107 consecutive vintages (excluding 1894 and 1897), all of which are in excellent condition. The perfect, 100 point rated 1967 and 2001 vintages, as well as 25 vintages rated over 90 points. This is the only vertical collection of this type currently available on the global market. Contact our wine experts to make it your own. View the complete collection »

Blame JD Wetherspoon!

DAVID NIVEN?? A complement indeed as an e-mail relating to yesterday's post compares the similarity between the photographs of myself and the most suave Englishman that ever lived, yes a complement indeed. I'll stick there while I am ahead!

Today was nothing like a mid-summer day except for the temperature, which bordered on hot, while the borough was covered by low dark clouds and a sea mist right up to the waters edge. A singing Coal Tit in the cemetery was a joy to behold this morning, having been seemingly absent since early spring, but unfortunately no sign of youngsters.

At Radipole these Little Grebes were walking (running) on water at my approach, but further on

another was content to pose.

The Common Tern count reached double figures here today with 10 adult bird plus a juvenile, while at Lodmoor

just a single Redshank was seen along with a few Lapwing and Dunlin plus 7 Little Egrets. All of this before fellow wildlifer Bob Ford and I met up with Essex naturalist Richard Dennison who along with his wife had set up half a dozen traps at Ferrybridge in an overnight bid to catch

Scaly Crickets.

Up until then I had only ever seen 2 of these elusive insects and it was refreshing to learn that there is a thriving population in the area around Chesil Beach.

The walk from Sweethill to the Bill was almost birdless, with the only interest coming by way of a Four-spotted Footman Moth

caught in he garden overnight.

On the way back to the mainland a second generation of Wall Butterflies were noted.

and recently fledged Wrens numbered about 4.

A Kestrel was also seen at a distance but all in all it was a quiet day, and one to end with a couple of pints at The Swan, where I have been up until now making for a 'late post'.

New friends Trevor & Lisa Vass where there

as were my dear mates Val Watts & Leslie Brown. I will make best efforts to stay on the 'straight and narrow' tomorrow but no promises as I know what I do best.

Tales of an Unmarried Moth'er

I had a hunch that heading directly to Portland this morning might pay off, and it very nearly did. As the bus neared the top of what is known as the 'hairpin bend', there was a call from Martin Cade, Warden of the Portland Bird Observatory, informing me that a Melodious Warbler had just been caught there in one of the numerous 'mist nets'.

The rules relating to catching and 'ringing' wold birds under licence are extremely strict, not allowing for any to be kept longer than absolutely necessary for processing, so by the time I arrived it had been released. A few others who had heard the news were quick to appear and between us made something of a search, but it was not seen again. These photographs are © Martin Cade.

On the way to the Bill, under a half cloudy sky there was little in the way of bird-life except for a few Common Swifts, the odd Whitethroat and Sedge Warbler and a few Swallows congregating on barbed wire fences probably awaiting departure to seaward.

With this scarce Warbler in mind, it was always going to be worth some time spent among the bushes at Culverwell looking for it or its Pal, but all that was found there was this fine looking Migrant hawker Dragonfly.

As with this mornings weather, overnight had been warm, partly overcast with a light breeze, ideal conditions for trapping Moths, so it was no surprise there was plenty to see in the traps. It has been a good few years since I have run a trap, and my knowledge has sadly dwindled since then but there is always someone on hand at the lighthouse to put me right such as stalwarts John Lucas and the Warden.

First up was this Ruby Tiger which I could identify,

and similarly a male Drinker along with a couple of

females, one on egg carton and

one on Buddleia, but I was scratching my head as we got towards

Pebble Prominent and

Dusky Sallow.

The Teasel with Hoverfly was simply a 'test shot' after a couple of minor adjustments to the camera and lens settings, but considered it worth publishing?

A (female) Common Darter had been buzzing around the pond all morning, and there being a lull in the appearance of any other subject matter a few shots were rattled off. It wasn't long before another bird appeared, but unfortunately it was the Phylloscopus version of The Ugly Ducking leading me to captioning it thus:-

and the Award for the 'Most Dishevelled Chiffchaff' in the World goes to..........

On the way home I found a Funnel Spider that also seems to have been profiting from the abundance of Moths. If I'm not mistaken it seems to have been dining exclusively on Common Footmen?

Above Culverwell there was also a 'second brood' of Holly Blue Butterflies

this one even obliging with an open wing view.

and what about these 2 Little Herbert's?

I am still waiting to meet my 2 new Grandsons 'Frederick the Fantastic' & 'Alexander the Great' (seen above with Mummy Lisa), and what makes matters worse is that Julie (my eldest), Nigel and Lee are going out to Sydney next week, Have I said B*S*A*DS today?

and finally, an update on the Stat Counter with 149 Countries already participating as the Readership. UK again heading into the 7 thousands, USA just a hand-full short of 4 figures and Taiwan - well what can you say where do all those readers come from? American Samoa also warrants a mention with an amazing 49 readers!

6925	65.95%	United Kingdom
	968	9.22%	United States
	521	4.96%	Taiwan
	442	4.21%	Canada
	140	1.33%	Estonia
	124	1.18%	Australia
	115	1.10%	Germany
	112	1.07%	France
	89	0.85%	Italy
	85	0.81%	New Zealand
	82	0.78%	Netherlands
	74	0.70%	Japan
	59	0.56%	Spain
	49	0.47%	American Samoa
	47	0.45%	India
	36	0.34%	Brazil
	36	0.34%	Poland
	32	0.30%	Sweden
	30	0.29%	Peru
	27	0.26%	Romania
	27	0.26%	Mexico
	23	0.22%	Belgium
	22	0.21%	Hong Kong
	22	0.21%	Philippines
	19	0.18%	Israel
	19	0.18%	Hungary
	18	0.17%	Ireland
	18	0.17%	Korea, Republic Of
	15	0.14%	Malaysia
	15	0.14%	Singapore
	14	0.13%	Dominican Republic
	14	0.13%	Czech Republic
	13	0.12%	Switzerland
	12	0.11%	Sri Lanka
	12	0.11%	Saudi Arabia
	11	0.10%	Greece
	11	0.10%	Thailand
	11	0.10%	Finland
	10	0.10%	Vietnam
	10	0.10%	South Africa
	10	0.10%	Indonesia
	9	0.09%	Argentina
	9	0.09%	Norway
	8	0.08%	Ukraine
	8	0.08%	Chile
	8	0.08%	Russian Federation
	8	0.08%	Malta
	7	0.07%	Pakistan
	7	0.07%	Portugal
	7	0.07%	Serbia
	6	0.06%	Croatia
	6	0.06%	Bulgaria
	6	0.06%	Turkey
	5	0.05%	Austria
	5	0.05%	Macedonia
	5	0.05%	Lithuania
	5	0.05%	Madagascar
	5	0.05%	Egypt
	4	0.04%	Jordan
	4	0.04%	Grenada
	4	0.04%	United Arab Emirates
	4	0.04%	Colombia
	3	0.03%	Lesotho
	3	0.03%	Ecuador
	3	0.03%	Belarus
	3	0.03%	Slovakia
	3	0.03%	Satellite Provider
	2	0.02%	Denmark
	2	0.02%	Europe
	2	0.02%	Cuba
	2	0.02%	Bangladesh
	2	0.02%	Guyana
	2	0.02%	Costa Rica
	2	0.02%	Lebanon
	2	0.02%	Guernsey
	2	0.02%	Albania
	2	0.02%	Senegal
	2	0.02%	Venezuela
	2	0.02%	China
	2	0.02%	Oman
	1	0.01%	Puerto Rico
	1	0.01%	Faroe Islands
	1	0.01%	Qatar
	1	0.01%	Anonymous Proxy
	1	0.01%	Slovenia
	1	0.01%	Malawi
	1	0.01%	Georgia
	1	0.01%	Botswana
	1	0.01%	Iceland
	1	0.01%	Montenegro