North Sea Migration - Part I

 For this and a number of following Sunday's we intend to content ourselves with a series of Posts relating to the extrodinay and maybe unbelievable Wildlife associated with the North Sea and it ain't all Sharks and Whales! All images are associated with the

FLOATING SEMI-SUBMERSIBLE OIL PRODUCTION PLATFORM
'BUCHAN ALPHA'

stationed 100 miles north-east of Aberdeen, Scotland in a Sea-Area known as

The South Halibut Basin. 

The selection of images is random.

Night Migration's must have involved Million of Birds and other creatures!

Myself with a Big Boy juvenile
GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL

WHEATEAR

LAPLAND BUNTING

COLLARED DOVE

TURNSTONE

BARNACLE GOOSE

REDSTART
among the millions many, many fatalities with all casualties sent to the North Sea Bird Club at Culterty some miles north of Aberdeen. The practice was suspended when the the Bird Flu set in!

LONG-EARED OWL

GREENFINCH

ROCK PIPIT

ROCK DOVEs

a bit of a 'stay-at-home' species, which at the time never having been recorded this far from land.

SISKIN
More, and maybe even 'better' next week!

P.S. - Things are not happening as we might have hoped with 'hits' remaining very much in the doldrums! Only you can rectify that by passing on the Link so here's hoping!

From Mighty Oaks - The Moody Blues

 Only our third edition of the newly resurected Blog and it looked weather-wise as though we were going to be rained off from the word go - luckily not! Despite weather also holding good over-night the Moth Traps were none to busy with 22 specis of 'macro moth' (usually the larger of the group in oppose to 'micros') with a total of 22 Species x 87 Insects. On future posts this early morning count will appear something like 

"22 x 87".

The tiny migrant known as the

VESTAL

  and now in decent numbers can appear in various hue's determined by its area of origin which in this dark shade is likely to have originated from somewhere across France while the

more pale specimen may have come from as far south as the arid regiond of the  The Sahara.

THE STREAK
is also common at this time of year and before we drift off the subject something of an induction for any new readers and maybe a reminder for others of some of out layout. We run 5 Moth Traps every night except in very cold conditions with one stowed thorughout the day on the monitoring table close to home while at night it is moved alongside the

Wooden Fence as something of a Double-Whammy

as some Insects choose to rest in the trap and others on the palings.
The second of the homeward bounders is strategically placed atop of the

BUND
where, theoretically it is more likely to attract migrants having recently crossed the English Channel which is no more than 8 miles from home. After monitoring these we then head north checking out all sites which may hold any sort of Wildlife such as the

IRRIGATION POND
named by myself as used for watering acres of high-quality turf which has now been superceeded by Solar Panels and where yesterday it was a great surprise to find a pair of

SHOVELER
(male)

(female)
a 'scarce' species here while at the other watercourse, known as the

GRAVEL PIT
for that is what it was and where was found a lone

LITTLE GREBE
along with an occasionaly

flighty pair of

MUTE SWANs
Within the largest of the Solar Panel Compounds stand another c3 Moth Traps but not before studying the overnight workings of the

FAIRYs
having formed their little circles but without much joy from the traps with this being designate

No. 3 within the Solar Panel Compound, very close to the woodland and Carp Pond where

DAUBENTON'S BATs
exist, a borrowed image.

Traps 4 and 5, also within the S.P.C. along the tree-line which along with the Moors River is the property boundry and where the

BALSAM CARPET MOTH
flies in season, the barriers are to keep the Sheep at bay.

PUFF-BALL FUNGI

have just about worn their season out, while across the southern extremity all trees are looking

Beautifully Autumnal

COMMON BUZZARD

while the row of ornimental
CRABAPPLE TREES
are bowing with fruit awaiting the arrival of the northern Thrushes as are we!

FROM MIGHTY OAKS - The Moody Blues

Inspiration - The Tale of an Unmarried Moth'er

 The third and final burst of inspiration for re-juvinating the Bagsy Blog came as a result of a completely unexpected but most longed for catch from the Moth Traps.

TOWERING CUMULUS

looked unlikely to marr the daily rounds of our 'patch' here in East Dorset but kicked off by finding

c3 ABERDEEN ANGUS
along with

c2 BELTED GALLOWAY CATTLE
on the loose informing the owner with haste before they took to the Main Road!

A far more welcome find within the main Solar Panel Compound was the first of the year

GOLDEN WAXCAP

where , on the previous day, there was not a sign with Birds also at a bit of a premium save for a single and not very obliging

RED-LEGGED PARTRIDGE

Again no more than a single

MISTLE THRUSH
Alway considered of great value despite thier origins sparring

COCK PHEASANTS
With the year growing long the likelihood of more Moth deminishes by the day,
("stand up the boy who shouted HURRAH")
but still enjoying the beauty of the likes of

MERVEILLE du JOUR
and the reatively scarce

OAK RUSTIC

The OAK part refering to 'Holm Oak' rather than the Major Oak of Acorn fame, and now daily as a Holm stands right outside of my door.

At the last of our 5 traps, also within the Solar Panel Compound, not the Moth of the Year, or that of the Century and certainly not that since we have been actively interested in such things! Whoever could have predicted about the most sort-after Insect across the whole genre,

close your eyes

and open you hands for the magnificent

DEATH'S-HEAD HAWK-MOTH

Note the ('Scull Shape') head pattern

from which its name derives

and also emits a 'sqeeking sound' when disturbed

which may be audible from the video clips?

We have only ever seen a single 'live' one before along with a dead example use to highlight migrant creatures on a BBC Wildlife Documentary featuring wildlife, mainly birds, of North Sea Oil Rigs in which I featured. We may return to that in days to come - bit of an Eye-Opener!
TIME TO STOP WHILE WE ARE AHEAD, WITH HOPES OF BEING WITH YOU AGAIN MANANA!