new moth for year

Ian had an Early Thorn in his trap last night.

Riverside cemetery, Pawtucket RI

                 Mourning Cloak 

                        Red-bellied Woodpecker

                           Downy Woodpecker

                      Coyote

              The cemetery is starting to offer something more than ducks, with the first butterfly of the year and a few mammals starting to show.

Out of my apartment window 24/3

     The cats strange gurgling at the window called my attention to a quite fantastic  Merlin.

Westport Mass, 20th March.

                     Male Bufflehead

               White-winged Scoter

               Piping plovers returning to the beach before the tourists was the first definitive sign of spring here in New England.

25/3

pale brindled beauty

Very quiet on the bird front , but a hebrew character along with a pale brindled beauty in the moth trap this morning, the first one ever trapped at flamboro'. (It is however a quite common moth in Yorkshire, though moth lights havn't been used on the head this early in the year before). (mike)

N.Y.Moors

wheatears

Great Grey Shrike

Sorry about the shrike but it was very distant, but the wheatears on Levisham common are "cute", (american for O.K.). (mike)

Do waders contemplate suicide?

bemused (or amused) Knot

Purple Sandpiper - "life's not that bad really" , I'm better off without her !!

Purple Sandpiper - "woe is me, the missus has run off with a redshank" !

A purple sandpiper was so depressed that it tried to drown itself, but then thought better of it - at least the knot was entertained though. (mike).

North London niceties, March 2009

From a couple of recent day trips this month - Grey Phalarope on the KGV Res, Siskin and Goosander at Trent Country Park.

(Barack)

Abney Park Cemetery (in the last 24 hours), 19th March 2009

Moth Mayhem! er, kind of. We ran a trap for a couple of hours in Abney last night for the first time this year, just to see what happened. It wasn't completely blank at least...... Two Quaker spp, Twin-spotted and Common. Arguably more entertaining was creeping around the graves at night trying to find the source of a strange call, like a cross between a Firecrest and a Sanderling; after much torch-related pissing around, we found the culprits - the winged Koalas as pictured above.

The above shots were taken this morning when all three were clambering around and test-flying in the sunshine. An absolute joy to have a couple of minutes from our door, in the very heart of urban London.

(Neil)

Another moth

common quaker

The little lepi's are flooding through (well, 2 at least) this morning - another hebrew character and this common quaker............ that's 3 species for the year now. (mike)

Halleluja !!!

Skylark

Little Owl

Halleluja!, Hebrew Character

Finally caught the 2nd. moth of the year last night after 4 million hours of trying. Celebrated today (as it was sunny) by taking the 1ds and nailing the Little Owl at "Shifters" properly. Have chucked in a Skylark for good measure. (mike).

turnstone - avoiding the fight.

The Fight !

Bransdale

lapwing

meadow pipit

red grouse - male

red grouse - female

fallow deer - stag

A day out at Bransdale in pleasant but watery sunshine saw Meadow Pipits, Lapwings and Curlew all taking up territories and displaying. Plenty of Red Grouse scurrying about but surprisingly, not one Buzzard seen all day.Small herd of Fallow Deer on way back, including the fine stag photographed.

Late in the afternoon, a dead fish washed up on Brid. beach caused a fracas amongst the local Greater BB'S.
(mike)

turnstone

March 15th.

- Brid harbour Knot - Brid harbour

Purple Sandpiper - Brid harbour

Kestrel - Hartendale

Is this suspended animation ?

Roe Deer - Thornwick Pools

A pair of Little Owls are in residence on Flamborough castle ruins (hopefully images to follow if I can find a way of getting close enough), and a pair of Little Grebes are courting on Thornwick pools, getting very funny looks from a couple of Roe deer.
(mike)

Swan Point Cemetery, Providence RI, Friday 13th March

                           White-breasted Nuthatch

                             Mourning Dove

...and a demonic Common Grackle were among decent numbers of common species, plus a flock of 6 White-winged Crossbills made for a nice morning.