Whilst points northward continue to get the rain that our Stewardship crops desperately need Portland's cloudless vista continues. Mini arrival at the Bill of 4 Spot Flys, a Little Egret, a WW and a few incoming Swifts & hirundines... pic.twitter.com/FQB55Bidcs
— Portland Bird Observatory (@PortlandBirdObs) June 1, 2022
...also at the Bill 200 Manx offshore, 12 commic terns & an Arctic Skua thru + Med Gulls beginning to get moving; first Marbled White on the wing the best of the bugs.
— Portland Bird Observatory (@PortlandBirdObs) June 1, 2022
out around portland with @ecolaevans today. bee orchids now out behind the pulpit inn but not opposite the old b&b near the heights. lloyd found a pyramidal on its way obs quarry. twayblades were going over. around 6 spots of 25 early gentian (probably more if we looked harder) pic.twitter.com/uo8jGevAkV
— andy (@andy33082645) June 1, 2022
plenty of lulworths at church ope cove and fair few at blacknor gully. the silver studded blue was still in roughly the same area. for me large skipper n meadow brown were nfy. nice to catch up with lloyd again. pic.twitter.com/QHpis7M5d0
— andy (@andy33082645) June 1, 2022
We've spent a few recent nights renewing our acquaintance with our old friends the Storm Petrels at the Bill tip. The rewards have been pretty hard won since we've tried three times and still only trapped six (the first try last week was a flop since we were dense enough to have forgotten to charge the lure that promptly died on us just as soon as the first birds had shown up; this week's two attempts produced three apiece which is on a par with the catch rate in recent years - they're far less numerous these days than they used to be). However, with the help of the thermal imager we've had a lot of fun watching what they get up to; conventionally, we use the imager on the 'hot white' setting but the 'hot black' setting seems more appropriate for petrels at night even if it does give the entirely false impression that the action's taking place in some sort of semi-twilight which of course it isn't - it really is pitch dark down there in the early hours! © Martin Cade:
