Ever Caught A Pink Elephant?

Ever Caught A Pink Elephant?

... I have, it was in the moth trap last night. No, it wasn't a real elephant, that would be a bit weird, and it wasn't a drug either... it was a brilliant Elephant Hawk-moth and I'm still physically shaking from the experience.

It all started when I came back from a gig and decide to put out the trap for a while. I wasn't expecting much as it was late. After 20 minutes, I heard 'the thud' that as any moth trapper will tell you, means that you need to run-to-the-trap-as-quickly-as-possible-because-you-have-something-big-on-your-hands.

With small container at the ready, the ones you put pee samples in (don't ask how I got them), I ran to the trap... and there it was.

You don't need to know my first thoughts because they included some bad words, but my second though was "I'm gonna need a bigger container", so I rushed back into the kitchen, came out with a large sandwich box and potted the moth, knowing I wouldn't get any sleep thinking about photographing the thing in the morning.

Morning came and I woke up at the bloody early time of 11am, instead of late afternoon... the things I'd do for a flippin' moth! I stuck it on a leaf and here is the finished result...

That is one stupidly beautiful moth.

Look at that thorax. Get a load of that trailing edge to the hindwing. Don't even get me started on the leading edge and that mouth watering basal cross-line. Kill me now please...

And if you thought that was all, think again. I also caught a Leopard Moth, another exotic looking moth that I'd ask out any day... if I was a moth...

And if your not already on the phone buying a heavy duty moth trap, then this should make you. A Blotched Emerald in all its blotched beauty. One of two which I also caught last night...

I'd just like to say that this is actually what these moths look like, so colour enhancing or stuff like that. Now if these moths don't rock your boat, flip your haystack or ruffle your feathers, then I don't know what will!

Fledgling Fotos

Fledgling Fotos...

Just a few more photos of the local freshly fledgled Blue tits...

The feeding station, currently being refilled every two or three days- the greedy bastards.

Note the yellowish tinge to the plumage and undefined blue cap- all of which distinguishes this little guy from his old man and woman...

And changing the topic slightly, a Woodpigeon posed in front of the camera...

And I couldn't resist putting up this shot of an absolute stunner of a moth that I netted a couple of nights ago... it's called an Old Lady and is one of the moths that I've always wanted to see...

The end of the GCSEs are coming ever closer and apart from partying all summer, I'm also hoping to take a few trips further afield in search of some particular butterflies and birds. Last year I almost achieved a personal goal of seeing all the Skipper butterflies in the UK, with the exception of Chequered and Silver-spotted.

This year I'm hoping for such beauties as Purple Emperor, White Admiral and any Fritillary species (a family which totally eluded me last year! Heres hoping for good weather throughout the summer- watch this space!

Fat Greedy Little Birds

Fat Greedy Little Birds...

It's good to see that the Blue tits nesting in next doors nestbox have fledged 4 healthy looking little balls of fluff. I put out a big block of fat for them and they seem to be attracted to it like magnets. At this age, the fledglings need to eat as much as they can, and ironically, they benefit from eating the fast food junk that would give our heart a run for it's money! 

Like all new generations with sense, we like to give ourselves as little work to do as possible by making mum and dad do everything.

This is no different in the world of the Blue tit, and the adults were constantly bringing fat to the young, who were using up as little energy as possible through movement by perching, thus increasing the amount of biomass that could be converted into growth... If you didn't get a word I just said, don't worry- it seems that revising for GCSE Biology has left it's mark!

The fattest Blue tit I think I've ever seen...

I'm beginning to get afraid that it might have eaten it's younger, weaker siblings...

All this taking care of the young, both in and out of the nestbox, really takes its toll on the adults plumage condition... and during late summer and early autumn, both adults and young birds will undergo a moult in which they shed their worn breeding feathers, and change it instead for something a little less glamourous (in the case of the males) and a bit more clean.

I bet our Blue tits can't wait until the breeding seasons over looking at the state of one of the adults plumage last week!

However, it's not just the Blue tits that are bringing their young to the garden feeders. A family of Coal tits nested somewhere in the neighbourhood, and have also become frequent visitors to the seeds and fat that I put out.

Juveline Coal tit...

Due to being lower down the pecking order than Blue tits, the Coal tits had to patiently wait their turn, which could be quite a long time thanks to the fat fledgling (3 photos up) demanding seemingly endless amounts of food.

It seemed like there was only one adult Coal tit feeding the young...

However, the fledglings are quick learners and soon got the hang of... well... hanging on.

Another welcome surprise of this breeding season is a fantastic male Great-Spotted Woodpecker (identifiable from the female by the presence of a red patch on the back of the head) that has been visiting the garden over the last week and flying off with food to an unknown location somewhere across the road, presumably to feed it's young.

I attempted to get a close shot of the bird by setting myself up close to the feeders using the same method as in this post. As usual it failed, and being the secretive birds Woodpeckers are, flew off the second it landed- sensed a new object in the garden that wasn't there before.

I guess you'll just have to make do with this long shot...

Right now back to revising for Maths GCSE tomorrow. Algebraic quadratic simultaneous equations, reciprocals, vectors?!... I've got no chance.

Wish me luck!

Fluffy Moths

Fluffy Moths...

When it comes to fluffy moths, I can't get enough of them. You know the ones... little balls of fluff that would probably make the best pillows in the world. With the mild weather over the last few weeks, I've been catching plenty of 'em in my state of the art trapping gizmo... although some people call it a plank of wood with a bulb down the middle...

Probably the fluffiest moth I've ever caught... the Pale Tussock. Basically a piece of fluff with wings.

Another fluffy moth... the White Ermine (sorry about the unsightly fingers)...

Not so fluffy, but still very pretty... the Maiden's Blush...

Again, not as fluffy, but there is something about the Treble Lines that really makes it so eyecatching. It's so simple, but yet so beautiful.

This moth trapping thing really is addictive. You never know what might appear... it's like Christmas morning, every morning!

For more on moths and mothing in Surrey, have a look at the Surrey Moths & Butterflies Blog, which I set up last month.

Back with the Bluebells

Back with the Bluebells

Well, study leave has started for me... and I haven't done a single birding, or bird related outing now for months, mainly because I haven't had the time, what with a busy routine of end of school parties and chilling out at home instead-- with the odd bit of revision here and there... ;-)

Anyway, a week ago now, I took a brief trip back to the wild bluebell woods in Shalford, Guildford. After missing the opportunity to see them back at the start of the month, I knew this would be my last chance, and I wasn't disappointed...

Once I'd finally finished prancing round the bluebell woods, I couldn't miss an opportunity to shoot this little white flower, a Greater Stitchwort...

Nor this Copper Birch tree in the evening sun...

There wasn't really that much else around, but a singing Firecrest was a new one for me, and a Whitethroat, fresh from Africa, sang in the surrounding hedgerows.

It's Been too Long...

It's Been too Long...

Photography chances have been few and far between this April, which has been a particularly quiet month. I've been doing most of my photography in and around the garden...

Goldfinch

The other day we took a walk at Shere, in the Surrey hills. The weather was brilliant, hottest day of the year so far, and many butterflies were on the wing, including...

Orange Tip

Peacock

The views for the walk are stunning, allowing you to see a large part of the Surrey hills...

On the bank holiday I'm hoping to take a trip back to Shalford Woods to check up on those Bluebells, which should be out by now.

Breaking the Pattern

Breaking the Pattern...

I've noticed a pattern seems to be emerging in my choice of birding sites. I seem to go from Bushy Park to Barnes, to Bushy Park to Barnes and then to some other royal park somewhere.

The other day I decided to break this pattern and visited a wild Bluebell woodland in Shalford, just off of Guildford. The bluebells weren't out yet but at least I could get some early shots before they emerged, and then come back later in May when they emerge.
Spring migrants are starting to emerge, and there were quite a few Willow Warblers about- probably missing their luxury African holiday already- I know I would be! There were also plenty of Blackcap and Chiffchaff in full song.

The wild Bluebells, an increasingly rare sight...

The fantastic view over the Surrey countryside...

And finishing off with a belated posting of my attempt at shooting March's full moon...

Recent Wildfowl

Recent Wildfowl...

Its been a long time since I've been birding, and even longer since I been birding in Bushy Park, so with a break in the clouds, I headed down to Heron Pond with the Nikon D60.

I had a quick check around the grassland first. Skylark were singing along with a few Meadow Pipit. Green Woodpecker were flying about but the star had to be a female Wheatear- my first for Bushy Park and for the year.

The scene...

It was noticably quiet out on Heron Pond with less wildfowl and gulls on the lake. The Shovelers had gone, along with most of the Tufted Duck and Pochard that had spent the winter here, but a welcome surprise was a superb male Mandarin...

A few Pochard still remained, including several males. I never get bored of the stunning colours of the male. This male was swimming close enough for a frame filling shot...

There are still plenty of Coots about, most have settled down for the breeding season, but a few restless pairs are always too lazy to build a nest and will kick other birds out of nests instead of building their own. Unfortunatly, this happened with the Great crested Grebe family last year.

Look at those evil eyes...

The usual Grey Heron was fishing as it usually does, on its usual perch... pretty usual really.

Heres to a successful breeding season at Bushy... except for the Coots ;)

Why Wingless?

Why Wingless...?

... No, I haven't pulled the wings of it. This is a female Dotted Border (decided to go for just 'large' photos today instead of 'X-Large'. I think you can agree with me when I say an extra large of a wingless moth is a bit in-your-face!) which I saved from frying on the garden patio. The Dotted Border is just one example of a number of species of moth where the females emerge from the cacoon totally wingless and flightless.

I've never seen a 'wingless' female moth before and was quite interested to know why the females are wingless. What benefits could it have and wouldn't it make them more vulnerable from predation? Apparently, this saves the female energy for egg producing as it doesn't have to waste energy flying. Also, it is the males that will come to them, and the females need not stray from the safety of their cocoon before the male finds them.

Ready for her man...

So now you can go back to whatever you were doing, knowing why some female moths are wingless. What more could you want to know?

Long Time, No Speak

Long Time, No Speak...

I'm going to use that excuse that everyone always uses after neglecting a blog... "I've had too much work". No time for birding and photography. Well, also that I can't be arsed to go out in the freezing weather we've had recently... but I prefer the first excuse.
Anyway, yesterday the weather was quite nice, so I brushed the dust of the camera and went to the London Wetland Centre.

On the main lake, two Water Pipits were flying from island to island. There were large numbers of waterfowl, including Shoveler, Teal, Gadwall and Wigeon.

In the trees around the Sheltered Lagoon, two Lesser Redpoll were feeding in the alders with a flock of Goldfinch, and a few Fieldfare and Redwing were a welcome sight (I haven't seen one since they departed the garden back in January!). Shoveler were on the Lagoon, including a showy pair allowing me a few photos...

Male Shoveler...

Female Shoveler- not all that boring when seen up close.

Around at Wildside, a Cetti's Warbler gave a brief burst of song from within the reeds, and on the Reservoir Lagoon, a Bittern had been found, but I didn't see it. Ah well... who needs a Bittern when you've got this shot of a Tuftie!

A personal favourite of the day...

A Grey Heron burst up from the reedbeds...

Other than that it was relatively quiet, although I never knew ducks burped...