A dash of red.

Pastures new.

Two pics of butterflies from the patch. One you have seen before and a yearly patch tick.

Speckled wood.

This morning i had a trip around Ulgham local nature reserve nature.

Some thing i have been meaning to do for a while. It features on abbey meadows blog, from time to time .

I found this little place well worth a visit. A good variety of woodland plants in flower, enough cover to create interest from bird movement and calls.

One call i have not heard for a long time. Not quite a me-aow but similar to some noises a kitten would make lead me to,

high in the tree tops. A pair of Red squirrels. When i located this one i realised i was being watched, by the other one .

Mostly White .

blue bell

Horse chestnut flower

Just over half a mile from the house but not on patch, around noon. I disturbed four, roe deer.

Then ten minutes later i was face to face with a very dark buck roe, which was ready for a stand off. Until i reached for the camera. Then he disappeared.

Soon all the dandelions will be white.

Nettle flower.

Today's main aim were butterflies , although i did check a few places out for damselflies with no luck.

The weather has been good over most of the last couple of weeks.

So my chances of butterflies were good. In a stretch of 100 yards, next to a fairly busy road. I had

Green veined white, with at least ten in flight. Four Large white, small tortoiseshell, five.

(Garden escapee)
Peacocks i had at lest six of these. Three wall browns, which were very elusive and a small copper.

There were even numbers of Orange tips, with three of each

Female orange tip.

Strand line

On Friday i decided to try for a sunrise at Blyth. Standing on the bridge of the spine road with plans for a silhouetted shore and water and sky of warm colours. But fog put pay to this as i could only see a thick white mist.

The sound of the dawn chorus ringing in my ears.

(any ideas ,from the mist)

I decided to return to the Wansbeck estuary and bird by ear.

I now believe this is a great way to improve your field skills. because i picked up a few year ticks by ear alone.

Over the course of the weekend, i have spent most of my time in the garden. With a surprising number of sitings.

Butterflies have been the best with peacock, small tort, large,small and green veined white. With a new tick of a fly through orange tip.

Today i have dotted about here and there, but spent a while walking the beach along the retreating tide. spotting things along the strand line.

The backbone of the fish (above) ,was an unusual sight, due to it's size. Now worn round my neck like the tribal vw badge of the same size (NOT).

But this was the the best find of the day for me

The remains of what i believe to be Masked Crab Corystes cassivelaunus

Found in the sandy beaches lowest echelons if you dig for them.

It was with a mixture of crab remains, shore and edible also present along with sea urchin shell fragments and a number of bivalve shells including the muscle and a couple i need to look up.

My friend from the shadows.This groppa was at east Chevington.

The pools near the shore had a few of these displaying.

Great crested newt.

Today -

Another bright day, warm and made all the more enjoyable, because i should have been at work

(work)

An afternoon in the long grass. If you find one of these

You stand a chance of one of these

A seed eating butterfly

Orange tip with crossed wires (or a scientific first).
Others were hungry.

and after a good meal sleep

What's this?

No not Mr Tilmouth's shoveler from down under, now residing at druridge pools chasing local shovelers.

But this

I realise it's refracted light, a type of rainbow but does it have a formal name.

I had a look for migrants today but nothing that i have not noted (except the Quantas traveller). On checking the bird news i may be back out tomorrow.

A little bit of almost everything.

Today started with a sunrise and a dawn chorus not quite the full ensemble, but a joy to my ears.

bird chif chafs were sining every where i have been today, i have also seen my first wheaters of the year. Initially through ipin but i picked up another couple further south.

It has been a good day for mammals as well, with the above hare at cresswell, a fow at linton and pipestrelle bats above the garden at home.

Bricks have many uses but if you fancy planting a rock pool.

Continuing a theme- a rare 16 spot

I was looking for starfish, only found inshore when the sea temps start to rise. No luck but i did find three types of crab, a fish and

these beautiful beadlet anemone .

There are two main colour groups, red and green. They all seem to come with neon contasting colours as well

On the reptile front, no snakes but i did have a lizard.

Back home i did well in the amphibian stakes. While cleaning my pond i have had

toad, frog and great crested newt.

but the most unusual

thing today was the pond dwelling horse, which was feeding on the submerged vegetation.

MEGA

Most views south across the bays of Northumberland end with a view of a castle. Unfortunately the south of the county has more castles inland, But a previous generation of thinkers located this power station to complete the view near Lynemouth.
Located near, now defunct; coal mining operations to provide power for the nearby aluminium smelter.

The beach was used for many years, as a dump. The dumping of waste from the mining operation has long since ceased. But evidence is still strong. With the tides and storms slowly returning the beach to the natural state..

Sea coal is still collected off the beach .

It was on this beach i sighted a mega in the migration stakes today, but you can always gain one or two unusual sightings

Pseudo seven spot above

Some clearly are northern

Others easily identified and aged

But explain how this made it to a Northumberland beach,

I don't think it was a local release or escape.

Reason for this it would not feed on bread.

300 miles is a good distance for a brick to travel.

I dipped the American wigeon today, but did have a good number of sand martins at the gypsy flash late morning, peregrine showing for ages in a field , just behind cresswell pond.