Train trip: Filey Brigg

I hadn't been at Filey for a couple of years, and I missed the Hull Nats trip last weekend, so in view of the sunny weather, I decided to do a train trip there today. The 8:21 service was cancelled due to a broken down train, so before catching the following train I did a bit of plant recording around the city centre. The train trip went without a glitch, but the delay meant that I had missed the chance of walking to the Brigg by the coastal path. A beautiful blue sky, and a stiff southerly wind, with a pleasant temperature. I started by walking on the edges of the Country Park by the cliff. Aided with the bat-detector, it wasn't long before I spotted my first Long-winged Coneheads on the long grass fringing the cliff (top photo). Their abundance and presence of nymphs indicate they've been here a while.

Male Long-winged Conehead.

Female Long-winged Conehead.

Roesel's were also calling around the pond, but I failed to spot any. These records are the first of both bush-crickets in Filey and the only ones between a record in Bridlington a few years back and the ones from Scarborough a couple of weeks ago. It shows how under-recorded bush-crickets are!

The view of Carr Naze and the Brigg.

Small Tortoiseshell.

After the successful bush-cricket recording. I walked along the beach until the start of the rock-pools. A female Kestrel was hunting over the cliffs, the southerly wind creating a strong up-draft at Carr Naze, that the Kestrel took advantage of. 

Kestrel, perched on the up-draft on the edge of the cliff.

No chance of walking along the rocks to the Brigg, the tide was already quite high. I had an early lunch at the cobble ramp in the town. Sandwich Terns flew back and forth along the beach. A cormorant sat on a groyne marker post. Some people were swimming, kids squealing excitedly chasing waves. After lunch, up I climbed the steep incline of the ravine and I walked north along the cliffs. Gannets and rafts of Razorbills sat on the balmy water, sheltered from the wind.

Gannet.

Razorbills.

I returned to Carr Naze via the country park, a fresh comma basked on a hedge.

Comma.

Past high tide now, but still too early to cross along the coast. I decided to walk down the steep and narrow footpath half-way down Carr Naze. This is a sun trap that is often great for insects. Common Field Grasshoppers basked on the path itself. A Meadow Pipit wasn't happy with me interrupting whatever it was doing.

Meadow Pipit.

Common Centaury.

I got safely to the waters edge. A couple of dead Guillemots floated on the tide-line, some of about 8 dead auks I saw today, possibly avian flu? There were a couple of scrambling spots where the waves lapped the cliffs, before I made it to the Brigg. A Wren flew ahead of me. Cormorants sat on the rocks with roosting Oystercatchers. I sat on the rocks for a while watching a dozen Common Terns fishing north of the Brigg just by the shore, amongst Guillemots and Razorbills. They were very successful getting small silvery fish.

Juvenile Common Tern.

Razorbills.

Sandwich Tern, facing the wind.

Guillemot.

Guillemots.

Common Tern.

It was time to head back to the station, aiming for the 16:16 train. On the way back three Rock Pipits and a lovely Wheatear.

Rock Pipit.

Wheatear.

Wheatear.

I take the steep, eroded path up Carr Naze. It is less scary going uphill, and I avoid the slippery intertidal path just after high tide.