Walking with cows at Figham Common

I had a pleasant outing to Figham Common with the Hull Natural History Society on Tuesday evening. Figham is one of the three commons of Beverley, which I had never visited before. As I arrived at 7 pm, a double rainbow glowed bright on the horizon and a group of swallows flew low over the fields. The weather was mixed, and we managed to avoid the rain for most of the time, except for a good shower at the end. There were good numbers of bullocks of various breeds in the common, and we were object of their attention (above) in between curious and nervous. What more obvious thing than looking for dung beetles in a common? After all, dung is one of the most abundant microhabitats there. I quickly armed myself with a suitable poo-stick and started poking into cow pats of a range of sizes and consistencies, while Robert Jaques predicted our chances of success remarkably well. These efforts were quickly rewarded with several beetles, which ended in the bug pot for later ID and photos. What!? dung beetles? I hear you say, in the UK!? but yes, not the large African dung ball-rolling beetle, but awesome little critters regardless, the largest about 2 cm long, which are involved in the processing of the tons of dung produced by cattle, horses and other mammals. Dung beetles, some aquatic beetles and their larvae live in the moist, rich environment of the cow pat, feeding on bacteria, fungi and decomposing vegetable matter. We also came across Yellow Dung Flies, early colonisers of fresh cowpats (below).

Robert brought me the beetles back today, nicely IDd and I had a session on them on white background. The first beetle, Aphodius fossor, a true dung beetle of the family scarabeidae, walks slowly, and when surprised in the dung, they played dead and were easy to collect. During the photo session they were quite obliging and after a few shots in the white bowl, I ended up placing it on a white sheet of paper as background, as it allowed me to get the right angle and try to portray its lovely shovel-shaped head.

Aphodius fossor, a dung beetle. The shovel-shaped head allows them to dig easily into the dung. Its species name 'fossor' means digger in latin.

a front view of A. fossor

The second species is a smaller, water scavenger beetle, Sphaeridium sp., I tried to use the same technique with this species, but it was a much more lively, fast beetle, and as shortly after coming out of the pot, it lifted the front of the body, antennae spread, like smelling the air, and it just flew off vertically, carrying its mite with it.

Water scavenger beetle, Sphaeridium sp. with mite

Sphaeridium sp. stretching its wings.

A Lesser Marsh Grasshopper

You can see the bird and plant list of this and other field visits at the Hull Natural History Society website.

Hudson Way, Riffle Butts and Goodmanham

After my lovely visit to Kiplingcotes a couple of weeks ago and the sunny, butterfly friendly weather forecast I headed to the Hudson Way again, this time intending to do a circular walk from the car park near Kiplingcotes to Riffle Butts and back through the Hudson way. It took me almost an hour to walk a couple of hundred meters down the path, given the profusion of wildflowers and butterflies about and the friendly locals. Scabious, Greater Knapweed and Red Clover were in full bloom, attracting large numbers of butterflies, including the first bright orange Gatekeeper of the year for me.

Meadow Pipits and Yellowhammers sung from the field, where a flock of Linnet fed and flew by. By a gate on the field I surprised a Mistle Thrush and three Red Legged Partridges, who left nervously. However, the partridges had left a chick behind, and one of them came back to the rescue.
I reached the crossing to the road to Woodmanham and had a peek at the creek. I spied a the stoat-sized rear of a dark brown mammal, which I believe to be a mink, disappearing in the vegetation. I sat waiting for it to emerge, but I only saw a diminutive vole feeding amongst the yellow flag leaves.
I headed then to Rifle Butts. There were a few visitors. The small area had Giant Bellflower, now in full bloom, and Comfrey and Marjoram. I could hear some singing grasshoppers. The only other thing to mention is a Marsh Tit, which fed amongst the comfreys and on the ground.
I carried towards Goodmanham. Over the village, flying with the swifts were a pair of Buzzards. After asking some locals for directions I found the shortcut to the Hudson Way on the edge of the village and returned to the path after crossing the weak bridge. The Hudson Way is much darker in this area, like a tunnel of trees and little in the way of wildflowers other than Hedge Woundwort. A Speckled Wood and a Comma were noted.

Meadown Brown on Scabious

Three Grey Partridges, the one in the middle is sitting on some chicks

Ringlet

Gatekeeper on Bramble

Marbled White on Greater Knapweed

Large Skipper on Scabious

The creek by the crossing to the road to Woodmanham

Rook carrying something?

Comma

Pyramidal Orchid, not many left

Bombus pascuorum on Red Clover

The first Small Skippers on Red Clover, many on the wing today... 

...with these two in the same frame 

Bordered Sallow, feeding on Vetch

Two tattered Marbled Whites on Scabious

Riffle Butts geological exposure (this part is closed to the public). I took the photo leaning on the fence

Giant Bellflowers

This group of cows were very interested in some colourful cyclists who were very interested in the cows.

Feather cloud over Goodmanham

I watched the patches of Hedge Woundwort in search of Anthophora furcata, but I only saw this Hoverfly Rhingia campestris and a carder bee.

St. Helens Well and the wishing tree

Eristalis sp on Scabious

Another small skipper (I can't resist)

Harebell by the path

A Enophlognatha spider with Bluebottle prey. watch out Soldier Beetles.

This is the first Cockchafer I see in East Yorkshire, unfortunately killed on the path.

Small Tortoiseshell

Six spot burnet

Yellowhammer having a bath on a puddle on the car park.

Butterfly List

1. Gatekeeper
2. Meadow Brown
3. Speckled Wood
4. Ringlet
5. Small Skipper
6. Large Skipper
7. Comma
8. Small Tortoiseshell 

Bird list

1. Blackbird
2. Blackcap
3. Blue Tit
4. Bullfinch
5. Buzzard
6. Chaffinch
7. Chiffchaff
8. Collared Dove
9. Common Gull
10. Dunnock
11. Goldfinch
12. Great Tit
13. Greenfinch
14. Grey Partridge
15. House Sparrow
16. Jackdaw
17. Kestrel
18. Linnet
19. Long-tailed Tit
20. Magpie
21. Marsh Tit
22. Meadow Pipit
23. Mistle Thrush
24. Moorhen
25. Pheasant
26. Red-legged Partridge
27. Rook
28. Stock Dove
29. Swallow
30. Swift
31. Whitethroat
32. Willow Warbler
33. Woodpigeon
34. Wren
35. Yellowhammer

North Cliffe Wood in summer

I realised I had never paid a visit to this Yorkshire Wildlife Trust reserve in summer, so today was the day. A Red Kite glided low over the car just past Little Weighton, and on the same straight of the road, a male Yellowhammer sat by the hedge, in the same position as the four last times I've driven past this spot. By the time I got to the reserve I had added Kestrel, Sparrowhawk and Buzzard to the trip raptor list.
 I started the walk at the western side of the reserve. The paths were quite muddy after the recent rains. There were many Ringlets on the wing, and in a clearing by an old and gnarled oak on the path I saw a Red Admiral, and as I followed it a large buzzing insect gave it chase and I realised it was a hornet. It stopped to feed on sap seeping from some wounds on the tree trunk, and was surrounded by greenbottles and various other flies (and probably was the site where the Red Admiral had intended to feed). It was quite high on the tree, so no close shots, but this is the first time I have a confirmed sighting of this species.

 As I entered the open, heath area I heard the buzzing of insects feeding on the flowering lime trees. Bumblebees, honeybees and this meadow brown enjoyed the flowers.

It is easy to walk quietly on this part of the reserve, as the paths are covered on moss. Maybe that's why I could get so close to this hare.

I was trying to photograph a Green-Veined White, when a fox emerged from the bracken. It walked about, turned round and trotted to my left. When this fox had just disappeared, another, larger, handsomer individual appeared from the same spot. This time I had the camera ready, and I am pleased with the automatic image stabilisation that could correct, at least partially, the effects of my shaking hands. The fox was at ease, and followed much the same path as the previous one. At some point it was walking straight towards me, not quite 10 m away, but the noise of the camera shutter alerted him and as he saw me, he turned round and bounded to the safety of the bracken. The following, and the one on top of the post are my favourites.

 After this magic encounter, I wandered towards the woods and flushed a Buzzard, which was immediately mobbed by a family of Carrion Crows. As I entered the woods, squadrons of bloodthirsty mosquitoes descended on me. I practiced the mosquito-splatting technique on my arms until they were almost numb, and found it quite hard to concentrate on photographing anything inside the wood. A couple of dragonflies and damselflies had to be left aside to carry on with the mosquito splatting. I just managed a treecreeper and a few butterflies.

Treecreeper. See it? 

 But was unable to located a calling Sparrowhawk on a tree.

Speckled Wood

Episyrphus balteatus and pollen beetles in Hawkbit

Butterflies

1. Red Admiral
2. Small Heath
3. Ringlet
4. Green-veined white
5. Meadow Brown

Birds

1. Black-headed Gull
2. Blackbird
3. Blackcap
4. Blue Tit
5. Bullfinch
6. Buzzard
7. Carrion Crow
8. Chaffinch
9. Chiffchaff
10. Great Spotted Woodpecker
11. Great Tit
12. Jay
13. Long-tailed Tit
14. Pheasant
15. Robin
16. Skylark
17. Sparrowhawk
18. Swallow
19. Swift
20. Treecreeper
21. Whitethroat
22. Woodpigeon
23. Wren