Buzzard Update 15 Feb 2011

We got some dead Magpies left by a local gamekeeper this morning and put them out on the buzzard "feeding station" and sure enough Bertie appeared and plucked and scoffed them despite being bombed by the local crow population. He eventually had enough of being mobbed and took the carcases to his favorite hidden perch further up the field to eat them.

Top photo shows him pucking one Magpie and bottom photo shows the 3 Magpies I threw out into the field for him.

Buzzards

As well as a bird feeding station here in our garden at Edern we also have a feeding station some 30 yards from the caravan where we put carcasses for Buzzards. We put our roast chicken carasses out alongside any "roadkill" or donated dead crows etc given us by shooters.We have a regular Buzzard we nicknamed Bertie who appears regularly perched in a tree right by the van waiting for some food putting out.

Spring on its way

Lovely walk down from Edern to the golf course and Ty Coch then back round through the fields home to Edern. The first flowers of Spring are now out with Lesser Celandine (Ranunculus ficaria) flowering well on many Clawdds with numerous patches of Red campion (Silene dioica) pushing through and as always the ever present Umbilicus rupestris (Navelwort, Penny-pies, Wall Pennywort)is around in huge numbers

First Butterfly of 2011

Sue and I found our first butterfly of 2011 on our cycle ride on Saturday 12th February. Bit of a cheat really as we found it in Plas Glyn-y-Weddw at Llanbedrog when we stopped for lunch in the café. It was flying at a window trying to get out after obviously hibernating in the gallery over winter. We set it free in the gardens.

Butterflies

Lots of butterflies around on Lon Cae Glas near Edern Post Office on our walk this morning. A lovely sunny morning with a quite brisk NNW wind blowing, but the Clawdds were sheltered by vegetation from the worst of the wind. If you are out seeking reptiles or insects the lane makes a superb walk on most days with some sunshine. The vegetation is always varied and this in turn attracts a lot of insects to feed and breed. As the invertebrate biomass is high so are the numbers birds and reptiles that feed on them.

This morning we spotted literally dozens of butterflies of many species along with only our second sighting of Dark Green Fritillary on the Peninsula this year. Common Blues both male and female were around in good numbers feeding on various flowers. Gate Keepers were as usual very abundant all along the lane. We also spotted a few Small Tortoiseshells along with Large Whites, Green Veined White, the Wall, Hedge Browns, Small Copper, Speckled Wood and one very skittish Dark Green Fritillary we were unable to photograph as it kept low in the vegetation, only moving if we approached too close. We also had good close views of a Southern Hawker Dragonfly or at least thats what we think it is ?

A superb August morning walk along the lane produced several Common Lizard sightings (see earlier post) numerous butterflies, several Shieldbugs, a lovely example of “Robins Pin Cushion Gall” on wild rose, a few Bloody Nosed beetles and a nice flock or around 30 Curlews, not bad for an hour long stroll in some of the most beautiful scenery in Britain !

Common Lizards

Despite the poor weather in July and August so far Common Lizards have managed to breed sucessfully. Out on a walk this morning up our favorite lane walk locally along Lon Cae Glas we spotted several adult lizards and this group of at least four juveniles basking in a favorite spot on a sunny Clawdd.

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Choughs

The Choughs on the Peninsula seem to have had a decent breeding year again this year. Plenty spotted all along the north coast of the Peninsula on recent walks. This pair were seen very close around 20 feet away before they took off.