Day out at Moffat - Mothing & more

We had set out moth traps with the Grey Daggers mothing group the previous evening and met up again at Craigieburn Wood to see what we'd caught and identify them.

Despite the sunny conditions, it had been cold overnight and we did not expect a big catch as we gathered to open the traps from all the locations.

 

A few moths were found in the traps near the car park and a small number were found in the traps from higher up the track.

 

A list of moths recorded will be posted here once verified.


 From here we headed to the Moffat Community Reserves and had a wander around both reserves to see what else was taking advantage of the sunshine.

Here are a few photos of the things we found as we walked around

 

These are some of the birds we saw

Blackbird

Blue tit

Canada Goose

Chaffinch

Great tit

House Martin

Little Grebe

Mallard

Mute Swan

Moorhen

Osprey (flying over in the distance)

Oystercatcher

Pheasant

Pied Wagtail

Pied Flycatcher

Robin

Sand Martin

Starling

Swallow

Tufted Duck

Willow Warbler

Wren

Other wildlife

Rabbit

Orangetip Butterfly

Large Red Damselfly

Cinnibar Moth

Common Carpet Moth

Wasp building nest in the hide

A few other butterflies, moths and damselflies passed us by but we were not quick enough to identify them.

A more detailed account will appear on the Rambling Russells blog soon.

 

The search for Pearl-bordered Fritillaries at Mabie Forest on Sat 23rd May 2015

Butterfly Conservation planned a walk to Mabie Forest to look for the Pearl-bordered fritillary. One of the UK's most threatened species, it has seen a big increase in Mabie Forest. There are now more than 6 times as many as there were 10 years ago. More than 200 sightings last year alone!
The weather was kind to us and there was a much bigger turn out than expected at Mabie Forest car park. Owen Figgis who does regular transect walks to record butterflies for Butterfly Conservation, took the lead to show us the route he takes and how he records what he sees.

As we set off we were told that Pearl Bordered Fritillaries had been spotted and we were not disappointed. Within a few seconds of reaching the start of the walk a PBF was spotted! The strong sunshine began to bring out many more butterflies and moths and within a very short time had all seen a PBF and we were clicking away with our cameras.

 

 

We also saw...

 

Peacock

Common Heath

Small Heath

Green-veined White

Photo courtesy of Butterfly Conservation

Some in the group made note of the daytime flying moths  - a big thank you to Alison for the following details:

Speckled Yellow

Brown Silver-line

Common Carpet

and a few micro moths.

A Gorse Shield-bug and a lizard were also spotted briefly!

 

The following fantastic photos were taken by Jim Asher, Chairman of Butterfly Conservation Council, who joined us on our walk. It was a wonderful day, with wonderful weather watching some wonderful wildlife.

 

 

 

Group photo
 

Butterfly Walk Around Mabie Forest with Butterfly Conservation

The weather was kind to us and there was a much bigger turn out than usual at Mabie Forest car park.
Owen Figgis who does regular transect walks to record butterflies for Butterfly Conservation, took the lead to show us the route he takes and how he records what he sees.
We had been told in advance of the event that Pearl Bordered Fritillaries had been spotted and we were not disappointed. As we were ferried to our start point, the strong sunshine began to bring out many butterflies and moths. Before long we had all seen and photographed many examples.

Species we noted on the route:

Pearl Bordered Fritillary

Peacock

Small Heath

Greenveined White

Orange Tip

Latticed Heath

Some in the group made more note of the daytime flying moths

Speckled Yellow

Brown Silver-line

Common Carpet

and a few micro moths.

A Gorse Shield-bug and a lizard were spotted briefly!

Thanks to Alison for these details.

There will soon be more photos of this ramble on the Rambling Russells blog.

 

The following photos were taken by Jim Asher

 

 

Big Water of Fleet Viaduct Wed 20th May 2015

After leaving Carstramon,  (see our separate blog - Bluebells at Carstramon Wood)  we moved on to Cairnsmore of Fleet National Nature Reserve.

We went to see the viaduct, now disused but built to serve the Portpatrick and Wigtownshire Joint Railway. The railway opened in 1861 and just here travelled through quite remote countryside. The viaduct, 300 yards long, spanned the Big Water of Fleet.




















It has 20 arches and is made of brick and stone. In 1940 the piers were strengthened and the two sides of the structure were tied together under the arches.

Close to, the whole structure is very impressive and looks huge when you stand next to it! Notices tell you not to stand under the arches as there is a danger of falling bricks. The evidence is there for all to see!









During the Second World War millions of tonnes of ordnance came into the UK via Cairnryan and travelled across the viaduct. The railway also helped to transport US troops. However it failed to survive the Beeching cuts and the railway closed in 1965.
The viaducts smaller 9-arch sister - Little Water of Fleet - was blown up by the army!





It was a lovely afternoon, although still a little breezy but the birds were singing their hearts out. We heard/saw blackcap, chaffinch, dunnock, great tit, house sparrow, pied wagtail, skylark, stonechat, wheatear and willow warblers. House martins, swallows and swifts were everywhere, swooping and diving backwards and forwards looking for insects. We even heard a cuckoo - and then another replying to the first! Such a shame we didn't see those!

The Big Water of Fleet doesn't look all that big now but it was a very peaty colour the day we were there.







There is a SNH Visitor Centre (Dromore) just along the road before you get to the viaduct. It has a lot of information about the flora, fauna and geology of the area. It also tells you about the hidden sculptures by Matt Baker that can be seen on the walks around the area. Erratic, Heart, Ocean, Hush, and Scene Shifter are accompanied by poems written by Mary Smith.
We did also find a sculptured seat in the picnic area, by Ali Jeffries - aptly named the cloud seat.

A wild and remote area, that 18000 years ago was a glacier, now supports a huge range of flora and fauna. Open access and walks let visitors explore their surroundings. There were very few people about on the day we were there but it certainly looks worthy of more exploration.

Members sightings and stories

Wildlife sightings and stories from members this month included:

Dunnock nest has been raided twice of it's eggs - the culprits have now been identified as Crows seen returning to the scene of the crime hoping for more.
A camera nest box was showing great progress as House Sparrows built a nest. However, one night/morning the camera showed that ALL the nesting material had been removed with no evidence of spillage anywhere. Culprits are still unknown!
Barn owls have been seen swooping on fly past.
Bats have been spotted during evenings as street lights come on - are they searching for moths? But no moths have been spotted.
General reports of lots of bees about.

Reported from Annan were sightings of Great tits feeding young in nest box.
House Sparrows taking nesting material into garage roof.
Swifts, Swallows and House Martins are swooping everywhere now.
Moth trapping has resulted in a big fat zero so far!

A report of the monthly meeting will follow shortly.

Bluebells at Carstramon Wood Wed 20th May 2015

The weatherman assured us it was going to be a lovely day so we decided to go and see the bluebells. We go every year at this time of year as the sight and smell of them is just overpowering. Even the verges as we got close were full of bluebells and we began to get excited. There is only a small lay-by for 3 cars but there was already one car parked there and others on the verges too.

 

 

 

Many of the trees are looking green and fresh but others are still to reach their best.

 

 

 

The bluebells are everywhere - just like a sea of blue. The smell is fantastic but I think they still need a few more days to be at their best.

 

 

  

 

After an initial focus on the bluebells, we began to notice other flora and fauna too.
The Dor beetle is an amazing colour on the underside.

Unfortunately this was a dead specimen

 

 

 

We did see a couple of moths and a few other flying insects but most of them wouldn't sit still long enough for a photo.



A real treat was to see 2 Early Purple Orchids.

 

 

However, we were there to see the bluebells, so here are a few more!