Early bird ...

North Uist, Outer Hebrides

The rewards of an early morning approach ...

The first two images taken before 6am ….

More at:

www.outerhebridesbirds.org.uk/index.php

Balranald …

North Uist, Outer Hebrides, 13 to 27 May 2017

Balranald Nature Reserve incorporates the most westerly point of the island of North Uist, the Aird an Rùnair peninsula, looking out to the Monach Islands and the magnificent St Kilda archipelago. It is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and is designated as a Wetland of International Importance (Ramsar).

This beautiful Hebridean reserve comprises 658 hectares [1626 acres] of rocky headland, islands, sandy bays, dunes, grasslands, freshwater lochs, fen and the flower-rich species diverse machair. Machair is a rare, bio-diverse coastal grassland, unique to the north-western fringe of Europe. It is listed on Annex 1 of the EU Habitats Directive, and occurs over a total global area of just 19,000 ha, with 70% of this in western Scotland, mostly on the offshore islands, and the remainder in western Ireland. These habitats support internationally important populations of many wading and farmland bird species, notably the Corncrake Crex crex. They also protect a number of important plant species and a variety of other wildlife, including the rarest UK bumblebee, the Great Yellow Bumblebee Bombus distinguendus.

The unmanned RSPB visitor information centre explains the importance of traditional crofting agriculture for rare birds and other important wildlife. A few images from my recent visit above.

More at:

www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife/habitats/machair

www.machairlife.org.uk/index-2.html

www.snh.gov.uk

www.western-isles-wildlife.com/index.html

www.outerhebridesbirds.org.uk/index.php

www.rspb.org.uk/reserves-and-events/find-a-reserve/reserves-a-z/reserves-by-name/b/balranald/about.aspx

Stinky Bay …

Iceland Gull (Larus glaucoides)

Despite its vernacular name, the Iceland Gull does not breed in Iceland but in Arctic Canada and Greenland. In Britain, it occurs mainly in the north and west during winter. Numbers appearing in Britain fluctuate considerably and large influxes occasionally occur, possibly associated with severe northwesterly gales. L. glaucoides is a very scarce winter visitor and passage migrant in Sussex; around 89 individuals in total being recorded during the winter periods of 1961/62 to 2010/11. Prior to this only 26 had been recorded in the county. Most records relate to individual birds observed in late winter or spring. The above pictures of a second summer bird were all recently taken during very overcast conditions on Benbecula in the Outer Hebrides.

References:

Newnham, J. (2014). Iceland Gull. The Birds of Sussex. Thetford: British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) Books on behalf of the Sussex Ornithological Society, pp. 324-325.

Newnham, J. (1996). Iceland Gull. Birds of Sussex. Sussex Ornithological Society, pp. 324-325.

www.bto.org/about-birds/bird-id/eye-iceland-and-glaucous-gulls

Bucket list ...

Eurasian Otter (Lutra lutra)

It’s taken me a very long time but I’ve finally managed to see and get a reasonable photograph of an Otter in the wild in the UK. The above male was recently spotted hunting for flatfish and crabs in a sea loch located on North Uist in the Outer Hebrides. As luck would have it, as the prevailing weather conditions really weren't very good, he decided to come out of the water and on to a small grassy bank to pause for a few moments before returning back to his watery domain.

All I can say is, "well happy" …

Looking beyond the obvious …

Phacidium lauri

The tiny ascomycete fungus P. lauri (Helotiales: Phacidiaceae) found in West Sussex and photographed on the decaying leaves of Ilex aquifolium.

Certainly one to look out for if you like them small …

References:

Crous, P.W., Quaedvlieg, W., Hansen, K., Hawksworth, D.L. and Groenewald, J.Z. (2014). Phacidium and Ceuthospora (Phacidiaceae) are congeneric: taxonomic and nomenclatural implications. IMA Fungus, 5(2), pp. 173-193.

www.indexfungorum.org/names/NamesRecord.asp?RecordID=810293

www.catalogueoflife.org/col/details/species/id/6b3dffabb609344d132209946f0287ab

Ready to strike …

European Adder (Vipera berus)

The Adder Vipera berus is the only venomous snake in Britain. It is easily recognised by the dark zigzag stripe running down the length of the spine. There is also a row of dark spots along each side and a V or X shape on the back of the head. It has red eyes and is the only native reptile with a vertically split pupil. Background colours vary from grey-white in the male to various shades of brown or copper in the female. On occasion, completely black specimens are described. Males grow to around 60cm in length and the females to around 75cm. Both sexes tend to have a rather stocky appearance.

V. berus is found throughout Britain right up to the north of Scotland. In Scandinavia its range extends into the Arctic Circle. It is not, however, found in Ireland. It likes open habitats such as heathland, moorland, open woodland and sea cliffs, and rarely strays into gardens.

The best time to see V. berus is during early spring when they emerge from their hibernation sites. By mid April, the males have shed their dull winter skin and are ready to mate. On warm humid days there is a lot of frenzied behaviour, with males looking for females and occasionally dueling with other males for territorial supremacy. The males writhe around each other in an impressive way, often covering the ground at great speed. It is an impressive site if you are fortunate to witness it.

References:

www.arc-trust.org/adder

www.forestry.gov.uk/forestry/adder

Peziza ...

Anything but straightforward …

During a recent search of old parkland in West Sussex I found a small colony of the above cup fungi, which I believed to be a Peziza species. They were growing amongst a chipped softwood mulch at the base of a large cedar tree.

Cup fungi, the brown ones in particular, are especially difficult to identify with certainty. Having photographed a representative selection of the specimens, I collected several samples and later passed them to Nick Aplin, the county recorder for ascomycetes, for his opinion. Nick has tentatively identified them as Peziza varia s.l. Species delimitation in this group is quite controversial and there are several undescribed species, which could be a good fit as the spores from my collection were just a bit large for P. varia. The samples have been dried with view to DNA barcoding and further study later in the year. My thanks to Nick for his time and opinion and for the above photomicrograph.