And another new one...

During a brief walk on Saturday at Pilmoor I noticed several larval tubes consisting of bundles of grass stems on various low vegetation.  I found five in total and took a couple of poor photos which were just about good enough for me to find which species they were on the internet.  It turned out that they were a micromoth Psyche casta which although rather dull as an adult were seemingly quite uncommon in Yorkshire.  Indeed, the current information in the Yorkshire database for VC62 North Yorkshire suggests just the one previous record described as recorded in 'York' in 1860, so may not even have been in VC62.

To improve on the quality of the photos taken at the weekend I visited the same site again today finding a total of 16 of the distinctive larval tubes on a mixture of vegetation, including nettle, bramble, field maple and birch.

 

 

I found at least another three larval cases all on birch leaves which are likely to be Coleophora serratella which feeds on birch.

Larval case of Coleophora sp, probably Coleophora serratella 

In addition to these larval cases several other adult moths were noted: there were several hundred Micropterix calthella on buttercups, but also at least four male Micropterix aruncella which I had only seen once before at Brimham Rocks.  Several Nemophora metallica, a Paraswammerdamia nebulella, an Ancylis badiana, a couple of Silver-ground Carpet, and a Brown Silver-line completed the line-up.

A male Micropterix calthella (top), the rest Micropterix aruncella

Other orders recorded included Hawthorn Shieldbug and Large Red Damselfly, while several Brimstone, Orange-tip and Small Whites represented the butterflies.

A new moth!

This year work has carried on as busy as last year ended with hardly any time off and little opportunity to do anything moth-related.  I did, however, spend last night out at Pilmoor for the second trip out in two weeks there, and was instantly reminded why I do not like trapping there in early summer....the no-seeums that are so tiny but eat you alive...aargh!  Trapping under the stand of aspens on the old railway line the result was just 31 moths of 18 species using a single Robinson 125w MV, not helped by leaving the plug adapter at home so could not run a light over a sheet as I usually do and gives me something to look at while waiting for dawn.  The highlight was a fairly tatty Seraphim, an aspen feeder, scarce in the County and following on from three I caught at exactly the same site on 22 May three years ago.

The real highlight of the day was a moth from the works premises in Barr Lane, Roecliffe, Boroughbridge.  On about Wednesday I had disturbed a moth from its resting place on a horsebox and but despite my best efforts I failed to capture it in a pot.  I recognised it as one of the Treble-bars but on checking that evening was amazed to find that I had not seen either species before, not even in Dorset.  Ruing the missed opportunity while at work today I happened to notice what may have been the same moth at rest on the canopy over the showroom front door.  To the bemusement of  several onlookers I dragged a chair outside climbed up and potted the moth.  having safely got it home, two hours in the fridge, it sat quietly enough for me to photograph it.  I was aware they were a difficult species pair but on close inspection it was obvious to be a male Lesser Treble-bar.

Lesser Treble-bar, male

 It was a male by the fact that the abdomen tip was split into claspers, short and rounded which in itself is conclusive for Lesser, and the sharp angle on the innermost bar a good sign.

Diagnostic features

 I was pleased to have confirmed which of the two species it was and had pleasure entering it into MapMate and have the 'This is the 1st record for Observer' warning come up. Hopefully the first of a few more this year.

A ringed Albatross...result!

Following on from the earlier post I was delighted to receive a 'Certificate of Appreciation' from the US Geological Survey and Canadian Wildlife Service.  It gave the original capture and ringing details of the bird concerned and proved most interesting reading.

Black-footed Albatross

The photo above was the original image which I just happened to notice that it appeared to be ringed or 'banded' as the Americans choose to call it.  I cropped the image to that of the next photo and posted the information on an American banding website.

Black-footed Albatross - cropped image

The certificate received gave details of where the albatross was originally captured.

The location stated prompted me to look into it further.  Whale-Skate Island is one or two islands among the FFS which stands for the French Frigate Shoals some 500+ miles north-west of Honolulu, Hawaii, and were said to be up to 15 acres.

2700 miles...as the albatross flies..or doesn't...

Looking for further information on the island(s) it would seem that it no longer exists!  An article in May 2004 in the Honolulu Post quoting the ringer of my bird saying "That island in the course of 20 years has completely disappeared" with rising sea levels, said Beth Flint, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service wildlife biologist for the Pacific Remote Island Refuges. "It washed away."

Almost all (97.5%) of the Black-footed Albatrosses breed on the long chain of islands north-west of Hawaii and nearly 25% on the French Frigate Shoals alone.  The distance given as a straight line between the ringing site and where I photographed the bird is around 2700 miles as the albatross flies.  However, consideration should be given to the fact that after fledging and initially roaming the seas for the first three years of life before returning to their birth area to prepare for breeding themselves.  Following successful breeding when about seven years old the birds disperse to the eastern Pacific anywhere from Alaska down to California before returning to breed the following year.  Adults must cover many thousands of miles each year and over the lifetime must be into the hundreds of thousands.

As with many species the world population of over 100,000 is affected by pressure on breeding sites although most are in protected areas but like the birth-site are prone to changes in sea-level, and thousands are killed each year by long-line fishing practices and the numbers have halved in over 50 years.  

I will finish with a few more photos of these magnificent birds, being only feet away at times was a magical experience.

 

California ...the last few days

The last few days of the trip were rather busy and had little time to post some more photos.  Yosemite was absolutely fantastic and the drive through provided stunning view after view taking in the iconic Half Dome Mountain in Yosemite valley before passing over to the eastern side where we stayed at June Lake.

The three nights at June Lake were extremely enjoyable and relaxing, the only disappointment was missing the odd Black Bear that was around.  There actually seemed to be a bit of migration going on in the area with hundreds of warblers at times, working their way through bushes, nearly all Audubon's Warblers.  The common woodpecker in the area was a new one for me, Red-bellied Sapsucker.

Red-bellied Sapsucker

Stellar's Jay

Audubon's Warbler

Osprey

American Robin

California Gull

Gull Lake and June Lake

The last couple of days was spent driving down through Death Valley (a stunning experience) and ending up in Las Vegas (an experience I didn't enjoy the first time in 1979 and needed 'stunning' the second time....)

 

 

The 'low point'...not counting Las Vegas.....

So, after a simply stunning couple of weeks where everything worked seamlessly and exceeded everyone's expectations, at least five life ticks and as many new US birds it is back to normality now...

Yosemite - 14th August

Not many birds today but as for views....amazing!  One of SF from last night too

At last a few shore-birds.....

Fairly close to Tiburon I found a small sheltered bay with a few sandy banks and muddy areas on it.  At least 12 White Pelicans immediately drew my attention and I pulled off the main highway and spent some time looking over the area.  The birds were as follows: c.20 Snowy Egret, c.10 Forster's Terns, ten American Avocet, 18 Black-necked Stilts, 35 Grey Plover, a Kildeer, four Semi-palmated Plover, six Short-billed Dowitchers, a Greater Yellowlegs, c.150 Semi-palmated Sandpipers and c.25 Least Sandpipers.    Other birds seen in the area was a small flock of Wild Turkey, an Osprey carrying a fish, several Western Bluebird , c.20 White-crowned Sparrows, and a Spotted Towhee.  Rather tantalisingly I saw a flock of gnatcatchers flying across the road but was unable to stop.

Osprey carrying a fish

Wild Turkey

Forster's Tern

White Pelican

No bird photos today... San Francisco 11th August

What chance do I stand with a family showing this much interest....

ME: Oh look, a Great Blue Heron....
EM: Yeah...and a little red duck over there...

A trip through San Francisco today to the north bay area to allow the girls to fulfil their dream of swimming with dolphins....

There was a very educational element to the visit highlighting the dangers faced to the world's cetaceans and the massive impact of pollution in the the Pacific with a floating mass of rubbish the size of Texas stagnating in the Pacific Ocean alone.