FENLAND: Welney swan feed

Mid February 2023

We headed out to the edge of the fens for a family trip to Welney, timed to see the midday swan feed. If you've never been there is a large, heated hide set up to provide views out over the flooded fenland, providing close-up views of Whooper Swans (the shyer Bewick's Swans are often visible in fields on the approach road but seldom come in for the feed) and large numbers of Pochard. Some species new for the year included Pintail, Dunlin, Black-tailed Godwit and Cattle Egret, although the Tree Sparrows weren't on the feeders when we were looking.

After lunch we went for a brief walk along to some of the other hides. We had a look at some Xanthoria/Caloplaca lichens, searched unsuccessfully for Mousetail and saw a few invertebrates. These included Water Ladybird, the larva of Endothenia gentianeana/marginata in an old Teasel seedhead (you have to examine them closely to see if they have a feature called an anal comb - I didn't) and cases of a snail - Bithynia tentaculata I think.

NORTH NORFOLK: Cley Spy Long-eared Owl

Mid February 2023

A Long-eared Owl had been roosting out in the open at Glandford for well over a month, but it's appearances were unpredictable and other commitments meant I'd not manged to see it until February. We all went and it was great to be able to show my daughter such a stunning bird. Thanks of course to the staff at Cley Spy for providing updates on when the bird was present and allowing access to their garden so that it could be viewed from a safe distance without disturbing it. Sadly at the time of writing (early March) a dead Long-eared Owl was found along a nearby road, which seems likely to have been the same bird. This was my fourth owl species seen in the 'Cley square' - the missing one being Little Owl.

NORWICH: February lichen, moss and aphids

Early February 2023

A few random sightings whilst walking around Norwich. In Wensum Park I had a closer look at some pale 'splats' on the concrete step handrails and think that the lichen involved is Aspicilia calcarea, which would be a new one for me. I hunted around for two of Leif Bersweden's 'Couch to 10 mosses' species - Common Tamarisk Moss (Thuidium tamariscinum) and Springy Turf Moss (Rhytidiadelphus squarrosus). I couldn't find the former, which is more associated with woodland, but did manage to find the latter in St Augustine's Churchyard. Whilst looking for the tamarisk moss I did find lots of Common Feather-moss (Kindbergia praelongia). Back at home some aphids had started to appear on the outside of the house. The small ones were Cinara tujafilina (this is a species associated with cypresses - I mistakenly thought these were Cinara cupressi nymphs when I first saw them last year) and some very large (for aphids) Cinara confinis.