NORWICH: Wensum Park clearance

Early March 2023

Random observations from the start of the month included a Muntjac Deer in Train Wood (I've seen them in Earlham and Rosary Cemeteries but not in Train Wood before) and a Mistle Thrush in Wensum Park one morning. The woodland area at Wensum Park underwent some quite drastic clearance, but all as part of a plan with the Norwich Fringe Project, which includes a new path and planting of a mixture of native trees. On the 3rd a brood of Egyptian Geese were watched walking in front of the diggers. fortunately they had fledged in time (this species nests in trees early in the year). Unfortunately a few days later they were down to two goslings, and the week after there were none.

NORWICH: Some early October highlights

Early October 2022

More interesting things seen on my daily commute, including two new aphids, Aphis oenotherae on Evening Primrose and Aphis solanella on Black Nightshade. At Sainsburys on Queens Road there were several moths around one of the security lights, unfortunately nothing new but Large Ranunculus is always nice to see. Walking down towards Lakenham Way I found a Nigma walckenaeri spider hiding under a silk tent. There were also some interesting plants at Wensum Park on a dried-out bit of what is usually a flooded inlet, notably Marsh Yellow-cress, Bullwort and Cockspur Grass.

NORWICH: Royal Midget

Late September 2022

In July I had found Royal Midget (Phyllonorycter pastorella) leaf mines in the Norwich area for the first time. This species was only found in the UK for the first time in 2014, and in Norfolk in 2018. The mines that I found were typical, in being long with a single crease on long-leaved Salix sp. During September I started seeing similar mines in other places around Norwich, notably Whitlingham and Wensum Park. I wasn't completely convinced though, as these mines were a fairly normal Phyllonorycter size rather than the 'typical' extra long ones. I decided to collect an occupied mine from Wensum Park, and a few weeks later an adult emerged. It was indeed Phyllonorycter pastorella, a nice little moth with bushy hairs on the front of the head.

NORWICH: An early September miscellany

Early September 2022

A miscellany of interesting sightings from around the city. Firstly whilst taking my daughter to see one of the T-Rex sculptures near Pull's Ferry I decided to check the nearby Walnut trees for galls. This turned out to be a good decision, as I found galls caused by Aceria brachytarsus, a new species for Norfolk. Later in the day I took a walk along the Avenues to see some large Ganoderma resinaceum fruiting bodies growing from the remains of some cut-down Red Oaks.

Last year I had noticed some mildew on Horse Chestnut leaves near Waterloo Park, but they had been too high to reach. This year I again saw the mildew, but this time some leaves were within jumping range! A check under the microscope confirmed that it was Erysiphe flexuosa.

Whilst checking Alders at Wensum Park I found some Green-barred Alder aphids, Pterocallis maculata. I also took advantage of the low water levels to record some new plants for the park, including Red Goosefoot and Trifid Bur-marigold.

NORWICH: A confiding Yellow-legged Gull

Mid December 2020

Birding during December largely took the form of looking around whilst walking to work (it is dark on my return). Whilst this was largely an uneventful affair, a couple of Pink-footed Geese flocks flew over, one heard only in the fog and one seen. The Cormorants perching up on a building near New Mills reached a total of four, falling well short of a new one for each day of advent.

 

Bird of the month was a 2nd winter Yellow-legged Gull, initially found by Stephen Vickers in Wensum Park. When I cut through the park I was fortunate to see it fly in with some Herring Gulls. It was the closest up I've seen one, as well as being a new bird for several of my more tenuous birding lists (on foot from home and birds within the Norwich outer ring road). There was also a Herring Gull in a similar pluamge stage, so I was able to compare the two, which will hopefully come in handy when identifying this age Yellow-legged Gull again in future. As far as I know it is still present (writing this on the 29th Dec).

Yellow-legged Gull

 Herring Gull for comparison

And so, unless anything great turns up in my garden this is the last blog entry of 2020. I got behind in the spring and never really caught back up until now, so apologies to readers that like their blog entries to be fairly current. Time depending I will put together a year highlights/summary post in a couple of days, but you won't be missing out on too much if I don't! Best wishes to everyone for 2021.

NORWICH: River Water-dropwort and Square-spot Drill

12th June 2020

A particularly productive walk home from work, with a couple of new species to add to the morning Rose-coloured Starling sighting. Near New Mills I spotted an umbellifer growing in the middle of the river. I'd seen it there before but not got good enough photos to identify it, and did the same again, but fortunately for me Chris Lansdell has my tweet about it and went and got some better pictures, enough to identify it as River Water Dropwort.

Walking through Wensum Park I had a look along a sunny bank, where there was a stand of Tansy not yet in flower. There was however a micro moth resting on the leaves, and it turned out to be Square-spot Drill (Dichrorampha sequana) a second new species of the day for me.

Nearing home I cut through Waterloo Park and spotted a large area of White Bryony. I decided to check it for two speciality insects, a Bryony Mining Bee and an interesting looking Tephritid with a long name, but didn't find either of them. I did notice a Stripe-legged Robberfly (Dioctria baumhaueri), which seems to be having a good year.

NORWICH: Parakeet & leucistic Starling

27th & 28th December 2017

After Christmas I went for a couple of walks around the parks and footpaths around the north-west of Norwich. On Wednesday I walked along Train Wood, noting a Cormorant and three Little Grebes on the river opposite Wensum Park. Heading back through Waterloo Park I noticed some Crimped Gill (Plicatura crispa) growing in rows up a Cherry tree trunk.

On Thursday I started before dawn, hoping to see one of the Ring-necked Parakeets that have been frequenting this part of Norwich. I was successful, seeing one perched up in the area I tried yesterday. It called quite a bit before flying over Wensum Park and off towards Aylsham Road. Later on I heard what was presumably the second bird calling from near the recycling centre.

I then went to check Andersons Meadow and Sloughbottom Park looking for a Glaucous Gull that has been seen a couple of times around Norwich of late (firstly at Eaton Park and then at Andersons Meadow on Christmas Day). There was no sign of it - I also checked Wensum Park again and Pointers Field where there were more gulls but all common species. Apart from the parakeet the most interesting bird of the day was a Starling with abnormal pigmentation - it had a white rump and tail sides.