The year is not out yet, Saturday 21st December 2019

The winter equinox will occur at something like 04:19hrs on the morning of Sunday 22nd December, and astronomical winter will begin, ending on 20th March 2020; now that's the way I remember winter being none of this winter starting on 1st December, which is just to make the statistics work!

Maybe now that winter is "official" we will get some winter weather.....

The wintering flocks have arrived in force with well over 3000 Knot on the beach and at the least the same figure of Golden Plover high over Kidwelly Marsh, four Bar-tailed Godwits were in amongst the Knot flock, there were good numbers of Sanderling and Oystercatcher with very good numbers of Common Scoter flying East offshore

Knot (photo Colin Dalton)

Sanderling (photo Colin Dalton)

I had hoped for some raptors on the beach or even some nice passerines, in fact both were absent. Also absent today were the "white buckets" that have been washing up along the coast as a result of being lost from a vessel lost during a recent storm.

The feeding station set up in the park has become quite a draw for the birds, mostly Great and Blue Tits but also two male Blackcaps who are keen on the fat balls.

Blackcap male

More and more Blackcaps are wintering in the UK especially along the southern coasts, I found another just near the park entrance a few days ago; if you are lucky enough to see a Blackcap or Chiffchaff during the winter don't forget to report on your local bird sightings.

With our Christmas events running to a natural closure the next big event will be the annual WALRUS DIP at Pembrey Country Park & Beach on Boxing day morning arrive for 10:45 latest.

2019, round up

Its been a while!

With 19 day still to run of 2019 I hope its not too early to post a round up of how the year has been for me.

There have been personal highlights, a few wildlife highlights as well as the humdrum that is daily life.

The death this week of the larger than life Dr David Bellamy has made me reflect on where my passion for the natural world started to blossom into life. I remember many of his TV shows and perhaps more importantly his passion for botany. I also remember the ITV? children's programme "Magpie" from the 70's which spurned me on to join the Young Ornithologists Club, even forming a local group based at the Afan Argoed Country Park, I was only 15 at the time.

There is no doubt that the influence of both my parents and their love of the countryside played in big part in my learning, I remember my bedroom decorated not with "pop star" posters but with collages of leaves and twigs from the local forest, things in jars, and dissecting Sprats bought from Maesteg Market. a great hands on childhood.

Well back to this year, much has been covered in the few blogs I have posted, but holidays to the Canary islands and Madeira have added nicely to the list of birds and marine creatures, the real gems were Houbara Bustards and Cream Coloured Coursers on Lanzarote; Bulwers Petrel off Madeira with Humpback Whales pick out a few of the best

Having enjoyed early semi-retirement for a few years I have been rewarded with a job that I absolutely love with the passion of an 18 year old, unfortunately my 58 year old body takes a differing view to my desire to get up and go!

Coordinator for volunteers and education, WOW what an opportunity to make the job my own, working with a great team to encourage volunteering across the Country Parks we manage and facilitating elements of the Welsh Schools Curriculum has brought me into contact with some wonderful people.

By the end of the year we will be just shy of 2000 volunteer hours since I took up my post in June, there has been a lot of litter picking but also plant surveys, path maintenance, hide painting, bird box making, sand moving, (always popular when you are a stones throw from the beach!) Christmas crafting and of course decorating "Sion Corn's" cabin.

I found myself a wonderful tutor for my Welsh Lessons- Stuart, I will learn one day!

There have been some odd visitors to the office.....

And lots of fun...... mostly at my expense

NADOLIG LLAWEN

Going Bird Watching Saturday 14th September 2019

Today saw an "introduction to bird watching" event run at Pembrey Country Park.
Five adults and seven 11 and under, hopefully, enjoyed the 3.5hour session.

Starting off with the basics in the conference room we wasted no time in getting outside into a perfect autumn morning of cool but rising temperatures and clear blue skies.

A total of around 20 species was enough to ensure everyone learned something from the morning.

Spotted Flycatcher

Highlights were firstly a single Spotted Flycatcher then THREE of them together in a classic open piece of pine forest with good understorey structure; they were constantly "fly catching" no doubt piling on the grams before their epic journey south.
Britain's smallest bird, the Goldcrest put in an appearance as did a male Sparrowhawk and a distant Peregrine Falcon.

Other sightings included good numbers of Red Admiral butterflies feeding on Ivy flowers, with singles of Painted Lady, Ringlet, Speckled Wood Comma and Small Tortoiseshell. Dragonflies were represented by Migrant Hawker, Common Darter and Ruddy Darter.

A sharp eyed participant found some caterpillars feeding on Birch, they were identified as Buff Tip Moth Caterpillars.

Part two is next Sunday so why not call the visitor centre to book a place and come along to see what fun bird watching can be.... 

Autumn? by what measure Monday 2nd September

So its Autumn, according to the Met office, for those of us with any connection to the seasonal working of the natural world will know that for many birds autumn has been underway since the first returning waders to the shore and marshes, the departing of the Swift and the gathering on the wires of Swallows and House Martins.

On the matter of Swallows, these trans Saharan travellers seemed to arrive later this year but it looks like decent numbers bred at Pembrey Country Park as usual.

Sandwich, Common, Arctic and Little Tern have all been recorded from along the Pembrey Coast in the last week or so, with over 200 Sandwich terns at the high tide roost opposite Old Pembrey Harbour.

Today, a day off coincided nicely with a decent forecast so I ventured out for a very short ringing session dominated by Blackcaps, mostly birds of the year but with a few adults. Only two of the catch were carrying any appreciable amount of fat for their journey to the south.

I took the opportunity to pick a feed of the abundant Blackberries, the small amount I took won't impact on the availability for Blackcaps to feast on, The wasps and butterflies including the very smart Comma are also making the most of the juicy Blackberries.

Many of the berry bearing trees and shrubs are laden with berries, a sign, not perhaps of harsh weather to come but, of the benign spring and summer.

With less people about most days get out and enjoy the great green spaces we have in Carmarthenshire.

Gone Batty, Tuesday 20th August 2019

Yes, I'm still here....

Monday evening saw the team at Pembrey Country Park lead one of our very popular Bat and Night Wildlife Walks.

We set off with 18 guests and hadn't walked more than a few metres from the new restaurant when Common Pipistrelles appeared.

A walk across open ground and back into some woodland near the Ski & Activity centre found more Pipistrelles, one or two swooping low above the heads of the captivated guests, much to the delight of the children in the group, some of the parents were not so keen....

With the Bat Detectors set to various frequencies, to make sure we picked up, as many species as possible, everyone was amazed as on of the detectors started "whistling and warbling" with the unmistakable sound of Greater Horseshoe Bat..... 
follow the link below to hear the unmistable echolocation sounds 

https://soundcloud.com/wildlife-sound-recording/greater-horseshoe-bat


The distinctive "splat" sound and sight of a large high flying bat was our third species in the form of a Noctule

We suspect that we also picked up another Pipistrelle speices, the Soprano Pipistrelle giving us our fourth species for the night.

We had put out two moth traps but the cool and breezy conditions did not produce anything of real interest.

A very satisfied group returned to the restaurant at around 10pm.. another succesful evening.

We plan on holding another three events in the next few weeks, keep an eye on the Pembrey Country Park website as well as facebook and Twitter

Llanelli coast garden Wildlife 7th July 2019

It's exactly four years since we moved to Llanelli, so much has happened in that time; not least is the number of new friends I have made, a great bunch of people many of them experts in their field, and many like-minded people.
I've retired, volunteered and now have a dream job working in the Outdoor Recreation Service with more conservation thrown in than many realise, I just wish getting older didn't come with so many ailments!
Recovering from my first encounter with Gout I have spent a few days looking at the wildlife in our small garden, with a bird list of just 38 species it's not the best garden for birds. 

A quick mention about work, check out the Facebook pages of Pembrey Country Park for July walks, the August and September walks and workshops will be advertised soon, (book online)

The pond had been more successful with Palmate Newt, Smooth Newt, Common Toad, Common Frog (both now disappeared) and a range of damselflies with Common Bluetail, Common Blue being abundant whilst Large red made an appearance for the first time this spring. Three years ago Common Darter emergence was amazing but not a single one since, maybe the newts are to blame.

Yesterday I paid close attention to some insects, I only have four Imperial Lily plants but the dreaded bright red Lily Beetle, Lilioceris lilii has found them and decimated the plants.

The Ichneumon wasp, which has newly appeared is awaiting a positive identification but provisionally is Ichneumon stramentor

The hoverfly is Scaeva pyrastri, unless anyone wants to correct me!

Along with a host of Spiders including the very formally named Long Jawed Orb Spider, now the Common Stretch Orb Spider Tetragnatha extensa, which cleverly spins its web over the pond.

Butterflies are reasonably represented but a Small Skipper, Thymelicus sylvestris yesterday morning was a surprise.

A Whale of a time, Madeira 2019

Its been a while since my last blog, time flies.

Just returned from a trip to the island of Madeira, where the sun shone and the heat built, very different to the weather left behind in the UK.

Although not a birding/wildlife holiday there were a few highlights worthy of mention, all except one of the sightings are from the hotel room balcony!

Plain Swift, Kestrel, Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, (all subspecies) Blackcap, Blackbird, Y L Gull, Manx, Cory's and Bulwer's Shearwater, Common tern, Goldfinch and Feral Pigeon!

Bulwers Shearwater ( photo Madeiriabirds)

I found the Blackbirds interesting as they appear larger and more robust than the birds I'm used to in the UK with a noticeably larger bill, I also watched a female actively hunting the abundant supply of Madeiran Wall Lizards.

The bird highlight came in the originally misidentified House Martin, (seen from a gondola car on the way down a mountain) which just looked wrong, and it was as it turned out to be a LITTLE SWIFT, a vagrant to the island (14th record?) 

Little Swift, (internet free to use image)

The holiday highlight for me was spotting the unmistakable movement of cetaceans off shore, I couldn't be 100% certain  but the Dolphins appeared to be Common Dolphins, while the two whales were thought by locals to be Humpback Whales.

Humpback Whale breath spout, (internet free to use image)

The flowers were, as previously, just amazing although around the hotel they were mostly non-natives.

On a more local note keep an eye out on the Pembrey Country Park website and social media, for a range of guided walks at Pembrey Country Park and the Millennium Coastal Park during July

Wales Nature Week Pembrey Country Park, 31st May 2019

Outdoor Recreation Service held the first of three events for Wales Nature Week on Friday a little early but designed to link with school half term.

Three moth traps were set in the park and forest, which meant a very early start to recover the traps before daylight.

A good range of moths were caught and shown to a group of 12 children and three adults. As usual the "hawk moths" stole the show with Privet and Poplar caught.

Some of the more interesting moths though included Obscure Wainscot, noted in Carmarthenshire as rare/local, in J S Bakers, MOTHS 2004, the food plant is Common Reed. Others included, Spruce Carpet, Sandy Carpet,  several of the "Minors" aggregate, Puss Moth, Sharp-angled Peacock, Scallop Shell, and both pale and dark morphs of Peppered Moth.
Thanks to Dr Stuart Blackmore for his assistance.

Obscure Wainscot, (Leucania obsolete)

The afternoon session was pond dipping, with the event sold out, with 10 children and five adults getting their feet wet in search of a myriad of pond life, the best finds were Water Scorpion, and two of the largest Ramshorn pond snails I've seen. (I'll post a photo when ranger Oliver sends them !)

Our next event is a Bat talk and walk on Wednesday 5th June, to book a place please visit

 pembreycountrypark.wales  whats on.

Intensive botanising Thursday 23rd May 2019

Today I joined in with the visit by the BSBI, Wales AGM gang for their visit to the Pembrey Burrows LNR.

A great bunch of people with an amazing wealth of knowledge, passion and generosity of spirit. Some of these people are "published" experts but to chat with them was so refreshing and a great learning experience.
When I have the full report in some months time I will share the highlights.
However to start, a new plant for me Long-stalked Crane's-bill Geranium columbinum, a beautiful and delicate flower which I would have just walked passed.

A flower that is hard to miss due to its vibrant yellow colour and its starry bracts and a favourite of mine is Goats-beard Tragopogon pratensis,  just a stunner.

The reserve looked and felt very dry, with the Green-winged Orchids all gone over and ground underfoot feeling "crunchy" so it was no surprise to see masses of snails, in aestivation, on Wild Radish, a state of summer dormancy to avoid the heat and dry environments.

Small Blue butterflies dominated with a few Small heath, Large White and a lone Green Hairstreak.

We ended up at the pond in GF2 where a female Broad-bodied Chaser was busy egg laying, a nice way to end a great day.

All Change Wednesday 1st May 2019

I have had the pleasure of volunteering with Dr Simeon Jones and Carmarthenshire Local Nature Reserves part of Carmarthenshire County Councils, Outdoor Recreation Service; since October 2015. My time spent at the reserves especially Pembrey Burrows has been very rewarding personally and I hope I have added to the data base of species found on the site.

Many of you will be aware that I started a paid position with the Outdoor Recreation Service about a year ago, working primarily at Pembrey Country Park, my time there has been immensely enjoyable and again I hope I have contributed something to the park.

Now its time for a change, well almost, today I was confirmed into a new and exciting role with the Outdoor Recreation Service as the Volunteer & Education Coordinator. The role is to develop a strong volunteer team within the service, coordinate the roles of the many other volunteers we have and to review the education offer we make to schools across all ages and abilities. (although based at Pembrey CP the role covers all of our sites)

As such my  volunteer role on the reserves will come to an end, wildlife contributions are likely to diminish, and I will be focussed on other issues whilst I settle in; but do let me or one of our great ranger team, know of anything interesting, anything amiss etc as many of you have done in the past. Once I'm settled in I will be back into the wildlife recording....

Simeon has a great series of walks planned for the year check the park website for details*

In the coming weeks I hope to be able to offer a range of volunteer roles that I hope some of you will be interested in so keep an eye on the blog and the Pembrey Country Park website:* 

www.pembreycountrypark.wales  *

Park residents Sunday 14th April 2019

When recording the presence of wildlife at a location there are times when the first evidence comes from finding the corpse of an individual. So it was this weekend when Our Campsite Warden asked me to identify a dead mammal that a visitor had reported to her.

When I was presented with what was clearly a full poo bag I did check my qualifications, forensic science is not amongst them... in fact what was inside was a rather splendid, but sadly deceased male POLECAT.

Now here we need to consider the possibility that it was a domesticated ferret-polecat but immediately it was obvious by its size, condition and pelage that we had the real thing. The presence of Polecats has long been suspected with odd reports from the nature reserve and from the forest. I took the relevent measurements, tail, hindfoot, nose to body etc and all fitted in the range for a male Polecat in the welsh population.

Formidable claws

A sad sight but useful information gained, 

the wind was blowing the fur around revealing the underfur

 ---------------------------------

The Vincent Wildlife Trust say this about the status of the Polecat;

The polecat (Mustela putorius) is of considerable conservation significance in Britain.

This is particularly so because of its current recolonisation of many areas of lowland Britain from which it was trapped to extinction at the end of the 19^th century.

Today, polecats have spread out from their historical stronghold in mid Wales and have recolonised much of southern and central England and have recently reached parts of south-west England and East Anglia. There are also polecats present in north-west England and parts of Scotland originating from reintroductions.

The polecat’s conservation status in Britain is much more favourable today than it was a hundred years ago. Provided that no new serious threats emerge to halt the current recovery, it seems likely that the polecat will become widely re-established in mainland Britain.

--------------------------------------

Of all of the Mustelid family the following are known to occur along the coast/hinterland from Lougher to Pendine: Badger, Otter, Mink, Polecat, Stoat and Weasel the only one missing is Pine Marten but with the ongoing recolonization in mid-Wales they may turn up.

I've removed the skull to send off to a friend who will clean it up so that we can use it on our nature table.

Now Spring is here, Wednesday 10th April 2019

Pembrey Burrows Local Nature Reserve is one of the best places to see Green-Winged Orchids, I was out and about this morning and they are starting to appear in drifts across the grazing fields; for me they are a real sign that Spring has arrived. It will be a week or so before they are at thier best so don't rush to see them yet, if you want directions to the showiest areas then contact me.

Monday 9th April 2019

Another pleasant morning, and the last of the winter bird food distributed, there were plenty of birds in full song this morning with the usual Blackbirds, Robins, Wrens and Dunnock blasting out, this morning they were joined by the Blackcap, a summer visitor to the Country Park, and a real songster.

The large pond in the SW corner of the park provided a few highlights this morning with a displaying pair of Shelduck, vocal Greylag Geese and squabbling Greater-spotted Woodpeckers.

In the pond itself it was great to see a swarm of Toad tadpoles hugging the shore, to be honest after the massacre of adults by the Otter a few weeks ago I didn't expect to see any toadpoles....

A couple of new flowers included a small clump of cowslips and a few early Dog Violets

Spring is no fool 1st April 2019

With the weather taking a step back (3rd April), it was good, on Monday, to see a range of flowers blooming or just thinking about it, including the first Green-winged Orchid just breaking bud.

The early birds were busy and I saw my first Song Thrush and Blackbird carrying food, its amazing to see the birds scurrying over the ground stopping and listening before diving into the earth and pulling out a worm or grub.

Chiffchaffs are singing everywhere in the Pembrey Country Park and there were several along the track to the information hide on the reserve.

A pair of Gadwall were on one of the grazing field ponds for the second spring in a row, they probably won't attempt to breed ae there is little cover to hide a nest.

An Orange Tip was the first butterfly I have seen for a few weeks after that brief February warm spell.

There are still birds coming to the feeders, mainly Great and Blue Tits, but not enough to explain how they are emptying so fast, so I put the trail camera out over the weekend.....

Bird ringing, Pembrey Country Park Monday 18th March 2019

At last a chance to go ringing when the weather is right.

I have not had the right opportunity to run a ringing session since early January, the feeders being stolen didn't help, however today the elements and free time fell in place and I manged to set a net at the new feeding site. It wasn't particularly busy but seven species was good.

Two male Great-Spotted Woodpeckers were too busy chasing each other to notice the net and went in together along with a Song Thrush, other birds were Robin, Dunnock, Chaffinch as well as Blue and Great Tits.

The Woodpeckers were and adult male and an immature male, subtle differences in the moult of the wings led me to that conclusion, and of course they were males as they had red napes which the females don't have.

Red nape = male

The Dunnocks and Robins showed signs of being in breeding condition with enlarged cloacal protuberances (the man bits). One of the Great Tits had quite distressed plumage and looked to be carrying a burden of feather lice.

Notice the primary coverts are very faded, in fact this is lice damage

An unexpected spell of light rain ended a short but useful session.

The local Wildlife Watch Litter Pickers has a session on the beach this morning so I went along to help, most of the litter had been covered over by sand so there was little to pick, however I did find a well preserved Greater Pipefish.

You just never know what you will find!

Real signs of Spring Thursday 7th March 2019

A walk along the "flower trail" at Pembrey Country Park, was accompanied by the sounds of many birds singing, a sure sign that the year has turned; with Blackbird, Robin, Great and Blue Tits, Dunnock Song and Mistle Thrush all belting out their songs.

There were only a couple of flowering plants out but these were true harbingers of spring, Primrose and Lesser Celandine, another name for Lesser Celandine is Pilewort, as it was used as a cure for piles!, 

Primrose

Lesser Celandine

Non-flowering plants included two species of fern, Harts-tongue and Polypody, both of these have had their uses in times past with Harts-tongue being used to treat "...ailments of the liver and spleen..." while Polypody was used to treat constipation and intestinal worms!

Harts-tongue

Polypody

I don't recommend that anyone tries any of these remedies!

Some of the trees coming into flower now include the Willows, and Blackthorn, with the Hazel which has been in flower for weeks is now coming into leaf.

Willow

Blackthorn

Hazel