A Roe Deer (Caprelolus capreolus), our most numerous deer (around 500,000 in the UK) and one of only two species of native deer (Red and Roe). Often spotted along field margins they are easily identified by a white rump patch as they flee. Their Latin name means 'The little goat".

The first test of my new dive camera, a canon s100 with Ikelite case. I've had a few problems with autofocus blurring out but have now switched to manual. The only other problem was an irritating clicking sound when the video is replayed. However whenever I edit underwater video I replace the sound anyway so it's not a big deal. I went out of Port Quinn on Cornwall's north coast, It's not exactly a hotspot but the vis is generally good. The fish of the day was a medium sized flounder, I found a similarly sized flounder (photo posted in May) in almost exactly the same plaice (see what I did there?) only a month ago, could it be the same one?
      One creature in particular was conspicuous only by it's absence: the Spiny spider Crab. August is their breeding season, so perhaps the Port Quinn population has set of to the spawning grounds? I'll certainly be on the look out.
       I'm testing the camera for an exciting new project, that hopefully will be finished by mid September, but  It's top secret until then.

 

A personal favourite-Timarcha tenebricosa-the Bloody nosed Beetle, spotted on the lane. When alarmed they eject blood red fluid from their mouths to scare off attackers. Their larvae are fantastic, bulbous, bottle-green creatures that feed on bedstraw (similar in appearance and closely related to Goose grass, the segmented and tangled plant children stick on each others backs.) Bedstraws other famous relative is the Coffee plant and it's seeds can apparently be used as a substitute. 

A pair of mating Six-spot burnet Moths, a common day flying moth that feed on knapweed and scabious. The Larvae are plump and yellow-green feeding on clover.

             Stunning lighting, looking up the hill towards the meadow. 

2011- another great year

I've focused mainly on photographs this year, with occasional short films. However there where points when I just couldn't resist taking some short clips. Hope you enjoy watching as much as I enjoyed filming.

Greater Pipefish

I've recently bought a Canon S100 camera + housing to replace my old Olympus 8010. I took it out for the first time last wednesday with the Truro school Snorkelling club. Vis was poor and there was a strong swell and surge so I wasn't to hopeful of seeing or photographing much. The highlight of the day was this magnificent Greater Pipefish that I found under a stone Whilst paddling around a sheltered gully in an effort to avoid the worst of the swell. 
   Pipefish are basically de-kinked Seahorses.  They move by rapidly whirring  their tiny, translucent fins, feeding on microscopic animals with their long snouts and are usually found hidden in beds of seaweed or eelgrass.
   As with Seahorses it is the males that carry the eggs, in a special brood pouch on the belly.
I'll be heading back to Falmouth as soon as the wind dies down and the sun comes back. Could be a while I know. There are 3 Submarine wrecks close to the Gullies that I'd like to explore closer. 
   And hopefully I'll get the hang of the new camera and be posting some great shots soon.

Grades and a Grass Snake.

Not technically any grades involved, they're not through until August. But I have just sat my AS levels, Which is my main excuse for not posting in over a month. The other is the weather. As soon as the final exam was over torrential rain and force 7 winds set in. So any form of snorkelling/scuba diving was definitely out the question.
   However the rain has it's advantages, persuading a large Grass Snake (Natrix natrix) to seek shelter under one of the many sheets of corrugated iron scattered around my pond. 
This particular individual was approximately 80cm long, so probably a female as males rarely exceed 70cm. The largest Grass Snake ever found in the UK was an impressive 1.8m (5.9ft).
   If you look closely at the rather blurry photo you can see that the scales covering the eyes of the snake are pale blue, A sign that the animal is close to shedding. And at the back of the head there is a  distinctive yellow collar and black false eyes, which are surprisingly convincing when the snake is partially submerged in water (Grass Snakes are amphibious and as well as small rodents, often hunt amphibians and quite large fish).
If you want to attract Grass snakes into your garden a positioning a sheet of scrap metal near a pond or compost heap (As the compost decomposes it heats up, Grass Snakes will hibernate here in winter and use it to incubate their eggs in summer). The metal sheet will heat up quickly in the morning providing the snake with an ideal basking site, It will also provide shelter to prey such as toads and voles.

Finally- snorkelling season begins!

 Flounder (Platichthys flesus) - feeds on small crustaceans in shallow seas and estuaries.

For the last month I've been waiting with baited breath for the snorkelling season to begin.                         

     Over the winter many inshore fish move to deeper waters, protected from storms and with a   more stable temperature. Seaweed dies back, there's little light for photosynthesis and     Storms damage fragile fronds of algae. The only life remaining in the 1-10m zone our a few hardy invertebrates, spiny starfish, sea cucumbers and small crabs. 

     But as the sea begins  to warm again in spring a phenomenal change takes place, within a few weeks the seabed is coated in gently waving algae, a myriad of colours, shapes and sizes. Emerald green christmas trees, sunset-orange pompoms and sapphire-dipped strands. 

   This time of year also offers some of the best snorkelling visibility wise, the winter storms are over but the summer algal clouds haven't had time to bloom. The top and bottom photos where both taken at approximately 6 metres using only natural light, in this water clarity the underwater landscape is often more breathtaking than the wildlife itself.

Sea hare (Aplysia punctata)- 

Our largest sea slug at up to 20cm long, they defend themselves by releasing a noxious, purple slime and change colour depending on the seaweed they feed on.

Spiny spider crab (Maja squinado)-

 Spider crabs are usually well hidden by a covering of weeds and sponges which grow on their carapace. however in June they gather in large numbers. Spider crabs can only mate when they are newly moulted so they need to have breeding partners readily available. They are also extremely vulnerable to predation when newly moulted; so the shell-less individuals can hide at the bottom of the crab pile. protected by a barrier of chitinous armour.

As revision

I've spent most of the Easter holiday sat in our kitchen revising for my As levels (alright I had a few brief breaks for kayaking, surfing and photography). Anyway, I've decided to dedicate this post to some of the common species that made my incarceration bearable.  

First on the list have to be a pair of Grey squirrels; alright I know I'm not supposed to like them, alien invaders, nemesis of the native red etc, but they're one of the easiest mammals to see up close and acting natural.

 'My' pair have a drey (a spherical nest of twigs and leaves) in a nearby tree, they seemed to be intent on replenishing their "caches" (buried stores of food, the squirrels memorise the location of thousands of these to be dug up when the times get hard). 

My next family- a trio of baby rabbits, no bigger than a large hamster. Rabbits are another incredibly successful alien species-introduced by the Normans for food and fur having originated in southern France. Though a pest to farmers they have become the staple food for many native predators, from foxes to buzzards and it was probably baby rabbits like these that last weeks stoat was out searching for.

The stoat seen here is in it's summer coat, in the northern part of their range they are known as ermine and have a dense, white coat during winter- once worn by members of the House of Lords, though they now wear rabbit fur.

One of my best unexpected encounters of the year today, I was taking a short break from revision to sit on a gatepost and scan the fields for buzzards (as you do), when I spotted this stoat run across the lane and disappear into the hedgerow, only to reappear a few minutes later only 2 metres from where I was standing.
   Unfortunately as soon as he saw me he dived back into the hedge so I was unable to get a good photograph.
     Stoats can be distinguished from there close relative the weasel by there larger size (approx. 10 inches) and black tipped tale.
     They are particularly active at this time of the year because of the abundance of their favourite prey: baby rabbits. Stoats where once thought to hypnotises there prey with a dance, but it is now thought there jerky leaps may be caused by an infection of Skrjabingylus (roundworm).
    Although native to britain stoats are listed as one of the "worst 100 invasive species", they have been particularly destructive in New Zealand, feeding on the eggs, chicks and adults of  endangered birds such as the kiwi.

Rockpooling with the wembury volunteers

A European cowrie hides among sponges.

The magnificent 'sea lemon" a large and strikingly coloured sea slug

 

The egg sack of a sea lemon.

Thursday the 5th saw the start of the new season at the Wembury bay Marine reserve with a volunteer rock pool so new volunteers could learn about some of the wildlife found on the beach. The rock pools where fantastic and we found everything from cornish sucker fish to brittle stars. However I've devoted this post to some of the more unusual species found. Firstly a european cowrie. Usually associated with tropical waters cowries are not uncommon, though easy to overlook as in the UK they rarely grow over a centimetre in length and at low tide retreat in deep crevices. It feeds on sea squirts such as the star ascidian. 

    My second species is the aptly named sea lemon, These are one of the largest and probably the easiest to find of our sea slugs, and can often be spotted on the lower shore feeding on sponge.

Slight freak out when I realised I hadn't posted in over a month, I've had a few technical difficulties involving video format and I'm sitting my A's levels in May but it's time to get back on track.
Most of march was taking up filming amphibians, mainly frogs and toads this year. hopefully I'll be able to put short film together soon, but until then....

I spotted this magnificent pheasant whilst searching for buzzards near my house, he was either incredibly stupid or brave and allowed me to get within 10ft or so.

The peasant is one of our most recognised birds, but they're no native, Pheasants where introduced from Asia and eastern Europe some time in the 10th century (by the Romans). Over 30 million birds have to be bred and released into the countryside each year as adults rarely survive more than a year in the wild and have a very poor breeding success rate (I have only ever seen one female with chicks).

I took these down at St Ives, I had intended to go snorkelling but as you can see behind the Herring gull the conditions where far from perfect, so I cheered myself up with an ice cream, a pasty, and some bird photography.

Starlings are one of my favourite birds to watch, they seem to flourish everywhere -moorland, the beach, cities, and fields. And as well as having pretty stunning plumage they have fascinating social lives, and for their size they're incredibly intelligent.

 St Ives is one of the best places to photograph them, The light is usually perfect and many are so tame they'll take food from your hand.