The Lyons Share

Last week I got a message from Mark Telfer saying he was coming down to look for Mediterranean Oil-beetles (or Olive Oil-beetles as I prefer) Meloe mediterraneus at Newhaven Fort. So, only the day after seeing Steve Teale at the Fort and then Sussex Moth Group, I was back with Steve for the third time in two days (prior to that I haven't seen him for about five years). Steve Teales are a bit like Bloxworth Snouts in that regard. 

Anyways, these beasts are known to be nocturnal so we recced the site about and hour before sunset and waited until dark. Amazingly Steve found a dead one just as it was getting dark.

It didn't take long before Mark found one at the base of the cliffs, much further down than I was looking. I thought they were would be further up the cliffs but they were all pretty much on the grassy area below which is mostly dominated by Yorkshire Fog. It appears there is a thick thatch here that they can retreat into in the day and then come out at night to graze on it! We recorded about 18 individuals and Steve and Thyone stayed a bit longer and recorded up to 28 I think, in two different 100 km squares (the colony is right on the edge of TQ and TV).

This species is quite close to the Rugged Oil-beetle Meloe rugosus that I saw seven years ago in Brighton in Woodvale Crematorium. I think that when I saw this in 2010, mediterraneus was thought to be extinct and it wasn't in the keys. It all comes down to a groove on the pronotum that you can just make out in my photos but it's not that clear. Have a look at John Walters' page for separating the oil beetles. Meloe rugosus has a much more strongly punctured pronotum too and that is visible in this photo.

With the Olive Oil-beetle, you can see the pronotum is much less punctured and clearly lacks the central groove. It's great to know these fascinating creatures are doing so well at this site. I think Mark said there are only two other sites in the UK for it! Here is Mark extracting some olive oil from one...

I can't help think that they look like that annoying man from that insurance comparison website. Or even better, Mr Creosote! I had no idea that these animals are such active eaters as adults but it's obvious now I come to think about it. Great to observe their behaviour and learn a bit more about them.

I had the day off on Wednesday and went and helped Steve Teale and Tony Hutson do a survey in the tunnels under Newhaven Fort. Steve's been doing moth surveys there for a few years and I love any opportunity to get underground. Now most of these tunnels are not open to the public so it really was quite exciting getting in there.

First up, a Pholcus phalangioides spider that has been infected with some strange fungus! Hanging in the air in the torch light, this really was a creepy site! Loved it. Here is our team entering the first tunnel.

Probably the highlight for me was seeing 13, yes that's 13, Bloxworth Snouts (above)! Counting these moths whilst listening to the unnerving sound of an air-ride siren was a rather odd experience. last time I heard one of them I was running for my life in a forest fire in Australia but that is a different story. I saw the 7th record for this moth in Sussex back in 2008 and then again in Waterstone's in Brighton in 2009 but I have not seen it since. Great to see so many of them there, they must be established close to the Fort. This moth must be a candidate for the most stupid name of any animal in this country, just brilliant. I do hope that we name less species in the future after people and places and instead leave behind a legacy of English names that have some use to aid identification. Bloxworth Snout is OK though for its outright daftness.

There were lots of spiders but no Cave Spiders sadly. Amaurobius ferox (below) was perhaps the most common with Nesticus cellulanus and Steatoda grossa also present. A couple of Tegenaria silvestris were a surprise away from the woods.

Always nice to see this beauty too. It's the subterranean bristle-tail Trigoniophthalmus alternatus.

Only slugs I saw were Limax maximus and Limacus maculatus. One Brown Long-eared bat was the only bat action. Apparently it's THE only bat there which seems odd.

Here is some primitive cave art.

I got one lifer, the little moth Agonopterix purpurea. Thanks Steve for organising this, it was a great day!

When I left Newhaven on Sunday morning to go to France for a couple of hours, I wasn't expecting to get a new species of cetacean on my British list. The first dolphins we saw turned out to be White-beaked Dolphins. This is hugely significant in the English Channel as this species is associated with more northern waters, particularly the North Sea. They were quite large dolphins with obvious pale markings but their most striking feature was the frequency with which they were breaching, sending splashes of water high into the air, almost looking like the blow of a whale. This was my 11th species of cetacean but only my 5th in British and Irish waters. We also saw Bottlenosed Dolphins and Harbour Porpoises.

The trip was arranged by MARINElife as part of a two day course and was well attended. I was impressed by the knowledge of the instructors and I will definitely be signing up to do some volunteer surveys.

A big thank you to Adrian Shephard and Carol Farmer-Wright for organising this course. Thanks also to Adrian for allowing me to use his photo of the White-beaked Dolphins dorsal fin above.

I shot round to the cliffs in front of Newhaven Heights not really knowing where I was going in search of a Rose-coloured Starling. I looked along the bottom of the cliffs and saw only three Wheatear. I scurried up the cliffs and saw a number of forlorn looking birdwatchers clustered together. My rule is always to break away from these groups as people stop looking, start talking and cover very little ground. I saw that the Starlings seemed to be coming in to roost a little further east. I headed along the cliff tops and found this old gun emplacement (I'm assuming that's what it is) that is part of Newhaven Fort. 

There must be a large hollow going into the cliff. Starlings were pouring in, both through the opening and  through a hidden hole further up the cliff. I figured if I wait on the cliff top long enough, I'll see the bird come in to roost. Two people at the bottom of the cliff had the same idea. I was there for less than 10 minutes when I suddenly saw the bird with five Starlings. It circled round a few times, broke away and headed east out of site! I had been expecting a beige juvenile but it was a really nice adult! The people at the bottom of the cliff whistled, but I had already got onto it. Later, whilst talking to the two birders at the bottom, they said that they hadn't whistled and thought that I had! So who was this mystery whistler? Who cares, I just got another lifer! UPDATE: I since found out that it was Andrew Whitcomb who found the bird, here are some photos and a video from when it was on the deck.

Newhaven Fort is a strange sight, built in the 1860s it serviced both World Wars. I find these military sites fascinating, there are so few buildings that are built without any consideration for aesthetics, all geometric shapes and brutal functionality, crumbling concrete and rusting iron, more like the setting of an Iain Banks novel than a twitch.