The Lyons Share

Here is Episode Seven: Bank Holiday Seaside Special (and also on iTunes). It was really great recording this one, one of the best days out I have had this year. Lots of noisy birds to listen to, two great contributors and possibly the coolest thing on eight legs! (the coolest thing on six legs by the way are the Natural History of Sussex - you heard it here first).  Have a listen and let us know what you think. 

Now, I have just got back from the first ever pan-species lister's two day field event, which I organised. It went really well, we all saw lots of new species, we made some important records and made a few friends on the way. I have lots of identifications to process and lists to update but I'll give a trip report of day one tomorrow (Parham Park). Now, I need a cold beer and to get out of the sun!

We have been recording our 7th podcast down at Rye Harbour today and what a day it was. We had a great trip around with Barry looking at the birds, you'll have to wait for the podcast for all the details. Sadly, the impressive display of waders had dwindled and the Kentish Plover and Temminck's Stint were not to be seen. The rain was coming down and any chance of entomology with Chris Bentley seemed slim. Then it stopped and we had a search for Pellenes but it was just too cold. We resorted to turning over railway sleepers, where I finally saw my first ever Bombardier Beetles Brachinus crepitans. There were lots of them there, I think we saw 30 + under perhaps six railway sleepers. Then as we were about to finish up, the sun came out and we decided to have one last try for Pellenes.

And there it was! I spotted the first one, squealing like and idiot (it's all on tape so you can hear it). Pellenes tripunctatus. An RDB1 species, the only member in the genus and what has to be the most striking spider I have ever seen. It's pretty big for a jumper, not quite as big as Marpissa muscosa but big enough and colourful in a Sin City kind of way. It was very active, regularly crawling under the stones only to peep out at us again a few seconds later with its red-bordered eyes. We found another two males and spent plenty of time photographing them. Even Michael, with his arachnophobia, was quite taken with them. A huge thank you to Barry Yates and Chris Bentley for showing us around today, this podcast promises to be something pretty special!

I can't believe we've been doing the podcast for half a year already! Here is the link to Episode Six: "The owls are not what they seem" and it's also on iTunes. The only place where you are ever likely to get Twin Peaks, Terminator 2, R2-D2 and a movie review in a podcast based entirely on natural history!

At long last Episode Five is out now and available at the Natural History of Sussex blog page and on iTunes. This time we go in search of mosses and liverworts with Bruce Middleton at Heyshott Down and attempt to impress Michael with a big showy moss! Enjoy.

We recorded the outdoor session of Episode 5 of our podcast yesterday. We went to Heyshott Down with Bruce Middleton and had a great day. I added seven new species of bryophyte to my list with some quite scarce species and some very, very small species. First up we have Entodon concinnus. I have often thought I might have mistook this for the much more widespread Pseudoscleropodium purum but now I have seen it, I think I would recognise it again.

Here is the tiny liverwort with a silly English name. Top Notchwort Leiocolea turbinata.
But not as tiny as this Fissidens. It's Fissidens gracilifolius next to a giant 5p pence.

I ended the day on 3778 species. I have saved the most impressive till last though. Here is Rhodobryum roseum again, or Rose-moss, but these ones were much bigger than the ones I saw in the cemetery at Midhurst.

So it took nine months, I walked nearly 600 miles and I saw some great things including: Honey Buzzard, Quail, Black Kite, Hawfinch, Waxwing, Hen Harrier, Striped Lychnis, Night-flowering Catchfly (photo), Blue Pimpernel, White Horehound and Narrow-fruited Cornsalad. It was a privilege to complete the contract so a big thank you to Natural England, everyone who helped and all the farmers.

It's great when you don't have to go that far to twitch. Quail I found myself out working (I'll cover that on its own below), Little Crake at Arundel, White-winged Black Tern at Chichester, Pallid Harrier at Burpham and Isabelline Wheatear (photo) that turned up within a few miles of me for just one day near Beachy Head were all welcome additions to my list. I think the harrier was the best bird of the year.

If only we could turn back time and do things a little differently. I saw some great things but learnt a valuable lesson about how far obsession can go. Here is a rather smart longhorn that I saw quite a few of in the forest, Stictoleptura scutellata.

I spent some great days out with Howard this year and made a great new friend. We went to Ebernoe, Wakehurst Place even Ladies Winkins! Howard added perhaps 40-50 species to my list but this photo was my favourite,  Dark Honey Fungus.

I can't remember the last time I found a lifer (a bird lifer). I think it was perhaps Glossy Ibis at Dunge in 2001. So, to find my first Quail was a real treat and then one month later to see three in one day was ludicrous. Here is the worst photo of a pair of Quail in flight that has ever been taken.

There are few things that make me jump (other than E.T.) but this did. When I coaxed this spider out of a wall in Chichester it just kept coming. What an absolute beast. It might be an alien but it made my day! It's Segestria florentina and if you have the balls for it I would go and have a look.

Hollow trees, golf balls and a number of species new to Sussex. The first Wood Crickets in the county. An RDB saproxylic micro moth called Dystebenna stephensii new to Sussex. This rather handsome click beetle Ampedus cardinalis. However, one day in the field with Mark Telfer I heard him say something I have never heard him say. "What the *@#£ is that!?" in reference to a strange looking beetle that I had just found. It was only the RDB1 Laemophloeus monilis. A huge thank you to Mark for being such a help with everything natural history and giving me the beetle bug.

Perhaps the bird I expected to see least on a farm survey was Black Kite. Especially as it was fighting one of those common or garden Red Kites. I was a little excited.

The most fun three men can have with a microphone and some wildlife. I'm happy that people like it but I wouldn't mind if they didn't as I have so much fun recording with with Michael and Mat that anything else is a bonus. I love our theme tune that much it's my ringtone on my phone!

It was a great autumn for moths and we might have seen more Flame Brocades than anyone in over a hundred years but that was nothing compared to my strange encounter with a Crimson Speckled. So, I have added 710 species so far this year. I might add a few more but not many. I'm winding down and next year will be much slower. 19% of everything I have ever seen, I have seen this year for the first time! That is crazy. Anyway, the next thousand is going to be much more chilled out.

We recorded the rest of Episode 3 of our podcast 'The Natural History of Sussex'  with special guest Tony Hutson today. We went to a series of undisclosed locations and I saw at least four species new to me. Best of all was my first ever Brown Long-eared Bat! Not the rarest of bats but certainly one I have managed to miss for many years. Other highlights included this strange cave dwelling fly called Scoliocentra villosa.

Outside we saw these smart fungi growing on the root plates of fallen trees. I am pretty sure these are called Brick Tufts. A great day out and I can't wait to hear Mat's magical editing once more!

Episode 2 of the The Natural History of Sussex is out now. 'Some Things in their Natural State Have the Most Vivid Colours'. It's also on iTunes now too. This month we are focusing on fungi at Ebernoe Common and are accompanied by Howard Matcham. The target species is the rare Lion's Mane...

Some of you may know that Michael Blencowe and I and our new pal, Mat Davidson have been up to something of late. Here it is: our new monthly podcast, 'The Natural History of Sussex: Episode One - Fairwell and Adieu'. I'm not going to write much else other than to urge you to have a listen! Enjoy.