June 2024

24th-26th. Wageningen, The Netherlands for a PhD viva. I had little time for birding, though did see a white stork on a streetlight.

20th. Screaming party of 5 common swift over St Ives.

19th. Marazion to look for St Piran's hermit crabs. We only found common hermit crabs, and also saw crystal jellies, and a chiton Lepidochitona cinerea.

8th. Great to see a new rewilding scheme near my former abode in Flax Bourton. There was a yellowhammer calling in a hedgerow.

3rd-7th. The annual field trip to Dale Fort, Pembrokeshire with a superb group of students and staff. Bird highlights were a hobby flying close to Castlebeach Bay, and 44 choughs around the West Dale/ airfield area.

Hemlock water dropwort alongside the stream feeding onto Castlebeach Bay. the most toxic plant in Britain that almost killed 8 campers in Scotland when they thought they were making wild parsnip curry.

One of the students found 3 sea hares.

Light bulb ascidians photographed underwater with Rose's Olympus Tough camera.

Twin fan worm showing the characteristic shape of the closed tube.

Gem anemones

Quite a large comb jelly off Skomer - blue jellyfish here too.

Another great day on Skomer Island on 5th.

2nd: A pair of peregrines flew low over the house in Bishopston, one carrying a prey item. First swifts (2) of the year here too.