RXwildlife Sightings

Very tame and inquisitive Razorbill swam up to within 4 metres of my surf board 200 metres off Galley Hill Common today (07/01/12).

Lone Firecrest spotted in undergrowth on Galley Hill on 20/11/11.

Large flocks of Swallows (approx 30), Goldfinches (50-100), Pied Wagtail (about 50) and Starlings (50-100) gathered on Galley Hill Common over w/e of 5th/6th November. About 40 Brent Geese flew in an easterly direction just off-shore.

28/07/11: Rhizostoma Pulmo Jellyfish 300m offshore from Galley Hill. Numerous Sandwich Tern and Common Tern, with 13 Turnstones on shore. Wheatear at Glyne Gap in evening.

Also seen recently Red Admiral butterfly on Galley Common, 2 Common Seals off Galley Hill. Numerous House Sparrows and Chiffchaffs across Galley Hill and Galley Common

Andrena thoracica is one of the most impressive species of solitary bee in the UK. It’s large with bright foxy red hairs on the thorax and a polished black abdomen. The hind legs of an actively foraging female are also usually covered in bright yellow pollen as in the specimen in these photos taken at Glyne Gap recently. The pollen is probably a mix of many species as this species is widely polylectic.

Unfortunately this species has been lost from many of it’s inland heathland sites, but is still doing ok along the coasts of Wales, Cornwall, Devon and Dorset. In the south-east the species is quite restricted and in the RX area is more or less confined to the cliffs of Hastings Country Park Nature Reserve, Glyne Gap and Castle Hill were it nests in sandy vertical banks. The males are usually seen patrolling these banks at high speed.
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The wasp mimicry of six-belted clearwings is quite exceptional, even the flight and behaviour is much closer to a Cerceris or Mellinus sphecid wasp than a day-flying moth. This nationally scarce moth is quite common at Glyne Gap and on the undercliff at Hastings Country Park Nature Reserve but is very easy to overlook due to its wasp mimicry and habit of hiding quietly amongst the foliage of its larval foodplant, bird’s-foot trefoil. (At Hastings Country Park Nature Reserve it probably also feeds on kidney vetch.)
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The cattle egret is still present in Combe Haven Valley. More information on wildhastings.

A cattle egret was present today in the western end of Combe Haven Valley. Reported by Joe Dickens on wildhastings.

Photo by Joe Dickens

Location of Combe Haven Valley

Birds reported from Glyne Gap this morning

Over 530 common scoter, 405 turnstone, 116 great crested grebe, 67 red-throated diver, 42 eider, 15 mediterranean gull, 10 yellow-legged gull, 9 black-throated diver, 8 scaup, 6 slavonian grebes, 6 purple sandpiper, 2 red-necked grebes, a red-breasted merganser and a sandwich tern.

Also over 400 brent geese reported flying east past Glyne Gap and Hastings this morning.

While working at Filsham Reedbed yesterday, 2 water rails and 2 cetti’s were heard. Late afternoon saw a juvenile marsh harrier drift over the reedbed, only to be mobbed by the local crows.

Posted on wildhastings by Alice Parfitt