I've got a bit behind on photos due to the air show season, sorry about that: it occurs to me belatedly that by waiting to put up accounts till I have pix I'm giving out news late - what do you guys think? Accounts and pix separately, or are you content to wait? I don't want anyone missing out because of late news.
Anyway, last weekend Maz and I had a couple of days in the South West. We kicked off with a visit to the Devon Beavers as Maz had never seen them, then scooted across to Buckfastleigh for Greater Horseshoe Bats (and only caught the end of them as we had been enjoying the Beavers) and finished the evening by driving to Porthgwarra to be ready for a seawatch on Saturday morning.
Last time I visited the European Beavers I saw a very heavily pregnant female. Since then she has produced two kits and we saw all three animals. First out was a quite large kit that was properly suspicious of the several watchers but foraged near the lodge and eventually went and recovered a long green willow branch, pre-trimmed by presumably his mum, which he took from its storage position to the lodge entrance before having a gnaw. Maz was pleased and entertained, but was unprepared for the size of the female when she finally emerged: I enjoyed her exclamation of surprise.
With his parent present the big kit relaxed considerably and actually came to our bank to forage before setting off on his own upstream. The smaller kit then appeared and went to the female who paid him a little attention in between attending to her own grooming. He fed on some small lengths of root and twig till she set off upriver and then returned to the lodge.
Birds on Saturday were not quite disappointing but singles of Cory's and Balearic Shearwaters contrasted with loads of Manx. However, the cetaceans delivered with a pod of about thirty Common Dolphins, a group of four Harbour Porpoises and a couple of views of a Minke Whale! I got some very distant record shots of the dolphins near the Runnelstone. As the whale only showed twice (how do they just disappear completely in a flat calm sea?) I got no pix of it. It arched over very strongly on the second dive and I suspect it sounded properly, but how far can they go underwater?
Because this was a spontaneous weekend away, we then tried to find some accommodation in the toe-end of Cornwall and failed utterly over a couple of hours. Cornwall was full. I blame the internet: small B&Bs off the beaten track that always used to have odd days they hadn't filled now have a presence on the web and can be found easily.
With Maz's back problems there was no way she was going to endure Saturday night in the car (she informed me in no uncertain terms) so we decided on a course of desperation, driving back up to Buckfastleigh for an evening meal, a second go at the bats and a very far outside chance of getting a room at the Abbey Inn.
Miraculously, it all worked - they had a last minute cancellation just as we arrived, so we got a room. To put that in perspective, it wasn't available till literally minutes before we arrived, and within a quarter of an hour someone else came in and asked for a room. As they disappeared disappointed out of the door, the landlord asked if we felt guilty. Ha ha ha ha ha ha - no.
After dinner I disappeared myself, off to watch the Greater Horseshoes again, and following that, with no more driving to do I was able to have a few beers. The Abbey Inn does good food, stocks St Austell real ales in excellent condition and the rooms, if you can get them, are dead comfortable. We set no alarm.
Sunday we came home via Alner's Gorse, a Butterfly Conservation reserve in Dorset, and although we missed the Brown Hairstreaks I'd hoped for we had plenty of individuals of common species and an easy run home.
John
European Beaver X 5