Wildlife September - November 2012

[Anthony Darby]

All year we have a pair of Australian magpies (Gymnorhina tibicen) at the local 'reserve', usually on the football pitches, but often on the goal posts or nearby trees. I've never seen where their nest is, but they often 'bomb' Heidi on her walks. This week Heidi and I spotted three youngsters. Heidi didn't see them at first, and when she did, she behaved herself. Two were out in the open, although number three scuttled under the tall privet bushes. Number two was in a pine tree, but at shoulder height.

[Anthony Darby]

Anyone seen this? https://secure.38degrees.org.uk/page/s/ban-the-pesticides-that-are-harming-our-bees#petition

[Paul T]

Can't sign it unfortunately if you're in Australia.  It won't accept our postcodes as valid.

[Anthony Darby]

I use FK15 0DZ. Works every time. Post codes in New Zealand don't really work. 36 FK15 0DZ would find my old house in Dunblane. 55 2013 would find dozens here in New Zealand.

[Anthony Darby]

Look out for Planet Ants on the BBC in December and Discovery Channel in 2013.  http://www.tropicalhouse.co.uk/page14.php?view=thumbnailList&category=1  I've known the owner Andrew since he was a pupil at the school I taught in. I got a free trip to Trinidad to collect leaf cutting ants for sourcing a colony of wood ants for him to use in the 2004 film Trauma.

[Hoy]

Not many butterflies or other insects here now, but I saw a small harbor dolphin (Phocoena phocoena) and some harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) the other day. However farther north they were visited by a flock of dolphins (Lagenorhynchus).




Picture from this site:  http://nrk.no/nyheter/distrikt/nordland/1.8364506

[mark smyth]

The Japanese in Taiji, Higashimuro District, have been killin :'(g all the dolphins they can get their hands on 

[Lesley Cox]

Good Lord Trond, I thought for a moment there that a small penguin had travelled north!

[Lesley Cox]

I use FK15 0DZ. Works every time. Post codes in New Zealand don't really work. 36 FK15 0DZ would find my old house in Dunblane. 55 2013 would find dozens here in New Zealand.

Post codes in NZ seem to apply to quite large districts, whole suburbs, or in my case, a whole RD number (that's a Rural Delivery, not a Road) not single streets. It is assumed I guess that anyone posting an article would have the gumption to put the delivery address as well as the post code.

I found the security had expired when I went to the bee petition.

[Hoy]

Good Lord Trond, I thought for a moment there that a small penguin had travelled north!

Oh, no, Lesley, the real penguin went extinct in 1850ies 

The real penguin (or geirfugl in Norw., great auk, penguin fowls, Pinguinus impennis):



http://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geirfugl

[Anthony Darby]

Usual story. Museums and collectors realise it's becoming rare, so they hunt it to oblivion before it's too late.

[ronm]

How's the moth light going Anthony??

[Anthony Darby]

Not tried it yet. We have had a lot of wind and rain lately, and the weather has been unusually cold.

[ronm]

I can't wait to see what happens when you do. As I said before I think we might see something special.

[mark smyth]

Waxwings have arrived on the Shetlands. I hope it will be a Waxwing year