1 38 139 n.c. n.c. 42 71 1 0 0 1 1 Common Gull: (3000 – 24) A common winter visitor and passage migrant, especially in spring, where max of 400 on 15th Mar. The first returning bird was on 10th Jul which was rather late. 405 on 5th Dec was a good late year count. Lesser Black backed Gull: (2128 – 24) Abundant autumn and common spring passage migrant and uncommon winter visitor. Rarely counted. Herring Gull: (2500 – 24) Common winter visitor and passage migrant. No counts made this year. Yellow legged Gull: (65 – 23) Frequent visitor, peaking in summer. Another really poor year. The max count of 6 was on 20th Aug. A juv was seen on 15th Aug. Bay monthly max: JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP OCT NOV DEC 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 6 1 1 1 0 Great Black backed Gull: (151 – 24) Daily visitor throughout the year in small numbers. Little Gull: (2 – 14) Scarce visitor. It seems that winter is almost as likely to produce one these dainty gulls as spring. A 1st W flew through the Bay in stormy weather on Jan 1st. The only other record was a 1st S at Lytchett Fields on 26th – 27th May. Kittiwake: 6th record since 1992. An Ad was in the Bay on 17th Nov (IB). The only reward arising from 9 weeks of persistent westerly wind and rain at the year end. Sandwich Tern: (6 – 24) Uncommon summer visitor. Recorded on 18 dates between 2nd Apr and 6th Oct. Max 4 on 19th Sep. Common Tern: (25 – 24)  Uncommon summer visitor. Another reduction compared to an already poor 2014. Recorded on only 7 dates. Another example of observer concentration switching to Lytchett Fields from the Bay? There were 11 bird days between 27th Apr and 22nd Sep. Max 4 on 28th Jun. Little Tern: (10 – 7 - 4)
2028 Pale Tussock Calliteara pudibunda 4 2031 White Satin Moth Leucoma salicis 1 2033 Black Arches Lymantria monacha 10 2037 Rosy Footman Miltochrista miniata 3 2043 Orange Footman Eilema sororcula 1 2044 Dingy Footman Eilema griseola 1 2047 Scarce Footman Eilema complana 2 2049 Buff Footman Eilema depressa 1 2050 Common Footman Eilema lurideola 2 2051 Four-spotted Footman Lithosia quadra 3 2060 White Ermine Spilosoma lubricipeda 1 2061 Buff Ermine Spilosoma luteum 6 2063 Muslin Moth Diaphora mendica 1 2064 Ruby Tiger Phragmatobia fuliginosa 2 2069 Cinnabar Tyria jacobaeae 2 2087 Turnip Moth Agrotis segetum 4 2088 Heart & Club Agrotis clavis 2 2089 Heart & Dart Agrotis exclamationis 47 2091 Dark Sword-grass Agrotis ipsilon 4 2092 Shuttle-shaped Dart Agrotis puta 14 2098 Flame Axylia putris 1 2102 Flame Shoulder Ochropleura plecta 12 2107 Large Yellow Underwing Noctua pronuba 150 2109 Lesser Yellow Underwing Noctua comes 14 2110 Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing Noctua fimbriata 5 2111 Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing Noctua janthe 7 2119 Pearly Underwing Peridroma saucia 1 2120 Ingrailed Clay Diarsia mendica 1 2123 Small Square-spot Diarsia rubi 7 2126 Setaceous Hebrew Character Xestia c-nigrum 9 2134 Square-spot Rustic Xestia xanthographa 28 2154 Cabbage Moth Mamestra brassicae 2 2159 Dog’s Tooth Lacanobia suasa 1 2160 Bright-Line Brown-Eye Lacanobia oleracea 5 2173 Lychnis Hadena bicruris 2 2182 Small Quaker Orthosia cruda 21 2187 Common Quaker Orthosia cerasi 31 2188 Clouded Drab Orthosia incerta 14 2189 Twin-spotted Quaker Orthosia munda 4 2190 Hebrew Character Orthosia gothica 14
Roesel’s Bush Cricket Metrioptera roeselii 1st Record Long-winged Cone-head Conocephalus discolor 1st Record Short-winged Cone-head Conocephalus dorsalis 1st Record Speckled Bush Cricket Leptophyes punctatissima Recorded Mottled Grasshopper Myrmeleotettix maculatus Recorded Field Grasshopper Gryllus pennsylvanicus Recorded Arachnids Spiders, Ticks & Scorpions Spiders are a group often ignored but it’s a group that I’m sure we are under recording and as we continue with the recording this list will grow as will many of the others. Labyrinth Spider in very common throughout the Purple Heron Field and other locations in the recording area though it seems it was overlooked in past years. After finding Wasp Spider in the garden last year Ian managed to find four others in the fields this year so hopefully their colonisation will continue. Common Name Scientific Name Dates first recorded Crab Spider Misumena vatia 3rd May Zebra Spider Salticus scenicus Recorded April House Spider Achaearanea tepidariorum Recorded Garden Spider Araneus diadematus Recorded Nursery Web Spider Pisaura mirabilis 28th July Labyrinth Spider Agelena labyrinthica Recorded Wasp Spider Argiope bruennichi 28th July Daddy Longlegs Pholcus phalangioides Recorded Money Spider Lepthyphantes tenuis Recorded Diptera Flies & Relatives Flies are not always the group that are well loved even less so than the previous group I would imagine, but I’ve been able to add fifteen species to the list in 2015. Most of the new species identified have been hoverflies, all of them found in my garden, though some have been seen in other locations on the patch also. The crane fly Tipula Maxima though a widespread and common species was nice to find sat on the wall when I went to check the moth trap one morning. As they measure around 100mm across it was something you couldn’t have missed if you tried. Hoverflies are an interesting group and I managed to add seven species to the list. Common Name Scientific Name Dates first recorded House Fly Musca domesticus Recorded
Large Marsh Horsefly Tabanus autumnalis 2nd Aug Flesh Fly sp. Sarcophaga-sp. 1st August Blue Bottle Calliphora vomitoria 1st August Green Bottle Lucillia sericata Recorded Mosquitoe Culex pipiens Recorded Common Crane Fly Tipula oleracea Recorded Crane Fly Tipula Maxima 28th Aug Tiger Crane Fly Nephrotoma flavescens Recorded 3+ Bee-fly Bombylius major 6th April Marsh Snipe Fly Rhagio scolopaceus 30th June Drone Fly (Hover Fly) Eristalis tenax Recorded April Large Hover-fly Volucella zonaria 21st Aug 15 Hover-fly sp. Volucella bombylans 7th June Hover Fly (Sun-fly) Helophilus pendulus 30th June Marmalade Hover Fly Episyrphus balteatus 19th July Pied Hover Fly Scaeva-pyra 31st July Hover Fly sp. Eupeodes-bucculatu 31st July Hover Fly sp. Chrysotoxum bicinctum 4th August Scorpian Fly Panorpa communis 27th July Sawfly sp. Tenthredo acrobat 7th July Large Rose Sawfly Arge pagana 1st August Soldier Fly sp. Oxycera pulchella 12th July Large Rose Sawfly Arge pagana 1st August Beetles & Bugs We have managed to record twenty nine species of beetle and bug since we have started recording three of which were not recorded this year. All are species that are easily found and mainly common and many of the ones noted below turned up in my moth trap. Though one species photographed by Ian Ballam on the fields Zabrus tenebriodes isn’t a common species which can be a pest in corn (the larvae eating young shoots). Two new species one a Mirid bug Stenotus binotatus was found by Ian Ballam and the Weevil Otiorhynchus clavipes was one of the species found in the moth trap. Two species Sexton Beetle – Nicrophorus humator & Nicrophorus investigator Common Name Scientific Name Dates first recorded Great Diving Beetle Dytiscus marginalis Not recorded Wirlygig Beetle Gyrinus natator 1st August
Black-clouded Longhorn Beetle Leiopus nebulosus Not Recorded Longhorn Beetle Strangalia maculata 27th June Soldier Beetle Rhagonycha fulva 25th June Bloody-nosed Beetle Timarcha tenebricosa Recorded Cardinal Beetle Pyrochroa coccinea Recorded Beetle Zabrus tenebriodes 28th Aug Thick-thighed Flower Beetle Oedemera nobilis 27th June Sexton Beetle Nicrophorus investigator 3 Records Black Sexton Beetle Nicrophorus humator 1st Record Common Cockchafer Melolontha melolontha 7th May Mint Leaf Beetle Chrysolina herbacea Recorded Rose Chafer Cetonia aurata 27th June Denticulate-leatherbug Coriomeris denticulatus Not recorded Shield Bug Nezara viridula 27th June Hawthorn Shield Bug Acanthosoma haemorrrhoidale Recorded Beetle sp. Zabrus tenebriodes Forest Shield Bug Pentatoma rufipes Recorded Shield Bug Coreus marginatus Recorded Mirid Bug Grypocoris stysi 2nd Recorded Mirid Bug Stenotus binotatus 27th June Pond Skater Gerris lacustris Recorded Water Boatman Corixa punctata Recorded April 2-spot Ladybird Adalia bipu 2nd Aug 7-Spot Ladybird Coccinella 7-punctata Recorded 22-spot Ladybird Psyllobora 22-punctata Recorded Harlequin Ladybird Harmonia axyridis Recorded Nut Weevil Curculio nucum Recorded Weevil sp. Otiorhynchus clavipes 28th Aug Mirid Bugs - Stenotus binotatus & Grypocoris stysi Lytchett Bay Plant Summary for 2015 by Katie Wilkinson Lytchett Bay has been surveyed in 2015 for bryophytes and vascular plants by survey volunteers and expert naturalists including volunteers from Dorset Flora Group and Dorset Wildlife Trust.