Wild and Wonderful: Felixstowe

Showing posts with label Felixstowe. Show all posts

Monday, 28 March 2022

Sunstar and other Seastars (Starfish)

We took advantage of the bright weather last weekend and headed out to the coast at Felixstowe. There were few birds about, but in a secluded corner we found a collection of starfish, or 'sea stars' to use the preferred name in scientific circles.

The one above is, I believe, a Common sunstar. I don't think I have ever encountered one before. What a beautiful creature.

I couldn't resist the photo above, which shows the proximity of the Common sunstar to one of the other star-shaped echinoderms. I hadn't noticed the 'stars' of white light from the camera until the photo was uploaded; it seemed a shame to crop them off!

As you can see from the second photo in this post, there were quite a few ripples in the pool so it was not easy to take a sharp picture. The photo above shows the best attempt at detail I could manage.

The images immediately above and below show what I think must be the Common seastar, Asterias rubens.

Can you see those marks in the sand (top right), which I assume indicate the creature's direction of travel.

Another . . .

. . . and another

And finally, lurking in the sand was what I suspect may be the rather sad remains of a Brittlestar or similar . . .

I shall post these on iSpot, and may hopefully learn a bit more. I now know to keep an eye out for these fascinating sea creatures, particularly after a storm.

Saturday, 12 September 2020

Landguard Nature Reserve

We took advantage of the warm weather today and enjoyed an afternoon by the sea in Felixstowe at the Landguard Nature Reserve.

There was a short stretch of boardwalk leading towards the water, and, as you can see, it wasn't exactly overrun with people. The next two pictures show us enjoying a virtually empty beach...

Readers of this blog will know that I often look out for an oyster shell when I am on the beach in this area to remind me of the Romans who would have walked along these shores from nearby Walton Castle, which has now disappeared.

More empty sands... looking into the sun

... and away from the sun towards the town.

A cargo ship was being filled with containers just behind us.

I had been told that there were some small flowers to look out for on the reserve...

I need to research the names of some of the flowers. The one above is a kind of Trefoil, I think.

The bird observatory, which has been here since 1982, sits at the top of the shingle beach. This is a very good place for encountering migrant birds.

On this occasion the birds we saw...

...were not particularly unusual. I see the wagtail has been ringed.

There were several clumps of Scarlet Pimpernel in an area of sand dune inhabited by a colony of rabbits.

I was quite surprised to find the Horned Poppies still in flower.

Thanks to the comment below from Conehead54 I now know that the little flowers in the next photo are Common Storksbill.

I think this yellow flower is Lady's Bedstraw.

At one point these Cormorants did a fly-past.

We also encountered a small murmuration of Starlings...

You can see them on the horizon in a dark arc.

Again thanks are due to Conehead54 for telling me that this is Common Centaury. I must learn these plants that grow on or near our shingle beaches.

There were plenty of ripe blackberries.

David kept a tally of the butterflies we encountered. These were largely Small Whites and we were encouraged at the numbers.

All in all we were very pleased to renew our acquaintance with this coastal corner of Suffolk, and hope to explore its wildlife further, another lockdown permitting.

P.S. I have finally given in and converted to the new Blogger interface. Unlike the old one, I am not finding it very intuitive so please bear with me as I learn how to sort out the spacing etc!