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Baldbirder: Ross Newham

@baldbirder.bsky.social

400 followers 230 following 180 posts

Wildlife enthusiast - birds, mammals, orchids, dragonflies, butterflies, moths...and everything else when time permits. Often armed with a camera.

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Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · 5d

Turkestan Shrike at Dunwich Heath NR - a stunning wee chap! #RareBirdsUK #SuffolkBirding

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · 8d

Whinchat at East Malling Resaerch Station this lunchtime - has been knocking about with a few Stonechats this week. #KentBirding @kentishplover.bsky.social #birding

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · 9d

Red-breasted Fly showed well, but briefly, in South View garden at Dungeness this lunchtime. #KentBirding #RareBirdsUK

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Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · 9d

Clouded Yellow (F) and Common Blue at East Malling this week - enjoying some wildflower-smothered headlands. Best we enjoy them for last few weeks we have them! #KentNature #UKButterflies

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · 12d

Lesser Grey Shrike (Winterton) and Lesser Yellowlegs (Etton Maxey) - a great double-act in the sun today. #RareBirdsUK

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · 18d

Nice alula you got there Rachel.

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Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · 20d

Kentish Plover found by @seasalterbirder.bsky.social - distant by the time I got to it... #KentBirding

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · 22d

Lovely Grey Phalarope at Mercer CP, Surrey, after the office today. Hopefully it’ll reorientate back out to the open ocean. @rarebirder.bsky.social #UKBirding

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · 25d

Male Red-footed Falcon at Elmley NNR this lunchtime - a stunning little performer! #RareBirdsUK #kentbirding @rarebirder.bsky.social #UKBirding

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Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · 29d

Any thoughts on who would be interested in the specimen?

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · 29d

#KentNature

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · 29d

Tiny (3mm) Ant on the office desk this afternoon (East Malling). ObsIdentify comes up with Crematogaster scutellaris (mainly). Possibly rare: probably imported. @ianbeavis.bsky.social @kentgrasshoppers.bsky.social @kentfieldclub.bsky.social

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Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · Aug 10

Queen of Spain Fritillary butterfly at Pantlife's lovely Ranscombe Farm reserve, this afternoon (14:05). @plantlifeuk.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social #KentNature

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Reposted by Baldbirder: Ross Newham

Sarah Arnold @sejarnold.bsky.social · Aug 3

A particular feature of the site is that is has a population of Sitaris muralis that was first noted by @baldbirder.bsky.social in 2024 and was back in force this year. The beetles parasitise nests of Anthophora plumipes. [2/]

A black beetle with distinctive orange shoulders, on a brick wall that has holes in the mortar. (Sitaris muralis.)

Foreground shows at least 3 black beetles with orange shoulders in a big pile. They all have weird reduced elytra that don't fully cover the wings or abdomen. Background shows another beetle. All are on concrete with sandy surface.

A very distended S. muralis in a glass tube. Abdomen is dark brown, rest of beetle is black apart from distinctive yellow-orange shoulders. Beetle is right way up but legs scrunched under it as dead.

A hole in brickwork/mortar with spider webbing forming a tunnel, in which a large dark coloured spider sits among at least 2 dead Sitaris muralis beetles.

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Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · Aug 2

Fun aren’t they!

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · Jul 25

Orange-shouldered Blister Beetles starting to emerge at their colony in East Malling today. #KentNature @kentfieldclub.bsky.social

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Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · Jul 7

A very nice find Sarah! #kentnature

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · Jun 30

Nice one!

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · Jun 26

Lovely stuff!

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · Jun 11

Lots of lovely fun and a darn sight better than the juvvy ‘Pink Stinks’ that occur more commonly in Autumn. Worth a quick evening trip…

Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · Jun 11

Stunning Rose-coloured Starling at @dungenessbirdobs.bsky.social this evening - one of two great finds today by Jacob at the Obs (other being Bee-eater). #KentBirding #RareBirdsUK

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Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · May 18

Slightly late to the Hudsonian Godwit party at Titchfield Haven NNR this afternoon - ten years after my first. Very smart adult female bird that had the decency to lift her wings on a few occasions... @rarebirder.bsky.social @gnhbirder66.bsky.social #RareBirdsUK #UKBirding

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Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · May 13

Whiskered Tern on Hookers Pit, RSPB Dungeness, this evening. A super little performer! #KentBirding #RareBirdsUK @rspb.bsky.social

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Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · May 12

The Roseate Tern at Normandy Lagoons is sporting a ring - didn’t feel like a @btobirds.bsky.social ring given ‘different’ address line at the top…or perhaps I’m imagining things! #seabirds

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Baldbirder: Ross Newham @baldbirder.bsky.social · May 12

A few caterpillars showed well yesterday, including: Small Eggar (Martin Down NNR), and Blossom Underwing, Mottled Umber and Lackey all in woods near Chiddingfold, Surrey. #TeamMoth #nature