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Tom Lowe

@saloplarus.bsky.social

1.2K followers 650 following 6.2K posts

Gulls, Geese, Goshawks, Aurora, Astronomy and everything else in the sky. #lookup #salopobs - the unofficial bird observatory in the heart of Shropshire 😏

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Tom Lowe @saloplarus.bsky.social · Apr 19

Wow. Went out hoping the damp easterlies might produce a Black Tern, and found a BLACK KITE 💥 The first for #shropshirebirding hanging over Wood Lane landfill with 5 Red Kites, on view constantly for 2hrs! Absolutely awesome

Black Kite showing very well soaring over Wood Lane landfill

Black Kite (centre) soaring over Wood Lane landfill with a Red Kite and a Crow

Black Kite being chased by a Red Kite over Wood Lane landfill. The Black always looked smaller and more compact than the range Reds

Black Kite soaring over Wood Lane landfill with constantly attendant Crows

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Tom Lowe @saloplarus.bsky.social · 15h

Wonder if that's the pod that went past Bempton on dip day, similar number. I saw Runny Paint off Hartlepool in 2016 and Ross Back Sands in 2021!

Tom Lowe @saloplarus.bsky.social · 18h

Failed to intercept the Northern Bottlenose Whale in the Humber off Immingham today. Had to make do with a Shag #lincsbirding #humberbirds

Juvenile Shag flying over the muddy Humber

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Tom Lowe @saloplarus.bsky.social · 20h

Cheers. Suspect I was too late, tide was pouring out as well wasn't it

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Tom Lowe @saloplarus.bsky.social · 21h

Great find Steve! No joy downstream unfortunately. Did you see where it headed?

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Tom Lowe @saloplarus.bsky.social · 2d

All the 8s... 18/8 to the MV today of which TEN were Figure of Eights, a record count of this declining moth #salopmoths #teammoth #vc40

Close up of the eponymous 8 (or 80?!) on the wing of a Figure of Eight moth

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Tom Lowe @saloplarus.bsky.social · 2d

Figure of 72 on the wall by the mothtrap just now! (that's 9 x Figure of 8!) #salopmoths #teammoth

Two of the NINE Figure of Eight moths on the wall by the mothtrap this evening

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Tom Lowe @saloplarus.bsky.social · 2d

Found Shangri-larid on the Shropshire Cheshire border today. A tired migrant Jack Snipe tried to distract us from the 3,000 LBBGs and 8+YLGs, before handing the baton to 1,231 Pinks 🤩 #gullsandgeese #shropshirebirding #ukbirding

Jack Snipe bobbing along the edge of the pool

Adult Yellow-legged Gull amongst Lesser Black-backed Gulls

Hundreds of Lesser Black-backed Gulls flying to the fields

Dot-counted Pink-footed Geese flying over the gull pool

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Tom Lowe @saloplarus.bsky.social · 3d

So why is your Merv lacking a black band across it like mine all seem to have? Just individual variation? (Only similar one I can find in a quick check is on Norfolk Moths, so maybe it's a Norfolk thing!)

Last night's Merveille du Jour on a flag by the MV. Distinctly black-banded

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Tom Lowe @saloplarus.bsky.social · 4d

Merveille du Jour playing dead by the mothtrap this evening. Natural selection at its best #salopmoths #teammoth

Merveille du Jour lying on its back in response to an attempt to lift it into the safety of the mothtrap

Tom Lowe @saloplarus.bsky.social · 5d

Merlin, Snipe and a handful of Redwings flew in off the sea at Rossall this morning, some of the latter absolutely exhausted, maybe having overshot and come back? #migration #lancsbirding #ukbirding