andrew john lamb
@andyjlamb.bsky.social
@andy_j_lamb on Twitter as was.
(Blue) Manc, living North of the Wall. Wildlife, cycling, science, City
#FBPE
(Blue) Manc, living North of the Wall. Wildlife, cycling, science, City
#FBPE
Today’s #BirdoftheDay theme is swans.
They are probably my most photographed bird: not usually too fast, large enough to focus on, and fairly ubiquitous! Even I can get the occasional decent shot 😂
This sunset shot is from Bolam Lake in #Northumberland where you can sometimes find 100+ mute swans.
They are probably my most photographed bird: not usually too fast, large enough to focus on, and fairly ubiquitous! Even I can get the occasional decent shot 😂
This sunset shot is from Bolam Lake in #Northumberland where you can sometimes find 100+ mute swans.
November 14, 2025 at 3:45 PM
Today’s #BirdoftheDay theme is swans.
They are probably my most photographed bird: not usually too fast, large enough to focus on, and fairly ubiquitous! Even I can get the occasional decent shot 😂
This sunset shot is from Bolam Lake in #Northumberland where you can sometimes find 100+ mute swans.
They are probably my most photographed bird: not usually too fast, large enough to focus on, and fairly ubiquitous! Even I can get the occasional decent shot 😂
This sunset shot is from Bolam Lake in #Northumberland where you can sometimes find 100+ mute swans.
Let’s see then, another #BirdOfTheDay I might be able to contribute to. Today’s theme from @robcrank68.bsky.social is Birds on the Ground, so here’s a rather smart - and somewhat startled-looking - Sri Lanka Junglefowl at Wilpattu National Park, Sri Lanka’s national bird.
November 11, 2025 at 4:27 PM
Let’s see then, another #BirdOfTheDay I might be able to contribute to. Today’s theme from @robcrank68.bsky.social is Birds on the Ground, so here’s a rather smart - and somewhat startled-looking - Sri Lanka Junglefowl at Wilpattu National Park, Sri Lanka’s national bird.
Back to the graveyards now for winter ladybirds! 😂 And another surprise lifer today in Bothal churchyard, #Northumberland, taking my #ladybirdyearlist to:
21. 11-spot ladybird, Coccinella undecimpunctata
A cracking little ladybird, with hints of “eyes” to the spots.
#NELadybirdSpot
21. 11-spot ladybird, Coccinella undecimpunctata
A cracking little ladybird, with hints of “eyes” to the spots.
#NELadybirdSpot
November 8, 2025 at 3:30 PM
Back to the graveyards now for winter ladybirds! 😂 And another surprise lifer today in Bothal churchyard, #Northumberland, taking my #ladybirdyearlist to:
21. 11-spot ladybird, Coccinella undecimpunctata
A cracking little ladybird, with hints of “eyes” to the spots.
#NELadybirdSpot
21. 11-spot ladybird, Coccinella undecimpunctata
A cracking little ladybird, with hints of “eyes” to the spots.
#NELadybirdSpot
Surprising crop of salad leaves from the garden allotment here in #Northumberland today. Planted in July, but nothing came up through the summer 🤷♂️
November 8, 2025 at 11:22 AM
Surprising crop of salad leaves from the garden allotment here in #Northumberland today. Planted in July, but nothing came up through the summer 🤷♂️
First time posting a #BirdOfTheDay but couldn’t resist today’s challenge from @alan678.bsky.social: birds fighting. Reminded of a 🇰🇪 safari 30y ago when I took perhaps my best ever wildlife photo. Lappet-faced vulture & Rüppel’s Griffon.
Screenshot of a scan of a 35mm print rather reduces quality! 😂
Screenshot of a scan of a 35mm print rather reduces quality! 😂
November 7, 2025 at 6:09 PM
First time posting a #BirdOfTheDay but couldn’t resist today’s challenge from @alan678.bsky.social: birds fighting. Reminded of a 🇰🇪 safari 30y ago when I took perhaps my best ever wildlife photo. Lappet-faced vulture & Rüppel’s Griffon.
Screenshot of a scan of a 35mm print rather reduces quality! 😂
Screenshot of a scan of a 35mm print rather reduces quality! 😂
Nearly done for this year from the garden allotment. Last of the tomatoes & all the large chillis. Just beans drying on the plant left. Been another good year for tomatoes, amazing for lettuce/salad, but rubbish for onions & peas/beans and a disaster for brassicas (unless you’re a 🐛)
#Northumberland
#Northumberland
October 19, 2025 at 4:42 PM
Nearly done for this year from the garden allotment. Last of the tomatoes & all the large chillis. Just beans drying on the plant left. Been another good year for tomatoes, amazing for lettuce/salad, but rubbish for onions & peas/beans and a disaster for brassicas (unless you’re a 🐛)
#Northumberland
#Northumberland
Yes! Wasn’t convinced anything would stay in the trap overnight, so stayed up until 1am to see if anything settled on the wall…this beautiful Merveille du Jour turned up 🤩
And it *was* gone by this morning! One of 2 new moths for me, the other this chunky Large Wainscot.
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
And it *was* gone by this morning! One of 2 new moths for me, the other this chunky Large Wainscot.
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
October 18, 2025 at 8:05 AM
Yes! Wasn’t convinced anything would stay in the trap overnight, so stayed up until 1am to see if anything settled on the wall…this beautiful Merveille du Jour turned up 🤩
And it *was* gone by this morning! One of 2 new moths for me, the other this chunky Large Wainscot.
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
And it *was* gone by this morning! One of 2 new moths for me, the other this chunky Large Wainscot.
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
An unexpected addition to the #LadybirdYearList today and a new species for me:
20. Rhyzobius litura
in the garden waste bin (finally!).
Also my 15th species for the #NEladybirdspot 😀 #Northumberland
20. Rhyzobius litura
in the garden waste bin (finally!).
Also my 15th species for the #NEladybirdspot 😀 #Northumberland
October 11, 2025 at 12:32 PM
An unexpected addition to the #LadybirdYearList today and a new species for me:
20. Rhyzobius litura
in the garden waste bin (finally!).
Also my 15th species for the #NEladybirdspot 😀 #Northumberland
20. Rhyzobius litura
in the garden waste bin (finally!).
Also my 15th species for the #NEladybirdspot 😀 #Northumberland
Thanks. Hadn’t considered that. I’d wondered about a dark Lunar Underwing, but was appreciably bigger than the pale one I got.
October 11, 2025 at 10:58 AM
Thanks. Hadn’t considered that. I’d wondered about a dark Lunar Underwing, but was appreciably bigger than the pale one I got.
Another late decision to put the trap out - at midnight. But glad I did. 2 more new species for me, Dark Sword Grass & Chestnut, and one of my favourites - Angle Shades (see lots of 🐛 in the garden but seem to rarely record adults). Also a confusing dark Noctuid; any ideas?
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
October 11, 2025 at 10:40 AM
Another late decision to put the trap out - at midnight. But glad I did. 2 more new species for me, Dark Sword Grass & Chestnut, and one of my favourites - Angle Shades (see lots of 🐛 in the garden but seem to rarely record adults). Also a confusing dark Noctuid; any ideas?
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
Despite very windy conditions, I spotted 7 species of #butterfly out on my bike in #Northumberland yesterday: Small & Large White, Red Admiral, Peacock, Speckled Wood, Comma and Small Copper. The Peacock was very obliging, posing for a photo on my finger!
October 6, 2025 at 7:41 AM
Despite very windy conditions, I spotted 7 species of #butterfly out on my bike in #Northumberland yesterday: Small & Large White, Red Admiral, Peacock, Speckled Wood, Comma and Small Copper. The Peacock was very obliging, posing for a photo on my finger!
Yay! My flimsy poly-greenhouse somehow survived more-or-less intact through #StormAmy but the outdoor tomatoes and beans have been flattened. A lot of windowsill space needed to ripen this lot!
#Allotment #HomeGrown #Northumberland
#Allotment #HomeGrown #Northumberland
October 4, 2025 at 10:30 AM
Yay! My flimsy poly-greenhouse somehow survived more-or-less intact through #StormAmy but the outdoor tomatoes and beans have been flattened. A lot of windowsill space needed to ripen this lot!
#Allotment #HomeGrown #Northumberland
#Allotment #HomeGrown #Northumberland
Late decision, around 10:30pm, to put the UV trap out and glad I did! Only 8 moths of 6 species overall, but a nice mix with surprisingly, two more new moth species for me (Spruce Carpet & Pale Mottled Willow) plus two remarkably different Lunar Underwing. #TeamMoth #Northumberland
September 27, 2025 at 8:05 AM
Late decision, around 10:30pm, to put the UV trap out and glad I did! Only 8 moths of 6 species overall, but a nice mix with surprisingly, two more new moth species for me (Spruce Carpet & Pale Mottled Willow) plus two remarkably different Lunar Underwing. #TeamMoth #Northumberland
In the days of 1K home computing (yes, really), you could add this wonderful upgrade to your ZX81, increasing memory by 1600%. Except that the connection was so unstable, the computer itself became unusable, and would crash from the gentlest of touches.
September 17, 2025 at 8:13 AM
In the days of 1K home computing (yes, really), you could add this wonderful upgrade to your ZX81, increasing memory by 1600%. Except that the connection was so unstable, the computer itself became unusable, and would crash from the gentlest of touches.
Surprising new moth for me on Friday night among the total count of 6 moths, half of which were Setaceous Hebrew Character! This small Gelechid, a Beet Moth, Scrobipalpa ocellatella.
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
September 14, 2025 at 10:52 AM
Surprising new moth for me on Friday night among the total count of 6 moths, half of which were Setaceous Hebrew Character! This small Gelechid, a Beet Moth, Scrobipalpa ocellatella.
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
It’s only a phone shot, but rather pleased with this Curlew by the Tyne at low tide, Newburn riverside today.
#NEbirding
#NEbirding
September 13, 2025 at 10:26 PM
It’s only a phone shot, but rather pleased with this Curlew by the Tyne at low tide, Newburn riverside today.
#NEbirding
#NEbirding
Nothing new today, but a notable garden count of species found in my #Northumberland garden at lunch time:
3x 7-spot
2x 10-spot
2x Cream-spot
1x 14 spot
And an Orange Ladybird on the moth trap earlier, too.
#NEladybirdspot
3x 7-spot
2x 10-spot
2x Cream-spot
1x 14 spot
And an Orange Ladybird on the moth trap earlier, too.
#NEladybirdspot
September 10, 2025 at 1:11 PM
Nothing new today, but a notable garden count of species found in my #Northumberland garden at lunch time:
3x 7-spot
2x 10-spot
2x Cream-spot
1x 14 spot
And an Orange Ladybird on the moth trap earlier, too.
#NEladybirdspot
3x 7-spot
2x 10-spot
2x Cream-spot
1x 14 spot
And an Orange Ladybird on the moth trap earlier, too.
#NEladybirdspot
Looks good for a rare VC67 record of Fen Wainscot. On our window the night before I went on holiday end July so pretty much ignored it as “too plain” to work out, but uploaded to @inaturalist.bsky.social as “Noctuidae” & forgot all about it. Identity proposed yesterday was a nice surprise!
#TeamMoth
#TeamMoth
September 4, 2025 at 5:23 PM
Looks good for a rare VC67 record of Fen Wainscot. On our window the night before I went on holiday end July so pretty much ignored it as “too plain” to work out, but uploaded to @inaturalist.bsky.social as “Noctuidae” & forgot all about it. Identity proposed yesterday was a nice surprise!
#TeamMoth
#TeamMoth
Completely agree!
August 29, 2025 at 10:44 AM
Completely agree!
Back to the exotic, #SriLanka for family vacation! Some sneaky bug hunting while everyone else sunbathes or sleeps!
Finally yesterday 2 more for my #LadybirdYearList:
19. Micraspis discolor
20. Harmonia octomaculata, Large Spotted Ladybird
Both new to me so not 100% on either…corrections welcome!
Finally yesterday 2 more for my #LadybirdYearList:
19. Micraspis discolor
20. Harmonia octomaculata, Large Spotted Ladybird
Both new to me so not 100% on either…corrections welcome!
August 11, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Back to the exotic, #SriLanka for family vacation! Some sneaky bug hunting while everyone else sunbathes or sleeps!
Finally yesterday 2 more for my #LadybirdYearList:
19. Micraspis discolor
20. Harmonia octomaculata, Large Spotted Ladybird
Both new to me so not 100% on either…corrections welcome!
Finally yesterday 2 more for my #LadybirdYearList:
19. Micraspis discolor
20. Harmonia octomaculata, Large Spotted Ladybird
Both new to me so not 100% on either…corrections welcome!
The knowledgeable folk in the local moths Facebook group is proposing this as Maple Pug, would be only the 7th for the county. Sadly only the one photo taken, at night on my shorts, before I lost it!
Any thoughts, #TeamMoth? #Northumberland.
Any thoughts, #TeamMoth? #Northumberland.
July 25, 2025 at 1:46 PM
The knowledgeable folk in the local moths Facebook group is proposing this as Maple Pug, would be only the 7th for the county. Sadly only the one photo taken, at night on my shorts, before I lost it!
Any thoughts, #TeamMoth? #Northumberland.
Any thoughts, #TeamMoth? #Northumberland.
Broke the 50 moth barrier and 30 species barriers for last night in my debut year moth trapping.
Highlights: 2 more new species for me, Dun-bar & Shuttle-shaped Dart, a NFY Early Thorn, & 9 Riband Wave. Mostly still around -rather than in- the trap, but can’t complain!
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
Highlights: 2 more new species for me, Dun-bar & Shuttle-shaped Dart, a NFY Early Thorn, & 9 Riband Wave. Mostly still around -rather than in- the trap, but can’t complain!
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
July 22, 2025 at 11:40 AM
Broke the 50 moth barrier and 30 species barriers for last night in my debut year moth trapping.
Highlights: 2 more new species for me, Dun-bar & Shuttle-shaped Dart, a NFY Early Thorn, & 9 Riband Wave. Mostly still around -rather than in- the trap, but can’t complain!
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
Highlights: 2 more new species for me, Dun-bar & Shuttle-shaped Dart, a NFY Early Thorn, & 9 Riband Wave. Mostly still around -rather than in- the trap, but can’t complain!
#TeamMoth #Northumberland
Last leaves from bolted lettuces, a few more kohlrabi, underripe tomatoes & redcurrants from the garden allotment today. Off on holiday in a week, so think my kind neighbour -who waters while we’re away- will see the best of the ripe tomatoes! 🤷♂️
Also, raspberry canes cut back & cabbages covered 🦋
Also, raspberry canes cut back & cabbages covered 🦋
July 20, 2025 at 1:15 PM
Last leaves from bolted lettuces, a few more kohlrabi, underripe tomatoes & redcurrants from the garden allotment today. Off on holiday in a week, so think my kind neighbour -who waters while we’re away- will see the best of the ripe tomatoes! 🤷♂️
Also, raspberry canes cut back & cabbages covered 🦋
Also, raspberry canes cut back & cabbages covered 🦋
Didn’t see the Green Sandpiper, but 2 Avocet there at 12:30
July 19, 2025 at 8:05 PM
Didn’t see the Green Sandpiper, but 2 Avocet there at 12:30
At last, another UK addition to my #LadybirdYearList:
18. Kidney-spot Ladybird
Glad to finally see them turn up again in my #Northumberland garden. They’ve been an ever-present species since 2017 but had not seen one so far this year.
18. Kidney-spot Ladybird
Glad to finally see them turn up again in my #Northumberland garden. They’ve been an ever-present species since 2017 but had not seen one so far this year.
July 18, 2025 at 10:42 AM
At last, another UK addition to my #LadybirdYearList:
18. Kidney-spot Ladybird
Glad to finally see them turn up again in my #Northumberland garden. They’ve been an ever-present species since 2017 but had not seen one so far this year.
18. Kidney-spot Ladybird
Glad to finally see them turn up again in my #Northumberland garden. They’ve been an ever-present species since 2017 but had not seen one so far this year.