White Rhinos and oxpeckers

White Rhinoceros, Ceratotherium simum

to view a gallery with more photos, click here

Last September I visited South Africa on a one week safari with friends. I posted most of my photos at the time but omitted the White Rhinoceros as our guide requested us not to identify the locations where we saw them, for obvious reasons. The recent death of the last male Northern White Rhino reminded me to post these photos.

with Oxpeckers

with Oxpecker

Ringed Plovers and a rainbow

Ringed Plover, Charadrius hiaticula

to view a gallery with more photos, click here

The only advantage of the recent showers is the occasional appearance of a rainbow. Yesterday it conveniently dipped onto the East Beach Cafe in the late afternoon. The light was excellent so I visited the Ringed Plovers.

rainbow over East Beach Cafe

Ringed Plovers

Ringed Plover

Ringed Plovers and March Moths

Barred Tooth-striped, Trichopteryx polycommata

to view a gallery with more photos, click here

Yesterday I was asked by a friend if I had seen any Ringed Plovers on the beach so I went in search of them. Fortunately a pair moved on the pebbles, which was the only way I could spot them.

 In the evening I joined Neil and Jonathan for the survey of Barred Tooth-striped moths at Mill Hill. I was pleased to find two new moths for my galleries - the March Moth (Alsophila aescularia) and the Dotted Border (Agriopis marginaria).

Ringed Plover, Charadrius hiaticula

Ringed Plover

Barred Tooth-striped, Trichopteryx polycommata

Dotted Border, Agriopis marginaria

March Moth, Alsophila aescularia

March Moth

Tudor groats and a bag seal

Mary I groat

Last Sunday on a club dig I was fortunate to find two Tudor groats, the second time I have found two hammered coins in one day. Both are very worn as is usual with coins of this period. In addition they have suffered from plough damage. They are both about 25mm in diameter. Groats were worth 4 pence.

The first coin is a Mary groat.

obverse legend:

 MARIA D G ANG FRA Z HIB REGI

Mary, by the Grace of God, Queen of England, France and Ireland

There are annulet stops and a pomegranate (the badge of her mother, Katherine) after MARIA.

reverse legend:

VERITAS TEMPORIS FILIA

Truth is the daughter of time

This is an article about the Mary groat: http://www.ipnumsoc.org.uk/articles/ATudorGroatRevisited.pdf :

Mary I was the daughter of Catherine of Aragon and Henry VIII. She was born in 1516 and in 1553 succeeded to the throne following Edward VI’s death. Mary married Prince Philip of Spain in 1554 and died in 1558. During her reign she attempted to reverse the Protestant reforms of the English church, gaining the appellation “Bloody Mary”.

The Mary I groat was in production for just one year before she married Philip of Spain, leading to the production of a new coin, probably in 1557, the Philip & Mary groat, which was the second coin I found:

Philip & Mary groat

Obverse legend:

PHILIP.ET.MARIA.D.G.REX.ET.REGINA

Philip and Mary by the Grace of God King and Queen

Reverse legend:

POSUIMUS DEUM ADIVTO NOS

We have made God our helper

See good images of both coins here: http://www.coins-of-the-uk.co.uk/pics/fourd.html

I also found a fertiliser bag seal by Webb & Sons:

fertiliser bag seal by Webb & Sons

http://www.bagseals.org/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=230 : 

Edward Webb began his business as a seed merchant c1850 near Stourbridge. In 1894 the company aquired a bone manure works in Saltney near Chester. They were appointed seedsmen to Queen Victoria.

side 1: WEBBS surrounded by REGISTERED TRADE MARK.

side 2:  MANURE MANFRS surrounded by WEBB & SONS SALTNEY CHESTER

other finds including a corroded horse harness pendant, buttons, buckle,Georgian halfpennies.

A walk round Rye Harbour

Shelduck, Tadorna tadorna

to view a gallery with more photos, click here

On February 10th I visited Rye Harbour reserve for the first time as a guest of a well-organised Sussex Wildlife Trust walking group. A long ramble round the reserve gave me the incentive to return in the Spring.

Little Egret, Egretta garzetta

Cormorants, Phalacrocorax carbo

Cormorants

Cormorants