On a mild but dull morning, 11 optimistic wildlife enthusiasts set off to look for butterflies plus any other records of note. It was pleasing to see that the local Yellowhammer population had had a good breeding season, with many young being observed.

​

On reaching the end of the outbound journey, the sun refused to shine, and our total collection of butterflies was 2 Speckled Wood, 1 Ringlet and 2 Gatekeepers. The marmalade Hoverfly was the most numerous insect, with counts reaching double figures.

​

The weather brightened up on the return journey but no direct sun. As a consequence butterfly counts increased slightly, 3 Green Veined, 1 Large and 1 Small White plus two resplendent Peacock being the total count. A dead White Letter hairstreak was found hanging from a thistle head. Hoverfly activity around the thistle heads included several examples of the tapered drone fly Eristalsis pertinax. The hornet mimic Volucella zonaria was also present.

​

A poor return for this site: early August is the end of the flight period for some of the specialties found here. In future mid-July is perhaps a better option.

​

Nevertheless this was an enjoyable day shared by Ivan & Carole, Rob & Margaret, Richard, Phil, Liz, Chris, Sarah, Robert & Tony.

 

Tony Wardell