Week 33

An exciting week with a new butterfly on site, one I’ve been hoping for a number of years, and the 15th August it happened, two Male Common Blues, it was a great sight to see them both. This brings the Butterfly list to 21 and a figure I now feel has reached its limit…….can I hope for a Brown Argus or even a Essex Skipper, you never know

Over butterflies this week were Small Copper, Small White and Speckled Woods

Moths this week included a Large Yellow Underwing on the Moth wall

Dragonflies were pinned down at last with Brown Hawker and a Southern Hawker ID on site this week

Birds this week included the Great Spotted Woodpecker, but sadly the Swallows haven’t been on site this week so I presume they are now on their southern migration

Southern Hawker

Common Blue

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Week 32

Exciting week with a new moth species for site and Small Copper butterflies still being found on site and a new Ichneumon wasp species being found but I think this week main attraction has to go to the Swallows

Four young birds fledged this week and gave to those who saw them , great interest in their flight antics as they took flight for the first time. They rested up on the building structures as they allowed their parents to still continually feed them as they waited around, periodically stretching their wings, a short video can be seen here at my Flickr Site PRESS

A couple of Moth species found this week included the favourite Orange Swift and the new species being the Small Phoenix 

Butterflies this week included a few Small Coppers, Green veined White and Speckled Woods, these are slowly coming to the end of their flight periods for the year

Birds around this week included the Swallows, Nuthatch heard calling, Blue Tit, Great Tit, Wren and Goldfinch, a bit quiet at the moment

Small Phoenix Moth 

Week 31

Still busy on the insect front with plenty of butterflies about, Large Whites, Small Whites, Green veined Whites, Commas, Speckled Woods, Small Coppers, Holly Blues, with most of my time being spent with the Small Coppers.

Plenty of Hoverflies still about with Marmalde Hoverflies (Episyrphus balteatus), Sphaerophorias scripta and a Volucella inanis ( This hoverfly is slowly making its way northwards and was a nice one to find. A large Hoverfly of which this species is mainly a parasite of wasp larvae)

Moths this week have been low on the ground with only Udea lutealis of note

There is also of note a few Ichneumon wasps species about, these are a large and colourful species, did mange to get a photo of a Coelichneumon deliratorius. (see below photo)

Bird action was held up by the Swallows this week with the parents being very busy doing food runs, you can now clearly see the young birds at the nest edge, come early next week I think they will be flying around

Coelichneumon deliratorius

Week 30

The week belonged to the Moths this week with two new species for site, both found on the “Moth Wall”. Numerous moths this week with Small Fan Footed Wave, Large Emerald, Brimstone, Scalloped Oak but the two new species for site were Canary Shouldered Thorn (an old favourite) and Dingy Footman (new one for me too)

Canary Shouldered Thorn

Dingy Footman

Birds were a bit more active this week with plenty of young birds around the site, Swallows busy on feeding runs for the second brood. Pied and Grey Wagtails were actively feeding their off spring, Robins, Dunnock, Blue Tit and Great Tit all busy. Heard around site were Nuthatch, Bullfinch and GreatSpottedWoodpecker. Other highlights included a single Swift thru , Jays were around the site.

Butterfly highlights this week included the Small Copper and Holly Blue still seen among the thistle and bramble patch, over were numerous Peacock now on the wing, Commas, Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown, Ringlet, Small White, Large White, Green veined White, SpeckledWood

The unknown Hawker dragonfly is still patrolling the field

Week 28

A good week with plenty of activity and a couple of surprises, firstly bird activity this week was down a noisy Great Spotted Woodpecker and Nuthatch, along with sightings of Grey and Pied Wagtails.

The first surprise was early in the week was a Skipper species showing black antennae underneath the clubs, which gave rise to Essex Skipper, this would have been a tremendous find but after running the pictures thru various people (some for and some against) it was decided it wasn’t conclusive enough due to slight brown flecks on the antennae, so it went to Small Skipper, so have to find a male showing the sex bandings, so I keep looking.

Another surprise was finding a Holly Blue around the brambles although it landed occasionally it did manage to be a distance from the camera so not many pictures

The last surprise came at the end of the week when I found a lone Small Copper, now these haven’t been seen on site since 2015, so it was great to find them here again. Other Butterflies on site this week inc. Comma, Gatekeeper, Green veined White, Large Skipper, Large White, Meadow Brown,Ringlet, Small White, Speckled Wood.

Moth species were low again but a Small fan Foot Wave was located on the moth wall of all places

A dragonfly species was seen patrolling over the field, yet to be Identified

Skipper Small or Essex

Small Copper

Holly Blue

Week 27

So the hot weather carries on and so the insects keep performing Butterflies everywhere Ringlets abound, Small Skippers have had a good year, Large Skippers looking a bit worn now and so are the Meadow Browns, Speckled Woods keep putting in appearances, Green veined Whites have reappeared, great to find a few good looking Small Tortoisehells towards the end of the week, A Large White finally settled to get a positive ID, a nice to see Gatekeepers starting there seasonal flights

On to the Moths and its been a good week with 5 Spot Burnets about but some looking a bit worn now, a migratory Silver Y Moth was a good find (good numbers in the country this year), Swallowtail Moth was found on the moth wall at the end of the week, with a Straw Dot disturbed in the field, lastly a new moth species was found in the field a Smoky Wainscot (taking site list to 44)

Birds this week Chiffchaffs still about and was nice to reconnect with the Common Whitethroat again this week, Pied Wagtails have been seen around site, Swallows and Swifts have also been seen around the site, Nuthatch, Great Spotted Woodpecker and Bullfinch have been vocal this week also

Smoky Wainscot

Gatekeeper

Week 26

Another very hot week which as certainly brought out lots of insects, but first the birds.

Blackcap and Chiffchaff have been vocal again this week and the Swallows have now fledged and can be seen at various places around the site being feed by the adults.

Bullfinch has been heard calling and seen once flying over the car park, a Grey Heron was flushed from the overflow pond.

Butterflies this week have been Ringlet (numerous), Meadow Brown (numerous), Large Skipper, Small Skippers (new out this week),Speckled Woods and a few Small Whites. (now at a 13 species for the year…65% of total)

A couple of Spotted Longhorn Beetles were found, numerous Hoverflies around the site but the highlight was a Volucella bombylans plumata (new for site) see photo below