GLANVILLE FRITILLARIES

 

Most butterfly guide books will tell you that the Glanville Fritillary, a rare butterfly, can only be found on the Isle of Wight. So I was very pleased to read on someone's blog last May that there is also a colony at a reserve south of Croydon called Hutchinson's bank, still a considerable journey from home, but a lot easier to organise than a trip to the Isle of Wight!  I made a mental note at the time, that if I had an opportunity I would try and visit the site as  this particular butterfly is a species I would otherwise be unlikely to see.

The current spell of sunny weather  has   coincided with half term when the butterflies are likely to be flying, so I left in good time to make the two hour journey to Croydon.  ( Yes,  I know some readers will think I'm a little crazy!)  In fact the journey took a little longer as less than 10 minutes after leaving home, I found my self stationery in a queue of traffic heading down  the A419 towards the motorway! 

At last I  reached Fairleigh Dean Crescent, a short cul de sac which leads from the main road to the reserve and provides the only local parking outside a row of houses. But there were no spaces left to park! I could see several people leaving their cars, holding cameras and heading towards the reserve- surely I wouldn't have to miss out on seeing the butterflies after all! 

I decided to go back to the main road and see if there was any parking to be had there, but couldn't see any so turned around and  headed back to the cul de sac just in case..... and found there was one space that had just become vacant! With relief I parked up and headed along the bridleway into the reserve. I passed a small gate onto the chalk hillside to the left, but recalled from my research that the Glanvilles could often be found in the 'cutting' and that this was accessible by wheelchair so decided that it must be straight on!  I was right, as  soon I came across a sheltered area with a bank on one side and trees and  bushes on the other and I could see various people ahead looking intently at the ground holding cameras.  I was told that there were plenty of fritillaries to be seen, but to be careful not to tread on them as they liked to sun themselves on the bare patches of earth on the path!  

I soon saw my first one, and then a couple more. In fact there must have been up to a dozen at various points along the cutting.  Initially they often rested on the ground  but later some settled on the heads of grasses which allowed a better view of the beautiful dotted patterns of the underwings. There were also lots of small blues, the odd dingy skipper, common blue and a couple of green hairstreaks although the latter were rather out of reach. Someone mentioned that there were also two or three marsh fritillaries around, though these  were not usually found at this site; apparently they had been 'dumped' last year, what ever that might mean!  Obviously with some success as one  had hatched this spring. I did find them later. 

There were several other visitors/butterfly enthusiasts at the reserve and they all seemed very friendly, some obviously had lots of knowledge and some very little!   With the temperature reaching 29 degrees, I decided by 1 pm that I would head back home, very satisfied to have added species 51 to my uk butterfly life list. Only 7 more to go  although they will get harder and harder to see, as several require visits up north and a little climbing! 

Glanville fritillary

green hairstreak

track from the cul de sac onto the reserve

marsh fritillary ( above and below)

reserve information sign

small blues

 the 'cutting' where the glanville fritillaries were  found

brimstone and blue ( I didn' t notice the blue   butterfly when I took the photo but think it might be a holly blue!)

OUT AND ABOUT

The last couple of days have brought me a few more sightings of dragonflies and butterflies. On Bank Holiday Monday I went to Goring on the way to my daughter in the hope of seeing a newly emerged clubtail dragonfly near the railway bridge which is a popular spot for them. Sadly I didn't find one, but did see several banded demoiselles, new for the year. 

banded demoiselle m

under the railway bridge at Goring

banded demoiselle f

Today I spent the first part of a warm and sunny day in an area of woodland near Cirencester, known for its pearl bordered fritillary butterflies. The usual car parking layby had been tidied but there were no parking signs there, and a notice directed you to 100m down the road to a pedestrian gate. I parked nearby entered via the gate. However this was an entrance track I was unfamiliar with so I had to sort of guess where I had to turn to  get on to the path I was looking for. Thankfully several previous visits had given me a good idea so I managed to find the area I was looking for without too much difficulty, though it took slightly longer. I turned down a narrow path into a fairly newly planted area and immediately saw several pearl bordered fritillaries, their orange wings showing up well as they fluttered a few inches above the woodland vegetation. With clear, sunny skies, the butterflies were on the wing constantly and I spotted two or three in every direction I looked. Very few individuals were settling but in the end I did manage a few  record shots, including showing the beautiful underwing pattern. 

(shame about the fly!)

I then drove over to Rodborough common, which was only 15 minutes further on,  hoping to see some blue butterflies on the wing.

 There were a few common blues, but no Adonis or small blues today. I did find  a few brown argus as well as dingy skippers and small heaths. I also spotted one duke of Burgundy. 

brown argus

duke of burgundy

common blue

A FEW SURPRISES!

 

Although the original forecast  was for cloud, it turned out  fairly bright with the sun coming through at regular intervals. I hadn't made any plans to go out, but after  completing some gardening jobs in the first part of the morning,  the temperature seemed warm enough t look for my first dragonflies of the season.  I therefore headed over to the Wiltshire wildlife trust reserve at Lower Moor Farm, which has a good range of dragonflies although I haven't visited it very much in search of them as dragonflies are a new interest for me.  

As I walked down the path from the carpark  towards the first hide,  I spotted my first dragonfly. It settled in the hedgerow so I was able to get some photos, although I didn't know which species it was, only that it had green and blue colouring.  I checked it against my reference book  later and found it was a hairy dragonfly, which was a surprise as it was not in the list of species seen  at the reserve. A close look at the photo shows the downy hairs on the thorax which distinguish it from other species. 

I took my time to  walk around the reserve, surprisingly few butterflies were around although I did find a female orange tip and later a brimstone. I explored a few new paths and had a look at the soon to open new visitor centre which looks very attractive  with its position overlooking one of the lakes. The only other species I found were some common blue damselflies and a broad bodied chaser,

I mentioned surprises in the blog title.... when I was in the garden this morning I heard some cheeping coming from the willow tree which sounded like   nestlings, but there was no nest to be seen. I then realised that it was coming from a small hole in one of the boughs of the tree, and I soon noticed a pair of blue tits going in and out.  Some blue tits had   used a hole in the trunk a few years ago, but it has since 'self healed' and is not a hole anymore. Then I realised there was some more cheeping coming from the   cherry tree where I have a nest box. I hadn't noticed any activity  and had thought it wasn't being used this year but  there were obviously birds inside!  It was too close to the willow  tree to be another pair of blue tits, so I waited around and  eventually saw great tits going in. It's the first time great tits have used that particular nest box. 

 hairy dragonfly

broad bodied chaser

female orange tip

new visitor centre at Lower Moor

path by a brook alongside a flower meadow

blue tits' nest hole in willow tree

MORGANS HILL AND CHERHILL DOWNS

With sunshine and warm temperatures today I headed over to a couple of chalk grassland sites to look for butterflies.  Firstly I re-visited Morgan's Hill where, I was pleased to find several grizzled skippers as well as dingy skippers.  I got talking to another visitor, and  having just discussed Duke of Burgundy butterflies, I suddenly saw one so was able to point it out as it was a species he'd not seen before. Although I knew they were found  there,  I've  not actually seen them on this site before but  I found at least 3 today. I  was hoping for marsh fritillaries but only managed a  brief sighting of one. They are usually on the wing by now but I wasn't sure if they had been delayed by the  wet weather.  I also added a large white to my year list at this site which was nectaring on  flowers at the side of the sheltered path which leads from the entrance to the reserve.  

After eating my lunch in the car, I decided to visit another local reserve to see if I could find any marsh fritillaries there. The path up to Cherhill  Down is a steep climb between two banks, but towards the top it widens and the sides are formed of grassy areas which  provide a sheltered area of wildflowers. I caught a glimpse of a wall butterfly in this area as well as dingy skipper and a small blue. 

At the top of the hill I headed towards the tall monument and then took a sheltered path I knew to be favoured by butterflies. Here I found several marsh fritillaries, dingy skippers, and wall butterflies, also some small heaths.  I also saw a green hairstreak which landed for a few moments on the grass. A few small blues were fluttering about but not settling where I could see them, but on the way back to the car, I spotted one clinging to some grass which I managed to photograph. 

large white

green hairstreak

marsh fritillary

wall brown

small heath

marsh fritillary

small blue

SANDERLINGS AND SKIPPERS

 

After being more or less housebound, due partly to wet and windy weather, I was keen to get out and about today to make the most of the break in the weather.  After checking the forecasts, I considered that I could take a trip over to Farmoor reservoir in the morning, while it was dry,  and then after lunch, make the most of a few breaks in the cloud to search for butterflies over at Morgan's Hill. 

At Farmoor, it was still fairly cold with a bit of a breeze as I started out along the causeway. The main point of interest was a group of four sanderlings which came within a few metres of where I was sitting on the wall. Other birds of note were three species of wagtail - pied, yellow and grey. The first two were along the causeway but the grey wagtail was down by the River Thames where I understand it has a nest.  Also down on the river were  seven families of greylags with goslings of varying ages!

Sanderling

yellow wagtail

grey wagtail

seven greylag families

After lunch I drove over to Morgan's Hill where  there were a few patches of blue sky but  also large grey clouds overhead. The wind had died down, as I followed the path uphill and across the ridge then dipped down to a sheltered area which is always a favourite for butterflies. 

During the first short burst of sunshine  I saw a dingy skipper,  then checking through my binoculars, found a green veined white, the latter being a new sighting this year.  Shortly afterwards three small butterflies suddenly appeared together, then separated, one of which flew towards me and settled for a brief moment- a grizzled skipper. Sadly I was not quick enough with my camera and it flew off as the sun was once again obscured by dark clouds and disappeared down amongst some grass a little way off where I couldn't relocate it. 

The weather wasn't ideal for butterflies, and although I did catch sight of a couple of dingy skippers mating, the grizzled skipper remained hidden. However, I was pleased to get the sighting for this year.   With Morgan's Hill being a popular site for Marsh Fritillaries, I may return within the next couple of weeks, and perhaps find the grizzled skipper again. 

view from Morgan's Hill

dingy skipper

pair of dingy skippers