A stay at our cottage in the Cotswolds for a weekend allowed me a rare moment of moth trapping. There was nothing exceptional in the trap in the morning but the following were of interest.
Treble Lines showing variation in the markings - Cowley, Cheltenham
Purple Bar, a common and widespread species that feeds on Bedstraws - Cowley, Cheltenham
White-spotted Pinion - Cowley, Cheltenham
Yellow-barred Brindle, a localised species feeding on species such as Holly, Ivy and Privet - Cowley, Cheltenham
Small Elepant Hawk-moth - Cowley, Cheltenham
Green Silver-lines - Cowley, Cheltenham
Gold Spot - Cowley, Cheltenham
Miller - Cowley, Cheltenham
Poplar Hawk-moth - Cowley, Cheltenham
Yellow Shell - Cowley, Cheltenham
June was a very wet and windy month and so curtailed most of my invertebrate survey work and I popped down to Pennington Marsh on a couple of occasions in windy and often wet conditions.
Shelduck brood and an incubating Avocet - Pennington Marsh
Shelduck chicks - Pennington Marsh
Avocet and Little Ringed Plover - Pennington Marsh
Avocet and chicks - Pennington Marsh
Well grown Avocet chick taken on the same day as the above image reflecting the extended breeding period of the species - Pennington Marsh
Little Ringed Plover - Pennington Marsh
Juvenile Sand Martin resting from the winds and rains - Pennington Marsh
Juvenile Sand Martin - Pennington Marsh
Redshank - Pennington Marsh
Redshank - Pennington Marsh
Hunting Little Egret - Pennington Marsh
Returning and non-breeding Black-tailed Godwit - Pennington Marsh
Much of my summer work has been dominated by invertebrate surveys with Adam Wright along the A358 in Taunton, Portsmouth Water sites in Hampshire and West Sussex and along the A417 in Gloucestershire. Here are a few images of some of the more interesting species we have recorded.
The Marsh Fly (a Snail-killing Fly) Coremacera marginata - Portsdown hill, Fareham
During the late June and July I recorded Downland Villa at two sites three sites in the Cotswolds and one near to Droxford in Hampshire. This previously very rare species has been making a comeback in recent years with a series of sites being found in the Cotswolds and southwards into Dorset and Hampshire.
The hoverfly Parhelophilus frutetorum - Taunton
White-legged Damselfly - Taunton
The spider Misumena vatia with prey and the beetle Oedemera nobilis, the spider has captured the fly on hogweed and the beetle is perched on the back of the spider - Taunton
The Click-beetle Agrypus murinus - Near to Arundel
The Nationally Scarce bee Osmia bicolor - Birdlip, Gloucestershire
The Nationally Scarce bee Hylaeus signatus - Portsdown Hill, Hampshire
Female Red-backed Shrike self-found during an invertebrate survey at Birdlip, Gloucestershire on 26th June. There have been five records of this species in Gloucestershire since 1971 all of which have been day birds.
Common Broomrape - Portsdown Hill, Hampshire
Lizard Orchid at a site near to Arundel, West Sussex
Lizard Orchid at a site near to Arundel, West Sussex
Lizard Orchid at a site near to Arundel, West Sussex
Fly Orchid at a site near to Arundel, West Sussex
Bee Orchid at a site near to Arundel, West Sussex
Bee Orchid at a site near to Arundel, West Sussex
Bee Orchid at a site near to Arundel, West Sussex
Common Spotted Orchid at a site near to Arundel, West Sussex
Pyramidal Orchid at a site near to Arundel, West Sussex
A short trip to Noar Hill Nature Reserve near to Selbourne in Hampshire on 24th June produced a few nice orchid species.
Common Twayblade - Noar Hill NNR, Hampshire
Common Fragrant Orchid - Noar Hill NNR, Hampshire
Common Fragrant Orchid - Noar Hill NNR, Hampshire
White form of Common Fragrant Orchid - Noar Hill NNR, Hampshire
Musk Orchid - Noar Hill NNR, Hampshire
Musk Orchid - Noar Hill NNR, Hampshire
After much searching I eventually found a single Frog Orchid
- Noar Hill NNR, Hampshire
The Nationally Scarce plant Dragon's-teeth - Noar Hill NNR, Hampshire
Knapweed Broomrape - Noar Hill NNR, Hampshire
I recorded a few of the Horsefly Chrysops caecutiens in my garden - Romsey, Hampshire
This year I eventually managed to get around to buying a set of Clearwing pheromone lures and while a took them to a few sites with me, surprisingly, my moderately urban garden in Romsey produced the greatest range of species most of which are new for me.
Red-belted Clearwing - Romsey, Hampshire
Red-tipped Clearwing - Romsey, Hampshire
A peak count of 11 Orange-tailed Clearwing - Romsey, Hampshire
Orange-tailed Clearwing - Romsey, Hampshire
Yellow-legged Clearwing - Romsey, Hampshire
Yellow-legged Clearwing - Romsey, Hampshire
