Hampshire Butterflies - Martin Down 17th May

My second outing in my quest to see all of the regularly breeding butterflies in Hampshire took me to Martin Down on 17th May primarily for Marsh Fritillary which is on the wing from mid-May to mid-June. Its very important to target these species with short flight periods at the peak of their season to avoid missing them - although I guess thats an obvious statement, even with so few species to see in Hampshire, some planning is required. Other targets here were Adonis Blue, Green Hairstreak and Small Blue all of which were seen.

Marsh Fritillary - Slightly worn but still a stunning and highly localised 

species in Hampshire

Marsh Fritillary - A much fresher individual than that above

Marsh Fritillary

Marsh Fritillary

Adonis Blue - Intense blue with black lines crossing through the white border of both fore and hind wings, a stunning species of sparse chalk grassland

Green Hairstreak

Green Hairstreak

Small Blue

Small Heath

Small Heath

Common Blue - Note how the black sub-margin of the wing lacks the cross lines bisecting the white wing border unlike Adonis Blue

Brimstone - An egg laying female, note the egg towards the base of the plant 

on the right hand side

Grizzled Skipper

Burnet Companion

Forester Moth

The stunning hoverfly Xanthogramma citrofasciatum

The bumblebee mimic hoverfly Volucella bombylans

Noar Hill National Nature Reserv, Selbourne - 21st May

After a breeding bird survey near to Havant I headed to Noar Hill National Nature Reserve to see if I could connect with Duke of Burgundy. This 20 hectare reserve was was formerly a medieval chalk working is owned and managed by Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust (HIWWT). The reserve consists of a mosaic of scrub and species rich grassland which has a high diversity of invertebrates, many of which are rare and scarce. The population of Duke of Burgundy at the site is one of the strongest in Hampshire and, while towards the end of the flight season, I was keen to see this rare and localised species which is on the wing for only a few weeks in a year. On arrival at the site the first butterfly I saw was indeed a Duke of Burgundy but it was a very tatty individual with worn wings and a missing antennae. The next butterfly was a stunning and pristine Small Blue and then a Dingy Skipper. I began to encounter more Duke's and through the hour or so I was at the site I encountered around 15 specimens, mostly they were fairly worn, but I came across at least three fresher individuals.

It was still a little early for the vegetation to be in full bloom but there were hundreds of Common Twayblade and Cowslip as well as around 10 Early Purple Orchid which were far past there best. It was a very enjoyable stop but the pressure was on to get back to my desk.

Duke of Burgundy - Noar Hill NNR, Selbourne

Duke of Burgundy - Noar Hill NNR, Selbourne

Duke of Burgundy - Noar Hill NNR, Selbourne

Small Heath - Noar Hill NNR, Selbourne

Common Blue - Noar Hill NNR, Selbourne

Common Blue - Noar Hill NNR, Selbourne

Small Blue - Noar Hill NNR, Selbourne

Dingy Skipper - Noar Hill NNR, Selbourne

The micromoth Pyrausta purpurea - Noar Hill NNR, Selbourne

Common Twayblade - Noar Hill NNR, Selbourne

Eyebright - Noar Hill NNR, Selbourne

Common Milkwort - Noar Hill NNR, Selbourne

Painswick Beacon, Stroud - 1st August

Over the last couple of months I have become quiet fanatical about biological recording and have been recording all the species I see while on site working and have been visiting sites to record the species I can identify. I have been entering all my records on iRecord which I find a very user friendly package which allows analysis of records straightforward. In theory, entered records are vetted by 'experts' and then submitted to the relevant records and county databases.

We had the week from 28th July at Cowley in the Cotswolds and I planned to visit a nearby site to carry out some recording. The weather for much of the week was pretty awful and we did lots of much needed relaxing but on 1st August the weather was brighter and so I did a little research to find a potentially good site nearby. Exploring MAGIC I decided that Painswick Beacon would be an interesting site being a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). I have previously visited this site for birding and at this time had noticed that there was some diverse calcareous grassland and so decided this would be the best site.

I spent around three hours on site from 10:00 and recorded a total of 145 species of plant, insect and bird with a few invertebrates left to identify and had a fantastic relaxing time at a very interesting site which I am sure I will return to. Here are a few images from the morning.

The splendid Tachinid Fly Phasia hemiptera feeding on Hogweed. This is a male, the females being clad with orange hairs. It is a parasite of Heteropteran bugs, with known hosts including Green Shieldbug and Forest Bug. The female lays her eggs on these insects and the larvae then develop inside the living host. Painswick Beacon.

Phasia hemiptera - Painswick Beacon.

The hoverfly Leucozona glaucia feeding on Hogweed. The larvae feed on aphids, usually on Hogweed and other 

umbellifers. This is a female with the eyes being widely separated. Painswick Beacon.

The hoverfly Leucozona glaucia - Painswick Beacon.

The hoverfly Leucozona glaucia. This is a male with the eyes touching. Painswick Beacon.

The hoverfly Leucozona glaucia - Painswick Beacon.

The hoverfly Cheilosia illustrata. This is a female with the eyes separated. Illustrata is often seen on Hogweed 

and the larvae tunnel the roots of large Hogweed plants in autumn. Painswick Beacon.

Musk Orchid - I found around 30 flower spikes but most were over, this was the only 

spike with some flowers remaining. Painswick Beacon.

Common Blue, I saw around 20 this morning - Painswick Beacon.

Common Blue on Harebell - Painswick Beacon.

Syrphus ribesii, identifiable by the mainly yellow hind femur. It is similar to S. torvus which is best 

distinguished by the distribution of microtrichia (small pits) on the 2nd basal cell of the wing

The hoverfly Eristalis tenax - Painswick Beacon

Male of the Tachinid fly Tachina fera, the larvae are parasites of caterpillars and other young insects. Painswick Beacon

The hoverfly Myathropa florea. These are fantastic hoverflies and always a pleasure to see even 

though common. Larvae occur in rot holes or cavities with decaying leaves amongst roots at the base of trees, 

the adults occur widely.

The hoverfly Chrysotoxum bicinctum. A very distinctive and beautiful hoverfly. Note the double yellow bars on the abdomen 

and the long straight antennae. Very little is known about the life history of the species (or indeed the genus Chrysotoxum) 

but the larvae are thought to feed on ant-attended root aphids. 

Woolly Thistle, one of my favourite British plants - Painswick Beacon

Mottled Grasshopper. This is a species of very short calcareous swards. I identify most of my Odonata by the sound of their stridulation but the distinctive 'handlebar' antennae of Mottled Grasshopper confirms the identification. Painswick Beacon

Small Blue, I found this single individual in a small quarry at the foot of the beacon. Painswick Beacon

Carline Thistle, a classic species of chalk grassland - Painswick Beacon

Carline Thistle - Painswick Beacon

Brown Argus, the species seems to be having a good late season and I saw a around 15 today. Painswick Beacon

View from Painswick Beacon

View from Painswick Beacon