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

Portland - 31st August

Its been all work of late and with some easterly elements to the wind this weekend I was desperate to get out, so, after clearance from wifey I took Friday morning off work and headed to Portland. I was up at 04:15 and by 06:15 was watching the sunrise over Portland Bill. I wandered around the Bill area taking in the West Cliffs and Coastguard lookout area, the Beach Huts, part of the East Cliffs, Culverwell, the southern area of the Top Fields and the Observatory area. It was fairly slow going and I didnt see the hoped for Wryneck or Red-backed Shrike but every Wheatear sat atop a Bramble I imagined was a Shrike.

My totals for the morning were:

Whimbrel - 1
Snipe - 1
Common Sandpiper - 5
Great Spotted Woodpecker - 1
Swift - 1 over Culverwell and the Top Fields
Wheatear - 36
Whinchat - 1
Stonechat - 7
Yellow Wagtail - 32
Tree Pipit - 1
Swallow - 55
Sand Martin - 2
House Martin - 5
Sedge Warbler - 1
Whitethroat - 9
Chiffchaff - 3
Reed Warbler - 1
Blackcap - 3

Sunrise over Portland Bill

Wheatear - Portland Bill

Whinchat - Juvenile below the Coastguard Lookout, Portland Bill

Stonechat - In contrast to the pristine juvenile Whinchat above this adult male Stonechat looks decidely scruffy as it moults, Portland Bill

Sedge Warbler - Below the Coastguard Lookout and hanging out with the Whinchat, Portland Bill

Whimbrel - In the paddocks to the east of the Observatory, Portland Bill

Autumn Ladies-tresses - East Cliffs, Portland Bill

Autumn Lady's-tresses - East Cliffs, Portland Bill

Small Heath - East Cliff, Portland Bill

Northern Wheatear - A beautiful male bird, Top Fields, Portland Bill

Northern Wheatear - Top Fields, Portland Bill

Beaulieu Road Station and Stockbridge Down - 13th May

Having finished a survey a little earlier than thought I decided to head to Beaulieu Road Station for a short walk before heading to the office. It was a beautiful warm mid-May morning, just when the New Forest is at its best. Dartford Warbler were conspicuous and in full song and on the path from Shatterford Car Park south to Bishops Dyke two males were in full song amongst the Gorse and Heather.  

Dartford Warbler (Male) - Beaulieu Road Station

Dartford Warbler (same bird as above)

There were three pairs of Stonechat between the Shatterford Car Park and Bishop's Dyke and all had at least three fledged chicks as a result the adults, and especially the males, were defensive and followed me with their harsh chacking. While there were at least two bubbling Curlew and two pairs of Lapwing I was a little concerned not to hear any drumming Snipe, a sound that is usually typical of this site in the spring.

Stonechat (Male)

Through the scattered trees that line Bishop's Dyke the distinct 'chipping' of Crossbill could be heard from the Larch and Scot's pines and eventually at least three adult male, five female and 10 juvenile were seen although all were rather distant in the tree-tops. There were at least three singing male Redstart here and again the birds were mostly frequenting the tree tops, their stunning plumage contrasting against the blue sky of the morning. I had a quick coffee in Denny Wood where other than a Cuckoo singing amongst the Birch little was to be seen - even the Redstart were remarkably quiet presumably settled into breeding.

Crossbill - Male in Larch

Redstart - Male

Cuckoo in Birch at Denny Wood

With an hour or so to spare I decided to head to Stockbridge Down, one of my old butterfly'ing haunts, to catch-up with some spring species. Stockbridge Down is a fantastic site with a good diversity of butterfly species as well as picking-up a few migrant birds. I parked in the lower car park and walked along the track running parallel with the road and then over the road to the fantastic flower-rich meadow with abundant Cowslip. Below are the highlights of my short stop, in addition a single Pearl-bordered Fritillary was seen, a species I have not seen at this site previously.

Small Heath - Two were seen and both appeared freshly emerged

Dingy Skipper - Approximately 15 seen, most were again very fresh

Dingy Skipper - Feeding on its larval foodplant, Horseshoe Vetch

Grizzled Skipper - Just one seen

Duke of Burgundy - The prize species with at least six seen

Duke of Burgundy showing the underside of the wings

Duke of Burgundy belongs to the 'Metalmarks' a family with distinctive metallic markings, in this image the metallic bluish of the base of the forewing can be seen