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

Odds and Ends from Week of 18th August

Its been a very busy week at work but I did manage to get out and about a little. On Wednesday 20th I made my fourth visit to the Isle of Wight where I have been assisting with the wardening of the Bee-eater nest on the National Trust Wydcombe Estate. It was a fantastic day and the Solent crossing was mirror calm giving great views of Hurst Castle and the Needles. There was little to be seen but for a handful of Common Tern and a Whimbrel in the mouth of the Lymington River.

The Needles and Hurst Castle

The Bee-eaters were performing very well and during my stint from 09:00-13:15 I saw the final one of the four chicks fledge leaving the nest empty for 45 minutes before, in short succession, two chicks returned to the nest and entered staying there to be fed by the adults until I departed the site. It was fantastic to see the two adults, two first summer birds (the nest helpers) and four fledged chicks in the area. Unfortunately, the birds were always a little distant for photographs, but I managed this record shot of one of the adults in flight.

Adult Bee-eater

There seemed to be a great deal of antagonism between the Bee-eaters and Swallows with the later often attacking the former while occasionally the Bee-eaters would retaliate and pursue the Swallows.

Bee-eater and Swallows

On my way back I decided to go for a short walk at Beaulieu Road Station. Typically for this time of the year it was fairly quiet. A flock of around 30 Crossbill in Larches at Bishops Dyke included a number of juveniles.

Juvenile Crossbill

The local Stonechat are now looking a little scruffy as they moult and I noticed that someone had got their hands on at least one of the birds and clamped some rather unsightly coloured rings on its legs.

Male Stonechat

I then made a short stop at Shatterford Bottom where one of my favourite British flowers, the Marsh Gentian grows. This is a rare and localised species in the UK with its strongholds in the New Forest and Dorset.

Marsh Gentian

Close-up of internal tube of Marsh Gentian

On Friday 22nd I spent the day working in Gosport where the amazing sight of thousands of Autumn Lady's Tresses growing on the lawns of the site greeted me. While not spectacular this is a splendid little orchid who's flowers grow around a spiralling stem recalling twirled plats. The plant flowers in August and September and the basal leaf rosette can be found right through the winter.

Autumn Lady's Tresses