Open University Exploring Nature Walk

Monday August 6th
Alner's Gorse









A warm but damp morning seemed to provide ideal conditions to find our main target, the Brown Hairstreak. In the end this wasn't to be but we did see a huge variety of invertebrates, including a surprise sighting of a different hairstreak!

The path from the car park down into the reserve took us quite a while as there was so much to see. This damselfly appeared to be an Azure Damselfly but closer inspection of the photo makes it look more like a Common Damselfly. The iSpot page should confirm this one way or the other, see http://www.ispot.org.uk/node/285246

© Bob Ford/Nature Portfolio


Common Blue Damselfly, click on the image to go to its iSpot page and see if the experts agree!



A young frog was found in the grass at our feet and a huge yellow wasp-like insect was flying around the trees but resisted any attempts at photography. The Lime trees were thought to be the Small-leaved species but now I'm not so sure. We'll just call them Limes.

The main part of the reserve had most of the butterflies, including this splendid male Purple Hairstreak.





There were also lots of Small Skippers, which need to be seen from underneath if you are to be sure they are not Essex Skippers - note the orange tips to the antennae on this one.





We also found a few moths in the grass, both these photos are linked to pages on iSpot as I am not sure about their identifications.

© Bob Ford/Nature Portfolio




Anania crocealis and Shaded Broad-bar, click on the images to go to their iSpot pages



Birds

Great-spotted Woodpecker (heard)
Green Woodpecker (heard)
Swallow
Willow Warbler (heard)
Song Thrush (dead)




Reptiles/Amphibians

Common Lizard
Common Frog




Insects

Common Blue Damselfly
Common Darter
Leafhopper Cicadella viridis
Hoverfly Helophilus trivittatus

© Bob Ford/Nature Portfolio


Hoverfly Helophilus trivittatus, photographed on an earlier walk
click on the image to go to its iSpot page



© Jos Mannering


Hoverfly Helophilus pendulus
click on the image to go to its iSpot page



Dark Bush-cricket
Meadow Grasshopper
Soldier Beetle
Shaded Broad-bar
Yellow Shell
White Plume-moth
Anania crocealis
Meadow Brown
Gatekeeper
Ringlet
Marbled White
Small Skipper
Purple Hairstreak
Hornet

© Rosie Wrigley


Hornet nest - in the toilet shed!



Plants

Tormentil
Greater Birdsfoot Trefoil
Angelica
Pignut
Lime
Blackthorn
Hawthorn
Hazel
Marsh Bedstraw
Sneezewort
Betony
Common Hemp-nettle
Marsh Ragwort
Upright Hedge Parsley

© Bob Ford/Nature Portfolio


Sneezewort, click on the image to go to its iSpot page

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