Local Flowers and Insects

Tuesday 30th May and I had a quick walk around Blagdons Meadow by the River Plym before meeting a work colleague for lunch. I had hoped to see small heath here after a blank last year but unfortunately I again failed to find again - interestingly I recently found out that they are present at Chelson Meadow just across the River Plym so maybe the small heath I have seen at Blagdons Meadow had originated from there (or maybe vice versa?).

I also hoped to see bee orchid but had expected to be a bit too early, however I was pleased to find 4 flower spikes with 2 in flower. There were also plenty of southern marsh orchids in flower along with a lone and late early purple orchid and plenty of insects around too including my first small copper sighting for the site.

 Chelson Meadow across the River Plym from Blagdons Meadow

 Southern Marsh Orchids

 Early Purple Orchid

 Bee Orchid

 Bee Orchid

 Bee Orchid

 Garden Chafer

 Garden Chafer - lots of these buzzing around

 Beetle Sp.

 Common Blue

 Common Blue

Common Blue

 Burnet Companion

 Burnet Companion

Plastic Year Ticks on The River Exe

Saturday 27th May and a change in the weather as I left the house - cool, breezey and mizzley - but by the time I arrived at Exminster Marsh by the River Exe the mizzle had lifted and the sun gradually began to appear from behind the cloud until it became another hot and sunny but breezey day.

I started my walk along the back path and within a few minutes was watching a female marsh harrier flying over the marsh and spooking all the birds until it disappeared behind some trees. A short while later and I refound it soaring high overhead before it dropped down onto the marsh and was again lost from sight behind trees. There was no sight nor sound of the lesser whitethroat but a common whitethroat, chiffchaff, blackcap and reed warbler were heard and sedge warblers were very vocal and showy. Swifts, swallows and house martins buzzed overhead and a peregrine surveyed all the activity from the top of a pylon.

Peregrine Pylon Peek-a-boo

A male shoveler and 3 male tufted duck were on the lagoon and 2 little ringed plovers were feeding along the back of the pool by the road where 2 noisey and nervous looking Egyptian geese were feeding before flying off, my first sighting for the year.

 Egyptian Goose

 Egyptian Goose and Shelduck

 Egyptian Goose

Egyptian Goose

Some nearby birders called me over to view the female marsh harrier flying over the marsh again and we chatted about birds for a while including the recent influx of red kites in the south west which occurs every year around this time and as I had a quick scan above I picked up a red kite soaring high overhead heading east, another first for the year. I always like to see red kites in Devon at this time of year as they feel more like genuine wild birds than those I see from the train or car on the journey from Plymouth towards London but it seems that the birds over the south west at this time of year are in fact individuals from the introduced English population having a bit of a mass wander.

Damselflies were on the wing - large red, blue tailed and azure - and there were quite a few large dragonflies whizzing around too and the ones I managed to get a good look at and photograph threw me on their ID at first but I think they are immature male broad bodied chasers, recently emerged and still in their teneral phase and yet to develop the blue body colouration of mature males.

 Mating Azure Damselfly

 Broad Bodied Chaser

 Broad Bodied Chaser

 Broad Bodied Chaser

 Broad Bodied Chaser

 Broad Bodied Chaser

 Broad Bodied Chaser

Broad Bodied Chaser

Heading onwards to Dawlish Warren and at Starcross railway station there were 14 turnstones feeding along the shoreline and Herbert the resident Slavonian grebe now in summer plumage was seen distantly out on the river. Dawlish Warren was packed and I questioned my sanity on visiting here on a hot and sunny saturday on a Bank Holiday weekend but as I headed off into the nature reserve it was peaceful and quiet.

Chiffchaff, whitethroat and blackcap were heard and by the main pond a male reed bunting was seen and a reed warbler heard. Offshore viewing was difficult on a very low tide with harsh light and heat haze but a scan overhead revealed another red kite drifting over heading east.

 Red Kite Record Shot

Red Kite

I spent some time wandering around the Greenland Lake area where there were lots of southern marsh orchids and blue eyed grass in flower along with quite a few butterflies including 2 meadow brown (my first of the year), a small copper, common blues (with just a single female seen) and 3 brown argus - 2 very tatty looking males but still with plenty of vigour as they constantly chased after any male common blue that passed nearby and a much smarter looking individual which was also constantly buzzing common blues passing by and making getting a decent photo quite difficult.

 Southern Marsh Orchid

 Southern Marsh Orchid

 Small Copper

Blue Eyed Grass

 Brown Argus

 Brown Argus

 Brown Argus

 Brown Argus

 Brown Argus

 Brown Argus

 Brown Argus

Clouded Border

Another red kite was seen soaring high overhead and heading east on a brief look upwards from all the butterfly action but the clouds were beginning to build and as I caught the train back to Plymouth the sun had disappeared completely although it was still very hot and humid.

And so not a bad day out with 2 plastic year ticks to boot and some nice views of brown argus - I just wish I had another week off work!

More Sunny Days Off Work

Thursday 25th May and another hot and sunny day forecasted and so I headed off to Wembury on the bus for a walk. It was indeed hot and sunny and I wore my shorts and sandals for the first time this year but I did foolishly get a bit sun burnt on my fore arms and on the tops of my feet.

The sedge warbler I first saw in the valley to the beach at the beginning of May was still busily singing away and songflighting , I guess it has yet to find a mate although it is probably unlikely to now. Blackcap and chiffchaff were heard along with whitethroats which again seemed to be everywhere and a nice surprise was a willow warbler quietly singing near the riding stables.

Sedge Warbler

Whitethroat

Other bird highlights were:- 2 raven flying along the cliffs; 2 shelduck and 2 male mallard, oystercatchers and 7 whimbrel feeding on the beach near the sewage pipe with another 2 whimbrel flying east along the shoreline at Heybrook Bay; around 20 house martins feeding over Heybrook Bay with a few swallows; 6 Canada geese feeding in the wheatfield; a singing cirl bunting in the sewage farm hedge with a male and female together at The Point; and the usual birds - stonechats, linnets, robins, blackbirds, wrens, etc.

Butterflys were much in evidence in the hot sunshine and I saw green veined white, holly blue, common blue, peacock, red admiral, small tortoiseshell, speckled wood and orange tip but the best was a green hairstreak on the gorse bushes by the footpath at The Point where I also bizzarely saw a male brimstone fly past.

 Green Hairstreak

 Green Hairstreak

 Peacock

Common Blue

Moth sightings consisted of 3 common marbled carpet in the toilet block, all with different colouring and markings, a silver y in the grass at The Point, Depressia daucella caterpillars on the hemlock water dropwort flower heads, lackey caterpillar nests and a large drinker moth caterpillar squashed on the footpath.

 Silver Y

 Lackey Caterpillars

Depressia daucella Caterpillar

A glow worm larva, a tiny dark bush cricket nymph, a wasp beetle, a seven spot ladybird larva and a beautiful demoiselle briefly by the footbridge in the valley to the beach were also seen.

 Glow Worm Larva

 Wasp Beetle

 Wasp Beetle

7 Spot Ladybird Larva

Beautiful Demoiselle record shot

Friday 26th May was an even hotter day than before and so we headed to the beach at Bovisand, catching the ferry across to Mount Batten from The Barbican and walking along the coast path. There were plenty of butterflies on the wing - red admiral, large white, green veined white, 2 holly blue, a painted lady, common blue, 2 worn wall, 2 faded small tortoiseshell, speckled wood, orange tip, a small copper and 2 green hairstreaks - a big improvement on general sightings this time last year. A sparrowhawk being mobbed by swallows, swifts flying about overhead, whitethroats heard and seen and chiffchaff and blackcap heard were the bird highlights on what was a very hot day despite a cool south easterly breeze.