Martin Down
Yesterday was spent wandering over the chalk downland reserve of Martin Down in Hampshire. The sun shone, it was pleasantly warm and a stiff north-easterly kept me cool. It was altogether most agreeable! I had been here once before (in 1981) in the company of Alastair Forsyth, after we had spent a day's birding in the New Forest. After a few beers in a nearby pub we slept in the reserve car park (me in his car, Alastair in his tent) and awoke to Barn Owl and Stone Curlew. I began by parking at the car park on the A354 and walking the entire western length of the reserve along the Bokerley Dyke, a Romano-British defence ditch. This area appears to be as rich in plants and butterflies as anywhere else on the reserve, so if your time here has to be brief, concentrate here. Very soon I was finding Field Fleawort and Burnt Orchid (above). Apart from Horseshoe Vetch there was not a lot of the 'indicator' plant species of chalk downland out in flower. By now I would expe...