The heat goes on


The grassy fields look more of a burnt caramel in colour than a lush green, and what vegetation is in flower is crisping and looking quite weedy - this heatwave is not doing them any favours at all, and we really could do with some rain. I'm pretty sure that here in Banstead there has been just one wet day in the past five weeks.

Anyhow, hot weather normally means something interesting turning up in the garden MV, and the garden's 10th record of Festoon (top) just about creeps into that category. Afterwards I walked the glades of Banstead Woods and, after many years of failure, finally saw a Purple Emperor there. Up until this morning the closest to home that I had recorded the species was Ashtead Common. Also seen were White-letter Hairstreak, Silver-washed Fritillary and Purple Hairstreak (below).

Comments

Derek Faulkner said…
Certainly drying everywhere to a crisp at the moment, the eastern of Sheppey looks more like Dungeness in summer than a grazing marsh.
2 July 2018 at 14:16
Steve Gale said…
And it's only just July Derek. Imagine what a further dry month will do to the vegetation.
2 July 2018 at 15:31
John said…
The butterflies are going mad, WLH on Park Downs now and this morning I had a White Admiral on Banstead Downs! Another month..............
3 July 2018 at 11:53
Steve Gale said…
Excellent records John. There seem to be Purple Emperors cropping up in new places, wouldn't be surprised to bump into one even closer to home!
3 July 2018 at 12:36
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Goldfinches and Lavender

Image
We have three medium-sized Lavender bushes in our back garden. Throughout the summer the flowers (which last for several months) are a magnet for insects and give off a most restful aroma. As tempting as it is to cut the dead stems in the autumn, we always leave them, as we know that during the late winter we will get visitors to feed on the seed heads... This video was taken from the kitchen window this morning. We will normally see one or two birds over a few days, but have had up to 14 at once. We never tire of watching them. Lavender is a wonderful plant to have in the garden, with year round natural history benefits. So what are you waiting for? They are readily available at a garden centre close to you right now! There is an historic association with Lavender in this part of northern Surrey and south London. Lavender fields have been harvested for many years, with one particular field close to Woodmansterne being very popular with day trippers. A significant proportion o
Read more

Time to reflect

I normally come up with the title for a post after I have written it. If I'm feeling creative it will be some sort of play on words, or if I'm not then an all-encompassing word or two will do. As for this particular post, and with a few things to discuss, I've written the title first, inspired by having just read a feature about musicians who have used the title of an album as the starting point for their creative exercise. Here goes... Firstly, blogs - yes, this very medium that I am writing in and you are reading from. - what content they derive, the reason that the content exists and what the writer should (or should not) expect from any reader that visits the blog. This was brought into sharp focus by a series of posts to be found here, at Jono Lethbridge's excellent 'Wansted Birder'.   His blogging output has recently included detailed and entertaining reports on his recent overseas trips which have received a bit of flak from certain quarters. None of us b
Read more

To tell it like it is, or not...

Image
I am grateful to Gavin Haig (Not Quite Scilly) who drew my attention to an opinion piece, penned by Matt Phelps, which appeared in the November issue of 'Birdwatch' magazine, entitled 'Positive Approach', which I have now read. In it, he suggests that there is too much negativity being posted on social media regarding the state of our birding world, which is then acting as a deterrent towards a younger generation in adopting conservation and wildlife study. He also suggests that a lot of this negativity is being generated by older birders, and that these old timers keep banging on about the 'good old days' which isn't helpful in encouraging the youth to pick up a pair of binoculars and get out into the field. Does he have a point? Now, I am undeniably an older birder, and I am also guilty of having posted, blogged, written and spoken about the slump in bird and invertebrate numbers. I also like nothing better than to revisit my notebooks and share in the hi
Read more