NORTH DOWNS & BEYOND

Insects fascinate me, and by that I don't just mean the obvious butterflies and moths. If I had infinite time, patience and was able to possess all of the many keys available, then I might just attempt at having a proper go at identifying groups such as the beetles, wasps, ants, bees and flies (there are more... many more). It is still possible to appreciate them without the need to name them of course, and that is where I find myself most of the time - something pops up, takes my fancy and maybe, just maybe, gets identified. There were two species that caught my attention in 2016, both quite showy and eminently identifiable. The first was a rare bee, found at only a handful of sites in southern England, one which just so happens to be the RSPB reserve at Dungeness. Please say hello to Andrena vaga , The Grey-backed Mining Bee: I had looked for this bee in previous years, but always left it too late (April is the best time to look) or happened to coincide my searches with i...

Thanks to Graeme Lyons for identifying this big beast as Palm Moth (Paysandisia archon). Three were flushed along the Boquer Valley in one afternoon. One of the natural history highlights of the holiday - Violet Carpenter Bees ! Very big and a deep, deep purple. A gathering of six in a hillside garden at old town Pollenca was unforgettable. Audouin's Gull on Port de Pollenca beach - I only took my compact camera with me, so anyone with a 'big lens' could have really gone to town. A constant presence along the beach during the day, in the evening they would spend more time on the deck, polishing off any left-over food from the sunbathers. Would tolerate birders. Lang's Short-tailed Blue - I found a couple in amongst 20 Long-tailed Blues, all feeding along a patch of Bramble.

A family visit to old Pollenca, an ancient town some 4 miles inland from the coast. One of the most famous landmarks is the hilltop chapel, reached via 365 stone steps, flanked either side by the most charming abodes that you can imagine. The small, well-tended gardens attract insects, with one in particular a magnet for at least six Violet Carpenter Bees. I whiled away a quarter of an hour in their company and managed to obtain some decent photographs. I elected to walk back to Port de Pollenca, via a most memorable side trip up to the Puig de Maria monastery. This is reached by a narrow, twisting track which ascends through Holm Oak woodland before opening out when reaching the summit. The views are spectacular. From here a scan of the mountain range opposite will most probably result in raptors - today they included two Black Vultures, three Griffon Vultures and a Booted Eagle - all whilst I was being buzzed by an inquisitive Swallowtail butterfly. I cut back to P de P via sever...

A band of cloud early morning soon burnt off to reveal another hot and sunny day. After the usual morning on the beach I took off to the Boquer Valley which, barring a distant Black Vulture, a brief Booted Eagle, 6 Eleonora's Falcon, a couple of Crag Martin and 4 Stone Curlew, was fairly quiet.... just reading that list back, that's not bad for a quiet afternoon! Two invertebrates stole today's plaudits however. At breakfast, a couple of flowering potted shrubs were being visited by an enormous Violet Carpenter Bee (it must have been the size of a Goldcrest!). It was performing so well that I rushed off to get the camera - of course it had gone when I returned. Then, a very large moth was disturbed along the valley - it made a rustling sound in flight, must be large hawk-moth sized, pointed grey- brown wings, thick body, stripy abdomen, orange-red, white and black striped underwing...absolutely no idea what it is, but I have got good photographs. Another two were seen a...