Sunday 21 August 2011

Sunday 21st. August 2011

Four visits to local sites over the last two days did not produce a lot , but am posting the few bits of interest found .At the Farm lake , just the odd Common Darter , looking over mature now , and a couple of Common Blue Damselflies .Around the lake , Beaked Hawksbeard/Crespis vesicaria is becoming dominant , identified by the orange on the outer florets showing orange beneath .Caught in mid hover , what I believe is Sphaerophoria rueppellii .
Up on the Common in the heathland area in the afternoon ,I found 3/4 Beautiful Yellow Underwings , seemingly not so colourful as the specimens seen earlier in the Summer .Also in the Heather , several second brood Holly Blues , I wondered if these emerged from the eggs I saw being laid on Buckthorn by a first brood female .Just couldn't resist posting this 7 spot Ladybird , snug in it's Wild Carrot flower head .
This morning on Salt Box Hill , and yes , the ponies are still on site ,
the extremely poisonous fruit of Deadly Nightshade/Atrope bella-donna .Two Speckled Woods that were flirting very amorously , but never came to anything .Several Figwort Sawflies/Tenthredo scrophulariae were warming up in the early sunshine .Several white specimens of Marjoram were found . the normal one on the right .All the books say Small Heaths land , and keep wings closed ?
On the way back home , a quick stop at Keston Ponds produced a female Brown Hawker , ovipositing on the concrete apron of the middle lake , alongside the road , with the male patrolling above her .

1 comment:

Alan Pavey said...

A good mix of insects and plants there Greenie, I'm still trying to find an obliging Brown Hawker for a photo! There were at least 4 around the lake at Sissinghurst yesterday but none posed.