Monday 2 April 2012

Monday 2nd. April 2012

The 'tree laying' went well over the weekend , and the finished article did have the appearance of a hedge , but moreover , will be much better habitat for wildlife in the area . On Saturday morning , just as I got on site , a Red Kite was seen overhead , before being chased off by a Corvid . With unexpectedly more sunshine on Sunday , a few butterfly species were recorded , being Orange Tip 
pictured , Holly Blue and Comma . I look forward to returning to the Reserve later in the year . Today I decided to do the first butterfly transect of the year at High Elms Country Park , in once again better weather conditions than expected , stopping off on the way near the Visitor Centre to see
how the Butterbur / Petasites hybridus , a member of the Daisy family , and closely related to Winter Heliotrope , probably the earliest plant to flower . . Unfortunately no one told the butterflies , and the
two hour produced a single male Orange Tip , a single Small White and two Comma , one pictured .
With the lack of butterflies other subjects were sought , like this distant Nuthatch , unusually found feeding with it's partner on one of the main paths . Hearing Common Buzzards outside the Country Park , two birds swept into view at a distance , settling on the same branch of a large tree . Next minute they were mating , and the next , one bird dropped out of sight , whilst the other rose on thermals until out of sight , and of course I only took the Macro lens for the butterflies . If the old
saying is right , 'Oak before Ash , in for a splash' the two trees certainly bear it out , as the Oak buds
are bursting open , whilst the Ash buds are still tight shut , not a bad judge if we are to return to Winter in the next few days . In the shady woodland , Spurge Laurel / Daphne laureol, a member of
the Daphne family was found in flower , these to be followed by black berry fruits later in the year .
Also in flower , one of the very few evergreen , native trees , Box / Buxus sempervirens , and even though the Conservation Field has been mowed to within an inch of it's life , a few Cowslips are
coming into flower . And finally , on the way back to the car park , a small patch of Wood Sorrel /
Oxalis acetosella .

8 comments:

Marc Heath said...

I have yet to get a decent image of an Orange Tip over the years, they never sit still. Some nice shots there.

Alan Pavey said...

Lovely post Greenie, a few things there I need to catch up with.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for your experience and knowledge and teaching us on hedge laying fred very much appreciated. Great to discuss wildlife matters with you esp ashdown forrest and birds ie in size order hawfinch crossbill redpoll ie yes you was right on the yew trees at fackenden not sure if there's any records of hawfinch at this site tho ? Regards chris

Rob said...

That's an unusual shot of a Nuthatch, Greenie. I, too, am yearning for an Orange Tip.

kirstallcreatures said...

Well done on the orange tip pic,they're elusive creatures when it comes to photographing them.

ShySongbird said...

An interesting post as always Greenie. I have yet to see Orange Tip and Comma this year.

The Cowslips which grow naturally in my lawn always do well despite mowing.

I find Nuthatches frustratingly elusive and have never seen one on the ground at all!

Ken. said...

Greenie.
Not the sort of place I would expect to see a Nuthatch, you don't often see them on the ground.
Good to see the Butterflies making a appearance.

Warren Baker said...

Ha! You caught up with an Orange Tip, well done Greenie, they do give us the run around :-)

Had a Grass Snake today, which pleased me :-)