Sunday 19th. May 2013

Yesterday morning , I set out looking for damsel/dragonflies at Spring Park Pond , and found none . I moved on across the border into Surrey , to look for butterflies at Hutchinson's Bank , a chalk grassland site managed by London Wildlife Trust , arriving just as the milky sunshine disappeared . The breeze got up and the temperature dropped , but I had a look around the site , sadly not finding a single Orange Tip egg on Garlic Mustard along the bridlepath . Last year , almost every other plant had an egg in it's flower head . A look in the woodland did produce a good show of Woodruff /

Galium odoratum , a member of the Bedstraw family , but very late coming into flower . This is the only place locally where I find this plant . I did find a single Green-veined White on the way back to

the car , and also some Common Vetch / Vicia sativa , a member of the Pea family . Undeterred , and convinced that Burnt Gorse at High Elms LNR would put things right , I set off after lunch for a look . Conditions were not brilliant , but well over an hour searching produced 3 Dingy Skippers . I mentioned recently that Common Milkwort could be found in several colour combinations , and

found the lilac / white variety whilst there . I looked in on the Orchid Bank on my way back to the

car , and was pleased to find my first Fly Orchids of the year . Three specimens , two in flower really made my day , especially as they are so difficult to spot . This shot is of the plant pictured above , and

 has already been cropped . The orchid is in the middle of the picture . This orchid , Ophrys insectifera , gives off sex pheromones that attract male Digger Wasps , and the Wasps try to mate with the flower , resulting in the flowers being pollinated . Once the female Wasps emerge , the Fly Orchids are left alone . Also in flower now are the Common Twayblades , but with green flowers

they are not the showiest of flowers . On the lane back home , the Greater Celandine / Chelidonium majus , is already in flower along with it's Lesser relation . The Greater is a member of the Poppy

family , whereas the Lesser is part of the Buttercup family .
This morning I visited a reptile site almost overlooking the M25 , in an attempt to get back on track , as my last few reptile searches have been terrible . The conditions were very good , thin cloud with the warmth of the sun coming through . Two hours later , another failure , without a single reptile found , I must be losing my touch . Interest found on site included a very freshly emerged Burnet

Companion , a day flying moth , a very mobile sawfly with incredible eyes , that I haven't been able

to identify yet , any suggestions would be gratefully received . Many thanks to Phil / Sharp by Nature , who suggested Rhogogaster picta . I don't think it is that , but because of the family put forward by Phil , I have done some more digging , and think it is R. viridis . Many thanks again Phil for pointing me in the right direction . Just one butterfly , a Small White was all that was recorded . Heading home along a narrow lane , I nearly ran down this male Pheasant

when it appeared from my left and ran across in front of me . I braked , he stood on the other verge with a look that it was all my fault . Further along I spotted something in a field and pulled over hoping that it was a Brown Hare , but it turned out to be a pair of Red-legged Partridges , but as I

watched them feeding a Common Buzzard drifted over the trees beyond , and I wondered what would happen if it drifted over the pair . But the Buzzard drifted harmlessly beyond the trees and out of sight . Back home , whilst having lunch on the patio , a female Orange Tip visited the garden to

nectar on the Honesty .