Thursday 24 February 2011

Thursday 24th.February 2011

At last , some sunshine , and a springlike temperature to go with it , eventually . It would have been a good day to be out birding , but it was a work party day up on the Common , and as we have lost several days over the winter due to the weather , it was a chance to try and catch up on the outstanding work . It was good to feel the warmth of the sun again , and this was also shared by several invertebrates that came out to enjoy it too . Lots of Seven Spot Ladybirds were seen , along with several smaller black specimens with red spots which could be either Pine or Kidney Spot ladybirds , but I am tending towards Pine , but the spots on both species are very variable .
Lots of spiders were also seen , like this one warming up probably before heading of hunting .
Several large Buff-tailed Bumblebees were also seen , most like this one , searching on the ground , perhaps for a nest site . The best sighting for me , was the first Brimstone butterfly of the year , a male looking as if he was fully charged with testosterone , which flew strongly around the area , typically on the edge of the woodland , before disappearing behind a wall of Gorse , taking away any chance of a picture . Lastly , several small nondescript beige coloured moths were seen above the Heather and Gorse , but none stopped , so no picture of those either .
The sun was still shining as we finished , albeit getting milky now , so I made a quick visit up on the Downs before heading home , and found my first Adder , or should that read , tail of an Adder , as it returned underground amongst some roots .
All in all , it was good to see some species after that long Winter , but the temperature is set to fall again over the next few days , which could well put things back again .

5 comments:

Warren Baker said...

Nice read Greenie, until the end bit, didn't want to hear that :-)

Brimstones are hardly ever seen on my patch, and it's the only species to occur here that I haven't got a photo of !

Kingsdowner said...

For some the first sign of spring is a birdsong, or a flower - for Fred it's the first adder of the year!
Whatever, days like this are a pleasure and uplifting.

ShySongbird said...

What a beautiful day it was Greenie, so welcome after the recent dreary weather :)

I saw a Brimstone sighting mentioned on another blog today and as you know, Warren saw bees so what with those and also your Ladybirds and Adder things definitely seem to be moving on!

Phil said...

Nice to see some pics of bugs and beetles at last Greenie. Well done with the Brimstone. Just wish I could have got out myself.

Ken. said...

Hi Greenie.
Well done on finding so many species that decided to come out and play. Birds are great, but isn't it great to see other wildlife emerging.