Breary Marsh

Up at Breary Marsh earlier today, Bluebells, Ferns and Greater Stitchwort were all in fine display, enjoying patches of intermittent sunlight prior to the thickening of the canopy.  We heard Warblers, Bullfinch, Chaffinch Robin and Blackbird in the trees, and saw Tufted Duck, Canada Geese, Moorhen and Grebe on Paul's Pond.

Greater Stitchwort appeared in patches around edges of the woodland.  Less abundant than those posted by Phil Gates (Cabinet of Curiosities) but equally eye catching.




Speckled Woods and Large Whites were the butterflies of the day. Although present in comparatively smaller numbers the former proved far more obliging than the latter.

Little Snoring, Norfolk

During our week in Norfolk we stayed a few nights at a wonderful B&B in Little Snoring by the name of Jex Farmhouse. We chose it because their website mentioned their resident Barn Owls and Little Owls. We weren't disappointed, spotting the Little Owl almost immediately as it sat in the Oak tree in front of the house.

Knowing that we were keen to see the owls, Stephen kindly offered to take us out in his truck to look for the Barn Owl and within 5 minutes we were sat in the back of the open truck like a couple of kids on a fairground ride, what fun! We spotted it a little later and had even better views the next evening as the Barn Owl hunted over the meadowland to the side of the house for a good 20 minutes, wonderful.

The field in front of the garden has been sown with a wildflower mix, the cornflowers and daisies, were in full bloom while we were there and provided an irresistable draw for Common Blues and a mixture of Whites.

Just a few minutes up the road is Thursford Wood , a Norfolk Wildlife Trust reserve with some of the oldest oaks in the county where
we spotted a load of fungi growing amongst the leaf litter and heard the familiar tap tap tap of a Great Spotted Woodpecker captured here silhouetted in profile.

St Chads Churchyard

This lunchtime I ventured down to St Chad's Churchyard. Patches of flowering grasses played host to approximately 30 butterflies, predominantly darker shades of Ringlets and Meadow Browns interspersed with lesser numbers of Speckled Wood, Green Veined White, Small White and a couple of Comma. I only managed this Ringlet before the battery failed me.




Splashes of colour Orange Hawkweed, (Hieracium aurantiacum) amongst Ribwort Plantain and Cat's Ear (Hypochoeris radicata).

Staveley

The Yorkshire Wildlife Reserve at Staveley was a nice surprise as I didn't realise the scale of the reserve, it comprises a lagoon, woodland, grassland and shallow ponds, and covers approximately 40 hectares. The 2 hides overlooking the water were locked at the time of visiting but it didn't hamper our enjoyment of the area.

We spotted 8 Meadow Brown, I was confused about the identity of this first one until it revealed the front underwing.

A Small Tortoiseshell landed to feed on Red Clover and gave great views of both its upper and underwing. Other butterflies included 10 Ringlets, 6 Small Skippers, 6 Speckled Wood.

Its a good time for wildflowers in bloom, including one of my favourites, this Field Scabious Knautia arvensis.

At one of the ponds I watched three Damselflies ovipositing in a relatively small area within close proximity to each other. Unfortunately the pics didn't come out too well but I did manage to salvage this shot which shows two close together.

Bishop Monkton Railway Cutting

As part of our project to discover more about Yorkshire Wildlife Trust reserves we took a trip out to Bishop Monkton Railway Cutting, a limestone habitat, part of the former London and North Eastern Railway (LNER), Harrogate to Ripon Line which closed in 1967. One of our first sightings and a first for the year was this Ringlet (Aphantopus hyperantus), a dark brown butterfly with white fringed wings and light coloured rings on the underwing.

I do like an interpretive board and the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust never disappoint.

Here's a view of the railway cutting, the vegetation comprised Marjoram, Common spotted orchid, Thistles, Birds Foot Trefoil, Wild Strawberry, Nettle, White Campion, Buttercup, Thistles, Self Heal, Ox Eye Daisy, Brambles, Hawthorn, Elder, Willow.


I'm not so good at identifying orchids but the interpretive board highlights Common Spotted Orchid as a prevalent species.





At the far end of the track we encountered two Roe Deer, they stood chomping away for a couple of minutes before leaping out of view.

We were a week or two early for most of the flowering plants, but I imagine the marjoram and thistles attract a large number of butterflies. During our wander, as well as the Ringlets we saw Meadow Brown, Silver Y moth, Green Veined White, Speckled Wood, Small Tortoiseshell and I understand that 19 species of butterfly have been recorded over the years. Although we came away without any decent pics of the feathered inhabitants we did see a family of Long Tail Tits, Whitethroat, Blackbird, Great Tit, Blue Tit. A great little reserve to visit on a sunny day.

Rutland Water florascapes

A familiar sight around the Rutland Water Nature Reserve are the wildflower meadows which are full of interest, in patches ablaze with colour and provide some eye catching florascapes.

Easy on the eye, a patch of Cow Parsley in dappled shade.

Buttercups, grasses and yellow rattle

Fields of Buttercups and grasses swaying gently in the wind, underpinned by clumps of contrasting red clover.

A Small Copper on a buttercup, its backlit underwings glowing as bright as the flower on which it rests.

Buttercups in bud and in flower, tiny sparkles produced by raindrops clinging to the stems following an earlier downpour.

St Chad's Churchyard, Headingley

Wandering through St Chad's Churchyard you can't help but notice the flowering clumps of Ribwort Plaintain (Ribwort lanceolata) at the moment. A familiar perennial wildflower, its brown flower heads sit on top of tall unleafed stalks, with dark green, deeply veined lanceolate leaves.


Here's a fine description of the flowerheads from Botanical.com "The sepals are brown and paper-like in texture and give the head its peculiar rusty look. The corolla is very small and inconspicuous, tubed and having four spreading lobes. The stamens, four in number, are the most noticeable feature, their slender white filaments and pale yellow anthers forming a conspicuous ring around the flower-head. "

I seem unable to walk past these flowering grasses without lifting the camera, I'm certainly drawn to the near abstract qualities of the views they provide as they sway in the breeze.

Walking back through the campus this Crow was perched on a tree stump beak ajar and wings held open, similar to pose adopted by the Crow we saw at Rodley on Saturday. Couldn't help but think that it might have been more beneficial to pick a more shady spot....

Ben Rhydding Gravel Pits

During this weekend we visited Ben Rhydding Gravel Pits, near Ilkley. One of four reserves managed by The Wharfedale Naturalists Society since 2007. The reserve consists of land around two reclaimed gravel pits adjacent to the river Wharfe. Thanks to Amanda for recommending the site which on first reading I mistook for Otley Gravel Pits that we visited last year, but this is a great addition to our list of places to visit.

The pond was our first port of call, during our visit the weather was overcast and breezy with little butterfly activity other than a Small White on the wing, no Damselfly/Dragonfly activity yet, but I imagine it'll be a good spot for both in the summer months. Walking around the opposite side of the pond Andrea took a nice shot looking up towards Cow and Calf rocks.

Bird sightings included Grey Heron, Oystercatcher, Coal Tit, Blue Tit, Chaffinch, Curlew, here we watched 20 Sand Martins across the river, constantly on the go.

Whilst watching the Sand Martins a pair of Goosander appeared from downstream and settled on the opposite bank.

We spotted a Buzzard on the horizon and within moments another two appeared, I've never seen three in one spot before.

Its a super spot for wildflowers, with many patches of Lords and Ladies (Arum maculatum) those in shade on the verge of opening and those in a sunnier aspect now in bloom.

On our way back, near the roadside we passed beside a carpet of Ramsons (Allium ursinum) in dappled shade.

Wood Forget Me Not, clusters of tiny powder blue flowers with yellow centres.

Common Solomon's-Seal (Polygonatum multiflorum), arching stems, alternate leaves, hanging clusters of bell shaped flowers.

Fern fronds unfurling, the golden brown stems predominant.

And a patch of fully open ferns swaying in the breeze and adding a splash of emerald green to the woodland floor.