I Love Arnside and Silverdale: Comma Butterfly, Orpine flowers and Orchid flowers.

Friday, 18 August 2017

Comma Butterfly, Orpine flowers and Orchid flowers.

A beautiful Comma Butterfly in Low Lancelot (CWT) yesterday (Click over to enlarge)

Yesterday Thursday 17th August 2017 - Lancelot Clark Storth (Hutton Roof) 1130hrs to 1530hrs

Had a stroll up into Lancelot and checking out here and there.

I did have a family party of what I am sure were either Willow Warblers/Chiffchaffs which made themselves known with their regular "hou-whit" calls which came over to me from at least four separate locations. The skies also had three Buzzards circling very high but at the same time very noisy with their "mewing call".

Bringing a spot of colour was the beautiful Comma butterfly which you can see in the photo above. Other than the Comma the only other butterflies seen were a well used Meadow Brown, a Peacock or two and several White butterflies.

Whilst here I check out the well past their best "Birds Foot Sedge" (carex ornithopodia) with lots and lots more this year of this beautiful little sedge. Here is a photo

Birds Foot Sedge (Carex Ornithopoda)

It's a wonderful looking sedge and always recognized with its paleness, which tends to have yellowish tips and then burnt on the tips. Its best to see it in Mid May when it has its sedge flower on it which does resemble a "bird's foot".

Whilst in this part of the woods I did want to check out a little pavement which I noticed the Orpine plant growing way back in Spring but had not had chance to revisit until today.

Orpine (Click over to enlarge)

Wednesday 16th August 2017 - Dalton Crags (Lower Sections and Mid sections) am.

Checking out Scollies (Harts Tongue Ferns) in the lower sections, but nothing out of the ordinary.

The most interesting thing was watching six Stonechat's hopping from hazel bush to hazel bush and then on to the wall. I suspect there was maybe a couple of family parties and perhaps they had dropped into Dalton Crags but there again we do have breeders in the vicinity and closeby maybe it was a collection of these birds, whichever way it was a absolute delight to see so many together.

Three Kestrels were together and seen regularly hovering at varied areas, maybe a couple of young birds - again not sure.

Lots of Swallows hawking the area and coming down close to one's head as though tormenting! I must be mad talking to the little beauties, but these are such lovely experiences and it's just what you need before the skies go empty when the birds start to head back to Africa in about ten days time.

Expect to get cracking with the Visable Bird Migration watches in about ten days time. I guess it will be the turn of the hirundines first......

And to finish off today here below is the current orchid diary:-

Sunday 13th August 2017 - Hutton Roof 1130hrs to 1530hrs

Probably the last visit of the year today and here's one showing "Spotty" which I have still not been able to confirm what sort of "disease", but have now more evidence from yet another plant about 30 yards away.