Snippets of Wealth - Thursday 25th July 2019 - Swifts/Epipactis Helleborine/Ploughmans Spikenard/First returning Wheatear

Ploughmans Spikenard

Ploughmans Spikenard

 Gorse Tree

I could hear seeds popping in this warm weather

And here you can see the small seedlings settled on the ground

And with this photo you can see a close up of the actual new growth

Birds last night (Wednesday):  Perhaps up to 50 Swifts all along the Main Street in Burton, the skies were full wherever you looked up with odd screaming parties up to 20 birds at a time.  

Birds today included a party of young Willow Warblers with their hou-whit contact calls, but of interest was hearing the parents giving alarm warning to their young and on my approach they went quicker with their calls until it went into a sort of superquick "whit, whit, whit".... also heard Nuthatch, had a small party of Long Tailed Tits with the si si si calls, One Chiffchaff calling, but really special was seeing a early returning Wheatear resting up on Burton Fell before its continuation journey back to Africa

Butterflies today included: Small Heath, Dark Green Fritillary (really worn with most of its wings missing - almost translucent), odd Ringlets, several Meadow Brown, Large Whites, Green Veined Whites, Small Heaths, and numerous Grayling on the Fell, Speckled Wood in the shade, and my first of this new hatch of Peacock. 

Ploughman's Spikenard can be found at several places on the fell and still plenty of work with the Orchids (read further). Whilst sat having lunch at the side of a Gorse bush, I could hear popping noises, and thought perhaps the heat was popping open the seeds. When I looked to the base of the bush I could see open seeds with new growth popping out (see photos)

Diary page for Thursday 25th July 2019

I decided to make a start on quantifying the atrorubens for the area which I survey on Hutton Roof. I did manage to complete 50% but the heat was so strong today, I felt like I had enough by mid afternoon, so 50% still remains to do. So far counted in totals is: 272 Atrorubens (which includes 13 predated, also 11 hybrids and 4 pallens). I suspect we might be a little down on numbers this year. I would have expected a total of somewhere between 600 and 800 for this particular area of Hutton Roof, but hopefully over the next few days I will have the new totals. 

Here below are some of the photos from today:

Epipactis helleborine

Photo: 25th July 2019 - Hutton Roof

This is a absolute beauty which has lots of red/purple

on the petals and especially the epichile. 

Epipactis helleborine

Photo 25th July 2019 - Hutton Roof

This one is a very small specimen and comes up the same every year,

it is quite near to the 33 population

Epipactis helleborine

Photo: 25th July 2019 - Hutton Roof

This is a lovely specimen I have been watching

 and it's come through with plenty of red/purple 

on both the petals and especially

 around the epichile areas

Epipactis helleborine

Photo: 25th July 2019 - Hutton Roof

This is a lovely specimen I have been watching

 and it's come through with plenty of red/purple

 on both the petals and especially

 around the epichile areas

Epipactis helleborine

Photo: 25th July 2019 - Hutton Roof

Always comes through as such a large specimen with lovely

large helleborine leaves and good example of the spiralling.

Always a little late with the flowers opening, and this year

just covered in ants, see next picture for close up of spike.

Epipactis helleborine

Photo: 25th July 2019 - Hutton Roof

Always comes through as such a large specimen with lovely

large helleborine leaves and good example of the spiralling.

Always a little late with the flowers opening, and this year

just covered in ants, see next picture for close up of spike.

Epipactis helleborine

Photo: 25th July 2019 - Hutton Roof

This is a beautiful small helleborine, which is never more than around 12" high and is quite close 

to Escarp 13 (bicolor). It's such a little beauty

Epipactis helleborine

Photo: 25th July 2019 - Hutton Roof

This is a lovely helleborine, also pictured below. 
 I did manage to catch the pollinator at work -
 In fact all the pollinators I have seen so far
 this year on helleborines have been wasp
 and here it shows the pollinia stuck to the 
head of the wasp 

Epipactis helleborine

Photo: 25th July 2019 - Hutton Roof

This is a lovely helleborine, also pictured below.  I did manage to catch the pollinator at work -
 In fact all the pollinators I have seen so far
 this year on helleborines have been wasp

Epipactis helleborine

Photo: 25th July 2019 - Hutton Roof

Epipactis helleborine

Photo: 25th July 2019 - Hutton Roof

This is one of the larger helleborines which is in the 70s population. I mentioned yesterday that quite a lot of the helleborines in this area come through here with 

odd burn leaves. This one has come through 

with variagated leaves.

Another wasp pollinator in action on this large helleborine
again (as usual) you will note the pollinia of the flower
is stuck to his head.

Epipactis atrorubens var: Pallens No.6

Photo: Hutton Roof on 25th July 2019

This is another photo of the Pallens No.6 which

was only confirmed yesterday. A very late arrival

but certainly better late than never....