Mill Hill and Houghton Forest

With clear blue skies I decided to revisit Mill Hill, ostensibly to find an Adder, get some improved shots of the Grizzled Skippers and also to meet Dawn and Jim who were going to locate yesterday's Green Hairstreak. Of course I arrived too early and nothing was flying, the sun had warmth but there was a fairly cool breeze from a northerly quarter. Dawn and Jim arrived and we started the vigil for "Beautiful Eyebrows". After a fruitless hour I abandoned D&J and made my way down to the lower slopes where I met Lindsay who was just arriving. Immediately we were into several feisty Dingy Skippers and two or three Grizzled Skippers, by now the temperature had risen considerably and these specimens  were not willing to pose in any spot for long. I phoned D&J to let them know that at least there were some targets about, their long GH search was still proving fruitless so they joined us.



Failed on improving previous efforts!

 

After several sweeps of the north west end of the reserve I was treated to a flash of green and a specimen settled in the brambles about 8ft from me. Lots of happy snapping  ensued.

During the search I had located what I thought was a clearwing moth but on reflection I guess it is a Scorpion Fly, really not sure, so if anyone can provide me with an ID I would be truly grateful. On the way back up to the top car park I located a rather handsome moth and the "staircase" provided several more specimens of Green Hairstreak with a single Speckled Wood.  It is probable that we located at least six specimens of GH, three Grizzled and three or four Dingy Skippers. All in all, a good visit.

Small Purple Barred, Phytometra viridaria

 We parted company and I decided to give Houghton Forest a try for the first time this year. I parked at the entrance to the ride on the Madehurst Road and as I entered the ride I was immediately treated to a high speed fly past of an Orange Tip. All the usual specimens were about in good numbers, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Brimstone and Comma. It was nice to note my first Green-veined White of the year.

Finally I located an Adder - well two and doing what Mr and Mrs Adder do at this time of year. I was desperate not to disturb them so took some shots and made my exit. However it is apparent from the photographs that the male was very annoyed at the interruption in their nuptial activity. Sorry!

Not happy.

What a shame that the Forestry Commission wish to totally ruin this area, they and a partner company have submitted a planning application for Seventy Five!! log cabins in the forest.
On this ride I have had 18 species of butterfly in a day, including a Purple Emperor - this is designated as the main road in. Why on earth should the superb wildlife habitats of Sussex be given up so that the Lurid Lycra Clad Mountain Biking fraternity of London can come and play here.



Vital food plants like this violet will soon be under concrete.

Butterflies on Hemp agrimony

The rides of the local forest are wall to wall Hemp agrimony, Eupatorium cannabinum, which, at this time of year, is a major nectar source for many butterflies. I snapped these over a couple of hours in two afternoon sessions.

Hemp agrimony as far as the eye can see.

 

 

Of course other insects like it too....

Volucella inanis --- I think

.....and others have different preferences.

On the Commons

A jaunt around West Sussex taking in Lord's Piece, where ,at the pool by the car park, I managed to photograph a Black-tailed Skimmer.  The Broad-bodied Chaser population has diminished, to be replaced by other species. I identified Southern Hawker and Brown Hawker but none settled in the heat of the day. A family of Pied Wagtails are taking advantage of the insect abundance and whilst I was there two Grey Wagtails dropped in for a short time.

BBCs are looking worn

On to Ambersham Common where I managed to snap a Common Hawker, very little else was active save for a single Yellowhammer perched on the gorse.

I ventured over the road to Heyshott where a couple of locals warned me of a very active adder population on one of the paths. Arming myself with two cameras and three lenses I set forth on the dreaded footpath determined to get some decent shots of active adders, you got there before me, no sign of ophidian activity whatsoever! Here bird activity was also minimal, just a Green Woodpecker and a pair of Linnets. Having hacked through the jungle by the stream I expected at least one dragonfly, a big zero again but at least this Brimstone gave me something to photograph.

On the way back I was going to drop into Houghton Forest but amazingly it was raining so on home for Tea!

The Burgh

A really pleasant walk over The Burgh in surprisingly good weather. It was a walk with surprises, first up was a large Brimstone butterfly, normally I see these earlier in the year . Unfortunately I had my 400mm lens on so had to stand off a ways and capture it the best I could.

Second up was a juvenile  Marsh Harrier hunting over one of the game strips to the east of the "dew pond". He/she was not keen on coming close so only record shots, handheld with the 400mm. This is my eleventh species of bird of prey in the locality.

Buzzards were soaring everywhere, far too many to count but they seemed to be in groups of five or six, maybe still in family mode.

Plus, of course, the ubiquitous Kestrel

Third surprise was meeting my namesake David (The Quizmaster) Potter and his fellow birder Nigel Barnes. Great to be able to put faces to names, I hope they enjoyed their visit to Cissbury.

Glad they were present when the large Rook flew over, this chap has fooled me several times, mainly due to his size and the fact that he flies alone. Not a Raven after all