What a beautiful day and also very warm. So it was off to the cove in the hope of finding a few Large Tortoiseshells. They have bred here for the past 2 years and there has been evidence this year that the caterpillars have been busy in the Elm Trees at the back of St Andrew's Church.
Perhaps its just a little bit to early as none were seen. However I nearly mistook two Commas for LT's which were flying about in the church grounds and another on the south facing slopes at the cove. Both these locations are known hotspots for LT's. I'm pretty sure that it wont be long before a few pristine LT's will start appearing.
Here are my sightings from today:
Penns Wood still looking green and lush. A Blackcap was heard singing here as I made my way down to St Andrew's Church. Where the sunlight hit the plants there were quite a few hoverflies, a couple of Speckled Woods and a few of these..........
..............Closterotomus trivialis miridae bugs
Out in the open grounds of the church ruins there were a few butterflies about with 2 Ringlets, 2 Meadow Browns, 1 Large White and...................
..................a Comma. It wasn't just butterflies here but also............
............a juvenile Wall Lizard.
Other things of interest found here were this male Blue-tailed Damselfly........
............Common Carder Bees.........
............Long Hoverflies.........
..............and this hoverfly..........
..........there are always a few of these around. One of these days I will try and find out the exact species. But for the time being it will remain a Cheilosia sp.
It might look ugly but definitely one of my favourite flies. This is a Thick-headed Fly and a member of the Conopid Family. This particular species is Sicus ferrugineus and the third Conopid species I have found on the island.
Church Ope Cove where on the south facing slopes I came............
..........my second Comma on my walk. This one was bit more obliging and held out its wings briefly.
A Dock Bug. It looks a bit odd as I had to use a bit of fill-in flash, otherwise it would have been just a silhouette against bright sunlight.
Rufus Castle towers over Penn's Copse. Along the track I came across a pair of...........
.........Lulworth Skippers. The female appeared to be busy laying her eggs, whilst this male was just resting on the track.
Also along the track were I presume a pair of these Potter Wasps, but unfortunately with so many similar species, my best offering is maybe Ancistrocerus sp.
I haven't the foggiest. A very small jet black fly, one to investigate later.
And also along the track I came across this Rose Chafer, with lots of friends. Mainly ants, but there are a few other critters on this umbellifer as well.
The view looking back, of just a few of the 151 steps down to the cove from Rufus Castle
Alongside the steps the umbellifers are proving to be a bit of a hit with the insects. On the left an Ichneumon Wasp and possibly another species of hoverfly.
A close-up of the Ichneumon Wasp
And as I left the sea behind and made my way up the track from Rufus Castle I came across another...........
.................. Ichneumon Wasp
And finally it been awhile since Ted has had a Buzz.
Birds Recorded: Herring Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Wood Pigeon, Collared Dove, Swift, Dunnock, Robin, Blackbird, 2 Blackcap, Great Tit, Blue Tit, Wren, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Jackdaw, House Sparrow, Chaffinch and Goldfinch
Reptiles Recorded: 2 Wall Lizard (Podarcis muralis)
Dragonflies and Damselflies Recorded: 1 Blue-tailed Damselfly (Ischnura elegans)
Butterflies Recorded: 2 Lulworth Skipper, 1 Large White, 2 Speckled Wood, 2 Ringlet, 2 Meadow Brown, 2 Marbled White and 2 Comma
Bees Recorded: Honey Bees (Apis mellifera), Early Bumblebee (Bombus pratorum), Buff-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus terrestris), Common Carder (Bombus pascuorum) and Red-tailed Bumblebee (Bombus lapidarius)
Wasps Recorded: Potter Wasp (Ancistrocerus sp.)
Ichneumon Wasps Recorded: 2 Ichneumon sp.
Hoverflies Recorded: Marmalade Hoverfly (Episyrphus balteatus), Long Hoverfly (Sphaerophoria scripta) and two hoverflies sp.
Bugs and Beetles Recorded: Dock Bug (Coreus marginatus), Swollen-thighed Beetle (Oedemera nobilis), Rose Chafer (Cetonia aurata) and Miridae Bug (Closterotomus trivialis)
Slugs and Snails Recorded: White-lipped Banded Snail (Cepaea hortensis)