Purple Hairstreaks & Large Red Appear

Fellow volunteers share sightings from Roughdown Common and Gadespring Cress Beds.

For the Purple Hairstreaks, head on over to the Roughdown blog, HERE.
For more on what's been spotted in the reeds and shallows at Gadespring, click HERE.

Mid June lepidoptera at Roughdown & Westbrook Hay Bee Orchids

For the Roughdown update, head on over to the Roughdown blog, HERE.

At Westbrook Hay, in the NE region of Bovingdon Reach meadow, the beautiful Bee Orchids (Ophrys apifera) have returned. There are good numbers again this year, at least 50+ although it could be double that as I've really not done a thorough count.

Bee Orchid (Ophrys apifera)

There were also a few spikes of what I think is Common Broomrape (Orobanche minor), a parasitic plant, probably feeding off the nearby Clover. One of the Bee Orchids is just within frame (on the left).

Common Broomrape (Orobanche minor)

Butterflies and moths of note in the NE region of Bovindgon Reach:

8 Meadow Brown
12 Common Blue
3 Yellow Shell
2 Burnet Companion
1 Large White

On the river Bulbourne yesterday, by Bulbourne Meadow, Damselflies included a handful of Common Blue (Enallagma cyathigerum), 3 Blue-tailed (Ischnura elegans) and a female Red-eyed (Erythromma najas).