Dragonflies

Broad-bodied chaser, Libellula depressa, by the pond in Spring Park, 3 June 2011.

I saw quite a few dragonflies during the year, but didn't get many photos; they move too fast for me, swooping and circling, though better photographers seem to manage! The dragonfly experts recognise them in flight, from the flash of colour and their behaviour, but I can't do that. However, a few types will rest regularly, and this is what I got.

The first shot is a Broad-bodied Chaser in Spring Park, patrolling around the small pond and occasionally resting on a plant. I posted a photo of this dragonfly earlier: Broad-Bodied Chaser.

Black-tailed skimmer, Orthetrum cancellatum, on the ground by the middle lake.  Keston Ponds, 29 June 2011.

This one, a Black-tailed Skimmer at the much larger Keston Ponds, had a similar habit, but rested on the ground. The Chaser had brown eyes, but I really liked the colour of these, a jewel-like dark mottled green.

Common Darter, Sympetrum striolatum.  Jubilee Country Park, 31 July 2011.

Finally, later in the summer I saw this one by Ray's Pond in Jubilee Country Park. It chose a tall dead stalk to sit on, and looked over the pond as it rested. The pond is fenced off and I coulnd't get a better angle, but this one does show off its wings very nicely.

November Moth

November Moth, Epirrita dilutata. Farthing Downs, 4 October 2011.

This is one of the moths I photographed at Farthing Downs on 4 October. It posed in several positions and I was able to catch it from all angles. Despite their name, it is common enough to see them in October.

It is most unusual for moths to stand with their wings up in butterfly fashion, but here it is. They do not normally rest with their hind wings visible either, so the second shot below is an unusual photo.

November Moths belong to a small group that all look very similar, and the field guide has diagrams of their genitalia, always a bad sign. But we are pretty sure of this one without resorting to a microscope.

They are not spectacular, but I like these photos.

November Moth, Epirrita dilutata, on a 5mm grid.  Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

November Moth, Epirrita dilutata.  Geometer.  Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

More Farthing Downs Moths

Ypsolopha sequella .  Micromoth.
Farthing Downs, 4 October 2011.

Here are some more of the moths we caught at Farthing Downs on the morning of 4 October. I showed some of them on 6 October.

The small moth on the right is a micromoth, quite distinctive with that Bugs Bunny outline on its back. Gill Peachey, my informal tutor, does not work with micromoths, but even so, she knew it straight away.

We are starting to see the moths that really belong to the Autumn. I think that the two next down make a good contrasting pair; the Black Rustic does look quite black in normal light, with white pips on its wings, and it's only the strong light of the flash that brings out some detail. It has white underwings.

Further down is the Deep-Brown Dart, on which detail can be seen in normal light if you look carefully.

The Snout is impossible to mistake, even with a faded specimen like this, with its delta-wing shape and pointed facial outline.

The Barred Sallow and a normal Sallow would make a good pair, but the Sallow would not settle down and I couldn't get a photo.

And the last moth on this page is a Red-Green Carpet, quite showy in a dark sort of way. I like the way its eyes match the overall body and wing colour.

Finally, there were lots big ichneumon flies in the trap this time. I don't know the species, but they look quite dramatic.

Black Rustic, Aporophyla nigra (left) and Autumnal Rustic, Eugnorisma glareosa (right)  Noctuids.
Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

Deep-Brown Dart, Aporophyla lutulenta.  Noctuid.
Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

Snout, Hypena proboscidialis.  Noctuid.  Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

Barred Sallow, Xanthia aurago.  Noctuid.  Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

Red-Green Carpet, Chloroclysta siterata.  Geometer.  Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

Unidentified ichneumon fly.  Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

October Moths at Farthing Downs

Copper Underwing, Amphipyra pyramidea.  Farthing Downs, 4 October 2011.

On 4th October Gill Peachey invited me to Farthing Downs for another moth-untrapping session. It was nearly two months since the previous one, and conditions for mothing were excellent; we had just had a week of heatwave, followed by a cooler, overcast night.

The trap was full of interesting and instructive moths. 76 macromoths of 24 different species, and a few micros as well.

Of course, some of them were by now quite familiar, like the Copper Underwing on the right and the Large Yellow Underwing just below. I also saw a Broad-Bordered Yellow Underwing fluttering about the lamp as I arrived; I was quite excited, thinking we had a big new yellow moth, but the bright light on the strong colour of the rear wings had fooled me.  It was great to see that a moth that looks like earth or a dead leaf when resting can be so vivid in flight.

Large Yellow Underwing, Noctua pronuba.
Farthing Downs, 4 October 2011.

As before, the City of London wardens kindly allowed us to use their premises, and we were joined both for the untrapping and the ID session afterwards by one of the wardens, who really got stuck in. I really enjoy these sessions, and Gill is a good teacher.

Although I have seen lots of Large Yellow Underwings recently, I included this one because it has clear wing markings as well as that distinctive beak, which makes it a good example.

Gill made sure to pot up several specimens of three types of moth that can look very much alike, and all three of us pored over the books until we could distinguish them fairly easily. These are the Beaded Chestnuts, Brown-Spot Pinions and Lunar Underwings shown below. I have seen a dozen Lunar Underwings in my own trap, but only one of them was the brown shade that can let them be confused with these others; that shade seems to be more common here at Farthing Downs.

Some of these photos are on a rough card background; they are still resting in the egg-boxes that are left for them in the trap. Others are on grey, squared paper; those are 5mm sqares that I printed off, which allows a good size comparison however the photos might be processed.

A few others are in pots or on other surfaces, like the Copper Underwing above which is on the concrete next to the trap.

The most showy catch today was a Frosted Orange, which I will include at the bottom of this post. I will show more of these moths on another day.

Beaded Chestnut, Agrochola lychnidis.  Noctuid.  Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

Brown-Spot Pinion, Agrochola litura.  Noctuid.  Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

Lunar Underwing, Omphaloscelis lunosa.  Noctuid.  Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

Two more that I thought were quite similar in appearance, though they are not actually related; the Brindled Green and the Large Ranunculus. This Brindled Green does not look very green. The colour was hard to distinguish under the artificial light of the Rangers' room. Green fades very quickly from moths.

Brindled Green, Dryobotodes eremita.  Noctuid.  Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

Large Ranunculus, Polymixis flavicincta.  Noctuid.  Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

Notice how the different apparent size of the grey squares tells you that the Large Ranunculus is bigger than the Brindled Green.

Finally, the showy one:

Frosted Orange, Gortyna flavago.  Noctuid.  Moth trap at Farthing Downs with Gill Peachey, 4 October 2011.

Purple Hairstreak

Purple Hairstreak butterfly, Neozephyrus quercus.  West Wickham Common, 24 July 2011.

This is another butterfly I photographed on the day I had decided not to go for butterflies. It is normally an elusive creature, spending most of its time high up in oak trees. I had taken only one shot of this species previously, at a distance and with a long lens.

But this time I was looking among some low oak branches — lots of creatures live on oak trees — and this butterfly flew down from above, posed for me for ten seconds, and then flew back up again. Lucky! It is a drab little thing in flight, but the undersides of its wings are nicely marked.

Gatekeeper

Gatekeeper butterfly, Pyronia tithonus.  West Wickham Common, 24 July 2011.

I went out one morning with my camera with the clear intention to take photos of things other than butterflies. I had seen lots of butterflies over the previous few days and there must, I thought, be other interesting insects around. But what I saw, in perfect poses, was more butterflies, and I got a couple of shots that were better than average. No other insects, though!

This Gatekeeper was just a bit out of reach for me to capture it nicely using the viewfinder of my camera, so I tried a mode which I hardly ever use, which shows you the image in the swivellable screen on the back, and lets you hold the camera out at arms length. In this mode, autofocus is slow and cranky, but the butterfly waited for me on a bramble leaf, and here it is.

Coney Hall to Spring Park

Dappled sunlight on the path through the woods of Spring Park
29 July 2011.

On Friday there was a walk through some local fields and woods.

There were ten of us, including Stephen Tickner from Bromley, who led the walk. The job titles in the Countryside Service have all been changed during their reorganisation, and Stephen is a Principal Countryside Development Officer.

This walk was planned by Ewa Prokop, who has left, but Stephen did a good job of showing us round. There are still a few of Ewa's walks to come; the events planned in the current leaflet run up to the end of September.

We started at Coney Hall recreation ground and walked past St. John's Church and over the fields. It was hazy, but warm, and the countryside was pleasant and green. We paused at some hedgerows to look at the flowers and insect life. Some of the fields were set to grass, one was full of ripening wheat. At the bottom of the slope we crossed a busy road, called locally the Mad Mile, and went up to Spring Park's pond.

Plant life at the edge of the wood by the pond in Spring Park.
29 July 2011.

It is fenced off and surrounded by tall and scrubby wildflowers, and backs against the wood. I looked for damselflies and dragonflies, but saw only one dragonfly that disappeared up into the trees before I could get close to it. However, there were quite a few Gatekeeper butterflies around.

The second photo shows a typical slice of the plant life between the pond and the wood. You could find something like this anywhere in England. Included here are grasses, some with seed heads; white clover in the foreground; ripening blackberries and many bramble leaves; dock leaves; and some Creeping Thistles, one of which is flowering. To some, this might look like a patch of weeds, but these are all useful plants in their context. A Gatekeeper butterfly is basking on a dock leaf.

During the walk, as well as Gatekeepers, we saw a couple of Meadow Browns, some large and small Whites, and in the woods, a pair of Speckled Browns flying round and round each other, then away into the trees. Not very many for such a warm day, but it was good to see them.

We walked up the slope, through the woodland along abroad main pathway, and then back to the start point.

Rest-Harrow

Common Rest-harrow, Ononis repens, on Riddlesdown Common.  2 July 2011.

Farthing Downs Moths

Small Waved Umber moth, Horisme vitalbata.  A Geometer.  From a moth trap on Farthing Downs on the night of
16th July 2011.   Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs, with Gill Peachey.  Photographed the next day.

These are the moths I was shown by Gill Peachey on the recent moth and butterfly day at Farthing Downs. The backgrounds are not up to much, but the moths are mostly pretty clear.

The Noctuids were happy to be photographed with the lids off their jars. The geometers were more excitable, and the Small Waved Umber above was photographed on a wall (actually, a window in an interior wall). Gill recaptured it so that it could be released into the wild, rather than remain trapped in the office.

Slender Brindle moth, Apamea scolopacina.  A Noctuid.  From a moth trap on Farthing Downs
on the night of 16th July 2011.   Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs,
with Gill Peachey.  Photographed the next day.

Heart and Dart moth, Agrostis exclamationis.  A Noctuid.  From a moth trap on Farthing Downs
on the night of 16th July 2011.  Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs,
with Gill Peachey.  Photographed the next day.

Beautiful Hook-Tip moth, Laspeyria flexula.  A Noctuid.  From a moth trap on Farthing Downs on the night of
16th July 2011.   Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs, with Gill Peachey.  Photographed the next day.

Mother-of-Pearl moth, Pleuroptya ruralis.  A micromoth.  From a moth trap on Farthing Downs
on the night of 16th July 2011.   Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs,
with Gill Peachey.  Photographed the next day.

Clay moth, Mythimna ferrago.  Male.  A Noctuid.  From a moth trap on Farthing Downs
on the night of 16th July 2011.   Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs,
with Gill Peachey.  Photographed the next day.

Large Yellow Underwing moth, Noctua pronuba.  A Noctuid.   From a moth trap on Farthing Downs on the night
of 16th July 2011.   Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs, with Gill Peachey.  Photographed the next day.

Double Square-Spot moth, Xestia triangulum.  A Noctuid.  From a moth trap on Farthing Downs on the night
of 16th July 2011.   Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs, with Gill Peachey.  Photographed the next day.

Scalloped Oak moth, dark form; Crocalis elinguaria.  A Geometer.  From a moth trap on Farthing Downs on the night
of 16th July 2011.   Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs, with Gill Peachey.  Photographed the next day.

Black Arches moths, Lymantria monacha.  A Lymantriid.  From a moth trap on Farthing Downs on the night
of 16th July 2011.   Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs, with Gill Peachey.  Photographed the next day.

Common Footman moth, Eilema luideola.  An Arctiid.  From a moth trap on Farthing Downs on the night
of 16th July 2011.   Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs, with Gill Peachey.  Photographed the next day.

Butterfly Season

Purple Hairstreak, Neozephyrus quercus, in an oak tree.
Jubilee Country Park, Sunday 17th July 2011.

They all come at once, or so it seems.  Today I went on two more butterfly walks; one at Jubilee Country Park, and one at Farthing Downs.

The walk at JCP was led by Marcus Jordan and Tony Ruffle. The forecast was for heavy showers, but we had good sunshine for over an hour. To begin with, no butterflies were apparent. Perhaps we were a little early. But we spread out and walked through the meadows; there were perhaps a dozen of us, and we flushed out several; then quite soon there were lots flying around.

These were Meadow Browns and Ringlets, a few fresh bright Gatekeepers, and we also saw a few small Skippers. One of them was confirmed as an Essex Skipper. You can only tell this from a Small Skipper by examining the underside of its antennae. An Essex Skipper's antennae are black beneath; a Small Skipper's are not. Of course, usually you see them from above ...

Essex Skipper, Thymelicus lineola.
Jubilee Country Park, Sunday 17th July 2011.

We moved along the side of a wood where there was a belt of brambles. This was quite productive. We saw some Commas, beautiful creatures with sculpted wings; a Green-Veined White; a Red Admiral; and flying up into an oak, two Purple Hairstreaks, quite hard to photograph because they tend to be high up and far away. Quite hard to spot, too; one of us was watching them and pointing them out, and it still took me a minute to see where they were.

I haven't included photos of species I posted earlier this week, except for the Comma. I had one shot of the Comma I could not resist posting. There were other creatures, too; bumblebees, beetles, hoverflies, and we saw a Five-Spot Burnet moth.

Then it started to rain. Butterflies do not fly in the rain.

So in the afternoon I went to Farthing Downs. This is a City of London Common and the walk was led by a local volunteer, Gill Peachey. Perhaps because of the weather, I was the only one to turn up for the walk, though there were other visitors in the car park; what can keep people from such good quality free entertainment? I do not understand it.

Ringlet, Aphantopus hyperantus, looking rather tattered.
Jubilee Country Park, Sunday 17th July 2011.

Even though you could see rainclouds all around, this walk was billed as including a look at some moths captured the night before, so not even a downpour could have made the visit useless. Gill showed me the captures and told me about them. Most of them stayed put even with the lids off their jars, and I have some photos, though they are against indifferent backgrounds, and I'll post them another day when I have read up on the moths and made sure I have the right name against the right specimen.

We went out for a look around the common. We had maybe half an hour of clear weather, during which we saw a Small Copper, a Small Heath and a Green-Veined White along with the expected Meadow Browns. Then it began to rain quite hard, and didn't stop. The camera went into my bag and my umbrella protected that rather than me. But Gill is pretty good at plants as well as lepidoptera, and now I know where to come for some bee and fly orchids next year.

All today's butterfly photos were taken with the 200mm prime lens and 2x extension tube on my EOS 60D. I need to use an even shorter exposure in future, because despite my care, some of these are slightly blurry. You can see from the really sharp ones, like that comma, what the lens can do.

Gatekeeper,  Pyronia tithonus.  Butterfly walk in Jubilee Country Park, Sunday 17th July 2011.

Comma,  Polygonia c-album.   Butterfly walk in Jubilee Country Park, Sunday 17th July 2011.

Small Heath,  Coenonympha pamphylus.  Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs, Sunday 17th July 2011.

Green-Veined White, Pieris napi.  Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs, Sunday 17th July 2011.

Small Copper,  Lycaena phlaeas.  Moths and Butterflies on Farthing Downs, Sunday 17th July 2011.

Robin's Pincushion Gall

Robin's Pincushion gall, caused by the wasp Diplolepis rosae, on a wild rose in Riddlesdown Quarry, 2 July 2011.

Green Oak Tortrix

Green Oak Tortrix moth, Tortrix viridiana, on an oak tree on West Wickham Common, 2 June 2011.

Riddlesdown Quarry

Riddlesdown Quarry from within the security fence, 2 July 2011.

It's not one of my local commons, but it was recommended, so I booked for the summer flower and butterfly walk to Riddlesdown Quarry on July 2nd. It's a City of London common like West Wickham Common and Spring Park, which I visit often as they are within walking distance of my house, but I had never been to Riddlesdown before. The warden there is Matt Johnson, and he led the walk with the assistance of one Frances, a local volunteer, who knew the quarry and its flora in detail.

Both the common and the quarry are spectacular. First, a long straight path through open grassland, thought to be on the route of a Roman road. Excavation is needed to confirm this. Grassland, and some trees and scrub off to the sides; the common is being actively managed to increase the open grassland. The wildflowers were profuse. I saw several which were new to me, or if I had seen them before I didn't know at the time what they were. Vervain, Dropwort, Tufted Vetch, Rest Harrow. Spear Thistle and Welted Thistle. The Mignonette looked very much like the garden plant of the same name that I remember from my childhood.

Long-headed poppy, Papaver dubium subspecies dubium,
in Riddlesdown Quarry. 2 July 2011.

Some plants that I did know grew here in great numbers. We followed a track that verged away from the Roman road and saw hundreds of Pyramidal Orchids, by the path and under a tree. Then we walked up a slope and came to the top of the quarry.

The common is open to all, but the quarry is surrounded by a tall metal security fence, and there are two locked gates to get through before reaching the edge of the excavation. It is a spectacular sight. Geologists would love it. Until 1996 it belonged to Blue Circle, a company that sold cement, but they had not taken chalk for some while before that.

There were a few butterflies around on the grass plateau outside, but when we went in we were suddenly surrounded by them; Meadow Browns, Ringlets, Marbled Whites and some Skippers, fluttering around, disturbed by our passing. And there were more plants, different again. Some were vivid, with strong colours, like the Everlasting Pea and the Long-Headed Poppy; others had clear pastel shades like Centaury and Restharrow.

Kidney Vetch, the food of the caterpillar of the scarce Small Blue butterfly, was all around, but we did not see the butterfly, though it is known to live here. Hop Trefoil, Eyebright, Rosebay Willowherb, many plants with beautiful and evocative names. And I discovered from one of the walkers that Bird's-Foot Trefoil, sometimes called eggs-and-bacon here, is called "old women's teeth" in Sweden.

Hop trefoil, Trifolium campestre, in Riddlesdown Quarry. 2 July 2011.

I thought I might see some of the day-flying Burnet moths, as those teeth are what the caterpillars eat. But no, though there are said to be plenty of them. I did see a Cinnabar, another brightly coloured day-flier, whose caterpillars eat only Ragwort. One of the group pointed out a Peregrine Falcon, rather larger but a lot further away, circling around the trees at the top of the quarry.

The path winds down into the centre of the quarry, where we looked around for a while, and then back up and home again. The walk was advertised as three hours. We started off at 10 a.m. and got back to the car park at 1:30 p.m. It did not seem a long time. There is only one chance each summer to visit the quarry, and I will definitely book early next year.

This was a good chance to try out my new camera, a Canon EOD 60D, and all the closeup photos were taken with that and my 100mm macro lens. The wide view of the quarry, and the view of the group, were taken with my little Canon Ixus 100. As usual, these photos show only a tiny fraction of the good things there were to be seen.

Matt Johnson addressing the group at the top of Riddlesdown quarry. 2 July 2011.

One of the group remembered when that table was new; it was quite flat then.

Common centaury, Centaureum erythraea, in Riddlesdown Quarry. 2 July 2011.

Cinnabar moth, Tyria jacobaeae, in Riddlesdown Quarry. 2 July 2011.

Round-leaved wintergreen, Pyrola rotundifolia, in Riddlesdown Quarry. 2 July 2011.

Wolf spider hunting under the grass, carrying her young on her back, in the meadow above Riddlesdown quarry.
2 July 2011.

These spiders are quick-moving hunters and they don't hang around and pose for the camera. I have seen lots of wolf spiders this summer, but I have very few photos.

Marmalade hoverfly, Episyrphus balteatus, on a small scabious, Scabiosa columbaria,
on Riddlesdown Common.  2 July 2011.