SE Nature Notes w/e June 13th
17 June 2010
Portsmouth & Portsdown
A seal was seen not far off shore near the Canoe Lake at Southsea on 3rd June. Sainfoin is in flower now on Portsdown with a good show in front of the car park east of The George. Drayton Methodist Church has a good show of bee orchids and there are more in Compartment 8 on Portsdown. On Monday evening a small bat, probably a pipistrelle, was seen in Southsea. The heath spotted orchids at the Hookheath NR are looking very good. There are some southern marsh orchids but there are few in the first field where it is thought many have been picked. On the SSSI wet field there are some good hybrids. (pictures are on www.havantnature.net) The beautiful demoiselles are flying and very attractive to watch. On Portsdown bastard toadflax is flowering well in Compartment 3 (above the Paulsgrove chalk pit). On the path from the west end of the pit to the top of the down yellow vetchling is recovering from being strimmed and now has flowers. Also on this path an Oedemera nobilis beetle was seen in a bindweed flower. Very few butterflies were seen but there was a single large skipper.
Havant, Hayling & Emsworth
There is some doubt about what has happened to the little tern pair at the oyster beds but there are now several chicks on the RSPB Islands where there are around 60 nests. There are some common spotted orchids by the Billy Trail at the oyster beds. Two red-breasted mergansers were south of the oyster beds on Wednesday. A Brent goose was seen off the Hayling Island shore early on Thursday. Walking on the hills west of Idsworth on Saturday morning the best birds were a bullfinch and a family of tree creepers. A green-veined white butterfly was also seen.
Fareham and Gosport
Southern marsh orchids are superb in a field west of Southwick village. Eleven grey herons were seen flying in formation high over Titchfield Haven on Monday. There is still a male garganey about and around 60 avocets. Several small blue butterflies were spotted at Castle Shore Portchester on Monday. In Gosport painted lady, green veined white and large skipper butterflies and five spot burnet, Mother Shipton and silver Y moths were seen on Tuesday. Fifty swifts were seen over Portchester on Friday.
Waterlooville and South Downs
On Monday there was a large patch of orange hawkweed by Tempest Avenue. There were as many as 14 Mediterranean gulls at the Queen Elizabeth CP on Monday. A turtle dove was seen in a Denmead garden on Thursday.
