SE Nature Notes w/e June 28th

1 July 2010

Portsmouth & Portsdown

On Monday there were 4 white-letter hairstreak butterflies on elms along the northern perimeter of the Cosham IBM site. There were 20 on Wednesday on the whole site. On Tuesday a sparrowhawk over Farlington was being dive bombed by a black-headed gull. On Wednesday’s Trust walk the highlights were common valerian and dropwort on Portsdown. We also found bee, pyramidal and common spotted orchids and at Purbrook Heath chamomile. A hornet was in a Portsdown green house on Thursday. Pyramidal orchids at Fort Purbrook are now at about their best with many large specimens now fully open. Combined with marbled white butterflies this is a site worth a look. A male stag beetle was found on the pavement on Portsdown Hill in Cosham on Saturday.

Havant, Hayling & Emsworth

The Southern Marsh Orchids on the Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust reserve at Southmoors this week have been superb and a count on Saturday was the highest since counts started in 1995. This year there are over 9,000 probably as a result of good weather and better management of the grazing. Terns are still doing well on the RSPB islands with some of the chicks now beginning to fly. Numbers are difficult to ascertain at this stage. There are far fewer black-headed gull chicks probably due to predation. At the oyster beds there are up to 100 common tern chicks. An adult gannet was fishing NE of Black Point Hayling Island on Monday evening.

Butterflies on Chalton Down on Monday included small heath, large and dingy skippers plus the more common species; and the moths included common carpet, six and five spot burnet and Pyrasuta aurata. A dead female stag beetle was found on the Billy Trail behind the museum on Tuesday. A known serotine bat roost held at least 21 bats on Tuesday. Two female broad bodied chaser dragonflies have been frequenting a Pook Lane pond this week. On Tuesday there was a small tortoiseshell butterfly at the oyster beds. Milk thistle on the mound had deep purple flowers and yellowwort and marjoram are beginning to flower. A Hayling Island garden has for the second year a colony of leaf-cutter bees.