Farewell

I have watched the crops grow golden, the Large Blues come and go and the sun rising and falling in Somerset since the 30th of May. What a wonderful experience it has been, but all good things must come to an end. Therefore, it is time to say goodbye to Collard Hill and all of it’s inhabitants. A new chapter of adventure awaits me.

Here are a few images I have taken over the course of my time on Collard Hill which I did not manage to put on the blog posts:

Goodluck to the 2017 Large Blue Butterfly Volunteer Ranger. May the Large Blues be another success in your presence!

Abbi

Newbies!

 

Sunny Collard Hill

What a great day today turned out to be. There was sunshine, there were new butterflies and there were visitors to keep me company. But there were no Large Blue butterfly appearances, instead I was graced with the presence of another beautiful butterfly; a Peacock butterfly.

Peacock Butterfly

It was also a great day for Cloud Busting! Can anyone else see a Poodle in the clouds?

Cloud Busting

I also saw these, but wasn’t sure on what they were exactly, can anyone help?

Silver Y Moth again?

Bee or Wasp?

It is getting closer and closer for the end of my time at Collard Hill, even with the extra week I still do not want to leave. It is a gorgeous site and no-one should under-appreciate it for a moment.

Abbi

Mid-Week Wonder

We are nearing the end of the second week of July now and sadly there have not been any more sightings of Large Blues. I believe there to still be some on site but with compromising weather conditions they just don’t want to show themselves.

I will still be walking the transect route twice a day for this week, when the weather conditions feel right and I will still be updating the blog, until further notice, with photographs I have taken from each day when searching for the remaining Large Blues on Collard Hill.

There will always be a lot to see on Collard Hill, from the wildflowers in the meadow to the Red Devon cattle in the fields (and of course the unforgettable view of the Levels). So please do come along and help in the search for the last Large Blues of 2016.

Here are some photographs from today, including a photograph of a Cinnabar Moth taken by a National Trust volunteer and a photograph of the Caterpillar:

Bumble Bee

Cinnabar Moth Caterpillar

NT Volunteer: Ronnie Harkness

Ox Eye Daisies

Silver Y Moth

I had a guess that the above was a Silver Y Moth, but if not then please do correct me.
Enjoy the rest of your week!

Abbi

Common Blues are back!

Well I never! Today I saw a very fresh Common Blue. So, as the Large Blues are dwindling their way into the second week of July, the Common Blues are returning.

Common Blues have orange on their underwings, have no black spots on the upperwings, do not have a thick border and are a sky blue colour. Large Blues – as you all should know by now – have no orange on their wings, have prominent black spots on their upperwings, do have a thick black border and are a deep shade of blue (when in flight the colour blends with the purple shades of selfheal).

Common Blue in Flight

Pristine Common Blue

Today’s Large Blue

The weather today was cloudy with few sunny spells, very windy and a little rainy towards the end of my shift today. All in all, I saw just the one Large Blue a few times and that was in the space of 20 minutes. It was fluttering about the sign that directs visitors onto the Eastern Glade or down the slope towards the bottom of the site.

Here is what else I found on site today, any ideas on the moth identification would be wonderful:

Skipper

Pied Shield Bugs

Moth

Plus some visitor images of their time at Collard Hill this year:

Dave Miller

Dave Miller

Hywel Thomas

Hywel Thomas

Dave Miller

Graham Hall

Both Graham and I would love to know what caterpillar is in his photograph – the caterpillar and parasitic wasp.

Abbi

Weekend Blues

Sadly, the Large Blues are nearing the end of their reign on Collard Hill. Plus, the weather conditions do not help the last few that still remain, but there is hope that they will stay for the beginning of next week at least. Therefore, I am set to stay volunteering at Collard Hill for an extra week, than was originally planned, in order to see these last few off.

Today on site, the winds were blowing at 25mph! The sky was cloudy in the morning and blue in the afternoon, however there was quite a bit of mist hanging about, which I don’t think the butterflies liked (again, I believe this causes the air pressure to be wrong for them to fly).

However, here are some pictures I have taken from today, including a Large Blue, a Green Woodpecker, an unidentified Caterpillar and a photo of lots of grasses:

Red-Tailed Bumble Bee

What is this species of Caterpillar munching on rose leaves?

Gatekeeper

Grasses

Green-Veined White

Green Woodpecker

Large Blue

Small Skipper

Painted Lady

Ringlet

If you can identify the caterpillar or any grasses you can see in the photographs that would be fantastic!

Abbi

Flutterbys

Today, they just didn’t want to settle it seemed and when they did they had disappeared. Over the course of today, I believe I saw around 7 individuals flying around the more sheltered parts of the site, due to a high Southerly breeze.

I trust the experts when they say the Large Blues will still be around for the weekend and for next week. So there is still a good chance of seeing one this year! Plus, the view is spectacular from Collard Hill, so is definitely worth the trip down anyway.

Flag to show Information and Visitor Comment Books

I managed to photograph a Red Admiral on site today – the first sighting this year, amongst other butterflies and invertebrates today:

Gatekeeper

Harvestman

Marbled White

Meadow Brown

Red Admiral

Ringlet

We also have many types of thistle on site, but I couldn’t figure out which this could be, and thought it best to ask yourselves! [update: It is not a thistle, it is Teasel! That’s why I couldn’t find it in the thistle section of my identification guide!]

The whole plant

The top flower head with leaves

Any suggestions, as always, are welcome.

Abbi

Tadah! Just like magic…

Well I never… we are back in double figures with sightings today. All it took was a bit of sunshine magic and there were butterflies everywhere!

When having lunch on the bank, by the oak tree, about 5 danced around me – 3 all at once. It was such a glorious day and has filled me with hope that there is actually a good chance of seeing them next weekend (providing decent weather).

Some individuals of Large Blue are looking weathered and more brown (as they are losing their blue scales with age). Yet there are others that are so very vibrant and fresh looking too. A good mixture for the future, and for seeing us into July 2016.

Not only was the high number of Large Blue sightings exciting, but also I saw this little fella buzzing around:

Hummingbird Hawkmoth

Not so long ago, a visitor was describing a Hummingbird Hawkmoth to me, as I had told him I had never seen one before, of which I could remember. But now I can say I have seen and photographed one for the records, and that I agree; they are stunningly beautiful.

I also saw a very big bush-cricket today:

 Young Great Green Bush-Cricket [updated]

 A Young Great Green Bush-Cricket hiding behind leaf

Also, there is some gorgeous flowers blooming on site at the moment, including this delight:

Common Centuary

Also, some more photographs from visitors:

Kelvin Irwin – Capsid Bug

Terence Baker

Terence Baker

Please do: call the Large Blue hotline, comment on the blog posts, email in (largeblueranger@gmail.com) and write in the visitor book at Collard Hill. I would love to hear from you!

Abbi

 

Friday Forecast

It’s July and the butterflies have made it! They had an early emergence and are going to have a late disappearance. Absolutely wonderful news considering the awful weather we have had over most of June. They have definitely surprised me this year.

A brief update on today and then on to pictures.

My first Large Blue sighting of the day occurred at 9:50am, at the bottom of the Eastern Glade. My second, third and fourth Large Blue sighting were around the quarry area, around 11:00am. From then on only a handful more were sighted. Then, bands of rain followed by blinks of sunshine occurred. So, after showing visitors around the site, I stopped looking for butterflies in the wind and rain and started Ragwort pulling with other NT members that were already on site.

(Please do not pull up ragwort if you are going to leave it on site, because it sweetens and becomes more attractive, yet more toxic to animals. If you wanted to get involved with pulling ragwort to help maintain Collard Hill and other NT sites, get in touch with head office, or email me at largeblueranger@gmail.com thank you.)

Pictures as promised, firstly from today, then more from visitors who have visited the site in the last week or so and then todays identification challenge to you:

Common Green Grasshopper

Hover-fly (Helophilus pendulus)

Sloe Bug

Barrie Taylor

Steve Green

Steve Green

Steve Green

 

Identification Challenge #1:

Some say this is a Rhodicilla orchid, but some say otherwise. What do you think?

Can you name this orchid?

Can you name this orchid?

 

Identification Challenge #2:

Who’s old chrysalis is this?

Who’s chrysalis is this?

 

I would love to see your ideas, so please do comment below.
Abbi

 

 

An Eventful Day

When arriving on sight to the sun warming my face, the bird’s singing away, and a gentle breeze on through my hair, it was just so peaceful. I then came across some early birds who had traveled from Hampshire and Kent to see the Large Blue butterflies. After a quick chat, I put up the flag and prepared for my day. Then it was time for me to go to Ivythorn Car Park (by the YHA) where I was to meet and greet some National Trust Somerset Rangers and Volunteers.

It was great fun showing them about, teaching them about the site and talking about the Large Blue with them. When arriving on site with them, within 10 minutes we had spotted some visitors that had collected just off of the pathway -always a good indicator that a Large Blue is at their feet. So as a group we crept up to see the Large Blue in all its glory.

I then walked the transect route with them sharing knowledge of hotspots for Large Blues and for specific plant species, such as the wasp and bee orchids (although most of them are no longer in pristine condition).

Within the Quarry we saw a freshly emerged Large Blue with its wings still crumpled and curled. It was beautiful! Other visitors today spoke of similar sightings at different parts of the site, meaning the Large Blues could be around for an extended period of time. We shall just have to wait and see.

Here are some images from today, including some challenges for you to try and help me identify:

6-Spot Burnet Moth

Challenge: What is this bug?

Common Restharrow

Field Mushroom

Challenge: Is this a Scarlet Tiger Moth

Challenge: What is this bug (2nd picture)?

I also found what I thought was a Pied Shieldbug and another unidentifiable bug, but these proved more difficult to snap up a picture.
Any ideas on the identification of the bug and the moth is welcome.
Abbi

 

Monday & Tuesday Site Catch Up

Over the last two days Becky Woodgate has been standing in for me. As previously mentioned she is the appointed Polden Landscape Champion for Butterfly Conservation, so any questions about this role are welcome. She has been sending me notes about her two days on site so that I can fill you all in on the days that I have missed.

27th June, Monday:

“The day started quite cloudy but the sunny spells allowed for a decent transect and I counted 7 adults along with meadow browns, small heaths and marbled whites.  The skies cleared just after lunch but I had to dash off to New hill and Tannager, further along the Polden ridge, to walk the transect there as the weather isn’t looking great for the rest of the week.

I came back mid afternoon whilst the sun was still shining (although was pretty breezy) and I recorded 6 adults along with meadow browns, small heaths, marbled whites, ringlets and large skippers.  I enjoyed meeting the visitors and chatting to them.  I hope that I was helpful and also my local knowledge of the Poldens and surrounding area useful for visitors wanting to experience other good sites for butterflies.” [Becky Woodgate]

Here are some of the images that she had taken for Monday:

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28th Tuesday

“I only did the morning transect as the weather took a turn for the worst.  Although windy, the slopes further down were better and quite warm and I recorded 10 adult large blues (6 on section 1).

I watched the weather closing in, coming across the levels and so packed up at about 1pm. Before the rain arrived I stood and watched a Kestrel hunting (my favourite bird of prey).  I noticed it about yesterday too.  Today I managed to get a couple of photos with my battered old bridge camera.” [Becky Woodgate]

Here are those wonderful photo’s that Becky captured, taken on Tuesday:

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Again, any questions please do ask.
Abbi.

P.s. A big thank you to Becky and all of the other volunteers that have stood in for me!