Our rare butterfly, the heath fritillary, has broken all records by appearing on 12 May, my earliest ever sighting by ten days. This is about five weeks earlier than was usual in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and represents an amazing response to the warm spring this year. It's too soon to know when the peak is going to be, but it's bound to be markedly earlier than last year, when it was around 29th June. So, if you're visiting the wood in the coming weeks, look out for this lovely orange and black butterfly in sunny areas, especially if the caterpillars' foodplant, cow-wheat, is growing nearby.
Blean Woods site manager since 1982.