Butterfly season is now in full swing! The Discovery Trail and the Lin Dike link are great places to spot brightly coloured insects on the wing as they dance above wildflowers in the sunshine.
Purple hairstreak, Chris Shields (rspb-images.com)
We have some very dedicated volunteers who monitor the insect life here at Fairburn, and they have clocked up some impressive sightings this week. Have you spotted many butterflies or dragonflies around the reserve?
Brimstone butterfly, Alan Kelly
Green-veined white butterflies are out in force at the moment, and a purple hairstreak put in a rare appearance. Purple hairstreaks aren’t a particularly rare butterfly, but they can be hard to spot as they spend most of their time in the canopies of oak trees, feeding on honeydew.
Green-veined white, Alan Kelly
If you’re into dragonflies, now is the time to see them. Ruddy Darters have been spotted around the reserve; the males are identifiable by their vivid red body, while females are golden-yellow colour. There has also been a nice selection of emerald damselfly, common darter, southern hawker, and brown hawker spotted.
Ruddy Darter, Alan Kelly
Pickup has been a particularly wonderful place to see wildlife this week, with some lovely footage of a roe deer playing in the sunset captured on Wednesday evening, a Female marsh harrier has also been spotted flying over the hide, and a green sandpiper regularly out on the scrape.
Marsh harrier, Chris Gomersall (rspb-images.com)
That’s it for this week’s recent sightings, why not head down to Lin Dike this weekend and see if you spot any of these species? Don’t forget to write down what you see in the book!