After what seems like weeks of rain and grey skies, the sun finally managed to shine yesterday and what a glorious day it was, reaching 18C! So, what better way to spend an hour than conducting a butterfly transect, the first proper one I have been able to do this year.
Starting on the Phase 1 grassland at 12.20, I made my way northwards to the bottom end of the balancing pond, recording peacock, brimstone and orange-tip along the way. The route then takes me back southwards, down the public footpath to the woodland. This stretch is excellent for butterflies, as it is sheltered from the prevailing south-westerlies and gets very warm in the sunshine. 5 species made an appearance along this part of the transect, including peacock, brimstone, orange-tip, green-veined white and my first speckled wood of the year.
Through the woodland is usually a quiet section, although later on in the year, this is where I will be keeping a eye open for our star butterfly species – the white-letter and purple hairstreaks around elm and oak trees respectively. The final section then follows the public footpath back to the quarry plant, again an excellent area for insects, being sheltered from the wind. Green-veined whites and orange-tips showed themselves along here, with a beautiful male brimstone flying past me just as the sun went in. As I returned to the quarry plant, I thought that was it and started tallying up my counts for the day, when a comma flew past just at the very end of the transect route – excellent!
Also on site yesterday were a stunning hobby over Phase 2, two swifts over the silt lagoons and a cuckoo calling from the public footpath by the Trent.