Monday 3rd July & Wednesday 5th July

Monday 3rd July 2017:
A brief visit to the Common this afternoon saw me return to the area of former car park along the Worcester Rd that i had visited the day before.  I had hoped to get more photos of Sand Wasps but was out of luck on that front.  That said, I was treated to another of the site's speciality species in the form of a ♂ Beewolf.  

The Beewolf is one of the largest solitary wasp species in Britain and nests in sandy places on dunes, heaths and sand-pits.  It gets it's common name, Beewolf, from the fact that it stocks its nest burrows almost exclusively with Honeybees.  Female Beewolfs are large imposing wasps that are easily recognised by the narrow reddish stripe behind the eye and extensively pale face.  The males on the other hand are smaller with bluish eyes and a distinctive trident-like mark between the eyes.

♂ Beewolf (Philanthus triangulum)

Wednesday 5th July 2017:
It was yet another warm sunny day on the Common and for my visit I walked a circuit on the west side of the Worcester Rd.  There was a good mix of butterfly species on the wing, with notables including:  1 Marbled White, 2 Small Heath, 1 Small Copper,  1 Red Admiral, 2 Comma and 2 Large White.  Essex Skipper, Small Skipper, Meadow Brown and Ringlet were all present in good numbers.  A small number of Gatekeeper had also emerged since my previous visit.

The highlight of the visit was finding a rather diminutive 24-spot Ladybird.  This was the first I have seen this year.  To give you an idea of scale I have attached a photo below showing the beetle on a plant stem next to my thumbnail.

24-spot Ladybird (Subcoccinella 24-punctata)

 

Tuesday 27th June to Sunday 2nd July

Tuesday 27th June 2017:
I made a breif visit to the Wilden Top car prak area of the Common today.  The weather was a cloudy with light drizzle and I just thought there may be the chance of an interesting bird being pushed down.  Of course there wasn't but you've got to be in it to win it!  That said there was a fair bit of bird activity in the scrub and it was heartening to see juveniles of Dunnock, Robin and Blackbird.  Yellowhammers and Linnets were also present and singing away. A Skylark was up singing above the NE edge of the Common and the adjacent farmland.   Two Swifts were also seen over heading West.


Saturday 1st July 2017:
A return to the warm sunny weather saw me undertake a walk on the Cooks side of the Common (west of the Worcvester Rd).  3 Marbled White butterflies were present near the gate by Cooks feeding on the Knapweed.  Both Essex Skipper and Small Skippers were present in this area too feeding on knapweed and the Lady's Bedstraw.  These two species of dinutive orange butterflies can be told apart by looking at the underside of the antennae tips.  In Essex Skipper they are ink black and in Small Skipper they are brown (although some Small Skippers can have what look like black tips with a brown underside so it is worth double checking).  2 Large Skippers were also recorded.

Essex Skipper (Thymelicus lineola)

Marbled White (Melanargia galathea)

Other butterflies recorded during my circuit included 5 Small Heath, 2 Red Admiral, 1 Comma, 3 Small Tortoishell, 1 Speckled Wood and 1 Large White.

4 Six-spot Burnet moths were also noted.  As was a single Fan-bristled Robberfly.  It was also nice to see the Bell Heather coming into bloom.

Six-spot Burnet (Zygaena filipendulae)

Bell Heather (Erica cinerea)

Sunday 2nd July 2014:
Today I started my visit at the Wilden Top carpark and managed to catch up with another of the Common's speciality species Brown-banded Carder Bee (Bombus humilis).  Small numbers of this bumblebee were present alongside the more commonplace Common Carder Bee feeding on the flowers of Wood Sage in one of the craters just of the entrance road. Sadly I was unable to get a clear record shot of one this visit but I will endevour to on subsequent visits.

Also of note in the Wilden Top carpark area were 1 Marbled White, 2 Small Heath and a Silver Y moth.

I then headed down to the lower terrace of the Common to check out the area that used to be the 3rd carpark along the Worcester Rd (and is now but a pull in).  This area has many interesting plants coming through and it's almost waste ground nature has the potential to turn up the odd interesting invert or two.  On arriving I soon picked up on a Black and Yellow Longhorn Beetle that was feeding on Yarrow. 

Black and Yellow Longhorn Beetle (Rutpela maculata)

I also recorded a Sand Wasp (Ammophila sp.) at this location, but I need to do more work on these before I can determine if it was Heath Sand Wasp or Red Banded Sand Wasp (both of which occur on the Common).

Saturday 24th and Monday 26th June

Saturday 24th June 2017:
It was another warm sunny afternoon on the Common and I walked a circuit on the lower terrace taking in the Rush Pool area and the Cooks side of the Worcester Rd.  Butterflies were the order of the day with 2 Marbled Whites, 6 Small Heath, 1 Red Admiral, 1 Comma, 1 Small Tortoiseshell, 1 Large White, plus many Ringlets & Meadow Browns were recorded.  I also observed my first Small Skipper of the year during the walk.  It was also nice to see a mating pair of Six-spot Burnet moths.

Six-spot Burnet (Zygaena filipendulae) - mating

Small Heath (Coenonympha pamphilus)

Also of interest on the walk was seeing an adult Green Woodpecker with two juveniles on the Cooks side of the Common.  Of concern was the ever-dwindling water levels of the Rush Pool.  The surface area of the water remaning in the pool is now only approx. 10ft by 8ft! 

From the Common I geaded over to Hillditch Pool.  Unlike the Rush Pool, Hillditch is an old mill pond and is fed by a brook (Titton Brook), so is the water level remains fairly constant there.  On arrival at the pool I was greeted by the sight of my first Brown Hawker dragonfly of the year.  Other dragonflies of note were 3♂ Emperor and a single Four-spotted Chaser.  a small number of Common Blue damselflies were also noted during today's visit.

On the bird front, a Raven flew over 'kronking' heading west and the Moorhen family on the main pool still had three chicks with them.

Two Large Skipper butterflies were also observed at this site. As was a Tachinid Fly known as Tachina fera that was feeding on the umbellifer flowers near the pool.

Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)

Tachina Fera - Tachinid Fly

Monday 26th June 2017:
Today I returned to Hillditch Pool to take advantage of the ongoing sunny weather and spend some time Odonata watching.  On arrival at the site i was welcomed by the site of a Southern Hawker dragonfly that was patrolling the wooded clearing near the roadside pull in.  This is the first Southern Hawker that I have recorded at the site in 2017.  Other dragonflies observed at the pool were a single  Brown Hawker and 4 Emperor (3♂,1♀).

From the pool I walked the adjacent meadow where 2 Large Skipper, 2 Comma, 2 Small Tortoiseshell, 1 Speckled Wood were observed. The ubiquitous Meadow Brown and Ringlet were again out in large numbers.

Large Skipper (Ochlodes sylvanus)

The highlight of the visit came in the form of a butterfly caterpillar as I managed to find a second active Painted Lady larval tent near the sand bank (see previous post). 

Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui) - larva in larval tent

Friday 23rd June

Friday 23rd June 2017:
Today I headed over to the meadow adjacent to Hillditch Pool to look for a couple of interesting species that had been observed there earlier in the week by my good friend and fellow amateur naturalist Mark Peacock.  During his visit Mark had managed to locate a small number of Brown-banded Carder Bees visiting flowers near the sand bank at the top of the Meadow.  Brown-banded Carder is a nationally scarce bumblebee species that was discovered by well know entomologist Steve Falk as existing on Hartlebury Common back in 2010.  Another small population was discovered at the nearby Wilden Marsh.  For more information on this species at the Common,  the following article published in the Worcestershire Record is worth a read (just click on the link highlighted in blue):


http://www.wbrc.org.uk/WORCRECD/issue_29/Bombus_humilis_Worcs.html

 
The other interesting species Mark recorded in this area was Painted Lady larval tent and larva of one on a nettle there.  This is something I have never observed before so I was hoping to try and find it.  I visited the area that Mark suggested to look and spent a fair while mooching about.  Sadly I was unable to connect with the Brown-banded Carder bee but I did have more success with the Painted Lady Larva and managed to locate it's tent.


Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui) larva

Butterfly wise there were large numbers of Meadow Browns & Ringlets present in the meadow.   I also recorded a single Silver Y moth in the area.   Other interesting inverts recorded included Black-striped Longhorn Beetle and Pellucid Fly.

Black-striped Longhorn Beetle (Stenurella melanura)

Pellucid Fly (Volucella pellucens)

Saturday 17th June to Wednesday 21st June

Saturday 17th June 2017:
It was a very hot, sunny afternoon on the Common and I decided to walk a circuit on the Cook's side of the Worcester Rd.  It proved a successful walk as I recorded 14 Small Heath butterflies during the course of the circuit.    2 Narrow-bordered Five-spot Burnet moths were also of note.


Narrow-bordered Five-spot Burnet (Zygaena lonicerae)

Monday 19th June 2017:
The hot weather continues with temperatures this afternoon pushing 30°c.  At Hillditch Pool there were 4 Emperor (3♂,1♀) and 1 ♂ Scarce Chaser dragonfly present.  I was also treated to a rare photographic opportunity of a Red-eyed Damselfly that actually perched up on a stem instead of sitting on a usual lily pad.


Red-eyed Damselfly (Erythromma najas)

The meadow adjacent to the pool was very productive on the butterfly front with 2 Large Skipper, 2 Comma, 1 Small Tortoiseshell, 7 Ringlet and 21 Meadow Brown noted.  A rather stunning Brimstone Moth was also observed.


Comma (Polygonia c-album)

















Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina)

Wednesday 21st June 2017:
The hot spell of weather continued with the temperature again up at 30°c.  I decided to prioritize today's visit on the Cook's side of the Common where there are some quite substantial areas of  Lady's Bedstraw flowering and also a number of Common Knapweed plants in bloom.  It proved to be a wise decision as in this area there were 3 Marbled White butterflies on the wing.  This especially pleasing as not many records of this species have come from this side of the Common before.


♂ Marbled White (Melanargia galathea)
















Other Lepidoptera (butterflies & moths) recorded during the visit included 8 Small Heath, 1 Large Skipper, 1 Comma, 8 Cinnabar plus the ubiquitous Ringlets and Meadow Browns. 

Sunday 11th to Thursday 15th June

Sunday 11th June 2017:
I started today's visit by having a mooch on the Cook's side of the Common.  The weather was overcast and windy leading to a noticeable drop in the amount of invert activity encountered.  The only Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths) of note was a single Large Skipper and 2 Cinnabar moths.


However I was pleased to see a small number of Common Blue Damselflies on the wing, the first I'd noted this year.   A Volucella bombylans bumblebee mimic hoverfly and a Black-striped Longhorn Beetle were also noted.


Common Blue Damselfly (Enallagma cyathigerum)

Volucella bombylans (bumblebee mimic hoverfly)

From the Common I headed over to Hillditch Pool. Things were pretty quite here on the wildlife front although it was pleasing to see a ♂ Scarce Chaser with quuite well defined mating scars.

♂ Scarce Chaser (Libellula fulva) with mating scars

Tuesday 13th June 2017:
Today I decided to do something slightly different and pay an late evening visit to the Common. I headed out at dusk armed with my torch to look for Glow-worms and my bat detector (just in case) I walked a circuit from the Lower Poolands carpark.  Sadly all I got for my troubles were a lot of midge bites or so it seemed until at 10:30pm I picked up on the sound of a juvenile Tawny Owl making 'begging calls' calling from the Oak wood. It continued to do so until 10:50pm.  I just wished I'd bought along my sound recorder!

Wedesday 14th June 2017:
I hadn't much time to visit the Common today as I'd already spent much of the afternoon in the Wyre Forest.  So to maximise my visit I just walked a circuit on the lower terrace taking in the Rush Pool and the nearby lawns.  At Rush Pool there were 2 Emperor Dragonflies present (a ♂ and an oviposting ♀).  A single ♂ Broad-bodied Chaser was the only other dragonfly of note.

There were many Ragwort plants growing in the lawned areas and a number of these were being fed on by the unmistakable yellow and black striped caterpillars of the Cinnabar moth.

Whilst undertaking the walk a Sparrowhawk went through and a Common Buzzard was up soaring.

♀ Emperor Dragaonfly (Anax imperator) egg-laying

♂ Broad-bodied Chaser (Libellula depressa)

Cinnabar (Tyria jacobaeae) larva

Thursday 15th June 2017:
Today's visit to Hillditch Pool was eventful to say the least.  At one point whilst walking at the pools edge I trod on what I thought was solid ground only to find that it was actually mud/water under the flattened vegetation and my feet sank about 12 inches.  My momentum took me forward and I fell hands first into the nettles (Ouch!).  Needless to say my hand smarted all night with 12-15 stings on my right hand it felt like I had permanent pins and needles.  That said thank heavens for small mercys...no one was there to capture the moment on camera and upload it to YouTube!  Note to self:  be mindfull of where you are treading whilst stalking dragonflies!

Anyway, enough of my waffle, on to the wildlife. There were 3 Scarce Chasers present at the pool today (1♀ and 2♂).  Only one of the male Chasers had visible mating scars.  3 Emperor (2♂, 1♀) were also  present as was a single Four-spotted Chaser.

♂ Emperor Dragaonfly (Anax imperator)

Four-spotted Chaser (Libellula quadrimaculata) - distant record shot

Whilst at the pool a Kingfisher flew through and an adult Moorhen was present with 3 young chicks.

In the meadow adjacent to the pool there were 3 Meadow Brown butterflies and 4 Ringlets present.  Their numbers will no doubt increase exponentially over coming days now they have started to emerge.

Ringlet (Aphantopus hyperantus)

Wednesday 7th & Saturday 10th June

Wednesday 7th June 2017:
I split this afternoon's visit into two separate walks.  The first being on the lower terrace of the Common and the second around Hillditch.  Again the warm mild weather continued.


On the Common I recorded 3♂ Broad-bodied Chasers on a now drying out Rush Pool.  Also during my circuit I recorded 1 Large Skipper butterfly and 12 Cinnabar moths.  It was also quite saddening to see that many of the spikes of  Tower Mustard had been gnawed off at about 6 inches above ground level.  This was most likely caused by some of the Common's rabbit population.


At Hillditch pool there was a good mix of dragonflies active with 3 Emperors (2♂,1♀), 1 Four-spotted Chaser and 2 Scarce Chasers (1♂,1♀) recorded.  The ♂ Scarce Chaser was of particular interest as it showed visible 'mating scars' along it's abdomen.  These are caused by the way a female claps the male with her legs during the mating process causing an area of the powdery blue pruinescence (mentioned last blog post) to be rubbed away.


♀ Scarce Chaser (Libellula fulva)

♂ Scarce Chaser (Libellula fulva) showing mating scars

Also of note at Hillditch today were 2 Large Skipper butterflies.


Saturday 10th June 2017:
The weather was warm and overcast for today's visit to the Common.  I started at the main car park where I checked the half a dozen Mullein plants in that are to see if there were any larvae of  The Mullein moth present.  I was in luck and found two of these stunning caterpillars feeding on the leaves.  The larva of this moth will also feed on buddleia leaves so it's always worth checking those if you have them in your garden.


The Mullein (Cucullia verbasci) larva

Also of interest in this area were a handful of Petticoat Mottlegill fungi.  They get there common name from the fringe around the edge of its cap that is said to resemble the frilly hem of a petticoat.


Petticoat Mottlegill (Panaeolus papilionaceus)

From the main car park I headed over to the southeast side of the Common where a Spotted Flycatcher was calling and showing (occasionally) at the edge of the Oak woodland.


Spotted Flycatcher (Muscicapa striata) - photo from same site in 2016

On the SE side of the Common I recorded a single Grass Wave moth.  This is a fairly localised moth species in Worcestershire that occurs in the Wyre Forest and the lowland heath areas between Kidderminster, Bewdley and Stourport such as Hartlebury Common.


Grass Wave (Perconia strigillaria)