Early spring in the Downs

 Comma, Ringstead Downs, 25th March 2021

Dark-edged Bee-fly,  Ringstead Downs, 25th March 2021

Red Dead-nettle, Ringstead Downs, 25th March 2021

 

Whitlow Grass, Ringstead Downs, 25th March 2021

Lesser Celandine,  Ringstead Downs, 25th March 2021

 Cliff Mining Bee, Andrena thoracica, female, Ringstead Downs, 25th March 2021

 Black Oil Beetle, Meloe proscarabaeus, Ringstead Downs, 25th March 2021

A walk at Ringstead Downs

I visited Ringstead Downs today to walk my weekly butterfly transect.  This year there are carpets of sweet-smelling Lady's Bedstraw but some plants such as Small Scabious seem to be less abundant than previous years.  I found 3 small plants of White Horehound and about 25 small plants of Basil Thyme in flower.

Basil Thyme

Ringlets are very numerous at the moment, especially in the long grass on the south-east bank. Also good numbers of Meadow Brown and Small/Essex Skippers.  This week I had 5 fresh Commas on the transect.  Last week I found a Comma perched on a dead Pheasant amongst the scarab beetles.

Comma

Today, although quite common, it was nice to see an Ear Moth feeding on Small Scabious (difficult to photograph as the flowers were blowing in the wind).

Ear Moth

Pirri-pirri-bur at Ringstead Downs

While walking my butterfly transect at Ringstead Downs today I noticed a patch of Pirri-pirri-bur Acaena novae-zelandiae on the north-west bank.  I hadn't noticed it previously when it was in flower but the fruits, with their barbed red spines are very distinctive. It is believed that the Pirri-pirri-bur came to this country via wool from Australia and New Zealand in about 1900.

Common Fiddleneck - Amsinckia micrantha

While walking my dog this morning I came across what looked like a Bugloss with yellow flowers. I first identified this as Yellow Alkanet Anchusa ochroleuca but thanks to more detailed observation by Joan and Keith Fox it is in fact Common Fiddleneck Amsinckia micrantha. There was just one plant growing in the gravel on the SW corner of the Honeystone overflow car park (TF67114028).

Another from 2013 and some from today, 25th April 2020

Tropidia scita, Holme Marsh, 23rd June 2013

Yellow Archangel (variegated garden var), Old Hunstanton, 25th April 2020

Rhingia campestris, River Hun, 25th April 2020

Eupeodes luniger, male, Chapel Bank, Hunstanton, 25th April 2020

Chrysotoxum cautum, female,, Hunstanton dunes, 25th April 2020

A selection of the 39 plants found in flower during a 3 hr search for the BSBI 'New Year Plant Hunt' in Hunstanton, 1st January 2020

Annual Meadow Grass

Common Knapweed

Sweet Violet

Hedgerow Cransebill

Dove's-foot Cranesbill

Wild Clary

Shepherd's Purse

Red Clover

Green Nightshade

Green Nightshade, Holme NWT, 9th September 2019

Yellow Dodder on the 'Moon'

When I went to weed the 'Moon' Bed on the Upper Green in Hunstanton this afternoon I found Yellow Dodder Cuscuta campestris growing in the white lobelia in the 'Moon's Mouth'.
Yellow Dodder is an alien and a native of North America. In Britain it parasitizes a variety of cultivated plants including tomato and carrot as well as species of Medicago and Trifolium.  It was originally introduced into Europe with agricultural seed in about 1900. It has orange/yellow stems and clusters of small white/yellow flowers.

(I only had my mobile with me so no close-ups of the flowers.)

Two pondweeds at Holme Dunes

I recently had a closer look at two of the pondweeds growing at Holme Dunes.

Potamogeton pectinatus Fennel Pondweed is found in the brackish ditch north of the West Field fence.  It is the only Potamogeton to be found in brackish ditches near the sea and can grow rapidly to choke the ditches.

When you pull a leaf off the stem the sheath and ligule come away with the leaf (resembling grasses).

Zannichellia palustris Horned Pondweed has recently been found growing in the Crater Pool ( It was previously recorded by Petch, Swann and Newton in 1982).  It can be found in still brackish water. Its fruits are a distinctive banana shape, appearing after the tiny flowers in the leaf-axils.

Flowers at Santon Warren

The area of woodland cleared to restore heath at Santon Warren has huge numbers of Viper's Bugloss and many plants of Dark Mullein.

Viper's Bugloss

Dark Mullein

Hoary Mullein - new for Holme reserve

Hoary Mullein, Holme NWT, 6th July 2019

Ringstead Downs, 16th September 2018

Larval feeding gallery, Zigzag Sawfly, Ringstead Downs, 16th September 2018 (the first record of feeding 'damage' on the patch, though an adult was found along the Holmhurst Track in early summer - the first in Norfolk)

Kite-tailed Robberfly, Machimus atricapillus, Ringstead Downs, 16th September 2018

Bishop's Mitre, Ringstead Downs, 16th September 2018

Rhopalus subrufus, Ringstead Downs, 16th September 2018

Coriza hyoscami, Ringstead Downs, 16th September 2018

Long-winged Conehead, Ringstead Downs, 16th September 2018

Syritta pipiens, Ringstead Downs, 16th September 2018

Adonis Ladybird, Ringstead Downs, 16th September 2018

Bolbitius titubans, Ringstead Downs, 16th September 2018

Wild Basil, Ringstead Downs, 16th September 2018