On Saturday 28 May, Jan Haseler led a walk at the Devil’s Punchbowl, near the Ridgeway between Lambourn and Wantage. It was a cold morning with a strong wind, but the steep valley was fairly sheltered. Resting on clumps of nettles were Green Hairstreak and Common Blue butterflies, while black and white striped Wood Tiger moths were sheltering in the grass. Flowers included Horseshoe Vetch, Common Rockrose, Salad Burnet and Weld. Both Common and Chalk Milkwort were found and Roger Kemp showed how, with the help of a hand lens, these two species could be separated by the small veins on the sepals. In Common Milkwort, the small veins rejoin the main veins to form a closed network, while in Chalk Milkwort, the small veins form an open pattern. In a brief burst of sunshine, the butterflies started to fly and Small Heath appeared. A clump of nettles had large caterpillars of Small Tortoiseshell and a mass of much smaller Peacock caterpillars.
The steep side valley had abundant rabbit holes with loose bare chalky soil and this is where the Henbane was found. In total, about 50 plants were counted. Green Hairstreak butterflies were particularly numerous in the side valley, both on nettles and on Elder blossom. A recently emerged Small Elephant Hawkmoth was found in the grass. A few Burnet moths were found. Given the early date and the conjoined spots on some of the specimens, these are likely to be Five-spot Burnet, spp palustrella, a chalk specialist, rather than the much commoner Narrow-bordered Five-spot Burnet, which does not emerge usually until later in June. Back at the top of the valley, Nodding Thistles were coming into flower, Corn Buntings were singing from the fence posts, there were numerous Skylarks and a Cuckoo was spotted.
Pictures by Rob Stallard and Jan Haseler
Devil’s Punchbowl, Saturday 28 May 2011
Glaucous Sedge Carex flacca
Bulbous Buttercup Ranunculus bulbosus
White Campion Silene latifolia
Red Campion Silene dioica
Thyme-leaved Sandwort Arenaria serpyllifolia
Common Rock-rose Helianthemum nummularium
White Bryony Bryonia dioica
Wild Mignonette Reseda lutea
Weld Reseda luteola
Salad Burnet Sanguisorba minor
Meadow Vetchling Lathyrus pratensis
Common Bird’s-foot Trefoil Lotus corniculatus
Horseshoe Vetch Hippocrepis comosa
Fairy Flax Linum catharticum
Common Milkwort Polygala vulgaris
Chalk Milkwort Polygala calcarea
Dove’s-foot Crane’s-bill Geranium molle
Cut-leaved Crane’s-bill Geranium dissectum
Hedgerow Crane’s-bill Geranium pyrenaicum
Henbane Hyoscyamus niger
Early Forget-me-not Myosotis ramosissima
Wild Thyme Thymus polytrichus
Nodding Thistle Carduus nutans
Great Lettuce Lactuca virosa
Prickly Sow-thistle Sonchus asper
Common Spotted-orchid Dactylorhiza fuchsii
Butterflies
Green Hairstreak Callophrys rubi
Common Blue Polyommatus icarus
Small Tortoiseshell Aglais urticae
Peacock Inachis io
Small Heath Coenonympha pamphilus 124
Moths
Scoparia pyralella
Five-spot Burnet Zygaena trifolii palustrella
Silver-ground Carpet Xanthorhoe montanata
Small Elephant Hawkmoth Deilephila porcellus
Wood Tiger Parasemia plantaginis 218
Beetles
Garden Chafer Phyllopertha horticola
Birds
Red Kite Milvus milvus
Buzzard Buteo buteo
Kestrel Falco tinnunculus
Cuckoo Cuculus canorus
Skylark Alauda arvensis
Greenfinch Carduelis chloris
Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis
Linnet Carduelis cannabina
Corn Bunting Miliaria calandra