Summer Orchids

16 Saturday Jul 2016

Posted by theresagreen in Bryn Euryn Nature Reserve, calcareous grassland, Nature, Nature of Wales, nature photography, wildflowers, Wildflowers of Wales, wildflowers on limestone

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anacamptis pyramidalis, British Orchids, common spotted orchid, dactylorhiza fuchsii, Pyramidal Orchid, summer orchids, Teigeiren Brych, Teigeirian bera

June 23rd-Bryn Euryn

5/6/16 – Pyramidal Orchid – first sighting of 2016

I photographed my first sighting of a Pyramidal Orchid on June 5th, where it was growing through a complimentary patch of Common Rockroses. Since then they have come on apace and there are many more showing their beautiful heads amongst the long grass that fringes the summit of the Bryn.

July 3rd

Ten days later the rush of blooms had slowed and whilst there were still a good number to be found, they are more scattered and most significantly smaller than the earlier ones were.

23/6/16-Bryn Euryn-Pyramidal Orchids in long grass

160623-Bryn Euryn-46-Pyramidal Orchid in landscape

23/6/16-Bryn Euryn-Pyramidal Orchid in the wider landscape

Pyramidal Orchid– Anacampsis pyramidalis; Welsh – Teigeirian bera

This orchid may be found flowering from early June through to early August, but here it is definitely at its peak now and flowering abundantly.

In general, the Pyramidal Orchid is found on grassland, usually on lime or chalk, but also on dunes. It is locally common in most of Britain, but rare in Scotland.

23/6/16-Pyramidal Orchid-Bryn Euryn

Pyramidal Orchid

The plant is so-named for the shape of the flowerhead: a workaday name for such an exotic-looking bloom I think, although it does help to distinguish it from the Fragrant Orchid, with which it may be confused.

The plant’s success and abundance may be due to its relationship with insects. Each flower has a long thread-like spur that holds a generous supply of nectar that attracts day and night flying butterflies and moths. When the nectar is accessed, modified stamens stick to the tongue of the insect that straighten during the insect’s flight and are then pushed directly onto the stigma of the next flower visited. This results in viable seeds being produced in 95% of the flowers.

Crossing the hill’s summit and walking through the ‘downland’ area, more Orchids are blooming prolifically, these being Common Spotted Orchids.

Common Spotted Orchids -Bryn Euryn-Little Orme in background

Flower spikes of plants on Bryn Euryn vary in colour. Most are this lilac-purple colour, others are white with a few in shades between.

Common Spotted Orchid Dactylorhiza fuchsii; Welsh Teigeiren Brych

The flowers vary from white to pale or dark purple and are patterned with dots or small blotches of a darker purple.

The leaves are narrow and usually dark-spotted.

3/7/16-Bryn Euryn-Common Spotted Orchid in long grass amidst Common Rockrose

Butterflies and more rare treats

29 Wednesday Jun 2016

Posted by theresagreen in Bryn Euryn Nature Reserve, bumblebees, Butterflies of Wales, calcareous grassland, day-flying moths, Insects, nationally scarce wildflowers, Nature of Wales, Wildflowers of Wales

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Adscita geryon, Cistus Forester moth, common blue, common rockrose, Cryptocephalus hypochaeridis, Dingy Skipper, Jewel beetles, Nottingham Catchfly, Pyramidal Orchid, salad burnet, Silene nutans, small heath, small shiny metallic green beetle, speckled wood

June 5th

One of the most fascinating, and sometimes a little frustrating thing about observing wildlife is that no two days, even in the same location are ever the same. I know that, but I had to retrace yesterday’s steps in the hope of further sightings of a Dingy Skipper or two didn’t I?

Along the Woodland Trail, Speckled Woods seemed even more numerous than yesterday, and a little more willing to bask with open or partially open wings.

Speckled Wood and shadow

Leaving the shelter of the trees and entering the open meadow there was a fairly strong, cool breeze blowing – not the best of conditions for photographing butterflies that tend to stay low in the grass on such days, despite today’s sunshine. That didn’t deter me from stubbornly attempting to get some images of a lovely fresh male Common Blue. It was highly mobile, but during their frantic circuiting, these butterflies frequently return to the same spot to settle for a breather and luckily this was the case with this beauty; he favoured this particular grass stem or a nearby head of clover, so I waited there and eventually caught him during moments when the breeze briefly stilled. Not as sharp an image as I’d like, but a record.

Common Blue male upperside

Common Blue male underside

I wondered if I might see the little green jewel beetle again. Last night, looking for information about this species I read they favour yellow compositeae flowers and remembered there were a few hawkweed plants close to where I found it yesterday. Lo and behold, I found not just one there, but a mating pair. I’ve put in two images of them, one to show their real size and another enlarged one to show how beautiful they are.

160605-BE26-Green metallic beetles-mating pair

Mating pair of Cryptocephalus aureolus

After a few minutes of photographing the obligingly oblivious pair I noticed a female Swollen-thighed Beetle -Oedemera nobilis (females don’t have the swollen thighs of the male) that had landed on a nearby flowerhead.

She decided to take a closer look at what the mating pair were up to. (Sorry about blurry image-swaying flower stem!)

160605-BE39-Green metallic beetles-mating pair

Mating pair of Cryptocephalus aureolus observed by a female Oedemera nobilis

I couldn’t resist this patch of pretty Common Daisies in the long grass.

A slight variation on yesterdays route took me up the track that comes out the other side of the hill. It was even breezier up there, but there were insects about taking advantage of the nectar and pollen on offer from the abundant wildflowers, mainly Rock-roses and clovers.

A Carder bumblebee in action on red and then white clover:

This side of the hill’s summit was looking beautiful, carpeted with sunshine yellow Rock-rose and Bird’s-foot Trefoil.

Summit carpeted with the sunshine yellow blooms of Rockroses and Bird’s-foot Trefoil (click on image to enlarge)

I stood still for a few minutes scanning the flowers for butterflies. Small Heaths were most numerous, but I did spot a single Dingy Skipper. Living up to its name, it was skipping around randomly at speed, too fast and mobile for a photograph, but at least I’d seen it. I had more luck with a lovely little iridescent green Forester Moth that landed on a Salad Burnet flowerhead and stayed there.

There are three similar species of Forester Moth in Britain that can be difficult to tell apart, but I think this one is a Cistus Forester-Adscita geryon. According to the Butterfly Conservation info: “This species is generally smaller than the Forester or Scarce Forester and the presence of good quantities of the Cistus Forester’s foodplant, Common Rock-rose, can be a useful indication of this species.”

Now for the ‘rare treat’! Since I came to live here, I have been looking out for a ‘Nationally Scarce’ plant that is recorded as growing here, the fascinating Nottingham Catchfly-Silene nutans. I’d only seen pictures and read about it, imagining I would find it in a rocky place on the cliffs or in bare ground. But, much to my amazement and delight, I found it today well-hidden amongst lush long grasses near the edge of a track. Getting my eye in, I saw there were several smaller clumps of the plant further back from the track edge, so clearly a good year for it. Difficult to photograph in the strong breeze, I’ve edited and sharpened my images a little so the plant is more visible than it was on the day!

Nottingham Catchfly amongst swaying long grasses

The plant is so-named because it was first found on the walls of Nottingham Castle. It no longer grows there as the site was destroyed during work done on the site in the 19th century. The flower remains the County Flower for Nottinghamshire though.

The plant is vespertine like many of the catchflies. This means that the flowers tend to stay closed in the daytime and open in the evening or at night, when they release a heavy scent into the evening air in order to attract night-flying insects and moths.

Flowers are drooping, in very open clusters and all usually pointing one way. Petals white above, greenish or pinkish beneath.

Each flower opens over three successive nights revealing one whorl of stamens on the first night and another on the second and the styles on the third. This is thought to prevent self fertilisation.

Moving on up to the summit I found my first Pyramidal Orchid of the year, still tightly in bud.

First Pyramidal Orchid-Anacamptis pyramidalis amongst Common Rock-rose

Back in the same spot as yesterday I got another brief glimpse of a Dingy Skipper nectaring on Bird’s-foot Trefoil.

Dingy Skipper on Birds-foot Trefoil

At the bottom of the ‘downland’ slope I finally caught up with a Small Heath on a buttercup.

And to finish, a female Common Blue.

Into the woods, led by the nose

24 Wednesday Jul 2013

Posted by theresagreen in Bryn Euryn Nature Reserve, Nature of Wales, nature of woodlands, nature photography, Wildflowers of Wales

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

common shrew, common spotted orchid, greenbottle flies on shrew carcass, greenbottle fly, honeysuckle, medicinal plants, Pyramidal Orchid

Bryn Euryn’s woodland trail is a circular route that travels more or less around the circumference of the bottom of the hill and is a good one to follow if you want a ‘proper’ walk without too many distractions. That’s not to say there isn’t anything to see; on my walks there is always something that catches my eye, or as happened on one particular evening, my nose!

I had rejoined this trail after my diversion onto the more open hillside where I had earlier watched the butterflies, and by the time I reached there it was late afternoon and a little cooler; just the time to catch the intermittent scent of honeysuckle, which for me is the absolutely perfect fragrance. The fresh perfume of the honeysuckle takes me back to walking through shady summer woods as a child when the heavenly scent brought the plant to my attention and I would always have to find it and inhale more of it. In fact I still do that; I just cannot resist it.

Honeysuckle – Lonicera periclymenum

Honeysuckle clambering up a tall holly shrub

Therapeutic and medicinal uses

I remember being very disappointed when, training as an aromatherapist, I learnt that Honeysuckle is not an essential oil that is practical to use for therapeutic massage. It is very difficult to extract the oil on a commercial basis, so it ends up being very expensive and difficult to obtain in an ‘absolute’ or pure form; any you buy is likely to have been mixed with something else. It is more widely used as a component of perfume. Shame, because the essential oil supposedly has some wonderful properties and if it had been practical to use I probably could have used it by the bucketful!

“Honeysuckle aids one to get past mental regrets, and move forward freely in life. It’s captivating scent is able to instil love and beauty, and banish any fear and sadness brought about by such events as divorce, death, and loneliness. The oil allows one to overcome harshness, indulge in self-renewal, and inspires hope, progress, freedom, and unity.”

Honeysuckle lit by evening sun in a hedgerow, Nevern, Pembrokeshire

Honeysuckle has been used medicinally for thousands of years to treat respiratory conditions, diarrhoea, ease childbirth, and stimulate the flow of energy throughout the body. Aromadendrene, a terpenoid, is a constituent of honeysuckle essential oil, which contributes to the oil’s antimicrobial properties. The terpenoid inhibits growth of micro-organisms, such as, bacteria, fungi, and protozoans. Eugenol, a phenylpropene, which is known to be a restorative and has a palliative effect, meaning it relieves pain and prevents further suffering.

Honeysuckle blossoms

I was soon snapped out of my state of pleasant reminiscence brought about by the aromatic honeysuckle as my olfactory sense was assailed by a far less pleasant smell, immediately recognisable as that arising from something that has died. Never one to shirk the responsibility of recording all aspects of the nature I come across on my wanderings, I followed my nose regardless, although trying not to breathe through it. I soon found the source of the stench: another little shrew had passed away; probably murdered by another cat. It was creating a mighty smell for something so tiny in life, but it would have attracted my attention anyway as there were a dozen or more Greenbottle flies swarming over its tiny body. (Those of a squeamish nature should probably look away now!)

Greenbottle flies on the carcass of a dead shrew

I know it’s not nice, but we all know that nature is not always about pretty flowers, butterflies and birds singing. Everything dies and it is actually interesting to see what benefits from that; it is often insects that are responsible for completing the circle of life. And, sorry, I do find Greenbottle flies very interesting.

Greenbottle Fly- Lucilia sericata

The Common Green bottle fly is a blow-fly, a member of the family Calliphoridae, is the most well-known of the numerous green bottle fly species and found in most areas of the world. It is 10–14 mm long, slightly larger than a housefly, and has brilliant, metallic, blue-green or golden colouration with black markings. It has short, sparse black bristles (setae) and three cross-grooves on the thorax. The wings are clear with light brown veins, and the legs and antennae are black.

Common Greenbottle Fly-Rhos-on-Sea garden

The fly is found feeding on flowers, but is also a common visitor to carrion and faeces. The female greenbottle lays a mass of eggs in a wound, a carcass or corpse, or in necrotic or decaying tissue. (A single female typically lays 150-200 eggs per batch and may produce 2,000 to 3,000 eggs in its lifetime.) The eggs hatch out in about 8–10 hours in warm moist weather, but may take as long as three days in cooler weather.

Greenbottle flies were most numerous on the corpse, but there are two other species there too

Forensic science

Like most Calliphorids, the insect has been heavily studied and its life cycle and habits well documented and L. sericata is an important species to forensic entomologists. One of the first insects to colonise a corpse, the stage of the insect’s development is used to calculate the period of colonization, so that it can be used to aid in determining the time of death of the victim.

Veterinary importance

L. sericata, along with other species of blowfly also makes an impact in a veterinary sense. In the UK and Australia it is commonly referred to as the “sheep blowfly” since sheep are its primary, although not sole host.

In Northern Europe, the fly will lay its eggs in sheep wool. The larvae then migrate down the wool to feed directly on the surface of the animal’s skin, which can cause massive lesions and secondary bacterial infections. In the UK, it is estimated that blowfly strike affects 1 million sheep as well as 80% of sheep farms each year. This causes a huge economic impact in these regions: it costs money to treat infected animals and to take measures to control L. sericata populations.

To end on a pleasanter note, here are some more flowers I found along the woodland trail that same evening:

Foxgloves are not common here, but there were a couple of stems of them; tall now and maybe a little more than half-way to being finished.

Foxgloves are about half-way to being over

Amongst the grass and other tougher plants on the path edge a pretty Common Spotted Orchid pushed through.

A Common Spotted Orchid on the side of the trail

Further along, in quite deep shade I was surprised to find another Pyramidal Orchid.

Another Pyramidal Orchid

Summer on the woodland edge

16 Tuesday Jul 2013

Posted by theresagreen in Bryn Euryn Nature Reserve, Nature, Nature of Wales, nature photography, Wildflowers of Wales

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Tags

aphantopus hyperantus, bramble flowers, dark brown butterfly with rings on its wings, dark red flowers with leaves like nettle, hedge woundwort, Pyramidal Orchid, Ringlet, wildflowers of Bryn Euryn

I almost always begin my walks within this site with a meander around the edge of the grassy area in front of the car park, both of which are located on the bottom of what was once a quarry. The old excavations have left the small field sheltered by limestone ‘cliffs’ on two sides and it is bordered on all sides with trees, mostly ash and sycamore. Along one long side there is a border of mixed shrubby and herbaceous vegetation creating a stretch of my favourite habitat; woodland edge.

The wildflowers that grow here are not spectacular and tend towards the robust end of the plant spectrum, but they support a diverse number of insect species so are great hunting grounds for the likes of me, armed with a camera. There’s plenty of hogweed here, already featured in the last post, then there are nettles, dock, the sticky green cleavers or goosegrass and new this month, the magenta spikes of Hedge, or Wood Woundwort. It often grows in the company of nettles and having similar leaves it blends in with them until the flowers show; the photograph below shows both plants.

Hedge or Wood Woundwort-Stachys sylvatica growing amongst stinging nettles

Growing in hedgerows, on woodland edges, roadside verges and various shady places, Hedge Woundwort is not a particularly stand-out plant as far as its looks are concerned. A member of the mint family, Labiateae, it has a distinct aroma, one of those that is hard to describe, but which most wildflower guides refer to as ‘unpleasant, particularly when crushed or bruised’. I must have a strangely developed sense of smell; maybe as a result of working with essential oils, but I don’t find it offensive at all.

A brown-lipped snail was hiding under a dock leaf

Brambles are often a component plant of the woodland edge flora. They are flowering now too and are also sought after by a wide variety of insects.

Bramble flower

From the field I walked up the steps following the ‘woodland trail’, making a diversion around the border of another meadow area. I stopped at a spot where there were several brown butterflies fluttering around amongst the long grass and shrubbery. My first assumption was that they were Meadow Browns as I’m used to seeing them throughout most of the site at this time of year, but stopping to watch properly I realised that although there were Meadow Browns there, most were actually Ringlets.

A Meadow Brown nectaring on bramble flower

The Ringlets were very mobile and fluttering around mainly within the stems of the long grass, as they characteristically do. On the occasions when one paused in its circuiting to take nectar from bramble flowers or to rest low down on a leaf or grass stem, the insect would either be obscured by grass stems or disturbed by the dive-bombing of another butterfly or a bee. I waited patiently for ages, just watching them until I got the opportunity to grab a shot of one on bramble leaf. It posed nicely, but turned out to have chunks missing from its wings, poor thing.

Ringlet with damaged wings

I wasn’t giving up now though, and standing around in the warm sunshine in this peaceful spot, surrounded by lush greenery and time to watch the insect world go by was not exactly a hardship. Every now and then the butterflies disappeared from view for a few minutes, most probably touring another part of their territory, but while waiting there were other insects to watch. One particularly interesting performance was provided by three hoverflies. The two smaller ones were hovering around and bothering the larger one on the bramble flower; two males competing for the attention of a female who eventually got tired of them and saw them both off. The hoverflies are of a small Eristalis species, but the photographs aren’t good enough to determine which one.

Two male and one female eristalis hoverflies

Two male hoverflies expressing interest in a female

Another chance of a Ringlet arose, this time a perfect subject, but a bit further away and hiding its head and body behind the bramble’s stamens. I got the ring pattern this time though.

Ringlet – Aphantopus hyperantus

Standing around in the direct sun was starting to get uncomfortable, so I left the Ringlets to their chasing to find a bit of shade. As luck would have it I soon came upon more of them and one posed beautifully on a bramble leaf in the dappled shade of an oak tree.

Ringlet resting with wings open

Ringlet – Aphantopus hyperantus

The rings on the hindwings give this butterfly its common name and make it unmistakeable when seen at rest. The uppersides are a uniform chocolate brown that distinguish this butterfly from the closely-related Meadow Brown that can often be found flying within the same areas. A newly-emerged adult Ringlet is a surprisingly beautiful insect, the velvety wings providing a striking contrast with the delicate white fringes found on the wing edges. The dark colouring also allows this butterfly to quickly warm up – this butterfly being one of the few that flies on overcast days.

The Meadow Brown also has a dark brown upperside, but eyespots are ringed with orange

Dog Roses-another shrub often found on a woodland edge

Dog Rose – another shrub often found on a woodland edge

Walking out into what is effectively a large clearing in the woodland I came upon another two butterflies, one a rather faded female Common Blue, the other a much fresher Small Heath.

Female Common Blue

Small Heath

A surprise find here and a pretty note on which to end this section of my walk was a single Pyramidal Orchid, the first one I’ve seen here on Bryn Euryn.