Friday, 18 Sep 2026
Well, the total butterfly count today was a single Small Copper. We are definitely approaching the end of flight season. A pair of Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo) circled over the Downs for the entire 2 hours that I spent there. One came low enough to get a (not completely in focus) shot. The markings on […]
Friday, 5 Jun 2026
Four days since my last excursion onto the Downs, during which time there has been some much-welcomed rain. Hogweed flowers on which I was photographing insects at waist height just those four days ago are now eye-level! I spotted my first Common Swift (Apus apus) of the summer over the main grassland, at least 4 […]
Sunday, 24 May 2026
Like yesterday, an early start with the temperature over 20°C by 09:00. Bright sunshine and only a light breeze too, but butterfly numbers were no better than yesterday. Brimstone still dominated, but there has been a dramatic increase in Small Blue (Cupido minimus) numbers (I stopped counting at 10). There were a few Speckled Wood […]
Monday, 18 May 2026
Rain was forecast for lunchtime, so I headed for the Downs early. Perhaps too early. Another cool morning, largely cloudy and yet again some gusty wind. Total butterfly count was 4, with 3 Common Blue and a single Brimstone, all disturbed from their place of rest. The rest of the insects were also mainly at […]
Wednesday, 29 Apr 2026
Warm, mostly sunny, but a very strong wind. So, I wasn’t expecting too many butterflies on the wing. Total numbers were down on two days ago, and Brimstone still dominates, with the rest almost all Holly Blue (Celastrina argiolus), but for single Green-veined White (Pieris napi), Small Heath (Coenonympha pamphilus) and Grizzled Skipper (no photo […]
Monday, 20 Apr 2026
A lovely sunny day, but a chilly wind keeping the temperature down a few degrees on the past week. Total butterfly count was a dismal 1, a single Speckled Wood. An adult Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo) of the rufous form was circling low over the northern part of the main grassland, surprisingly unbothered by the […]
Wednesday, 8 Apr 2026
Another beautiful, cloudless sunny day with only a light breeze. Likely to be hotter than yesterday. Surprisingly though, fewer butterflies around. Brimstone (Gonepteryx rhamni) still the most numerous, but Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria) has reappeared in reasonable numbers. Like yesterday a few Peacock (Aglais io) and Orange Tip (Anthocharis cardamines) about too. A Common Buzzard […]
Thursday, 5 Mar 2026
The Brimstone butterflies are back and in much larger numbers this time. A single Small Tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae) was also spotted. A surprise was a small flock of Redpoll (Acanthis flammea cabaret), a bird I had not seen on the Downs before today. Best of all was that I did not miss out on a photo as […]
Wednesday, 25 Feb 2026
The warmer weather continues and has coaxed more insects into awakening from their winter slumber. After the first sighting of the year yesterday of a single Brimstone butterfly my tally today was 14. Also found were several active Seven-spot Ladybird (Coccinella septempunctata), all on brambles. Turning over some of the bramble leaves I spotted what […]
Monday, 23 Feb 2026
Belmont – Monday, 23 Feb 2026 This morning a Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo) was circling over the north-east quadrant of the Downs. As I watched it cruise low over a portion of the woodland it alarmed a feeding flock of around 50 Redwing (Turdus iliacus), which scattered very quickly. There also seemed to be rather […]
Tuesday, 17 Feb 2026
The south-eastern corner of the Downs was where I headed this morning, where I found a flock of at least 20 Redwing (Turdus iliacus) foraging in the canopy of the woodland trees. In the woodland itself the English Yew (Taxus baccata) are beginning to bloom, the male trees producing short spikes of small yellowish cones. […]
Friday, 13 Feb 2026
Yet another of those days when I wished I had the 300 mm lens with me. It is, though, a case of either/or. Either I carry my two Canons set up for macro shots and for 28-135 mm zoom or I take one camera with 300mm lens and x2 extender, as the weight and bulk […]
Wednesday, 4 Feb 2026
Another of those days when I wished I had the 300 mm lens with me. A Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos) perched in full view on a branch no more than 5 m away and let me stop and watch it for a good 15 seconds or so before flying off. In my last post I […]
Saturday, 31 Jan 2026
A lovely sunny afternoon. The first thing that attracted my attention today was a foraging flock of Redwing (Turdus iliacus) in the tree canopy of the woodland adjacent to Downs Road. This is our smallest member of the thrush family (Turdidae) and a winter visitor. Crossing Sutton Road and entering the clearing there I encountered […]
Monday, 15 Dec 2025
I’m sure they have been around for a while already, but I saw my first small group of Redwing (Turdus iliacus) this morning. Similar to the Song Thrush, it has a wash of orange-red on the flanks that gives it its name. It is a winter visitor from the colder northern parts of Scandinavia, as […]
Thursday, 11 Dec 2025
Lovely sunshine but a windy day. Both a Kestrel and a Buzzard were cruising over the main grassland area, the latter being harried occasionally by a pair of crows. An interesting find was a cluster of pupal cocoons, probably of an ermine moth (family Yponomeutidae), on the underside of a large holly leaf. Unusual, as […]
Tuesday, 25 Nov 2025
It may be cold and underfoot conditions are getting somewhat soggy, but there is still much to be seen on the Downs. First find of the day on an almost completely defoliated oak sapling (the few remaining leaves confirmed the ID) were Oak Marble Galls. I missed out on seeing any of this type of […]
Saturday, 8 Nov 2025
Another close encounter of the Goldcrest kind – yet again the wrong camera lens with me! The Downs are looking really colourful now before the trees shed their leaves fully. Everything was dripping wet today after late evening rain yesterday and an early mist this morning. Even the Common Wasps have now disappeared […]
Tuesday, 28 Oct 2025
Leaves are getting yellower and the carpet of fallen leaves is getting thicker. Another bird foraging party today, but this time Goldcrest (Regulus regulus). Unfortunately, I needed my 300 mm lens as the 28 – 135 mm zoom was hopelessly inadequate. I’ll post the image anyway as it the first time I have […]
Friday, 24 Oct 2025
There is a distinctly autumnal look to the Downs now. I encountered a large mixed bird foraging party this morning, comprising Great Tit, Blue Tit and Long-tailed Tit. Jays are still very conspicuous as they build up their winter nut stocks. Yet another new species for the Downs, having previously found it at […]