2024 Hampshire & IOW Blog | Purple Emperor

2024 Hampshire & IOW Nature Notes Blog

Duke on territory in amoungst bramble and dogwood.JPG

Thursday 25th April 2024 It was far better in the small periods of sunshine where again like yesterday only the Duke of Burgundy was seen. Today however there were up to (7) specimens seen including one female. They were not obvious they were there until the sun shone and became active where two males were having a territory dispute. The dukes were seen at 11:45 and through to 12:00 until about 12:30 when the sun disappeared again. Early signs are good but there were no individuals in the gorse strewn area at the top end of the down

male duke of burgundy at rest Noar Hill 2024.JPG

Oil Beetle Noar Hill Male April 2024.JPG

Early Purple Orchid Noar Hill April 2024.JPG

Noar Hill Saturday 20th April 2024

Arrived at Noar Hill today with the intention to seeing the Duke of Burgundy, it was rather cool to start with and a very keen wind picked up, as I started to wander around the site with myself for company. After an hour there were a few people around all looking for the same thing, and it was 11:20 with the temperature at a lofty 11c when two males appeared in one of the flint pits. They weren’t very active, in pristine condition and certainly weren’t fighting each other for territories. Other butterflies seen were several Orange Tips, Peacocks, Holly Blues, Green Veined White, Red Admiral, Comma, Brimstones, and Small White. There are some lovely early Purple Orchids and the Cowslips all looked splendid. In the large puddles where horses had been ridden the elusive fairy shrimp was found.

The Duke of Burgundy has been spotted over the last couple of days at Noar Hill although sightings will be hindered by the cool wet and windy weather and any good emergence will be quite slow, and at other sites in Hampshire at the moment. Also the Green Hairstreak , Clouded Yellow , Glanville fritillary caterpillars have been spotted on the Isle of Wight, along with a Striped Hawk Moth, and Hummingbird Hawk Moth.

Noar Hill/Broxhead Common Friday 12th April 2024

A lovely warm day to go and visit Noar Hill in the hope the Duke of Burgundy maybe on the wing. If it was I didn’t see it as one or two flying on this site is like looking for a needle in a haystack. However the weather brought out at least 6 species my first Orange Tips and saw at least 6 of these all males, several Speckled Woods, Commas, good numbers of Peacocks and Brimstones both males and females. Two male Holly blues were interacting as well which was good to see, showing their upper and lower wings when settled for a brief time. On to Broxhead Common and the Emperor Moth ‘lure’ was performing very well, as in a short space of about 5 minutes I had at least half a dozen males flying frantically around me. Several posed nicely on the heather, but there wasn’t much else here other than a few Brimstones and Peacocks.

Milton Lock Foreshore Monday 1st April 2024

I went out for the Small Tortoiseshell today, and looked in all the usual places, and the Nettle is growing in profusion, and I was lucky to see one…just one. This butterfly was so common in the 70’s and 80’s but alas no longer. Never thought I would have to go out looking for it! One Speckled Wood also joined the list but not much else except a couple of lovely Curlews feeding along the foreshore. The closest I’ve had the privilege to see these lovely birds.

Saturday 30th March 2024 Portsdown Hill

Hurrah for a warm and sunny day! Visited part of my old transect route on Portsdown Hill today. Saw over 50+ Brimstones, 20+Peacocks, Small Whites and half a dozen Speckled Woods. No Small Tortoiseshells which will probably be like Hens teeth this season judging by the amount seen in 2023. In the air there were plenty of Buzzards, Kestrels, and a few Red Kites. Stonechats and Skylarks were very prominent with their singing walking around today.

Milton Lock LNR and Portsdown Hill Thursday 21st March 2024

Another odd day when the sun shone and it was insanely mild, and there were good numbers of invertebrates around especially bees and hoverflies. On the butterfly front there were a couple of Commas, and Peacocks, and an early Speckled Wood. In the afternoon the sun disappeared and so did the butterflies on Portsdown Hill, with just a couple of Peacocks to be seen, surprisingly no Brimstones were seen on either site, which is most unusual. On the Bird of prey front there were Kestrels, Buzzards, and Red Kites. Unfortunately the Peregrines didn’t show. There were lovely singing Skylarks on top of the hill, and Great Tits giving it their best voice.

Butterflies and moths are on the March! over (10) Brimstones (all males) seen on a journey between Portsmouth and Stansted House (West Sussex) and the odd Peacock. It was the warmest day of the year so it was the best time to see them. Several Speckled Woods and Commas were also seen in and around Hampshire as well.

Cornwall Holiday & Romsey Abbey Monday 18th March 2024

Another dim and cool day with partial sunshine, visiting Romsey as I had a talk on the Purple Emperor Butterfly in the evening. In the meantime I visited the Abbey to have a look at the elusive Peregrine Falcons which have made home there. I wasn’t disappointed as the male and female were seen. The Male was seen flying around in circles above the tower and off into the distance where he was probably looking for food. There are plenty of pigeons in and around the site, although the birds are constantly pestered by Rooks from the Rookery nearby. The female was calling from the tower and looking skywards to see where her partner was. He was soon joined by the female and they went off together on a hunt I assume. The Peregrines at Winchester haven’t layed eggs yet so I don’t suppose these have either, although I don’t think these have been here very long.

On the butterfly and moth front it’s been very dismal, probably the worst for sightings by me for a long time, although other sightings have come in like good amounts of Red Admirals, Commas, and Peacocks, with reports of moths as well caught in people’s moth traps.

I haven’t put anything up on the blog for a while as I have been to Cornwall for a short break, and there weren’t any butterflies down there either! There were Dolphins in St Ives Harbour which were a treat to see early one morning. Also I saw hunting Peregrine Falcons, White-Tailed Sea Eagle, Choughs, Fulmars, and Kittiwakes, lots of Turnstones in the harbour, which were extremely tame. Rock Pipits were very tame as well in the harbour, but that cannot be said for the huge Herring and Black backed Gulls all waiting to be fed or steal someone’s Pasty or Fish and Chips along the seafront of St Ives!

Titchfield Haven Monday 19th February 2024

Another visit to see the Spoonbills of which there were two of them, not doing very much, but it would seem they feed mainly at night so they were trying to get some rest, however with up to three Marsh Harriers in the area there was a lot of noise mainly from the Black-Headed Gulls and Mediterranean Gulls. Plenty of other birds to see along the shore line but I do like a Shoveller!

Titchfield Haven/Canal Friday 16th February 2024

A visit to Titchfield Haven today in sunny weather, although there always seemed to be the threat of wet weather on the horizon. Very wet and muddy underfoot, in fact part of the footpath was closed off so I had to turn around. In fact this was a good omen as I had passed the site of the Glossy Ibis and got a good look at them feeding in the River Meon floodplain. There were at least three of them and they looked quite at home there. In the craggy trees of mossy lined Oaks there were lots of Blue, Great, and Long Tailed Tits flying in and out of the branches. No butterflies today as it wasn’t that warm, but the bird life was great, and I was glad to get my quarry.

Milton Thursday 15th February 2024

Just out for a short walk out in the sunshine and it’s the warmest day of the year, and out came the butterflies. Two male Brimstones were seen along a footpath leading up to Milton Road in Portsmouth. Both males briefly interacted, but went their separate ways. They had probably been hibernating in some Ivy which covers a lot of the fencing along the path. In the main road a Red Admiral was seen flying about and briefly settled on a van parked by the side of the road. In Southampton a very very early Speckled Wood was seen by Nic Burns.

West Meon Sunday 11th February 2024

Another good day well the afternoon anyway, as the rain seems to be with us again after a blank few weeks. Looking around West Meon today normally turns up several butterflies but today I drew a blank on the downland. The raptors were in good numbers with Red Kites spiralling and locking talons as they drift upwards on the thermals. Other birds seen today were several Dabchicks or Little Grebes, and these are delightful birds with their distinctive calls on the ‘Meon Fly Fishing’ Lake. Wildflowers are very slow at the moment good showing of Snowdrops everywhere, but the Primroses are lagging behind.

Farlington Marshes Thursday 1st February 2024

A perfect day with lots of winter sunshine and no wind, which is always a bonus in anybody’s book. Decided to visit Farlington Marshes again for the elusive Bearded Tits and in the first hour it looked like there wasn’t going to be any showing, although several people had said they had seen them. In the meantime around mid-day I was entertained by multitudes of Lapwings flying in and around the site. There were lots of Canada Geese and Brent Geese on the lake. There were plenty of ducks and waders but they were a long way off. Suddenly here were some familiar twittering amongst the reeds and sure enough a couple of Bearded Tits showed up, they were at a distance but they did eventually come right down to the ‘wire’ as it were. Fantastic acrobats, as they fed on the seed from the reeds. In no time at all there were at least 20 odd males and females all feeding and interacting. They were a joy to watch and the males were avidly feeding on the seed heads with a few had looked as if they had paired up. Meanwhile on the butterfly front several Red Admirals have been seen in the New Forest, plus Peacocks have been seen dotted around Hampshire along with a Painted Lady on the Island

Milton Foreshore Friday 26th January 2024

Went to my local patch today to see the Black Swans, which seemed to have attracted a lot of attention at Eastney Lake. I was pleasantly surprised how many birds there were along the low tide shoreline, must have been hundreds. They were feeding avidly, mostly Brent Geese, but there were other shorebirds, like Dunlin, Redshank, Oystercatcher, and Turnstones. Very close to where I live I came across a couple of Curlews, and all the time I’ve been visiting this site I have never seen them this close to where I live.

I didn’t have to go walk very far, as the Black Swans had espied me and they obviously thought I had some food, and they came right over to me less than a few yards, making these small ‘purring noises’. The Mute Swans were around but whether they will tolerate these Black Swans on their patch only time will tell.

In the garden the Honey bees were starting to get active and my small patch of Bell Heather breaking into bloom was frequented by several bees gathering nectar. Unfortunately I still haven’t seen any butterflies yet.

Isle of Wight: Yarmouth/Tennyson Down/Cranmore 22nd /23rd/ 24th January 2024

It was good to get out and about over this few days which I do when it’s around my birthday, and I always favour the Isle of Wight. Yarmouth always has a good variety of birdlife in the estuary and on the 22nd January just before the storm hit, there were plenty of wading birds to be seen. There were Godwits, Sanderlings, Turnstones, Oystercatchers, and Redshanks, all plying their trade along the shoreline. There was also Tufted Ducks and Mallard, and on the shore Shorelarks busied themselves to finding that tasty morsel. I didn’t see the Kingfisher which I saw here last year, although I’ve no doubt they were around.

On the 24th January after the storm I decided to get some walking in on Tennyson Down although wildlife wise it was a bit barren however I did see a couple of Kestrels, and a Peregrine Falcon close to the monument. In the afternoon I visited a friend who has Red Squirrels in her garden. It took about 20 minutes before one turned up and they were about twenty yards away so good for some telephoto pictures. The bird feeder had shed some of its content after the Blue and Great Tits and to a lesser degree the Great Spotted Woodpecker had dropped lots of seed on the ground. Several Reds turned up and it was quite comical to watch them chasing each other, and boy they don’t hang around either. It was a joy to see and several of the Reds had slightly different colour fur, whether these were immature animals I wouldn’t know.

Back home and in the morning it was unusual to see a lot of Fox activity opposite where I live, but good for photos. A female has built a den on the banks of the allotment, and they were probably trying to get extra rations as the foxes give birth shortly. On the butterfly front Red Admirals and Commas have been seen in the New Forest and on the Island

Milton Lock and Foreshore 18th January 2024

It’s now bitterly cold with temperatures overnight at about -8c and with sharp frosts in the mornings. There is very little bird life in the garden despite putting up fat balls and two nut dispensers; I think the ever present pigeons are putting off the Blue Tits and other birds I would love to see in the garden. Along Milton Lock the Brent Geese are ever present, with Dunlin and Redshank feeding along the shoreline. Along Milton Common and Foreshore the Oystercatchers are growing in number and so are the Curlews with their distinctive calls.

In the hedgerows the Robins and Hedge Sparrows are present but are not showing themselves, along with Blue and Great Tits. Other birds of note are the lovely Teals all paired up along with a few Shelducks. On the Lakes the Mute Swans seem to have paired up again from last year, and Mallard, Tufted Duck Coot and Moorhens are present. The Kingfisher I saw a few weeks ago seems to have disappeared.

Milton Lock and Farlington Marshes 10th January 2024

January is now in the grip of an icy wind blowing in from the North-East and has kept the temperatures down to around freezing. On the Lakes the birds are probably finding it difficult to feed as they quickly see somebody observing them they are soon almost under your feet wanting food. Along the shoreline the tide and many Turnstones and Oystercatchers were feeding, and on the University grounds the Brent Geese were feeding on the grass in there hundreds.

Out on Farlington Marshes the Cold wind soon kept the observers down to a small number, most of us were there to see the Bearded Tits. In the wind they were not showing very well, but we did manage to catch several of them brave enough to stick their heads up in the cool temperatures. There were lots of Teal, Gadwall, Mallard, Black Headed Gulls, on the large lake but it was frozen in places which didn’t help the birds when they wanted to feed. There weren’t many other birds to see as this temperature keeps them down. The Short Eared Owls seem to have left the area, I’m just hoping they will come back one day.

2024

Milton Lock and Foreshore 05th January 2024

A blank December with mainly storms and torrential rain and windy conditions hardly weather to conduct observations in the field. Starting 2024 with a local walk along the foreshore at Milton Lock, the Brent Geese were busy with the tide being out and they feeding in the mud, along with Redshank, Curlew, and Mediterranean Gulls, Black Backed Gulls and Black headed Gulls. In the hedgerows and bramble, there were plenty of Sparrows, Goldfinches, Blue Tits, with the odd Long-Tailed tits.

On the Swan Lake there were several Cormorants, Tufted Ducks, Moorhens, and the Great Grey Heron, being very close for observation, he or she was eyeing up some Grey Squirrels scrambling in and around the dead Elms. Further down towards the War Memorial, the Oystercatchers were busy and making their distinct calls, interacting with the Redshank, a pair of Shelducks and Teal