Hogs #15 to #19

A major release takes place tomorrow as a mother and four hoglets are currently in the soft release pen. It will be interesting to see if the family depart as rapidly as the single hogs seem to. With one exception the hogs have all disappeared in short order but there have been a lot of sightings in the village so they (or some at least) are apparently surviving OK. The photo is of two of the hoglets out during daylight hours lured out by the smell of food it seems.

Butterfly update

Still a little short on species this year with no Green Veined Whites seen, no reappearance of the Silver Washed Fritillary, Holly Blue only a probable and not confirmed, no Red Admiral. I thought I had recorded Essex Skipper last week but a closer look at the photographs (above) has the two sitting atop a grass stem as Small Skippers as that glossy black underside of the antennae is not there. Still the big numbers of Marbled Whites does compensate to a great extent as they are the iconic Monmouthshire Meadows butterfly.

White Plume Moth

I have seen this before (in 2016) but it deserves another mention as it is a rather elegant creature. It relies on Bindweed for its survival but I found this one indulging itself on the heady attractions of Common Ragwort in the early evening. Despite its size the White Plume Moth ((Pterophorus pentadactyla) is a micro moth and is perhaps the commonest of the 44 species of micro moth found in the UK.

Hog #14 released

Named by us as Ginger due to her colouring hog #14 (I think!) was released yesterday. As usual she disappeared pronto once the release pen was opened. Despite our hedgehog facilities (loads of food, plenty of log piles etc) the released hogs always seem to make a quick exit. I can understand that after weeks or sometimes months of treatment they seize the opportunity to get as far away as possible from their 'captors' or perhaps it is a vain attempt to find their home turf again. These are the hogs that cannot be returned from whence they were rescued. Ginger had serious eye trouble likely from some sort of chemical but with the help of an optician she has made a great recovery. Of course whilst they may disappear from our place there has been a huge rise in hog sightings in the village including one from last night near us that was probably Ginger on her escape route. next up we have a mother and four hoglets arring on Tuesday.

Orchid Final? Tally

Over the last month a few more Orchids have come to light - principally Broad-leaved Helleborines which have a habit of camouflaging themselves in long grass or under brambles - and so the total has moved to 229 orchids an increase of 4% over last year's total of 221. This is not spectacular but in the context of last year's increase of 59% over 2017 a very reasonable consolidation. The Common Spotted Orchids inched forward from 204 to 206 but there was a healthy increase in Broad-leaved Helleborines from 16 to 21 which is a good result. Not forgetting the Twayblade which was the surprise of the year.

Butterfly update

It's been a strange year for butterfly numbers. Of course weather patterns and slight differences in management will affect numbers of different species but even so I am surprised (and a little alarmed) at some of the variances. First the good news - it's been a stupendous year for Marbled Whites. First seen on 26th June, they are still flying twenty days later and in far greater numbers than we have previously had. The weather has been hot and dry for the last couple of weeks which helps I am sure. It's also been a humungous year for Meadow Browns (pictured above) with swarms of them all over the fields. They are the most frequent butterfly seen here but their numbers are larger than in any previous year since we moved in. Also a good year for Common Blues which in their early flight season were up again in numbers although with them it's been a matter of a steady increase year on year. It's been an OK year for Painted Ladies and Ringlets and Skippers but for most of which I would call the common or garden species there has definitely been a dearth. Peacocks, Small Whites have been pretty much scarce and I saw my first Comma today and also one or two Large Whites and Small Tortoiseshells. There's still some time for butterfly action with second broods and the later species so here's hoping.

Burnet moths

We have had loads of Six Spot Burnets this year. The recent warm dry spell has seen them all over the fields. I spotted one Burnet on Knapweed that was very faded and worn but looked like it might be the Narrow Bordered Five Spot Burnet that I occasionally see here. It's difficult to be sure but I think on balance that is what it is. Edit - Having seen what looks like an intermediate I am reversing my opinion and not counting this as a Narrow-bordered Five Spot!

New species - Linnet

Having seen a Brambling on site for the first time earlier this year, another new bird species turned up today - a Linnet. Neither of these species are uncommon but nonetheless this is my first record here after eight years! No photo - it didn't stay long enough for me to get my camera out.

Waxcap #3 Dingy Waxcap

Found on the last day of June and a bit mashed up but identifiable as Dingy Waxcap (Hygrocybe ingrata). The three species I found this June are the only three species I have previously found in June so there is some consistency.

Returning species

Two flowers have been recorded recently, one very common meadow species that I have actually only recorded once before and then only in a garden area rather than in one of the meadows. That is the Ox-eye Daisy (photo above). A single bloom has appeared in the West Field. The other is the rather rarer Southern Ladies Mantle (Alchemilla filicaulis ssp vestita) which hangs on in the same field albeit in a low profile way so I didn't actually record it last year despite looking for it.