Suffolk Argus 37 Spring 2006

Suffolk

Branch Contacts

President Howard Mendel, c/o The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5BD (0171 938 8782)

Chairman Mike Dean, Coach House, Ixworth, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk IP31 2HL (01359 230292) Membership Secretary Beryl Johnson, 28 Medway Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP3 0QH (01473 715701) Newsletter Editor Stuart Gough, 268 Spring Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP4 5NN gough.stuart@btopenworld.com (01473 429249) Publicity Officer (Vacant) Programme Secretary Alan Johnson, 28 Medway Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP3 0QH (01473 715701) County Recorder (Butterflies) Rob Parker (address above right)

Butterfly

Conservation Conservation Officer (Butterflies) Rob Parker, 66 Cor:nfield Road, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk IP33 3BN (01284 705476) Conservation Officer (Moths) Tony Prichard, 3 Powling Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP3 9JR (01473 270047) County Recorder (Moths) Tony Prichard (address above) Secretary Tony Prichard, (address above) Treasurer Jim Foster, Lugano, The Street, Stonham Aspal, Stowmarket, Suffolk IP14 6AH (01449 711484) Regional Officer Eastern Region Sharon Hearle, c/o Busy Bee, 21 High St., Newmarket, Suffolk CBS 81.X (01638 731648) sharon@butterfly-conservation.org Committee Members Stella Wolfe,

Volunteers Needed If you feel you could hdp out now and then with the growing work of the Branch, please contact Beryl Johnson on 01473 715701.

The Newsletter of the Suffolk Branch of Butterfly Conservation

Published by the Suffolk Branchof ButterflyConservation www.suffolkbutterflies.org.uk Butterfly Conservation Limited by Guarantee Registered Office: Manor Yard,East Lulwonh, Wareham, Dorset BH20 5QP Td: (01929) 400209 © 2004 all rights reserved Reg. No. 2206468 Reg. Charity No. 254937 Editor. Stuart Gough Logo: (Silver-studdedBlue) Doug HammersleyDesign: Stephen Ion, Cat & Mouse design Printen 321 Printing, 25 Brookhouse BusinessPark, Hadlcigh Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP2 0EF

Butterfly Conservation

Spring 2006 Volume37

The Suffolk Argus

Spring2006

Contents Editorial Safety Code Field Meetings 2005 The Use of Nets Annual General Meeting 2005 Accounts 2004/05 Update on the Purple Hairstreak New Sites for Four Spotted Moths Butterfly Books at Bargain Prices What I did for my Birthday Devil's Dyke Transects Notes 2005 Newsletter Details and General Information Suffolk Branch Contacts

;

Editorial 3 4 5 13 14 15 16 17 18 20 22 23 Back Cover

For that difficult to find present, why not give a decorative butterfly or moth to mount on the front wall of someone's home ?

Copy Dates Contributions for our newsletter should reach the Editor (address on back page) no later than: Spring

Christmas Eve

Summer

April Fools Day

Autumn

August Bank Holiday Cast in aluminium and enamelled hi very realistic colours at five times life-size,they will last for many years.

Highly individual nameplates too, to your own design, with no-obligation colour preview. Suffolk Branch will receive one quarter of the purchase price.

Any piece of writing that is considered to be of interest will be published together with line drawings/prints /photographs.

The Suffolk Argus is your magazine, so please let us hear from you.

To advertise in the Suffolk Argus please contact Stuart Gough on

Phone or fax Mervyn Crawford on Mildenhall (01638) 712600for Colour brochure I Price list.

01473 429249.

For that difficult to find present, why not give a .\, decorative butterfly or moth to mount on the front·\ wall of someone's home ? Cast in aluminium and ',_, 0• enamelled in very realistic colours at five times ·/r:. life-size,they will last for many years. Highly • ••• • individual nameplates too, to your own design,with no-obligation colour preview. Suffolk Branch will receive one quarter of the purchase price.

Phone or fax Mervyn Crawford on MildenltalJ (01638) 712600for Colourbro'churel Price list

2

·.~~

SUFFOL

MOTHGROU

Come and see the wonders of the night. Regular field meetings and newsletter. Online guide to the larger moths of Suffolk.

Website: www.suffolkmoths.org.uk Contad: Tony Prichard for further details.

23

Spring2006

The Suffolk Argus were watching several Pearl-bordered Fritillaries sucking minerals from a cowpat, and made for the fresh water spring I knew to be near the refuge, looking at the water tumbling and sparkling as it descended through the trees I had to take a photograph. Carefully climbing onto a rocky outcrop I did just that. The route back to the path was across a boggy area necessitating careful observation of the ground. Ac the top of my field of vision I could see something white moving about, carefully placing my feet and looking up there were dozens of Black-veined Whites mud puddling. Close observation showed separate groups of skippers, blues and fritillaries, they each seemed to know the family they belonged to, the only dissenters were the strong coloured Small Tonoiseshells which were happy to join any group.

Eventually dragging myself away I made for the spring. Seeing a hundred or so cows grazing, and doing what cows do just above the spring, I changed my mind and decided it a better idea co fill my water bonle from the dear sparkling stream.

We ate our lunch under the trees just above where the GRlO crossed our path. We were envious of the group of teenagers who were camping nearby.

They deserved the tranquillity having had to hump their gear up the way we had just come.

Reluctantly turning our backs we made our way down by way of the six-hour route. It was rather different from the morning much of it being through mixed and pine forest. Several suspected Apollos were sighted but the only confirmed sighting was made in the morning a few hundred metres directly above the group. About half way down the first thunder was heard. Thunderstorms are not good news in the mountains, so the pace quickened. Reaching the last long downhill stretch of nineteen zig-i.agsthe sky had darkened and the thunder had become more frequent, but we still thought we might make it in the dcy. At the eleventh turn the rain started, fonunately not very hard and it was a toss-up whether sweating under a poncho was wetter than being in the rain. By the time we got back down to the river levelthe rain had stopped and the final stretch back to the car park was dcy.We had been away nine and a half hours including the lunch break and butterfly watching.

22

Devil's Dyke Transect Notes 2005

by Sharon Hearle The 6rst half of the racecourse section of Devil's Dyke near Newmarket is covered by a weekly transect, where butterffiesare recorded during an hour long visit every week from April to September. This route is walked by Regional OfficerSharonHearleand is now in its third year.

The Devil's Dyke is one of only two known sites for Dingy Skipper in Cambridgeshire; the other site is near Peterborough. The Devil's Dyke is close to the Suffolk border but about 15 miles from the closest known sites in the King's Forest.

The Dingy Skipper was recorded in similar numbers in 2005 to previous years, particularly along the first section where it appeared to enjoy basking on the dcy grass cut by the Devil's Dyke Project in Ap-ril. Dingy Skipper first appeared on May 3rd and was last seen on May 23rd. The highest number counted was 21 on May 12th.

Chalkhill Blue first appeared on July 11th and was last seen on September 22nd. The weekly counts were as follows: 13, 152,299, 779, 947, 97, 160, 46, and 3. In 2004 the highest count was 883. The sight of such large numbers of this butterfly at peak time is definitely a must for butterfly enthusiasts in Suffolk.

Other highlights included White-letter Hairstreak, which is usually seen in the Elm canopy just before the walk starts on the Devil's Dyke. Only one Wall butterfly was seen, on June 8th. Green Hairstreak was recorded near Hawthorn bushes on the south facing bank of the first section of the Dyke. Other highlights included five Holly Blue on August 8th, and a long season for Small Heath through the year.

Editorial

by Stuart Gough After agreeing to take on this task of editing the Suffolk Argus, I now find myself compiling my first editorial at the start of the year. I hope to be able to do justice to the job and believe that Jim Foster will be a hard act to follow. My thanks go to Jim for the support he has given me in producing this first issue.

A brief introduction - I have been resident in Suffolk for four and a half years, having moved here from Wiltshire to follow a Conservation Management degree at Otley College, following some twenty years working in the commercial sector, latterly in automotive manufacture. At present I have not found work to suit my qualification, and am thus currently in an interim job with Suffolk County Council. I have been observing butterflies for fifteen years or so, and a member of Butterfly Conservation since 2000. Whilst Suffolk does not have the quantity of speciesthat I am fumiliar with from Wtltshire, it does have good numbers of species such as Grayling and Silver-studded Blue that my home county has only a tenuous hold on. Illustrated here is the Marsh Fritillary one of the notable species of Somerford Common, which is just four miles from my Wtltshire home which some of you may remember from your field visit a fewyears ago.

This issue contains a mix of field repons and other interesting articles, mostly written by my fellow committee members. As a new editor I thank all contributors, whilst making an appeal to the general membership for contributions to future issues, this will give a much broader representation of the lepidoptera interests of our Branch membership.

MarshFritillary

by BerylJohnson

3

The Suffolk Argus

Spring2006 down the mountains. The only way the engineers could get access up the gorge was to cut their own path. Where are the guardrails? You read the notice at the entrance to the gorge; not for the faint hearted. The corniche continued in sections of varying length for about 2km then crossed the river, climbed up a bit and reached the passerelle.

In this case there are iron walkways about 0.5m wide, fixed to the sheer rock face, sometimes well above the river, at other times just above the water.

Most sections are reached and exited by means of iron ladders, with the walkways prone to sloping up or down and disappearing around corners. If this were not enough, we saw before us the passerelle on the other side of the river. How do we get there? Coming round a bend the answer was before us; a monkey bridge.

It could have been worse, for at least the structure formed guardrails at either side, but it did not stop it from swaying from side to side. I chink we crossed three of these bridges but it seemed more. I have found out since that until a few decades ago the original wooden structures were still being repaired, I'm glad we waited. At the end of the last passerellewe came to the point where the water was directed into the tunnel leading down to the power station. The path entered a broad area where we found a sunny spot to have our coffee; we had been climbing for two hours.

The path rising steeply between the gently wooded slopes followed the route of the centuries old mule track. Due to the hard going and each of us looking at different things we soon spread out and I felt that I was the only walker. The prominent butterflies in the sunny woods were Comma and Orange-tip, what with that and the many Burnett moths and Large Skippers in the more grassy areas, my thoughts turned to my many butterfly walks in Suffolk. At the end of a climb of an hour and a half we met up at a crossroads of paths to decide where to eat, deciding on the Refuge.

The upward path soon reached the extensive grazing meadows; it is a Garden of Eden with carpets of flowers attended by many species of insect, including many butterflies. My water bottles had nearly run dry so I left the others, who

Safety Code As with any other activity, there are hazards in the countryside and everyone ta.king part in a Field Trip or Work Party has a responsibility (duty of care), for their own safety and that of others.

We try hard to ensure that our Events present no greater hazard than any other walkin the countryside, but please note and act on the following:

■

Wear appropriate clothing and footwear.

If there are unusual requirements, these are noted in the individual trip details.

Stout shoes are a minimum requirement for any walk.

■

During the main summer season you may be exposed to strong sunshine for much or all of the walk. Take a hat, use suncream or protection for exposed skin. Make sure that you have adequate food and liquid to drink with you. Equally, sunshine can easily turn to cold and rain during the day. Be prepared.

■

■

■

■

Children are welcome on our walks, but if under 16 must be accompanied by at least one adult for two children. It is the responsibility of the accompanying adult(s) to ensure that the trip is within the children's ability.

■

Dogs are normally welcome on walks, but must be kept under control. Any exceptions are shown in the individual trip details.

Comma

by BerylJohnson

■

The leader will provide a briefing on the trip before setting out, with details of any known particular hazards, and will also give advice on what to do in an emergency. Please listen carefully.

At the briefing, please let the leader know if you have a mobile telephone and are able to take it with you on the walk, or if you have First Aid qualifications.

If you are uncertain about any details of the trip, ring the leader/contact in advance. There is always a telephone number given with the trip details.

■

If you decide to leave the event early, tell the leader.

■

Take care at all times, but ENJOY YOURSELF.

We thank Upper Thames Branch for allowing us to publish their Safety Code. Please also refer to our own Safety Notes on the back of the Events Programme 2006 - Ed.

Joining the walk is an indication of your interest in butterflies. By their nature butterflies do not remain conveniently by the main path and will offer many opportunities (temptations) for you to wander away. Take particular care to look out for hazards rabbit holes, fallen or hanging branches, barbed wire, boggy areas etc. Beware of wet grass, particularly on sloping ground.

4

another habitat for the Apollo. Those who have been on field trips with me will know that my next thought was "photograph". Scrambling over the wall I started up the slope, three metres up then two and a half down then repeat. Has anyone else tried to climb up steep scree carrying a camera? I gave up. I sat depressed on the wall and an Apollo came to see what the problem was, and obligingly nectared a metre away, snap, got him. A voice said "are you going to sit there all day watching butterflies" so we moved on, corning shortly to decision time. A direction sign, the arrow pointing lefi: was for Refuge par passerelle, the arrow pointing right was for Refuge par corniche. Rene said that the left you got one, right you got both, so we turned right.

What is a corniche? In this case it is a path cut into the side of a 300m sheer cliff about halfway up. Why is it there? At the beginning of the 20th century when the Little YellowTrain line was built it was decided that it should be run on electricity generated by small hydro-electric power stations, powered by channeling the rivers that ran

21

The SuffolkArgus

Spring2006

What I did for my birthday

Brocante shop from a barn like building. In the afternoon, on the theme of upgrading, I loaded the Citroen Ami 8 with a load of rubbish and Anne's Renault Van with a lot of clothes that did not come up to her higher standard. Early on Sunday morning we went off to a Vide Grenier in the village ofTerrats hoping to get rid of some of our junk. We had not even finished unloading before people were asking the price of, and buying Anne's clothing. My junk did not seem popular but I had a great time settling a price for some tools with a young Moroccan. When it came to loading up I was much lighter of rubbish, and some 100 Euros better off. Anne had done even bener so we were pleased with our clearing exercise.

Each year on the Monday nearest to my birthday "The Rafal", my randonnee group, find somewhere special to go. This year it was Les Gorge de la Carani;:a. The car journey is some 60km to Villefranche-de-Conflent and then up the twisting climb in the direction of the ski pistes, roughly following the Linle YellowTrain until the small hamlet of Thues-Entre-Vaills, which has a car park for the gorge. 1 Euro is charged to help maintain the car park and the footpaths.

The gorge is found from the top of the car park, through an arch carrying the line of the Linle Yellow Train. The gorge entrance is only a few metres wide with the river rushing out below your feet. The first thing to be seen is a large notice fixed to the rock stating that the gorge is dangerous and to proceed is at one's own risk. You can see their point when looking up the towering sides of the gorge. The path proceeds along the lefr hand side of the river and the gorge slowlywidens, after about 15 minutes a right hand turn took us across the river to a steep, winding path climbing up the other side of the gorge. Looking back to the entrance with the light shining through, it looked like a knife cut in the rock. On reaching the level path that proceeded further along the gorge we dumped our backpacks on a wallthat had been built to prevent scree sliding down and blocking the path. Up the screefallmany various coloured flowers could be seen, and filning around in the sunshine, severallarge butterflies.

Watching them glide from flower to flower to seek nectar I became aware that I had found

- 25th June 2005

by James Mann On the actual day, a Saturday, not very much.

As in Suffolk where there are very few carboot sales on a Saturday, there are very few Vide Greniers in the Pyrenees Orientals on that day.

Ncverthdess every year in June, this year the 25th, one is hdd in the village of Comeilla-DeVcrcol, the former Roman Villa Comella. The existing castle ruins date from the 11th century.

Hannibal probably passed here on his way to the town ofElne in 218 BC. Now that Anne's business has become legitimate and she is officially an "Ambulant Brocanteuse-Antiquaire" we are much more particular with what we buy. We have usually been successful at Corneilla so we went for a pleasant morning looking round and eventually buying a few things from a Dutch woman who runs a

Apollo

by Mervyn Crawford 20

As the Dyke became boskier, Speckled Woods flew over Nenle-leaved Bellflower, Ploughman's Spikenard, Wild Catmint and Harebells. Afrer the Bedford Gap, the footpath along the top of the earthwork led us to the rare, but happily still thriving Juniper bushes. The roar of uaffic signalled our approach to the footbridge over the Al 1, which we crossed quickly, grateful to the local Ramblers' Association members who campaigned successfully for its provision. We walked through a shady wooded section to rise up to the tumulus at Mutlow Hill, where we rested near a patch of Meadow Cranesbill and Hawkweed Oxtongue, noting a Small Copper nearby.

Disturbed by clouds of dust from a combine harvester, we moved on to find displays of Clustered Bellflower in several places and a Small Skipper. Here on the open Dyke it was easy to appreciate the splendid effons made in recent years to control the encroaching scrub and to encourage calcicole plants. This work has been initiated by the Friends of Fleam Dyke, an organisation with which Sharon Hearle worked in close association before becoming our Regional Officer. • Near the old railway cutting was a mass of Old Man's Beard and Catmint. Brimstones, often abundant here, were absent today apart from a solitary male. A newly emerged Peacock and a Small Tonoiseshell sheltered on the ground as we walked from the Dyke towards the sharply contrasting habitat of Fulbourn Fen, near the walk's end. We didn't explore this nature reserve on this occasion, but noted it would be well-worth visiting in the future.

It was a rewarding and fruitful day with excellent walking weather, fine skies and insects and flowers aplenty. Thanks to Margaret and Sue, from whose careful notes this repon was compiled.

2005 Field Meetings Fleam Dyke, Cambridgeshire 19th July

by Roger& Stella Wolfe A journey into Cambridgeshire proved worthwhile to our small party, which was augmented by a member from West Midlands who had found our details on the website. A convenient local bus from Fulboum appeared c:xactlyon time to take us to the start of the walk at Balsham; a free ride because the ticket machine was out of action!

The walk through the village and along a broad chalky track produced Green-veined White, Meadow Brown, Ringlet, Gatekeeper, Comma, Red Admiral, Holly Blue and a YellowShell moth, as well as sights of Red-legged Partridge and a Great Spotted Woodpecker, all seen within the first twenty minutes. The track verges abounded in Agrimony, Field Scabious, Black Knapweed, Birdsfoot Trefoil, Strawberry Clover and Wtld Basil. Six-spot Burnet moth and Essex Skipper were identified.

The Dyke, like its big brother Devil's Dyke a few miles t-0 the north, is of early Anglo-Saxon origin and is of great archaeological interest as well as being an invaluable haven for the characteristic flora and fauna of the chalk. Seen under a beautiful summer sky it afforded wide views of the rolling, agricultural landscape of south Cambridgeshire with Ely Cathedral in the distance. Meadow Pipits were £lining over the top of the ripening rapeseed in the adjacent fields and all the way along the edge of the Dyke were Spear Thistles and butterflies in profusion dancing in the sunlight.

Postscript: On a subsequent visit to Fleam Dyke on August 9th two male Chalkhill Blues were seen near the juniper bushes. Could they have been blown there from Devil's Dyke (where they are plentifuJ) by the strong northerly wind?

5

The Suffolk Argus

Thornham Walks, 7th August

Spring2006

.<;t,).

,, White-letter Hairstreak

_-

,-----,

.......

GI

-"' en cC

ll)

c.l

"<t c.l

~

co c.l

C')

C')

C')

ll)

ll)

c.l

c.l

c.l

c;i

c.l

By Alan Johnson

:::

·5

C')

c.l

c.l

0

c;i

0

w

'O (I) (/)

::,

.::,i

u

0

C

E <ii (I) C

:;::,

(I)

111 C!)

en

s0

.0

:::

s: Q)

0 en z

z

0

ia

C!) (/)

~

0

()

0(I) 't:

(I)

c·5

""O

Cl

Cl C

Cl

.. ~

:i::

(/)

lJ.J

.c

-"' u

0

111

.!!l I'-

.0

:::

°' ~

"<t c.l

()

()

()

ll)

c;i

0

w

"<t c.l

ll)

c.l

~ i:::

z

~ vi

0

iii

s:

C

111

(I)

0 en z

t=

~

""O

E ::,

·5

Cl ·c

iii

.E

z

-"' u iii 111 (/) .0 a. a. ::: ::: (I)Q) 0 0 "<t u en co Cl en a..

-"' u

(I)

111 Cl 111

.0

(I)

>,

·5

(I)

e ()

I

a:

e ()

()

~ 0

ea

0

·s: 111

E (/) ~

""O

0

""O

~ .!!!

32 32 Cl C

5

Cl C

5

~

0 0

s:

e ()

-"' u

""O C ::,

i

C!)

(I)

(I)

::,

()

>,

e!

C

.c U)

(I)

<ii N

(/)

cii (I)

(I)

0

~

E

a.

~ ::,

Cl -"' E e:, 0 ~ E i5 Qi .c Qi 0 (I) I a.

I co ui .c (I) ~ (/) (I) .!!! 0E C0 t= (/) (/) (/) E >, (I) ""O E 0 ~ ~ ~ 0 ~ j5 (/) 111 > E 0 0 0 (I) ~ (I) :I 0 [ij

~

"<t

c.l

(I)

(/)

~

~

GI

Q,,

c;i

C

"<t

ai C!) co

a. C .§ w

t:

111

'5

ll)

c.l

·a.

111

£

(/)

C

ll)

c.l

_Q

lJ.J

0

C!)

6

C')

c.l

'O

.0

""O

~t,

0)

(/)

111

(I)

least one Speckled Wood for our group to identify. This year only a fleeting glimpse 1 of one, possibly due to the drop in temperamre under the trees.

Moving on to the Walled Garden, now restored to its former glory, which although sheltered and much warmer, the expected Peacocks, Red Admirals and Commas, seen in previous years did not materialise, and we had to be satisfied with a Holly Blue and a Large Skipper.

Continuing on past the Canal Pond, we duly reached the Butterfly Ride, situated within the Connaught Plantation.

The ride has been in existence for several years now, Butterfly Conservation being involved in the project at the invitation of the late Lord Henniker. The ride, open to the public during July and August, is a mix of shady and brighter, sunnier areas. A path encircles tall grasses and plants such as Thistle, St. John's Wort and Fleabane. Unfonunately, there were no more additions to our species list, the rather cool and cloudy conditions continuing.

This brought our walk to a close, with both panics returning to the Field Centre, en route Rob discovering Small and Essex Skipper to add to our list. It had been a rather disappointing afternoon in respect of the numbers and species seen, perhaps indicative of a generally poor summer for butterflies. In spite of this, the response of those attending was encouraging; hopefully some may continue this interest shown in butterflies and moths. Finally, many thanks to Thornham Walks, John Loome and also to those members of the Suffolk Branch who supponed this event.

c.l

_,;_ u

by BerylJohnson

This event, now in its sixth year, and a regular feature in our programme, is a joint meeting with Tbomham Walks. This year it was again decided to continue with the format introduced in 2003, having an illustrated talk, at midday - "The Butterflies of Suffolk and how to identify them", prior to the afternoon Butterfly Walk.

The talk, lasting for one hour and supponed by an excellent range of colour 1~~ slides, was held in one of the ~ rooms of the Field Centre, and was presented by Rob Parker and Jim Foster. Unfortunately, for reasons unknown, and in contrast to the rwo previous years, the talk was poorly supponed by members of the public, who were outnumbered by the Branch members. The stan of the Butterfly Walk at 2pm saw a much improved response from the public, with approximately 24 people attending. John Loome, the Countryside Ranger • for the Thornham Estate, also joined us. The group was then split into rwo parties; one led by Rob the other by Jim. Our route was to take us through some of the estate's diverse habitats. On reaching the area known as the Pinetum, Rob discovered a Whiteletter Hairstreak, on a thistle head. This confirming that the species still survives within the estate. Members of both groups had good views of this rarely seen butterfly. Also noted in this area were Brown Argus, Large, Small and Green-veined White, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper and a solitary rather tatty Ringlet.

The path then passed through a wooded glade, which in past years has always provided at

"<t

111

U)

""O

g,

(/)

(/)

a:

<(

0

C

Qi

en

~

I

() (I) a.. ~ ::, u ea ~ 0

0

~ (I)

::,

C

in S2

()

(I)

0

(/)

co

<ii .c > B (I)

..: ::,

w (/)

.5!!

ea

""O

C

C

'E ~ (I) :i:: ::,

ID

Q)

111

&5

(I)

0

~ .c "E (/)

Q)

~

a. oil e ::,

C

s

111

U)

(I)

~ .5!!

'E

""O

·5

C!) ""O

Qi

u:::

1

Q)

Cl

.5 a. (/) (/) U) Q) Q) (/) ~ (/) ::, ::, ~ co ~ :i:: .9:! ~ .9:! .5!! .5!! :i:: .9:! :i:: ::, ::, iii 'E :i:: Q) Q) Cl 'E 'E 'E C 'E co co z Q) Q) Q) (I) Q) E .!! .cE 0> .9 Q) 0 :i:: :i:: :i:: Q) :i:: Q) :i:: .c .c ::, ::, ::, .c .c ::, .c ::, u u a.. co co i3 co co en Ico en i= II0

C')

0 0 C\I

e

C

a. w ~ 0 Q) 0 :i:: Q) e::, C ~ ::, 32 ~ <ii co tl w .c Q) iii ,__ t: .9 Cl (/) C oil 0 0 ~ ·s:.

Q) ~ C (/) z C!) .5 ~ .c ""O .c ]! (/) ·5 <ii .a 0 0 £ ~ 0 .5!! C!) (/) 0 ~ ~ (/) (/) 0 :i: Cl 'E u .9:!

Q) .5 :i:: :c oil ea 0 'E .9:!

'E oil

J!!

CCI

a.

""O C

~ ea C

.5

'

(/)

Q)

Q)

i

~ ::,

:t:: ::,

co

co 0 .c ~

U)

Q)

(/)

(/)

'E

ea

s(is ]ii.c

<(

(/)

111

:a:,

~ Q)

£ 0

C

~ Q) :0

s

e _Q

.c

~

E 0 111

(/)

0

""O

0

C

X

111

Q) 0 -"' 111 u oil (/) 0 a. a..

-"' E u

~ a.

(/) (/)

0

~

::, C!)

Q)

"iji

~

...J

co

en

Cl

0

C

.iii

::,

£,__ co ui .E -"'

Q) -"' 0

Q)

oil

<ii co

~ (/)

0

e ::,

w

ea C

s

Cl C

:c 'E .9:! iii 0 Q)

(/)

~

C ea .5 co 0 ~ 'E >, U) (/) (/) U) Q) ::, ~ 'E .9:! ..9:! .9:! .5!! >, .9:! :i:: Q) .9:! co :i:: <ii ::, Q) 'E 'E 'E 'E 'E 't: 'E .c :i:: Q) Q) E ::, Q) (/) co Q) Q) Q) :i:: J!! :i:: .c co :i:: :a:, Q) :i:: :i:: :i:: ::, ::, ::, Q) u .c ::, ::, ::, <( U)

~ ~ co

co (X)

C

::,

w

co ~ I-

co co co

;;; ...........................r:: ... ~.................. ......;;;...en .........~...

C') 0) 0)

(X) (X) 0)

0) (X) 0)

ll) 0) 0)

(X) 0) 0)

C\I (X) 0)

0

0) 0)

"<t (X) 0)

0)

"<t

0)

0)

(X) 0)

C')

I'0)

C\I 0) 0)

C\I

0)

0) 0)

(X)

"<t 0)

ll) (X) 0)

I'-

(X)

0)

0) 0)

0

(X) 0)

0)

(/)

111

E

cii'

:i

.. E =

~

Q)

.c

1ij

a:

C: c.j ci C

0

:I

111 ~ 0

Qi

cii

cC co ~

ci t:

111

()

~

~

~ Q)

~

~

C C

C C

C C

Q)

Q)

~ Q)

:c :c :c () () ()

I

ea Q)

.c I-

ea

<ii <ii

a:

Q) Q)

-; -; a:i -~ Q) Qi Qi u.i E

a:i E ~ ~ ~ Q) <ii E Qi Qi ~ 0 0

w

:i

0

""O

<ii

lL

lL

lL

-e ci .!!!

a: 0

a.. .c C: Q) .c t::

""O

0 0 C!) C!)

19

t-=

iii Q)

I

C

.9

Q)

Q)

0.:

(/)

111

:5

I

111 ~ er: a: en u5 en

s: 0

C

g .9Cl E .c .i C :c t-= ci ~ ...J 'i u.i ea <( ea ...J 5: ::c c.j ea 0 t:111 111 C .c ~ l!!

111 .c -"' ""O E 111 Qi

111 0 "iji

u::,

C

Q)

;;: 2 .c0 I-

Q)

0.: 0.: >,

>,

..9:! ..9:! <ii E <ii .c .c

j§ $'. $'.

Spring2006

The Suffolk Argus Scour. It is part of what is called the Ely Ouse-Esse:x Water Transfer Scheme. The transfer scheme prevents spare water from entering the Wash and takes it to the Essex reservoirs that supply water co Chelmsford and Colchester. The water is taken from the River Ouse near Feltwell in Norfolk.

From here a 20km tunnel rakes the water to Kennett near Newmarket in Suffolk. It then goes in a 14km pipeline to Kirtling Green. The pumping station at Kirtling Green pumps water into Kirtling Brook and then into the River Scour at Great Bradley.

The banks of Kirtling Brook were built using sub soil dug to create the channel and offer south facing banks, bare ground plus abundant spring flowers and field bindweed. One side of the banks is cut in the autumn and the uncut bank is now quire scrubbed over in places. le is also possible to see good numbers of Small Heath, Brown Argus and Common Blue butterflies and many other day flying moths. There is a public footpath along the edge of this channel from Kirtling to Great Bradley.

The Four-spotted has not been recorded in Suffolk since 1991. It used to be regarded as frequent in the Breck district of Suffolk but has not been seen for decades despite searching. It is a moth that does come co light and is not likely to have been overlooked in the Brecks where many moth traps are operated. le has also been recorded at several locations in northeasc Essex around Great Chesterford, lcklecon and Llttlebury including one occasion where over 100 individuals were seen.

It is now quite possible that Four-spotted could be found at more sites in the general area between Saffron Walden, Cambridge, Haverhill and Newmarket especially if artificial landscape features such as banks, railway cuttings occur in the arable landscape. Further work is planned for 2006 and if anyone would like co help please gee in couch. A new fuctsheet has been produced by Butterfly Conservation with funding from Defra and is available from the website or by sending a stamped addressed envelope to Sharon Hearle. The next challenge will be co work with farmers and landowners to identify conservation measures that will help secure the future of Four-spotted moth in the long-term.

18

Butterfly Books at Bargain Prices

by Rob Parker Readers will often have admired the line drawings by Douglas Hammersley, a member with a wealth of experience, and author of ''A Butterfly Notebook", published in 2003. Doug has just taken the decision to move from his East Harling home to the Isle of Wight. where he can enjoy a milder climate and be closer to his family. Suffolk Branch is sorry to lose him, but we have benefited from his generosity in two ways. He has donated his library of 2,300 butterfly slides and some excellent butterfly books to the Branch. le seems appropriate that Branch members should have a chance co obtain these books for themselves (some are out of print and sought a&er). Your committee decided co offer them to members at approximately half the price that book dealers are currently asking, with the proceeds going to Branch funds. In this way, the books go into good hands, and Butterfly Conservation receives the benefit.

The table shows full details of the books with the special price for members. Except where otherwise specified, all are hardbacks, in excellent condition. They will go strictly on a first-come, first-served basis. Bids should be made co Rob Parker by post, or telephone (address on back cover). To avoid postage costs, books will be available for collection at our field meetings or at theAGM.

Wortham Ling, 10th August

Blue and to a lesser extent probably (or perhaps they are just not so easy co spot) Brown Argus. As a bit of an aside, Brimstone numbers are I believe also pretty good here and I have observed that we do indeed have a good scattering of Buckthom on the Ling.

Returning to the visit itself, we had an excellent turnout of 23 including one non BC member from Wortham and Dave Hedges from Suffolk Wildlife Trust. Paul Howling, a fellow Wortham resident and SBC member, gave an informative introductory talk on the Ling and Wortham itsel£ The weather in the morning was at first rather unpromising, being dull and slightly chilly, but sunny spells came and went more frequently as the morning progressed. The butterfly species we saw were Small Heath, Small Copper, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Small & Essex Skipper, Common Blue, Brown Argus, Peacock, Small Tonoishell, Holly Blue and most probably all three species of the common whites.

The highlight of the morning had to be an opportunity to examine Common Blue and Brown Argus side by side as they took advantage of a warm sunny interlude. All in all it was a very enjoyable morning and I would like to thank SBC for taking the trouble to visit.

By Sue Sidle This was I believe the first visit to Wortham Ling by the Suffolk branch of Butterfly Conservation. To give some background first; the Ling is a 52 hectare fragment oflowland dry heath and acid grassland and is managedby Suffolk Wildlife Trust. Both John Loome, who is the ranger at nearby Thomham Walks, and I act as voluntary wardens for the trust.

The presence of Heather, known by its alternative name ofLlng, lends its name to the site.

In the large open areas mosses and acid grasses, namely Sheep's Fescue and Common Bent predominate, as does Sheep's Sorrel, which gives the Llng its magnificent red sheen in the spring.

Also present in abundance is Heath Bedstraw, which flowers earlier in the year, and the much maligned but enormously valuable Ragwort. In most years the Ragwort is "managed" very effectively by a large army of munching Cinnabar moth caterpillars, but this year the caterpillars' numbers were extremely low. The Ragwort was therefore more abundant than usual, the great upside of this was that it lasted well into the autumn providing a valuable nectar source for very late flying butterflies. There are also large stands of Gorse on the perimeters and the Llng itself is fringed by Oak and Birch woodland. I should also mention that the Llng is a common and is very popular with local dog walkers. The aim in managing the Ling therefore is to keep the invasive scrub in check and co strike a balance between nature and amenity.

As for the butterflies of the Ling, the Wall and also it seems the Grayling are long gone.

Interestingly, in English Nature's notation of the Llng as a Site of Special Scientific Interest back in 1990 it was stated that "the site supports a good population of the Grayling". On May 17th 2004 I saw a single Green Hairstreak, however I could have looked harder. We do however have good numbers of Small Heath, Small Copper, Common

'·

'10f!f

~

Small Tortoiseshell

by DouglasHammersley

7

The SuffolkArgus

Spring 2006

Market Weston Fen 10th August

Brimstone egg-laying on Purging Blackthorn

by Doug/,asHammersley

by Alan Johnson

hides gleaming in the sunshine almost as if they had been specially polished for our visit. These_"Meadow Ladies" seemed very interested in the activities of these 17 strange creatures, standing around and pointing. Near to the edge of one of the ponds Peacock were seen in large numbers, mostly on Hemp Agrirnony.

Also noted in this area were Gatekeeper, Essex Skipper, Small Skipper, Holly Blue, Common Blue, Brown Argus, Ringlet, Speckled Wood and Green-veined White.

Rejoining the public footpath, we followed this towards the reserve boundary, with fen/grassland stretching away to woodland to the west, then retracing our steps past a line of ponds, most of which appeared to be drying up. The origin of these ponds is uncertain, but it is suggested they are a post-glacial feature called pingos, formed by tl1e action of melting ice in the ground. An article in the summer 2005 edition of the Suffolk Wildlife Trust magazine says that surveys h~ve shown that the Great Crested Newt is breeding in nine of these ponds. Sightings were made of Brimstone, both male and female, Small Tortoiseshell and Small Copper. Continuing along the public footpath, and at the junction with the waymarked trail, a Small Heath was noted, also a Purple Hairstreak high up in an Oak tree. This rather wooded path opened out to yet another pond, where further male and female Brimstones were seen, also my first Large Skipper of this visit.

Having completed our circular walk, it was now time to return to our cars. It was generally agreed that it had been a most interesting afternoon spent in an extremely quiet environment, enhanced by warm sunshine and a tally of 19 species of butterfly.

Due to an unforeseen emergency at Redgrave and Lopham Fen, the warden of Market Weston Fen, David Poulter, was unable to meet us as arranged. However, we were able to have chat to him at the close of our visit.

After our morning visit to Wortham Ling (sec separate report), 17 members and friends moved on to the nearby Market Weston Fen, to spend the afternoon on the Suffolk Wtldlifc Trust reserve, situated to the NW of Market Weston village.

The Trust guide book quotes the fen as being "one of the finest fragments of valley fen in East Anglia, 17.5 hectares (43.75 acres), mostly open fen dominated by sedge beds, with higher ground and a patchwork of scrub, heath and ponds, with over 250 flowering plants, 20 species of butterfly and 200 types of moth having been recorded here".

A footpath leads from Fen Street, where we parked our cars, across a grazing meadow to a wooden bridge and the entrance to the reserve.

The cottage gardens in Fen Street and this meadow brought records of Common Blue, Holly Blue, Peacock, Red Admiral and Speckled Wood, encouraged no doubt by the developing sunshine, a welcome change from the cloudy and cool conditions earlier in the day.

A causeway then led across the open fen towards higher ground, the Saw Sedge is cut on a 3-4 year rotation, to allow fen plants such as Southern Marsh Orchid, Marsh Helleborine, Grass of Parnassus and Marsh Lousewort to grow.

Here we noted a Comma on Hemp Agrimony, 5 Peacocks on a patch of Mint and a Small White.

Turning on to the lower part of a circular waymarked trail, towards several ponds, we were greeted by a small herd of Red Poll cattle, their

8

New sites for Four-spotted Moth in Cambridgeshire, Essex and

,

Suffolk

by Sharon Hearle The Four-spotted seems to have had a good year in 2005, with a number of new locations for the moth located in Cambridgeshire, Essex and Suffolk through targeted survey by Regional Officer Sharon Hearle and many volunteers.

The Fow-spotted moth is a high priority UK Biodiversity Action Plan Species and information about its distribution is needed to hdp plan conservation work.

The Four-spotted moth flies during sunshine and is very distinctive, a mainly black moth with four large white spots. It is a great one for butterfly recorders to search for. The moth is single or double brooded and can be seen from mid May to mid August. Four-spotted larvae feed on Field Bindweed growing in hot, dry, open sites with sparse vegetation including grassland on chalky soils, field margins, embankments and derelict ground.

The Regional Officer has benefited from detailed work on Four-spotted moth by Paul Waring including a visit to the well known Peterborough site that has been monitored by a transect walk for several years. The Peterborough ditch bank habitat at Werrington looks very similar to the new sites located in Cambridgeshire and Suffolk.

Four-spotted moth was recorded this year at Great Wilbriliam near Cambridge along the edge

of a railway cutting and area of adjacent set-aside.

This was in the general area where the moth had been recorded in previous years at light traps by John Dawson and had been identified as a potential site. Visits in 2004 were negative but this year Four-spotted was recorded on several occasions with a maximum count of 5 on June 8th. The set-aside field was a sea of Ox-eye Daisy in June, which is one of the favoured nectar sources for Four-spotted, and the moth was also observed moving through the open grassland at a low level.

One Four-spotted moth was recorded near Great Bradley in Suffolk in the viciniry of the nearby drainage channel on June 16th. This follows a record of one to MV light just over the border in Cambridgeshire at Kirtling in July 2004 about a mile away. The counry boundary is situated in this area meaning that the moth could occur in both Cambridgeshire and Suffolk.

The channel is an artificial landscape feature created in 1972 to transport water from Kirtling Green outfall a distance of 4 miles to the River

Four-Spotted Moth

by BerylJohnsonfrom photo by Sharon Hearle 17

Spring2006

The Suffolk Argus

Moth Morning at Alder Carr Farm, Needham Market, 20th August

Update On The Purple Hairstreak

by Tony Prichard It was rather wet and windy on the day preceding this event, so much so that more than one member was rather surprised that we still planned going ahead with the meeting the following morning. Conditions improved slightly for the evening and two moth traps were operated at Joan Hardingham'sfarm- one under a lean-to farmbuilding next to a copse in case of further rain, and the second trap further into the copse. On the morning several members attended, including Matthew Deans who had already been through two sets of his own moth traps at Rendham and Bawdsey before coming along for a third set

by Richard Stewart Since there have been severalarticles about Purple Hairstreaks in recent editions of the .., Suffi,lk Argus I thought a short update on the :=:::::~~~al work being done in Kent might be useful. Peter Kirby gave a presentation at the Upper Thames Branch AGM and Members' Day, which I Purple Hairstreak(Male) attended at Beaconsfidd on October 22nd 2005.

by DouguzsHammersley This included a working version of a video they are preparing on the species and from the extending hook which can pull down higher shon clip shown, both quality and interesting new branches for examination. information should make this a desirable From a base of just 46 2km tetrads acquisition. On a table he also had eggs on oaks containing the species in Kent in 1993, out of a plus a hand lens, giving good opponunities not county total of l 022 tecrads, the extensive just to see the beautiful eggs magnified but also recording has taken the tetrad total up to an locate where exactly they are laid. The Kent incredible 583. Peter stated that the evidence research has been mainly in winter, locating eggs, collected so far suggested that our common and one essential tool is a long-handled and Pedunculace Oak Quercus robur, was the preferred choice but Holm Q i/ex and Sessile Q petraea were used when available. Turkey Oak Q cerris wasn't a preferred choice for egg laying. They had made 90 per cent of colony records in roadside oaks and he again stressed that all sons of oaks could be used, irrespective of size or age, through fresh regrowth was usually avoided. Hedgerow oaks were usually good for locating the species and a very interesting observation was that, bred in captivity, the second insrar proved to be cannibals.

I talked to him later and asked about dispersion powers and Peter answered that he had recorded one travelling with a strong purposeful flight for at least three hundred metres to another oak. I was able to tell him about Neil Sherman's observations of adults dropping down to use freshly sprinkled Purple Hairstreak(Female) water on the golf greens early in the morning.

by DouguzsHammersley

16

.,

Willow Beauty

by Mervyn Crawford

The traps were filled with more moths than I expected given the conditions and there was plenty of interest to see. From the rwo craps we managed to record 53 species, with nine species new to the site.

Of particular interest was Sharp-angled Peacock, a species more normally recorded in the coastal areas of the county, but with the larvae feeding on sallows and willows (amongst other things) there was no shortage of the foodplant nearby. Dog's Tooth is a species ofi:en associated with fens and is not frequently recorded from the middle of the county, so another good record. For records of the White-point it is hard to be sure whether these are migrants or residents. Colonies appear to have existed for some time along the coast with odd records further inland, but recently it seems that they may have colonised further inland as well. It was a good year in general for this species with it being regularly recorded at Suffolk Moth Group evenings in late summer.

The full species list for the night was Orange Swifi:, Ypsolopha parmthesella, Ypsolopha sequella, Agonopterix arenella, Blastobasis lignea, Agapeta hamana, Cochylis dubitana, Pandemis heparana, Clepsis spectrana, Acleris emargana, Celypha lacunana, Bactra lancealana, Epinotia nisella, Epibl.ema scutulana, Cydia pomonella, Agriphila tristella, Agriphila geniculea, Elophila nymphaeata, Parapoynx stratiotata, Pleuroptya ruralis, Pebble Hook-tip, Single-dotted Wave, Purple Bar, Small Waved Umber, Double-striped Pug, Cl9uded Border, Sharp-angled Peacock, Brimstone Moth, Willow Beauty, Common White Wave, Common Wave, Light Emerald, Poplar Hawk-moth, Iron Prominent, Pebble Prominent, Ruby Tiger, Turnip Moth, Shuttle-shaped Dan, Flame Shoulder, Large Yellow Underwing, Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing, Small Square-spot, Setaceous Hebrew Character, Square-spot Rustic, Dog's Tooth, White-point, Common Wainscot, Brown Rustic, Common Rustic agg., Flounced Rustic, Vine's Rustic, Spectacle and Straw Dot.

I would like to thank Joan Hardingham for allowing us to hold the meeting on her farm.

9

Spring2006

The Suffolk Argus

Oxfordshire Excursion 20th to 22nd August This late season weekend was well attended, and some members arrived early enough to squeeze in a Saturday morning visit to Aston Rowant ahead of our rendezvous.

The target butterflies made the rendezvous too, with Silver-spotted Skippers at Watlington Hill and Brown Hairstreaks in Bernwood Forest on the Sunday. By Monday morning, heavy rain had set in, so the planned visit to the Warburg reserve at Holtspur was cancelled for everyone apart from those able to stay a further night.

for the Chalkhill Blue and Silver-spotted Skipper.

It was rather late in the season for the Chalkhill •Blue, and most we saw were worn females. When we got our eyes in for the Silver-spotted Skipper, we began to find good numbers nestling down in the sward, sheltering from the breeze. Soon everyone had seen them close-up, and some good photographs had been taken. There were plenty of Common Blue too, along with Small Copper and a few Brown Argus. Visibility was good, and the views from the hill were superb.

In places, the scrub was encroaching, and the habitat is perhaps less perfect than it was 20 years ago, when there were more rabbits. Although our total species count on the hill was only a dozen, it was a successful outing, rounded off with an agteeable dinner together in Thame.

Watlington Hill 20th August

Bernwood Forest 21st August

A total of 14 Suffolk/Norfolk Branch members were joined by 3 relatives living locally, on a fine but breezy day at this National Trust reserve.

Red Kites were seen before we had reached the open chalky hillside that provides good habitat

The complex of Oakley Wood, Shabbington Wood and Hell Coppice, together known as Bernwood Forest, is a classic site for lepidoptera, and we arrived there in perfect weather, though early enough that only one Speckled Wood was out to wdcome us.

Broad woodland rides provide nicely sheltered butterfly habitat, and we were soon seeing plenty of browns and skippers. At one point someone noticed a fluttering above our heads, and we realised that there were Purple Hairstreaks in the Oaks that surrounded us. We had 5 really good sightings early on - to whet our appetite for hairstreak spotting, since we were by then at the long Blackthorn hedge that marks the edge of the Brown Hairstreak's domain. We passed several other groups looking hopefully up at the Blackthorn, but none who had yet seen their quarry. We entered the adjacent BBOWT reserve known as Bernwood Meadows, and concentrated on the sunny corner where the Blackthorn has been encouraged to grow untrimmed. When Margaret first saw the underside of a female catching the sun at eye level, it looked obvious, but by then half a dozen of us had passed without

by Rob Parker

SilverSpotted Skipper byDouglasHammersley 10

BUTTERFLY CONSERVATION SUFFOLK BRANCH Income & Expenditure Account for 12 Months Ended 31st March 2005 2003/04

£1,173.00 £5.30 £48.75 £213.80

INCOME

2004/05

Awards for All ................................................................................................ £4,337.00 Membership Subscriptions ........................................... :................................ £1, 149.00 Bank Interest ...................................................................................................... £12.12 Donations: General Fundraising ........................................................................ £47.00 Sale of Merchandise ......................................................................................... £105.18

£1,440.85

£5,650.30

£191.12

Cost of Sales ...................................................................................................... £70.70

£1,249.73

£5,579.60

£300.00 £140.00 £563.97 £20.00 £202.37 £10.00 £49.76

EXPENDITURE Donation ........................................................................................................... £300.00 Suffolk Show ..................................................................................................... £149.00 Newsletters I Programme ................................................................................. £603.77 Member's Night / AGM ....................................................................................... £20.00 Office Expenses ............................................................................................... £101.14 Conference Expenses ......................................................................................... £0.00 Spring Butterfly Survey ....................................................................................... £80.00 Depreciation ..................................................................................................... £789.90

£2,043.81

£1,286.10 SURPLUS/ (LOSS) ON CURRENT YEAR

(£36.37)

£3,535.79

BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31st MARCH 2005 CONSOLIDATED FUND Balance 1.4.2004 Add surplus on year

Represented by: Giro Bank pie .................................. £3,055.67 Alliance & Leicester ........................£1,288.27 Cash in hand £2.35 £4,346.29

£2,905.62 £3,535.79 £6,441.41

ASSETS as at 31.03.2005 Generator £150.00 Projector Table £29.99 Exhibition Tent £100.00 Display Stand £229.12 Generator £630.00 Dell Laptop £1,178.53 Dell Projector £633.32 Book Cost £2,950.96

Write down value @ 20% £150.00 £24.96 £83.22 £111.81 £126.00 Write down 3yrs £392.84 211.11 Net Value £1,851.02 Debtors .............................................. £303.00 Stock - Merchandise ..........................£117.00 • £6,617.31 Liabilities ........................................... (£175.90)

NET WORTH

15

£6,441.41

The Suffolk Argus

Spring 2006 with SNS at Westleton. Although a number of new butterfly recorders are now on my books as a direct result of this effort, we have not yet achieved a significant boost to Branch membership. Panly this was due to inadequate advertising on our pan, and we intend to put this right with another Spring Survey next year. With luck, Awards for All will be content for us to carry the remaining cash forward for that pt.irpose.

Those of you who belong to SWT will be aware of their appeal to raise funds for the purchase of Captain's Wood near Sudbourne - an ancient wood pasture we visited in 2002. Your committee was sympathetic to the idea of preserving the site as a nature reserve, and voted a token sum of £100 towards that cause. I can tell you now that SWT have just confirmed that the purchase has gone through successfully, and is ready to receive our advice on managing the wood for lepidoptera.

Continuing our joint efforts with SNS, I find I am addressing the SNS climate change conference next month with a piece entitled "Butterfly Futures" - this is a sneak preview!

The Spring Survey thus had an effect on our membership, our accounts, & the field meetings programme - each the domain of the Officers that you are now going to hear from, so this is the right moment to mention that some changes are in the air. Graham Bull has been our Treasurer for ten years now - a most honourable term of service. He will deliver his last complete year's accounts shortly, and you will hear from Jim Foster the plan which will release him from the editorship of Suffolk Argus, to take over as our new Treasurer.

But let's follow the agenda, and start with our Membership Secretary, Beryl Johnson.

The following reports were then presented by the committee member responsible: Membership Secretary's Report, Moth Conservation officer's Report, Treasurer's Report. (the Accounts are published on the following page), Editor - Suffolk Argus Report, Programme Secretary's Report, Eastern Regional Officer's Report.

The Committee as listed on the back cover was then elected. This was followed by member's slides.

Chair111an's Report for 2005

by Rob Parker This has not been a memorable year for lepidoptera, but I will come to that in my Conservation report. My job just uow is to mention a few of the interesting developments that have come along since we last met here. I had been expecting a re-run of our regular events, and your committee has indeed ensured that we enjoyed an excellent programme of field visits and 3 informative issues of the Suffolk Argus.What has been different about this year, for me in particular has been our grant from the National Lottery.

Sharon was sman enough to prompt us to place a bid with "Awards for All", based on an initiative to attract new members and recorders, panicularly in the Haverhill and Thetford areas.

Even before the £4300 came in, our finances were sound, and suddenly we had to get busy spending that sum. There was just enough time to buy this laptop computer and projector and organise two public training events for what we called the "Spring Survey". Adapting digital images gives an extra flexibility in creating slide shows, and I was pleased to find that a number of colleagues and friends were happy for us to make use of their work. In particular, images like these from John Brackenbury's "Insects in Flight" are instructive, as well as pleasing, and others came from Branch members including Jonathan Tyler.

The collaboration I spoke about last year has continued, at Thornham Walks, on National Trust land, and in panicular with SWT. We have done butterfly shows to different audiences of individuals, wardens and private nature reserve owners, as well as the Silver-studded Blue event

14

Walberswick area 4th September

by A/,an Johnson A fine, sunny and warm day with virtuallyclear skies and a light SE wind, saw 18 of our members meet at the Newdelight Walles car park, between Westleton and Blytbburgh, for the last outdoor event on our 2005 programme. This area is part of the Walbesswick National Nature Reserveand is managed by English Nature. Much of the reserve is privately owned, with access only on public footpaths, of which there are approximately 20 miles within the reserve.

Our first sighting from the car park was that of a Hobby, no doubt hoping for a ready meal and attracted by the large number of dragonflies on the wing. Later, at the end of the morning, some of our group were able to witness the other end of the food chain, with a patrolling Migrant Hawker taking a Small Heath butterfly. Gill Perkins duly retrieved a discarded wing, which had fluttered down.

The plan for the morning was to walk along the sandy track, which leads from the car park towards Westwood Lodge. This track at first passing through a small area bright with purple heather, where we noted Small Copper and Small Heath, also Clouded Buff and Silver Y moths.

Continuing on, with the track now bounded by mixed woodland and some more open areas, several Speckled Wood were seen, also a single, late, Purple Hairstreak was noted. The latest record for this species in Richard Stewan's Millennium Atlas of Suffolk Butterflies is September 8th 2000.

Whilst drawn to another patch of heather in search of butterflies, our attention switched to a nearby Migrant Hawker, at rest on the dead branch of a low growing bush. On further inspection of the other branches, we counted a total of 18, both male and female, apparently sunbathing in this sheltered spot facing the sun, with bodies hanging vertically, looking rather like a line of washing hung out to dry! Retracing our steps, we were only able to add Small Tortoiseshell and Comma to our list. We then moved on to Hoist

Brown Hairstreak byDouglasHammersley spotting it. The cameras came out, and we all had a good look whilst it walked sedately from one leaf cluster to another. Suddenly it was in the shade, and almost invisible. Much heanened by this encounter, we walked along the hedge line and were rewarded by further sightings; some at rest, some in flight. As the day grew warmer, so the butterfly activity increased, and we had another memorable view whilst retracing our steps along the woodland rides. Someone had asked whether Brown Hairstreaks come to nectar, and the general view was that they used honeydew and were not regular visitors to flowers. But then we saw one on an umbellifer (Hogweed, probably) and on the other side of the ride found two, one female and a rather worn male, both feeding on another Hogweed. They obliged by staying there long enough to be well photographed. What a lovely late-seaspn butterfly the Brown Hairstreak is; such a shame we do not have it in Suffolk.

After our picnic lunch we set out on a walk which added a few species like Comma and Brimstone. As we headed deeper into Shabbingron Wood we saw a couple more Brown Hairstreaks, showing that they are not confined to the western margin, but it was now becoming exhaustingly hot. A couple of Small Heaths and a very worn late Ringlet brought our day's total up to 20 species not bad for late August!

11

The Suffolk Argus

Spring 2006

Covert, on the outskirts ofWalberswick, for picnic lunches, to be followed by our afternoon walk.

Initially our path skirted the western edge of Hoist Covert, where Gatekeeper, Speckled Wood and Small Heath were seen. Our route then turning to take us across East Sheep Walk, where it became apparent from the numerous hoof prints, that traditional grazing of this at present rough pasture, with only isolated patches of heather, is taking place. Small Tortoiseshell and Silver Y were noted.

After following the eastern edge of Sallow Walk Covert, we crossed the B 1387 road to enter, and then cross, Walberswick Common, with only the Small Heath being seen. One location being checked by the optimists among us for the bluespotted aberrant form Caeruleopunctata, of the Small Copper, seen here in 1998 by Richard and Marie Stewart, but none were observed.

Our path then followed the route of the old narrow gauge Halesworth to Southwold railway line, with parts of it now supporting an abundance of heather and gorse, which provided a brilliant splash of colour. Here we found our first Common Blue, also Meadow Brown and Gatekeeper. After reaching the site of the old Walberswick Station, our route turned again, this time in a southerly direction to follow the edge of the common back to the village. Walking along the various paths it could be seen that areas of invading Bracken had been removed to allow a mosaic of heather, gorse and fine grasses to grow back. Here we saw numerous Common Blue, together with sightings of Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell, Red Admiral, Small Copper, Small Heath, Gatekeeper, Greenveined White and Large White.

Having mentioned Adders in iny health and safety comments at the start of the day's proceedings, we were mindful of the possible presence of these reptiles in the immediate area.

Two weeks previously when reconnoitring the walk I almost put my rucksack down on top of a large, and distinctively marked male.

Back in the village, a short detour was made through the churchyard to inspect the white Buddleia, which atrracts many butterflies, but sadly the blooms were faded and brown. A little further on, Ivy growing alongside a lane provided

good views of several Holly Blues, confirming the continuing existence here of the species.

On reaching Lodge Road some of our group decided to return directly to the car park, the remainder of us opting for a suggested detour. This took us down to Oldtown Marshes, giving us views seawards and across Westwood Marshes, which are probably the largest area of fresh-water reedbed in Britain. Eventually we rejoined our original route alongside Hoist Covert, and duly returned to the car park. On this last section of our walk we noted Small White, Small Tortoiseshell, Gatekeeper, Speckled Wood, Southern Hawker dragonfly and Yellow Shell moth.

Thus ended an enjoyable day with a total of 15 species of butterfly recorded, but none in great numbers. Jim Foster's GPS also informed us we had walked a total of

i

55 mil~

I can understand nets being used for research or transect work when several similar fritillaries are flying together, but consider this to be a rare event.

With Essex and Small Skippers a monocular is usually sufficient and on a transect they don't have to be separated.

There is also a tendency amongst some using nets to think no practice is necessary. In the hands of an experienced lepidopterist the use of a net can be quick, effective and seemingly of little or no harm to the captured specimen. However, I have also seen others chasing butterflies madly, flailing around with their nets and producing a performance that were it to be videoed and played back to them would be deeply embarrassing. Once at a joint meeting such a person eventually trapped a fluttering fritillary under his net. He asked what it was and as I looked round the group behind him I could see virtually everybody had the same thought. Eventually someone had enough courage to ask him to release it as soon as possible.

Butterfly nets also present to the public a 'catch and kill ic' image. To me this is reminiscent of the hunter-gatherer syndrome that seems to persist and possibly explains why net users are males. Recently a young girl won a prize to give her name to a newly discovered species of Amazonian butterfly. The local television news featured her as an Alice In Wonderland figure, complete with butterfly net and killing jar. Since I was the Suffolk Counry Butterfly Recorder at the time I protested and very quickly was given my own feature in which to promote the more positive and modern image that Butterfly Conservation supports.

I have just one reservation, which is for butterflies beyond our shores. I am happy to admit that my three trips with Butterfly Conservation groups to the Spanish Pyrenees have been enriched by seeing the different species of fritillary, ringlet hairstreak and skipper which were netted then carefully transferred to a smaller container for identification. The sheer number of very similar species makes this sometimes necessary. However, when it comes to our limited number of British species, I am still of the opinion that there are very few occasions when the use of a net is necessary or desirable. What do others think?

The Use of Nets

by Richard Stewart Recently I have been involved, with others in "Butterfly" magazine, about the use of nets to catch and identify butterflies. My attitude is quite simple - I have never used one and feel much better at the start of a fidd meeting if no one has a net. One of my reasons is that I derive far more satisfaction from using field-craft and former knowledge to identify a species or being able to take a good photograph, now much easier thanks to digital cameras.

'\~•1:J•' ..:fj;

.:f-·""

~:-~.

12

Small Skipper

SilverY Moth

by DouglasHammersley

byMerryn Crawford 13

The Suffolk Argus

Spring 2006

Covert, on the outskirts ofWalberswick, for picnic lunches, to be followed by our afternoon walk.

Initially our path skirted the western edge of Hoist Covert, where Gatekeeper, Speckled Wood and Small Heath were seen. Our route then turning to take us across East Sheep Walk, where it became apparent from the numerous hoof prints, that traditional grazing of this at present rough pasture, with only isolated patches of heather, is taking place. Small Tortoiseshell and Silver Y were noted.

After following the eastern edge of Sallow Walk Covert, we crossed the B 1387 road to enter, and then cross, Walberswick Common, with only the Small Heath being seen. One location being checked by the optimists among us for the bluespotted aberrant form Caeruleopunctata, of the Small Copper, seen here in 1998 by Richard and Marie Stewart, but none were observed.

Our path then followed the route of the old narrow gauge Halesworth to Southwold railway line, with parts of it now supporting an abundance of heather and gorse, which provided a brilliant splash of colour. Here we found our first Common Blue, also Meadow Brown and Gatekeeper. After reaching the site of the old Walberswick Station, our route turned again, this time in a southerly direction to follow the edge of the common back to the village. Walking along the various paths it could be seen that areas of invading Bracken had been removed to allow a mosaic of heather, gorse and fine grasses to grow back. Here we saw numerous Common Blue, together with sightings of Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell, Red Admiral, Small Copper, Small Heath, Gatekeeper, Greenveined White and Large White.

Having mentioned Adders in iny health and safety comments at the start of the day's proceedings, we were mindful of the possible presence of these reptiles in the immediate area.

Two weeks previously when reconnoitring the walk I almost put my rucksack down on top of a large, and distinctively marked male.

Back in the village, a short detour was made through the churchyard to inspect the white Buddleia, which atrracts many butterflies, but sadly the blooms were faded and brown. A little further on, Ivy growing alongside a lane provided

good views of several Holly Blues, confirming the continuing existence here of the species.

On reaching Lodge Road some of our group decided to return directly to the car park, the remainder of us opting for a suggested detour. This took us down to Oldtown Marshes, giving us views seawards and across Westwood Marshes, which are probably the largest area of fresh-water reedbed in Britain. Eventually we rejoined our original route alongside Hoist Covert, and duly returned to the car park. On this last section of our walk we noted Small White, Small Tortoiseshell, Gatekeeper, Speckled Wood, Southern Hawker dragonfly and Yellow Shell moth.

Thus ended an enjoyable day with a total of 15 species of butterfly recorded, but none in great numbers. Jim Foster's GPS also informed us we had walked a total of

i

55 mil~

I can understand nets being used for research or transect work when several similar fritillaries are flying together, but consider this to be a rare event.

With Essex and Small Skippers a monocular is usually sufficient and on a transect they don't have to be separated.

There is also a tendency amongst some using nets to think no practice is necessary. In the hands of an experienced lepidopterist the use of a net can be quick, effective and seemingly of little or no harm to the captured specimen. However, I have also seen others chasing butterflies madly, flailing around with their nets and producing a performance that were it to be videoed and played back to them would be deeply embarrassing. Once at a joint meeting such a person eventually trapped a fluttering fritillary under his net. He asked what it was and as I looked round the group behind him I could see virtually everybody had the same thought. Eventually someone had enough courage to ask him to release it as soon as possible.

Butterfly nets also present to the public a 'catch and kill ic' image. To me this is reminiscent of the hunter-gatherer syndrome that seems to persist and possibly explains why net users are males. Recently a young girl won a prize to give her name to a newly discovered species of Amazonian butterfly. The local television news featured her as an Alice In Wonderland figure, complete with butterfly net and killing jar. Since I was the Suffolk Counry Butterfly Recorder at the time I protested and very quickly was given my own feature in which to promote the more positive and modern image that Butterfly Conservation supports.

I have just one reservation, which is for butterflies beyond our shores. I am happy to admit that my three trips with Butterfly Conservation groups to the Spanish Pyrenees have been enriched by seeing the different species of fritillary, ringlet hairstreak and skipper which were netted then carefully transferred to a smaller container for identification. The sheer number of very similar species makes this sometimes necessary. However, when it comes to our limited number of British species, I am still of the opinion that there are very few occasions when the use of a net is necessary or desirable. What do others think?

The Use of Nets

by Richard Stewart Recently I have been involved, with others in "Butterfly" magazine, about the use of nets to catch and identify butterflies. My attitude is quite simple - I have never used one and feel much better at the start of a fidd meeting if no one has a net. One of my reasons is that I derive far more satisfaction from using field-craft and former knowledge to identify a species or being able to take a good photograph, now much easier thanks to digital cameras.

'\~•1:J•' ..:fj;

.:f-·""

~:-~.

12

Small Skipper

SilverY Moth

by DouglasHammersley

byMerryn Crawford 13

The Suffolk Argus

Spring 2006 with SNS at Westleton. Although a number of new butterfly recorders are now on my books as a direct result of this effort, we have not yet achieved a significant boost to Branch membership. Panly this was due to inadequate advertising on our pan, and we intend to put this right with another Spring Survey next year. With luck, Awards for All will be content for us to carry the remaining cash forward for that pt.irpose.

Those of you who belong to SWT will be aware of their appeal to raise funds for the purchase of Captain's Wood near Sudbourne - an ancient wood pasture we visited in 2002. Your committee was sympathetic to the idea of preserving the site as a nature reserve, and voted a token sum of £100 towards that cause. I can tell you now that SWT have just confirmed that the purchase has gone through successfully, and is ready to receive our advice on managing the wood for lepidoptera.

Continuing our joint efforts with SNS, I find I am addressing the SNS climate change conference next month with a piece entitled "Butterfly Futures" - this is a sneak preview!

The Spring Survey thus had an effect on our membership, our accounts, & the field meetings programme - each the domain of the Officers that you are now going to hear from, so this is the right moment to mention that some changes are in the air. Graham Bull has been our Treasurer for ten years now - a most honourable term of service. He will deliver his last complete year's accounts shortly, and you will hear from Jim Foster the plan which will release him from the editorship of Suffolk Argus, to take over as our new Treasurer.

But let's follow the agenda, and start with our Membership Secretary, Beryl Johnson.

The following reports were then presented by the committee member responsible: Membership Secretary's Report, Moth Conservation officer's Report, Treasurer's Report. (the Accounts are published on the following page), Editor - Suffolk Argus Report, Programme Secretary's Report, Eastern Regional Officer's Report.

The Committee as listed on the back cover was then elected. This was followed by member's slides.

Chair111an's Report for 2005

by Rob Parker This has not been a memorable year for lepidoptera, but I will come to that in my Conservation report. My job just uow is to mention a few of the interesting developments that have come along since we last met here. I had been expecting a re-run of our regular events, and your committee has indeed ensured that we enjoyed an excellent programme of field visits and 3 informative issues of the Suffolk Argus.What has been different about this year, for me in particular has been our grant from the National Lottery.

Sharon was sman enough to prompt us to place a bid with "Awards for All", based on an initiative to attract new members and recorders, panicularly in the Haverhill and Thetford areas.

Even before the £4300 came in, our finances were sound, and suddenly we had to get busy spending that sum. There was just enough time to buy this laptop computer and projector and organise two public training events for what we called the "Spring Survey". Adapting digital images gives an extra flexibility in creating slide shows, and I was pleased to find that a number of colleagues and friends were happy for us to make use of their work. In particular, images like these from John Brackenbury's "Insects in Flight" are instructive, as well as pleasing, and others came from Branch members including Jonathan Tyler.

The collaboration I spoke about last year has continued, at Thornham Walks, on National Trust land, and in panicular with SWT. We have done butterfly shows to different audiences of individuals, wardens and private nature reserve owners, as well as the Silver-studded Blue event

14

Walberswick area 4th September

by A/,an Johnson A fine, sunny and warm day with virtuallyclear skies and a light SE wind, saw 18 of our members meet at the Newdelight Walles car park, between Westleton and Blytbburgh, for the last outdoor event on our 2005 programme. This area is part of the Walbesswick National Nature Reserveand is managed by English Nature. Much of the reserve is privately owned, with access only on public footpaths, of which there are approximately 20 miles within the reserve.

Our first sighting from the car park was that of a Hobby, no doubt hoping for a ready meal and attracted by the large number of dragonflies on the wing. Later, at the end of the morning, some of our group were able to witness the other end of the food chain, with a patrolling Migrant Hawker taking a Small Heath butterfly. Gill Perkins duly retrieved a discarded wing, which had fluttered down.

The plan for the morning was to walk along the sandy track, which leads from the car park towards Westwood Lodge. This track at first passing through a small area bright with purple heather, where we noted Small Copper and Small Heath, also Clouded Buff and Silver Y moths.

Continuing on, with the track now bounded by mixed woodland and some more open areas, several Speckled Wood were seen, also a single, late, Purple Hairstreak was noted. The latest record for this species in Richard Stewan's Millennium Atlas of Suffolk Butterflies is September 8th 2000.

Whilst drawn to another patch of heather in search of butterflies, our attention switched to a nearby Migrant Hawker, at rest on the dead branch of a low growing bush. On further inspection of the other branches, we counted a total of 18, both male and female, apparently sunbathing in this sheltered spot facing the sun, with bodies hanging vertically, looking rather like a line of washing hung out to dry! Retracing our steps, we were only able to add Small Tortoiseshell and Comma to our list. We then moved on to Hoist

Brown Hairstreak byDouglasHammersley spotting it. The cameras came out, and we all had a good look whilst it walked sedately from one leaf cluster to another. Suddenly it was in the shade, and almost invisible. Much heanened by this encounter, we walked along the hedge line and were rewarded by further sightings; some at rest, some in flight. As the day grew warmer, so the butterfly activity increased, and we had another memorable view whilst retracing our steps along the woodland rides. Someone had asked whether Brown Hairstreaks come to nectar, and the general view was that they used honeydew and were not regular visitors to flowers. But then we saw one on an umbellifer (Hogweed, probably) and on the other side of the ride found two, one female and a rather worn male, both feeding on another Hogweed. They obliged by staying there long enough to be well photographed. What a lovely late-seaspn butterfly the Brown Hairstreak is; such a shame we do not have it in Suffolk.

After our picnic lunch we set out on a walk which added a few species like Comma and Brimstone. As we headed deeper into Shabbingron Wood we saw a couple more Brown Hairstreaks, showing that they are not confined to the western margin, but it was now becoming exhaustingly hot. A couple of Small Heaths and a very worn late Ringlet brought our day's total up to 20 species not bad for late August!

11

Spring2006

The Suffolk Argus

Oxfordshire Excursion 20th to 22nd August This late season weekend was well attended, and some members arrived early enough to squeeze in a Saturday morning visit to Aston Rowant ahead of our rendezvous.

The target butterflies made the rendezvous too, with Silver-spotted Skippers at Watlington Hill and Brown Hairstreaks in Bernwood Forest on the Sunday. By Monday morning, heavy rain had set in, so the planned visit to the Warburg reserve at Holtspur was cancelled for everyone apart from those able to stay a further night.

for the Chalkhill Blue and Silver-spotted Skipper.

It was rather late in the season for the Chalkhill •Blue, and most we saw were worn females. When we got our eyes in for the Silver-spotted Skipper, we began to find good numbers nestling down in the sward, sheltering from the breeze. Soon everyone had seen them close-up, and some good photographs had been taken. There were plenty of Common Blue too, along with Small Copper and a few Brown Argus. Visibility was good, and the views from the hill were superb.

In places, the scrub was encroaching, and the habitat is perhaps less perfect than it was 20 years ago, when there were more rabbits. Although our total species count on the hill was only a dozen, it was a successful outing, rounded off with an agteeable dinner together in Thame.

Watlington Hill 20th August

Bernwood Forest 21st August

A total of 14 Suffolk/Norfolk Branch members were joined by 3 relatives living locally, on a fine but breezy day at this National Trust reserve.

Red Kites were seen before we had reached the open chalky hillside that provides good habitat

The complex of Oakley Wood, Shabbington Wood and Hell Coppice, together known as Bernwood Forest, is a classic site for lepidoptera, and we arrived there in perfect weather, though early enough that only one Speckled Wood was out to wdcome us.

Broad woodland rides provide nicely sheltered butterfly habitat, and we were soon seeing plenty of browns and skippers. At one point someone noticed a fluttering above our heads, and we realised that there were Purple Hairstreaks in the Oaks that surrounded us. We had 5 really good sightings early on - to whet our appetite for hairstreak spotting, since we were by then at the long Blackthorn hedge that marks the edge of the Brown Hairstreak's domain. We passed several other groups looking hopefully up at the Blackthorn, but none who had yet seen their quarry. We entered the adjacent BBOWT reserve known as Bernwood Meadows, and concentrated on the sunny corner where the Blackthorn has been encouraged to grow untrimmed. When Margaret first saw the underside of a female catching the sun at eye level, it looked obvious, but by then half a dozen of us had passed without

by Rob Parker

SilverSpotted Skipper byDouglasHammersley 10

BUTTERFLY CONSERVATION SUFFOLK BRANCH Income & Expenditure Account for 12 Months Ended 31st March 2005 2003/04

£1,173.00 £5.30 £48.75 £213.80

INCOME

2004/05

Awards for All ................................................................................................ £4,337.00 Membership Subscriptions ........................................... :................................ £1, 149.00 Bank Interest ...................................................................................................... £12.12 Donations: General Fundraising ........................................................................ £47.00 Sale of Merchandise ......................................................................................... £105.18

£1,440.85

£5,650.30

£191.12

Cost of Sales ...................................................................................................... £70.70

£1,249.73

£5,579.60

£300.00 £140.00 £563.97 £20.00 £202.37 £10.00 £49.76

EXPENDITURE Donation ........................................................................................................... £300.00 Suffolk Show ..................................................................................................... £149.00 Newsletters I Programme ................................................................................. £603.77 Member's Night / AGM ....................................................................................... £20.00 Office Expenses ............................................................................................... £101.14 Conference Expenses ......................................................................................... £0.00 Spring Butterfly Survey ....................................................................................... £80.00 Depreciation ..................................................................................................... £789.90

£2,043.81

£1,286.10 SURPLUS/ (LOSS) ON CURRENT YEAR

(£36.37)

£3,535.79

BALANCE SHEET AS AT 31st MARCH 2005 CONSOLIDATED FUND Balance 1.4.2004 Add surplus on year

Represented by: Giro Bank pie .................................. £3,055.67 Alliance & Leicester ........................£1,288.27 Cash in hand £2.35 £4,346.29

£2,905.62 £3,535.79 £6,441.41

ASSETS as at 31.03.2005 Generator £150.00 Projector Table £29.99 Exhibition Tent £100.00 Display Stand £229.12 Generator £630.00 Dell Laptop £1,178.53 Dell Projector £633.32 Book Cost £2,950.96

Write down value @ 20% £150.00 £24.96 £83.22 £111.81 £126.00 Write down 3yrs £392.84 211.11 Net Value £1,851.02 Debtors .............................................. £303.00 Stock - Merchandise ..........................£117.00 • £6,617.31 Liabilities ........................................... (£175.90)

NET WORTH

15

£6,441.41

Spring2006

The Suffolk Argus

Moth Morning at Alder Carr Farm, Needham Market, 20th August

Update On The Purple Hairstreak

by Tony Prichard It was rather wet and windy on the day preceding this event, so much so that more than one member was rather surprised that we still planned going ahead with the meeting the following morning. Conditions improved slightly for the evening and two moth traps were operated at Joan Hardingham'sfarm- one under a lean-to farmbuilding next to a copse in case of further rain, and the second trap further into the copse. On the morning several members attended, including Matthew Deans who had already been through two sets of his own moth traps at Rendham and Bawdsey before coming along for a third set

by Richard Stewart Since there have been severalarticles about Purple Hairstreaks in recent editions of the .., Suffi,lk Argus I thought a short update on the :=:::::~~~al work being done in Kent might be useful. Peter Kirby gave a presentation at the Upper Thames Branch AGM and Members' Day, which I Purple Hairstreak(Male) attended at Beaconsfidd on October 22nd 2005.

by DouguzsHammersley This included a working version of a video they are preparing on the species and from the extending hook which can pull down higher shon clip shown, both quality and interesting new branches for examination. information should make this a desirable From a base of just 46 2km tetrads acquisition. On a table he also had eggs on oaks containing the species in Kent in 1993, out of a plus a hand lens, giving good opponunities not county total of l 022 tecrads, the extensive just to see the beautiful eggs magnified but also recording has taken the tetrad total up to an locate where exactly they are laid. The Kent incredible 583. Peter stated that the evidence research has been mainly in winter, locating eggs, collected so far suggested that our common and one essential tool is a long-handled and Pedunculace Oak Quercus robur, was the preferred choice but Holm Q i/ex and Sessile Q petraea were used when available. Turkey Oak Q cerris wasn't a preferred choice for egg laying. They had made 90 per cent of colony records in roadside oaks and he again stressed that all sons of oaks could be used, irrespective of size or age, through fresh regrowth was usually avoided. Hedgerow oaks were usually good for locating the species and a very interesting observation was that, bred in captivity, the second insrar proved to be cannibals.

I talked to him later and asked about dispersion powers and Peter answered that he had recorded one travelling with a strong purposeful flight for at least three hundred metres to another oak. I was able to tell him about Neil Sherman's observations of adults dropping down to use freshly sprinkled Purple Hairstreak(Female) water on the golf greens early in the morning.

by DouguzsHammersley

16

.,

Willow Beauty

by Mervyn Crawford

The traps were filled with more moths than I expected given the conditions and there was plenty of interest to see. From the rwo craps we managed to record 53 species, with nine species new to the site.

Of particular interest was Sharp-angled Peacock, a species more normally recorded in the coastal areas of the county, but with the larvae feeding on sallows and willows (amongst other things) there was no shortage of the foodplant nearby. Dog's Tooth is a species ofi:en associated with fens and is not frequently recorded from the middle of the county, so another good record. For records of the White-point it is hard to be sure whether these are migrants or residents. Colonies appear to have existed for some time along the coast with odd records further inland, but recently it seems that they may have colonised further inland as well. It was a good year in general for this species with it being regularly recorded at Suffolk Moth Group evenings in late summer.

The full species list for the night was Orange Swifi:, Ypsolopha parmthesella, Ypsolopha sequella, Agonopterix arenella, Blastobasis lignea, Agapeta hamana, Cochylis dubitana, Pandemis heparana, Clepsis spectrana, Acleris emargana, Celypha lacunana, Bactra lancealana, Epinotia nisella, Epibl.ema scutulana, Cydia pomonella, Agriphila tristella, Agriphila geniculea, Elophila nymphaeata, Parapoynx stratiotata, Pleuroptya ruralis, Pebble Hook-tip, Single-dotted Wave, Purple Bar, Small Waved Umber, Double-striped Pug, Cl9uded Border, Sharp-angled Peacock, Brimstone Moth, Willow Beauty, Common White Wave, Common Wave, Light Emerald, Poplar Hawk-moth, Iron Prominent, Pebble Prominent, Ruby Tiger, Turnip Moth, Shuttle-shaped Dan, Flame Shoulder, Large Yellow Underwing, Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing, Small Square-spot, Setaceous Hebrew Character, Square-spot Rustic, Dog's Tooth, White-point, Common Wainscot, Brown Rustic, Common Rustic agg., Flounced Rustic, Vine's Rustic, Spectacle and Straw Dot.

I would like to thank Joan Hardingham for allowing us to hold the meeting on her farm.

9

The SuffolkArgus

Spring 2006

Market Weston Fen 10th August

Brimstone egg-laying on Purging Blackthorn

by Doug/,asHammersley

by Alan Johnson

hides gleaming in the sunshine almost as if they had been specially polished for our visit. These_"Meadow Ladies" seemed very interested in the activities of these 17 strange creatures, standing around and pointing. Near to the edge of one of the ponds Peacock were seen in large numbers, mostly on Hemp Agrirnony.

Also noted in this area were Gatekeeper, Essex Skipper, Small Skipper, Holly Blue, Common Blue, Brown Argus, Ringlet, Speckled Wood and Green-veined White.

Rejoining the public footpath, we followed this towards the reserve boundary, with fen/grassland stretching away to woodland to the west, then retracing our steps past a line of ponds, most of which appeared to be drying up. The origin of these ponds is uncertain, but it is suggested they are a post-glacial feature called pingos, formed by tl1e action of melting ice in the ground. An article in the summer 2005 edition of the Suffolk Wildlife Trust magazine says that surveys h~ve shown that the Great Crested Newt is breeding in nine of these ponds. Sightings were made of Brimstone, both male and female, Small Tortoiseshell and Small Copper. Continuing along the public footpath, and at the junction with the waymarked trail, a Small Heath was noted, also a Purple Hairstreak high up in an Oak tree. This rather wooded path opened out to yet another pond, where further male and female Brimstones were seen, also my first Large Skipper of this visit.

Having completed our circular walk, it was now time to return to our cars. It was generally agreed that it had been a most interesting afternoon spent in an extremely quiet environment, enhanced by warm sunshine and a tally of 19 species of butterfly.

Due to an unforeseen emergency at Redgrave and Lopham Fen, the warden of Market Weston Fen, David Poulter, was unable to meet us as arranged. However, we were able to have chat to him at the close of our visit.

After our morning visit to Wortham Ling (sec separate report), 17 members and friends moved on to the nearby Market Weston Fen, to spend the afternoon on the Suffolk Wtldlifc Trust reserve, situated to the NW of Market Weston village.

The Trust guide book quotes the fen as being "one of the finest fragments of valley fen in East Anglia, 17.5 hectares (43.75 acres), mostly open fen dominated by sedge beds, with higher ground and a patchwork of scrub, heath and ponds, with over 250 flowering plants, 20 species of butterfly and 200 types of moth having been recorded here".

A footpath leads from Fen Street, where we parked our cars, across a grazing meadow to a wooden bridge and the entrance to the reserve.

The cottage gardens in Fen Street and this meadow brought records of Common Blue, Holly Blue, Peacock, Red Admiral and Speckled Wood, encouraged no doubt by the developing sunshine, a welcome change from the cloudy and cool conditions earlier in the day.

A causeway then led across the open fen towards higher ground, the Saw Sedge is cut on a 3-4 year rotation, to allow fen plants such as Southern Marsh Orchid, Marsh Helleborine, Grass of Parnassus and Marsh Lousewort to grow.

Here we noted a Comma on Hemp Agrimony, 5 Peacocks on a patch of Mint and a Small White.

Turning on to the lower part of a circular waymarked trail, towards several ponds, we were greeted by a small herd of Red Poll cattle, their

8

New sites for Four-spotted Moth in Cambridgeshire, Essex and

,

Suffolk

by Sharon Hearle The Four-spotted seems to have had a good year in 2005, with a number of new locations for the moth located in Cambridgeshire, Essex and Suffolk through targeted survey by Regional Officer Sharon Hearle and many volunteers.

The Fow-spotted moth is a high priority UK Biodiversity Action Plan Species and information about its distribution is needed to hdp plan conservation work.

The Four-spotted moth flies during sunshine and is very distinctive, a mainly black moth with four large white spots. It is a great one for butterfly recorders to search for. The moth is single or double brooded and can be seen from mid May to mid August. Four-spotted larvae feed on Field Bindweed growing in hot, dry, open sites with sparse vegetation including grassland on chalky soils, field margins, embankments and derelict ground.

The Regional Officer has benefited from detailed work on Four-spotted moth by Paul Waring including a visit to the well known Peterborough site that has been monitored by a transect walk for several years. The Peterborough ditch bank habitat at Werrington looks very similar to the new sites located in Cambridgeshire and Suffolk.

Four-spotted moth was recorded this year at Great Wilbriliam near Cambridge along the edge

of a railway cutting and area of adjacent set-aside.

This was in the general area where the moth had been recorded in previous years at light traps by John Dawson and had been identified as a potential site. Visits in 2004 were negative but this year Four-spotted was recorded on several occasions with a maximum count of 5 on June 8th. The set-aside field was a sea of Ox-eye Daisy in June, which is one of the favoured nectar sources for Four-spotted, and the moth was also observed moving through the open grassland at a low level.

One Four-spotted moth was recorded near Great Bradley in Suffolk in the viciniry of the nearby drainage channel on June 16th. This follows a record of one to MV light just over the border in Cambridgeshire at Kirtling in July 2004 about a mile away. The counry boundary is situated in this area meaning that the moth could occur in both Cambridgeshire and Suffolk.

The channel is an artificial landscape feature created in 1972 to transport water from Kirtling Green outfall a distance of 4 miles to the River

Four-Spotted Moth

by BerylJohnsonfrom photo by Sharon Hearle 17

Spring2006

The Suffolk Argus Scour. It is part of what is called the Ely Ouse-Esse:x Water Transfer Scheme. The transfer scheme prevents spare water from entering the Wash and takes it to the Essex reservoirs that supply water co Chelmsford and Colchester. The water is taken from the River Ouse near Feltwell in Norfolk.

From here a 20km tunnel rakes the water to Kennett near Newmarket in Suffolk. It then goes in a 14km pipeline to Kirtling Green. The pumping station at Kirtling Green pumps water into Kirtling Brook and then into the River Scour at Great Bradley.

The banks of Kirtling Brook were built using sub soil dug to create the channel and offer south facing banks, bare ground plus abundant spring flowers and field bindweed. One side of the banks is cut in the autumn and the uncut bank is now quire scrubbed over in places. le is also possible to see good numbers of Small Heath, Brown Argus and Common Blue butterflies and many other day flying moths. There is a public footpath along the edge of this channel from Kirtling to Great Bradley.

The Four-spotted has not been recorded in Suffolk since 1991. It used to be regarded as frequent in the Breck district of Suffolk but has not been seen for decades despite searching. It is a moth that does come co light and is not likely to have been overlooked in the Brecks where many moth traps are operated. le has also been recorded at several locations in northeasc Essex around Great Chesterford, lcklecon and Llttlebury including one occasion where over 100 individuals were seen.

It is now quite possible that Four-spotted could be found at more sites in the general area between Saffron Walden, Cambridge, Haverhill and Newmarket especially if artificial landscape features such as banks, railway cuttings occur in the arable landscape. Further work is planned for 2006 and if anyone would like co help please gee in couch. A new fuctsheet has been produced by Butterfly Conservation with funding from Defra and is available from the website or by sending a stamped addressed envelope to Sharon Hearle. The next challenge will be co work with farmers and landowners to identify conservation measures that will help secure the future of Four-spotted moth in the long-term.

18

Butterfly Books at Bargain Prices

by Rob Parker Readers will often have admired the line drawings by Douglas Hammersley, a member with a wealth of experience, and author of ''A Butterfly Notebook", published in 2003. Doug has just taken the decision to move from his East Harling home to the Isle of Wight. where he can enjoy a milder climate and be closer to his family. Suffolk Branch is sorry to lose him, but we have benefited from his generosity in two ways. He has donated his library of 2,300 butterfly slides and some excellent butterfly books to the Branch. le seems appropriate that Branch members should have a chance co obtain these books for themselves (some are out of print and sought a&er). Your committee decided co offer them to members at approximately half the price that book dealers are currently asking, with the proceeds going to Branch funds. In this way, the books go into good hands, and Butterfly Conservation receives the benefit.

The table shows full details of the books with the special price for members. Except where otherwise specified, all are hardbacks, in excellent condition. They will go strictly on a first-come, first-served basis. Bids should be made co Rob Parker by post, or telephone (address on back cover). To avoid postage costs, books will be available for collection at our field meetings or at theAGM.

Wortham Ling, 10th August

Blue and to a lesser extent probably (or perhaps they are just not so easy co spot) Brown Argus. As a bit of an aside, Brimstone numbers are I believe also pretty good here and I have observed that we do indeed have a good scattering of Buckthom on the Ling.

Returning to the visit itself, we had an excellent turnout of 23 including one non BC member from Wortham and Dave Hedges from Suffolk Wildlife Trust. Paul Howling, a fellow Wortham resident and SBC member, gave an informative introductory talk on the Ling and Wortham itsel£ The weather in the morning was at first rather unpromising, being dull and slightly chilly, but sunny spells came and went more frequently as the morning progressed. The butterfly species we saw were Small Heath, Small Copper, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Small & Essex Skipper, Common Blue, Brown Argus, Peacock, Small Tonoishell, Holly Blue and most probably all three species of the common whites.

The highlight of the morning had to be an opportunity to examine Common Blue and Brown Argus side by side as they took advantage of a warm sunny interlude. All in all it was a very enjoyable morning and I would like to thank SBC for taking the trouble to visit.

By Sue Sidle This was I believe the first visit to Wortham Ling by the Suffolk branch of Butterfly Conservation. To give some background first; the Ling is a 52 hectare fragment oflowland dry heath and acid grassland and is managedby Suffolk Wildlife Trust. Both John Loome, who is the ranger at nearby Thomham Walks, and I act as voluntary wardens for the trust.

The presence of Heather, known by its alternative name ofLlng, lends its name to the site.

In the large open areas mosses and acid grasses, namely Sheep's Fescue and Common Bent predominate, as does Sheep's Sorrel, which gives the Llng its magnificent red sheen in the spring.

Also present in abundance is Heath Bedstraw, which flowers earlier in the year, and the much maligned but enormously valuable Ragwort. In most years the Ragwort is "managed" very effectively by a large army of munching Cinnabar moth caterpillars, but this year the caterpillars' numbers were extremely low. The Ragwort was therefore more abundant than usual, the great upside of this was that it lasted well into the autumn providing a valuable nectar source for very late flying butterflies. There are also large stands of Gorse on the perimeters and the Llng itself is fringed by Oak and Birch woodland. I should also mention that the Llng is a common and is very popular with local dog walkers. The aim in managing the Ling therefore is to keep the invasive scrub in check and co strike a balance between nature and amenity.

As for the butterflies of the Ling, the Wall and also it seems the Grayling are long gone.

Interestingly, in English Nature's notation of the Llng as a Site of Special Scientific Interest back in 1990 it was stated that "the site supports a good population of the Grayling". On May 17th 2004 I saw a single Green Hairstreak, however I could have looked harder. We do however have good numbers of Small Heath, Small Copper, Common

'·

'10f!f

~

Small Tortoiseshell

by DouglasHammersley

7

The Suffolk Argus

Thornham Walks, 7th August

Spring2006

.<;t,).

,, White-letter Hairstreak

_-

,-----,

.......

GI

-"' en cC

ll)

c.l

"<t c.l

~

co c.l

C')

C')

C')

ll)

ll)

c.l

c.l

c.l

c;i

c.l

By Alan Johnson

:::

·5

C')

c.l

c.l

0

c;i

0

w

'O (I) (/)

::,

.::,i

u

0

C

E <ii (I) C

:;::,

(I)

111 C!)

en

s0

.0

:::

s: Q)

0 en z

z

0

ia

C!) (/)

~

0

()

0(I) 't:

(I)

c·5

""O

Cl

Cl C

Cl

.. ~

:i::

(/)

lJ.J

.c

-"' u

0

111

.!!l I'-

.0

:::

°' ~

"<t c.l

()

()

()

ll)

c;i

0

w

"<t c.l

ll)

c.l

~ i:::

z

~ vi

0

iii

s:

C

111

(I)

0 en z

t=

~

""O

E ::,

·5

Cl ·c

iii

.E

z

-"' u iii 111 (/) .0 a. a. ::: ::: (I)Q) 0 0 "<t u en co Cl en a..

-"' u

(I)

111 Cl 111

.0

(I)

>,

·5

(I)

e ()

I

a:

e ()

()

~ 0

ea

0

·s: 111

E (/) ~

""O

0

""O

~ .!!!

32 32 Cl C

5

Cl C

5

~

0 0

s:

e ()

-"' u

""O C ::,

i

C!)

(I)

(I)

::,

()

>,

e!

C

.c U)

(I)

<ii N

(/)

cii (I)

(I)

0

~

E

a.

~ ::,

Cl -"' E e:, 0 ~ E i5 Qi .c Qi 0 (I) I a.

I co ui .c (I) ~ (/) (I) .!!! 0E C0 t= (/) (/) (/) E >, (I) ""O E 0 ~ ~ ~ 0 ~ j5 (/) 111 > E 0 0 0 (I) ~ (I) :I 0 [ij

~

"<t

c.l

(I)

(/)

~

~

GI

Q,,

c;i

C

"<t

ai C!) co

a. C .§ w

t:

111

'5

ll)

c.l

·a.

111

£

(/)

C

ll)

c.l

_Q

lJ.J

0

C!)

6

C')

c.l

'O

.0

""O

~t,

0)

(/)

111

(I)

least one Speckled Wood for our group to identify. This year only a fleeting glimpse 1 of one, possibly due to the drop in temperamre under the trees.

Moving on to the Walled Garden, now restored to its former glory, which although sheltered and much warmer, the expected Peacocks, Red Admirals and Commas, seen in previous years did not materialise, and we had to be satisfied with a Holly Blue and a Large Skipper.

Continuing on past the Canal Pond, we duly reached the Butterfly Ride, situated within the Connaught Plantation.

The ride has been in existence for several years now, Butterfly Conservation being involved in the project at the invitation of the late Lord Henniker. The ride, open to the public during July and August, is a mix of shady and brighter, sunnier areas. A path encircles tall grasses and plants such as Thistle, St. John's Wort and Fleabane. Unfonunately, there were no more additions to our species list, the rather cool and cloudy conditions continuing.

This brought our walk to a close, with both panics returning to the Field Centre, en route Rob discovering Small and Essex Skipper to add to our list. It had been a rather disappointing afternoon in respect of the numbers and species seen, perhaps indicative of a generally poor summer for butterflies. In spite of this, the response of those attending was encouraging; hopefully some may continue this interest shown in butterflies and moths. Finally, many thanks to Thornham Walks, John Loome and also to those members of the Suffolk Branch who supponed this event.

c.l

_,;_ u

by BerylJohnson

This event, now in its sixth year, and a regular feature in our programme, is a joint meeting with Tbomham Walks. This year it was again decided to continue with the format introduced in 2003, having an illustrated talk, at midday - "The Butterflies of Suffolk and how to identify them", prior to the afternoon Butterfly Walk.

The talk, lasting for one hour and supponed by an excellent range of colour 1~~ slides, was held in one of the ~ rooms of the Field Centre, and was presented by Rob Parker and Jim Foster. Unfortunately, for reasons unknown, and in contrast to the rwo previous years, the talk was poorly supponed by members of the public, who were outnumbered by the Branch members. The stan of the Butterfly Walk at 2pm saw a much improved response from the public, with approximately 24 people attending. John Loome, the Countryside Ranger • for the Thornham Estate, also joined us. The group was then split into rwo parties; one led by Rob the other by Jim. Our route was to take us through some of the estate's diverse habitats. On reaching the area known as the Pinetum, Rob discovered a Whiteletter Hairstreak, on a thistle head. This confirming that the species still survives within the estate. Members of both groups had good views of this rarely seen butterfly. Also noted in this area were Brown Argus, Large, Small and Green-veined White, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper and a solitary rather tatty Ringlet.

The path then passed through a wooded glade, which in past years has always provided at

"<t

111

U)

""O

g,

(/)

(/)

a:

<(

0

C

Qi

en

~

I

() (I) a.. ~ ::, u ea ~ 0

0

~ (I)

::,

C

in S2

()

(I)

0

(/)

co

<ii .c > B (I)

..: ::,

w (/)

.5!!

ea

""O

C

C

'E ~ (I) :i:: ::,

ID

Q)

111

&5

(I)

0

~ .c "E (/)

Q)

~

a. oil e ::,

C

s

111

U)

(I)

~ .5!!

'E

""O

·5

C!) ""O

Qi

u:::

1

Q)

Cl

.5 a. (/) (/) U) Q) Q) (/) ~ (/) ::, ::, ~ co ~ :i:: .9:! ~ .9:! .5!! .5!! :i:: .9:! :i:: ::, ::, iii 'E :i:: Q) Q) Cl 'E 'E 'E C 'E co co z Q) Q) Q) (I) Q) E .!! .cE 0> .9 Q) 0 :i:: :i:: :i:: Q) :i:: Q) :i:: .c .c ::, ::, ::, .c .c ::, .c ::, u u a.. co co i3 co co en Ico en i= II0

C')

0 0 C\I

e

C

a. w ~ 0 Q) 0 :i:: Q) e::, C ~ ::, 32 ~ <ii co tl w .c Q) iii ,__ t: .9 Cl (/) C oil 0 0 ~ ·s:.

Q) ~ C (/) z C!) .5 ~ .c ""O .c ]! (/) ·5 <ii .a 0 0 £ ~ 0 .5!! C!) (/) 0 ~ ~ (/) (/) 0 :i: Cl 'E u .9:!

Q) .5 :i:: :c oil ea 0 'E .9:!

'E oil

J!!

CCI

a.

""O C

~ ea C

.5

'

(/)

Q)

Q)

i

~ ::,

:t:: ::,

co

co 0 .c ~

U)

Q)

(/)

(/)

'E

ea

s(is ]ii.c

<(

(/)

111

:a:,

~ Q)

£ 0

C

~ Q) :0

s

e _Q

.c

~

E 0 111

(/)

0

""O

0

C

X

111

Q) 0 -"' 111 u oil (/) 0 a. a..

-"' E u

~ a.

(/) (/)

0

~

::, C!)

Q)

"iji

~

...J

co

en

Cl

0

C

.iii

::,

£,__ co ui .E -"'

Q) -"' 0

Q)

oil

<ii co

~ (/)

0

e ::,

w

ea C

s

Cl C

:c 'E .9:! iii 0 Q)

(/)

~

C ea .5 co 0 ~ 'E >, U) (/) (/) U) Q) ::, ~ 'E .9:! ..9:! .9:! .5!! >, .9:! :i:: Q) .9:! co :i:: <ii ::, Q) 'E 'E 'E 'E 'E 't: 'E .c :i:: Q) Q) E ::, Q) (/) co Q) Q) Q) :i:: J!! :i:: .c co :i:: :a:, Q) :i:: :i:: :i:: ::, ::, ::, Q) u .c ::, ::, ::, <( U)

~ ~ co

co (X)

C

::,

w

co ~ I-

co co co

;;; ...........................r:: ... ~.................. ......;;;...en .........~...

C') 0) 0)

(X) (X) 0)

0) (X) 0)

ll) 0) 0)

(X) 0) 0)

C\I (X) 0)

0

0) 0)

"<t (X) 0)

0)

"<t

0)

0)

(X) 0)

C')

I'0)

C\I 0) 0)

C\I

0)

0) 0)

(X)

"<t 0)

ll) (X) 0)

I'-

(X)

0)

0) 0)

0

(X) 0)

0)

(/)

111

E

cii'

:i

.. E =

~

Q)

.c

1ij

a:

C: c.j ci C

0

:I

111 ~ 0

Qi

cii

cC co ~

ci t:

111

()

~

~

~ Q)

~

~

C C

C C

C C

Q)

Q)

~ Q)

:c :c :c () () ()

I

ea Q)

.c I-

ea

<ii <ii

a:

Q) Q)

-; -; a:i -~ Q) Qi Qi u.i E

a:i E ~ ~ ~ Q) <ii E Qi Qi ~ 0 0

w

:i

0

""O

<ii

lL

lL

lL

-e ci .!!!

a: 0

a.. .c C: Q) .c t::

""O

0 0 C!) C!)

19

t-=

iii Q)

I

C

.9

Q)

Q)

0.:

(/)

111

:5

I

111 ~ er: a: en u5 en

s: 0

C

g .9Cl E .c .i C :c t-= ci ~ ...J 'i u.i ea <( ea ...J 5: ::c c.j ea 0 t:111 111 C .c ~ l!!

111 .c -"' ""O E 111 Qi

111 0 "iji

u::,

C

Q)

;;: 2 .c0 I-

Q)

0.: 0.: >,

>,

..9:! ..9:! <ii E <ii .c .c

j§ $'. $'.

The SuffolkArgus

Spring2006

What I did for my birthday

Brocante shop from a barn like building. In the afternoon, on the theme of upgrading, I loaded the Citroen Ami 8 with a load of rubbish and Anne's Renault Van with a lot of clothes that did not come up to her higher standard. Early on Sunday morning we went off to a Vide Grenier in the village ofTerrats hoping to get rid of some of our junk. We had not even finished unloading before people were asking the price of, and buying Anne's clothing. My junk did not seem popular but I had a great time settling a price for some tools with a young Moroccan. When it came to loading up I was much lighter of rubbish, and some 100 Euros better off. Anne had done even bener so we were pleased with our clearing exercise.

Each year on the Monday nearest to my birthday "The Rafal", my randonnee group, find somewhere special to go. This year it was Les Gorge de la Carani;:a. The car journey is some 60km to Villefranche-de-Conflent and then up the twisting climb in the direction of the ski pistes, roughly following the Linle YellowTrain until the small hamlet of Thues-Entre-Vaills, which has a car park for the gorge. 1 Euro is charged to help maintain the car park and the footpaths.

The gorge is found from the top of the car park, through an arch carrying the line of the Linle Yellow Train. The gorge entrance is only a few metres wide with the river rushing out below your feet. The first thing to be seen is a large notice fixed to the rock stating that the gorge is dangerous and to proceed is at one's own risk. You can see their point when looking up the towering sides of the gorge. The path proceeds along the lefr hand side of the river and the gorge slowlywidens, after about 15 minutes a right hand turn took us across the river to a steep, winding path climbing up the other side of the gorge. Looking back to the entrance with the light shining through, it looked like a knife cut in the rock. On reaching the level path that proceeded further along the gorge we dumped our backpacks on a wallthat had been built to prevent scree sliding down and blocking the path. Up the screefallmany various coloured flowers could be seen, and filning around in the sunshine, severallarge butterflies.

Watching them glide from flower to flower to seek nectar I became aware that I had found

- 25th June 2005

by James Mann On the actual day, a Saturday, not very much.

As in Suffolk where there are very few carboot sales on a Saturday, there are very few Vide Greniers in the Pyrenees Orientals on that day.

Ncverthdess every year in June, this year the 25th, one is hdd in the village of Comeilla-DeVcrcol, the former Roman Villa Comella. The existing castle ruins date from the 11th century.

Hannibal probably passed here on his way to the town ofElne in 218 BC. Now that Anne's business has become legitimate and she is officially an "Ambulant Brocanteuse-Antiquaire" we are much more particular with what we buy. We have usually been successful at Corneilla so we went for a pleasant morning looking round and eventually buying a few things from a Dutch woman who runs a

Apollo

by Mervyn Crawford 20

As the Dyke became boskier, Speckled Woods flew over Nenle-leaved Bellflower, Ploughman's Spikenard, Wild Catmint and Harebells. Afrer the Bedford Gap, the footpath along the top of the earthwork led us to the rare, but happily still thriving Juniper bushes. The roar of uaffic signalled our approach to the footbridge over the Al 1, which we crossed quickly, grateful to the local Ramblers' Association members who campaigned successfully for its provision. We walked through a shady wooded section to rise up to the tumulus at Mutlow Hill, where we rested near a patch of Meadow Cranesbill and Hawkweed Oxtongue, noting a Small Copper nearby.

Disturbed by clouds of dust from a combine harvester, we moved on to find displays of Clustered Bellflower in several places and a Small Skipper. Here on the open Dyke it was easy to appreciate the splendid effons made in recent years to control the encroaching scrub and to encourage calcicole plants. This work has been initiated by the Friends of Fleam Dyke, an organisation with which Sharon Hearle worked in close association before becoming our Regional Officer. • Near the old railway cutting was a mass of Old Man's Beard and Catmint. Brimstones, often abundant here, were absent today apart from a solitary male. A newly emerged Peacock and a Small Tonoiseshell sheltered on the ground as we walked from the Dyke towards the sharply contrasting habitat of Fulbourn Fen, near the walk's end. We didn't explore this nature reserve on this occasion, but noted it would be well-worth visiting in the future.

It was a rewarding and fruitful day with excellent walking weather, fine skies and insects and flowers aplenty. Thanks to Margaret and Sue, from whose careful notes this repon was compiled.

2005 Field Meetings Fleam Dyke, Cambridgeshire 19th July

by Roger& Stella Wolfe A journey into Cambridgeshire proved worthwhile to our small party, which was augmented by a member from West Midlands who had found our details on the website. A convenient local bus from Fulboum appeared c:xactlyon time to take us to the start of the walk at Balsham; a free ride because the ticket machine was out of action!

The walk through the village and along a broad chalky track produced Green-veined White, Meadow Brown, Ringlet, Gatekeeper, Comma, Red Admiral, Holly Blue and a YellowShell moth, as well as sights of Red-legged Partridge and a Great Spotted Woodpecker, all seen within the first twenty minutes. The track verges abounded in Agrimony, Field Scabious, Black Knapweed, Birdsfoot Trefoil, Strawberry Clover and Wtld Basil. Six-spot Burnet moth and Essex Skipper were identified.

The Dyke, like its big brother Devil's Dyke a few miles t-0 the north, is of early Anglo-Saxon origin and is of great archaeological interest as well as being an invaluable haven for the characteristic flora and fauna of the chalk. Seen under a beautiful summer sky it afforded wide views of the rolling, agricultural landscape of south Cambridgeshire with Ely Cathedral in the distance. Meadow Pipits were £lining over the top of the ripening rapeseed in the adjacent fields and all the way along the edge of the Dyke were Spear Thistles and butterflies in profusion dancing in the sunlight.

Postscript: On a subsequent visit to Fleam Dyke on August 9th two male Chalkhill Blues were seen near the juniper bushes. Could they have been blown there from Devil's Dyke (where they are plentifuJ) by the strong northerly wind?

5

The Suffolk Argus

Spring2006 down the mountains. The only way the engineers could get access up the gorge was to cut their own path. Where are the guardrails? You read the notice at the entrance to the gorge; not for the faint hearted. The corniche continued in sections of varying length for about 2km then crossed the river, climbed up a bit and reached the passerelle.

In this case there are iron walkways about 0.5m wide, fixed to the sheer rock face, sometimes well above the river, at other times just above the water.

Most sections are reached and exited by means of iron ladders, with the walkways prone to sloping up or down and disappearing around corners. If this were not enough, we saw before us the passerelle on the other side of the river. How do we get there? Coming round a bend the answer was before us; a monkey bridge.

It could have been worse, for at least the structure formed guardrails at either side, but it did not stop it from swaying from side to side. I chink we crossed three of these bridges but it seemed more. I have found out since that until a few decades ago the original wooden structures were still being repaired, I'm glad we waited. At the end of the last passerellewe came to the point where the water was directed into the tunnel leading down to the power station. The path entered a broad area where we found a sunny spot to have our coffee; we had been climbing for two hours.

The path rising steeply between the gently wooded slopes followed the route of the centuries old mule track. Due to the hard going and each of us looking at different things we soon spread out and I felt that I was the only walker. The prominent butterflies in the sunny woods were Comma and Orange-tip, what with that and the many Burnett moths and Large Skippers in the more grassy areas, my thoughts turned to my many butterfly walks in Suffolk. At the end of a climb of an hour and a half we met up at a crossroads of paths to decide where to eat, deciding on the Refuge.

The upward path soon reached the extensive grazing meadows; it is a Garden of Eden with carpets of flowers attended by many species of insect, including many butterflies. My water bottles had nearly run dry so I left the others, who

Safety Code As with any other activity, there are hazards in the countryside and everyone ta.king part in a Field Trip or Work Party has a responsibility (duty of care), for their own safety and that of others.

We try hard to ensure that our Events present no greater hazard than any other walkin the countryside, but please note and act on the following:

■

Wear appropriate clothing and footwear.

If there are unusual requirements, these are noted in the individual trip details.

Stout shoes are a minimum requirement for any walk.

■

During the main summer season you may be exposed to strong sunshine for much or all of the walk. Take a hat, use suncream or protection for exposed skin. Make sure that you have adequate food and liquid to drink with you. Equally, sunshine can easily turn to cold and rain during the day. Be prepared.

■

■

■

■

Children are welcome on our walks, but if under 16 must be accompanied by at least one adult for two children. It is the responsibility of the accompanying adult(s) to ensure that the trip is within the children's ability.

■

Dogs are normally welcome on walks, but must be kept under control. Any exceptions are shown in the individual trip details.

Comma

by BerylJohnson

■

The leader will provide a briefing on the trip before setting out, with details of any known particular hazards, and will also give advice on what to do in an emergency. Please listen carefully.

At the briefing, please let the leader know if you have a mobile telephone and are able to take it with you on the walk, or if you have First Aid qualifications.

If you are uncertain about any details of the trip, ring the leader/contact in advance. There is always a telephone number given with the trip details.

■

If you decide to leave the event early, tell the leader.

■

Take care at all times, but ENJOY YOURSELF.

We thank Upper Thames Branch for allowing us to publish their Safety Code. Please also refer to our own Safety Notes on the back of the Events Programme 2006 - Ed.

Joining the walk is an indication of your interest in butterflies. By their nature butterflies do not remain conveniently by the main path and will offer many opportunities (temptations) for you to wander away. Take particular care to look out for hazards rabbit holes, fallen or hanging branches, barbed wire, boggy areas etc. Beware of wet grass, particularly on sloping ground.

4

another habitat for the Apollo. Those who have been on field trips with me will know that my next thought was "photograph". Scrambling over the wall I started up the slope, three metres up then two and a half down then repeat. Has anyone else tried to climb up steep scree carrying a camera? I gave up. I sat depressed on the wall and an Apollo came to see what the problem was, and obligingly nectared a metre away, snap, got him. A voice said "are you going to sit there all day watching butterflies" so we moved on, corning shortly to decision time. A direction sign, the arrow pointing lefi: was for Refuge par passerelle, the arrow pointing right was for Refuge par corniche. Rene said that the left you got one, right you got both, so we turned right.

What is a corniche? In this case it is a path cut into the side of a 300m sheer cliff about halfway up. Why is it there? At the beginning of the 20th century when the Little YellowTrain line was built it was decided that it should be run on electricity generated by small hydro-electric power stations, powered by channeling the rivers that ran

21

Spring2006

The Suffolk Argus were watching several Pearl-bordered Fritillaries sucking minerals from a cowpat, and made for the fresh water spring I knew to be near the refuge, looking at the water tumbling and sparkling as it descended through the trees I had to take a photograph. Carefully climbing onto a rocky outcrop I did just that. The route back to the path was across a boggy area necessitating careful observation of the ground. Ac the top of my field of vision I could see something white moving about, carefully placing my feet and looking up there were dozens of Black-veined Whites mud puddling. Close observation showed separate groups of skippers, blues and fritillaries, they each seemed to know the family they belonged to, the only dissenters were the strong coloured Small Tonoiseshells which were happy to join any group.

Eventually dragging myself away I made for the spring. Seeing a hundred or so cows grazing, and doing what cows do just above the spring, I changed my mind and decided it a better idea co fill my water bonle from the dear sparkling stream.

We ate our lunch under the trees just above where the GRlO crossed our path. We were envious of the group of teenagers who were camping nearby.

They deserved the tranquillity having had to hump their gear up the way we had just come.

Reluctantly turning our backs we made our way down by way of the six-hour route. It was rather different from the morning much of it being through mixed and pine forest. Several suspected Apollos were sighted but the only confirmed sighting was made in the morning a few hundred metres directly above the group. About half way down the first thunder was heard. Thunderstorms are not good news in the mountains, so the pace quickened. Reaching the last long downhill stretch of nineteen zig-i.agsthe sky had darkened and the thunder had become more frequent, but we still thought we might make it in the dcy. At the eleventh turn the rain started, fonunately not very hard and it was a toss-up whether sweating under a poncho was wetter than being in the rain. By the time we got back down to the river levelthe rain had stopped and the final stretch back to the car park was dcy.We had been away nine and a half hours including the lunch break and butterfly watching.

22

Devil's Dyke Transect Notes 2005

by Sharon Hearle The 6rst half of the racecourse section of Devil's Dyke near Newmarket is covered by a weekly transect, where butterffiesare recorded during an hour long visit every week from April to September. This route is walked by Regional OfficerSharonHearleand is now in its third year.

The Devil's Dyke is one of only two known sites for Dingy Skipper in Cambridgeshire; the other site is near Peterborough. The Devil's Dyke is close to the Suffolk border but about 15 miles from the closest known sites in the King's Forest.

The Dingy Skipper was recorded in similar numbers in 2005 to previous years, particularly along the first section where it appeared to enjoy basking on the dcy grass cut by the Devil's Dyke Project in Ap-ril. Dingy Skipper first appeared on May 3rd and was last seen on May 23rd. The highest number counted was 21 on May 12th.

Chalkhill Blue first appeared on July 11th and was last seen on September 22nd. The weekly counts were as follows: 13, 152,299, 779, 947, 97, 160, 46, and 3. In 2004 the highest count was 883. The sight of such large numbers of this butterfly at peak time is definitely a must for butterfly enthusiasts in Suffolk.

Other highlights included White-letter Hairstreak, which is usually seen in the Elm canopy just before the walk starts on the Devil's Dyke. Only one Wall butterfly was seen, on June 8th. Green Hairstreak was recorded near Hawthorn bushes on the south facing bank of the first section of the Dyke. Other highlights included five Holly Blue on August 8th, and a long season for Small Heath through the year.

Editorial

by Stuart Gough After agreeing to take on this task of editing the Suffolk Argus, I now find myself compiling my first editorial at the start of the year. I hope to be able to do justice to the job and believe that Jim Foster will be a hard act to follow. My thanks go to Jim for the support he has given me in producing this first issue.

A brief introduction - I have been resident in Suffolk for four and a half years, having moved here from Wiltshire to follow a Conservation Management degree at Otley College, following some twenty years working in the commercial sector, latterly in automotive manufacture. At present I have not found work to suit my qualification, and am thus currently in an interim job with Suffolk County Council. I have been observing butterflies for fifteen years or so, and a member of Butterfly Conservation since 2000. Whilst Suffolk does not have the quantity of speciesthat I am fumiliar with from Wtltshire, it does have good numbers of species such as Grayling and Silver-studded Blue that my home county has only a tenuous hold on. Illustrated here is the Marsh Fritillary one of the notable species of Somerford Common, which is just four miles from my Wtltshire home which some of you may remember from your field visit a fewyears ago.

This issue contains a mix of field repons and other interesting articles, mostly written by my fellow committee members. As a new editor I thank all contributors, whilst making an appeal to the general membership for contributions to future issues, this will give a much broader representation of the lepidoptera interests of our Branch membership.

MarshFritillary

by BerylJohnson

3

The Suffolk Argus

Spring2006

Contents Editorial Safety Code Field Meetings 2005 The Use of Nets Annual General Meeting 2005 Accounts 2004/05 Update on the Purple Hairstreak New Sites for Four Spotted Moths Butterfly Books at Bargain Prices What I did for my Birthday Devil's Dyke Transects Notes 2005 Newsletter Details and General Information Suffolk Branch Contacts

;

Editorial 3 4 5 13 14 15 16 17 18 20 22 23 Back Cover

For that difficult to find present, why not give a decorative butterfly or moth to mount on the front wall of someone's home ?

Copy Dates Contributions for our newsletter should reach the Editor (address on back page) no later than: Spring

Christmas Eve

Summer

April Fools Day

Autumn

August Bank Holiday Cast in aluminium and enamelled hi very realistic colours at five times life-size,they will last for many years.

Highly individual nameplates too, to your own design, with no-obligation colour preview. Suffolk Branch will receive one quarter of the purchase price.

Any piece of writing that is considered to be of interest will be published together with line drawings/prints /photographs.

The Suffolk Argus is your magazine, so please let us hear from you.

To advertise in the Suffolk Argus please contact Stuart Gough on

Phone or fax Mervyn Crawford on Mildenhall (01638) 712600for Colour brochure I Price list.

01473 429249.

For that difficult to find present, why not give a .\, decorative butterfly or moth to mount on the front·\ wall of someone's home ? Cast in aluminium and ',_, 0• enamelled in very realistic colours at five times ·/r:. life-size,they will last for many years. Highly • ••• • individual nameplates too, to your own design,with no-obligation colour preview. Suffolk Branch will receive one quarter of the purchase price.

Phone or fax Mervyn Crawford on MildenltalJ (01638) 712600for Colourbro'churel Price list

2

·.~~

SUFFOL

MOTHGROU

Come and see the wonders of the night. Regular field meetings and newsletter. Online guide to the larger moths of Suffolk.

Website: www.suffolkmoths.org.uk Contad: Tony Prichard for further details.

23

Suffolk

Branch Contacts

President Howard Mendel, c/o The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London, SW7 5BD (0171 938 8782)

Chairman Mike Dean, Coach House, Ixworth, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk IP31 2HL (01359 230292) Membership Secretary Beryl Johnson, 28 Medway Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP3 0QH (01473 715701) Newsletter Editor Stuart Gough, 268 Spring Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP4 5NN gough.stuart@btopenworld.com (01473 429249) Publicity Officer (Vacant) Programme Secretary Alan Johnson, 28 Medway Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP3 0QH (01473 715701) County Recorder (Butterflies) Rob Parker (address above right)

Butterfly

Conservation Conservation Officer (Butterflies) Rob Parker, 66 Cor:nfield Road, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk IP33 3BN (01284 705476) Conservation Officer (Moths) Tony Prichard, 3 Powling Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP3 9JR (01473 270047) County Recorder (Moths) Tony Prichard (address above) Secretary Tony Prichard, (address above) Treasurer Jim Foster, Lugano, The Street, Stonham Aspal, Stowmarket, Suffolk IP14 6AH (01449 711484) Regional Officer Eastern Region Sharon Hearle, c/o Busy Bee, 21 High St., Newmarket, Suffolk CBS 81.X (01638 731648) sharon@butterfly-conservation.org Committee Members Stella Wolfe,

Volunteers Needed If you feel you could hdp out now and then with the growing work of the Branch, please contact Beryl Johnson on 01473 715701.

The Newsletter of the Suffolk Branch of Butterfly Conservation

Published by the Suffolk Branchof ButterflyConservation www.suffolkbutterflies.org.uk Butterfly Conservation Limited by Guarantee Registered Office: Manor Yard,East Lulwonh, Wareham, Dorset BH20 5QP Td: (01929) 400209 © 2004 all rights reserved Reg. No. 2206468 Reg. Charity No. 254937 Editor. Stuart Gough Logo: (Silver-studdedBlue) Doug HammersleyDesign: Stephen Ion, Cat & Mouse design Printen 321 Printing, 25 Brookhouse BusinessPark, Hadlcigh Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP2 0EF

Butterfly Conservation

Spring 2006 Volume37