Our first stop was at a small reserve situated at the rear of the County Museum called 'Old Moat Coppice' which is a site where Spotted Flycatcher have bred in the past...needless to say we saw none. Just as we pulled off the carpark and onto the entrance drive I noticed something flying over a mixed patch of Comfrey and Nettles...it was a Scarlet Tiger Moth, followed shortly afterwards by 2 more. We pulled over the car to check out this area and in total we counted 10 Scarlet Tiger Moths.
Next stop was an area of lowland heath (and local dog latrine!) called Hartlebury Common. The target species here was Small Heath and we saw at least 7 of these diminutive little butterflies.
The final stop of the day was a quick visit to the patch, in particular Butts Lane set-aside. Of note here was the first patch Small Skipper of 2011, 2 Essex Skippers, 2 Small Tortoiseshells and many Ringlets, Meadow Browns and Small Whites. All in all a very enjoyable insect day.
Scarlet Tiger Moths - County Museum, Hartlebury
Small Heath - Hartlebury Common
Small Skipper - Shenstone
I searched high & low for Scarlet Tigers while holidaying in Cornwall a few years back. And did i find any, did i buggery.
ReplyDeleteSuperb shots of a superb moth.
Sorry, Jason. I must have had a blonde moment, DOH!!! I was in fact referring to Cream-spot Tigers.
ReplyDeleteHa no worries Dean...we all have those moments! Cheers for the positive feedback on the photos
ReplyDeleteLove the Scarlet Tiger Moths. Very striking markings!
ReplyDeleteThey are stunning Shy...one of my favourite moths
ReplyDelete