Dorset Days

Just returned from the annual field course based on the Island of Portland in Dorset. Attempted never to mention the dreaded r***** word (Oryctolagus cuniculus). These "underground mutton" stand accused of undermining machinery and causing accidents killing and injuring quarry workers extracting Portland stone. Added a few new locations to the itinerary including Broadcroft Quarry that is partially managed by the Dorset Butterfly Group to encourage a number of species of Lepidoptera. The management is mainly consists of encouraging plants that provide larvae or adults with food but also offer basking sites to the latter. These include a range of British flowers including Viper's bugloss (Echium vulgare), Rest harrow (Ononis repens) and Common rock rose (Helianthemum nummularium) as well as alien species e.g. the Butterfly bush (Buddleja davidii) from East Asia. As it was the end of the season, we saw few butterflies but did spot some blues and a tattered Small copper (Lycaena phlaeas), perhaps a victim of a bird attack. Seeing Red admiral (Vanessa atalanta) on ivy flowers on Brownsea island and a darter dragonfly (Sympetrum striolatum) at Monkey World reminded me of how poor a season for butterflies and dragonflies it has been in South Wales. Even allowing for my poor eyesight, I failed to locate the normally numerous larvae of Peacock, Red admiral or Small tortoiseshell butterflies on the profuse nettles around Loughor. A highlight of the Brownsea trip was actually seeing a Red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) when I had started to think they were mythical (never having seen one on the two previous trips). Around Dorset, we came across some impressive moth larvae including those of the Pale tussock (Callitearea pudibunda) on Sycamore and excessively hairy animals on the heathland of Studland.