Queen's Platinum Jubilee Medal presented to Sussex Search & Rescue members

Last Thursday I attended a Sussex Search & Rescue training session in Ashdown Forest. Part of the evening was devoted to a presentation of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee Medal to 28 members who have completed 5 years of voluntary service to the team. The medals were presented by Sussex Chief Constable Jo Shiner and Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner Katy Bourne.

  

Small China-mark at Arundel WWT

Small China-mark, Cataclysta lemnata

to view a gallery with more photos, click here

Yesterday afternoon I visited Arundel WWT. I hoped to see a Small China-mark moth which I have only seen once before on the reed bed walk. This time I photographed two, one at each end of the walkway. They are only visible when flying and can only be photographed when they land on a reed right by the walkway.

Alder Leaf Beetles mating, Agelastica alni

Amber Snail, Succinea putris

Bird's-foot Trefoil, Lotus corniculatus

Bird's-foot Trefoil

Blue-tailed Damselflies mating, Ischnura elegans

Common Reed, Phragmites australis (habitat of the Small China-mark)

Green-veined White, Pieris napi 

Harlequin Ladybird larva, Harmonia axyridis

Harlequin Ladybird pupa

Hedge Bindweed, Calystegia sepium

Honey Bees, Apis mellifera and a wasp

Purple Loosestrife, Lythrum salicaria

Red Campion, Silene dioica

Small China-mark, Cataclysta lemnata

Valerian, Valeriana officinalis 

Water Forget-me-not, Myosotis scorpioides 

Water Forget-me-not

White Water Lily, Nymphaea alba

Petersfield Heath wildfowl, butterflies and moths

Small Tortoiseshell, Aglais urticae

to view a gallery with more photos, click here

I visited Petersfield Heath on Monday, the first time I have walked around this nature reserve. I enjoyed the variety of habitats: woodland, some patches of heath among the grassland and the lakeside. The wildfowl had young: Canada Geese, Egyptian Geese and Mallards. I found a Dingy Flat-body moth larva on Hemlock Water-dropwort by the lake. A Small Tortoiseshell landed on brambles and a Small Tortoiseshell pupa hung from a heath stem. A Painted Lady flew by in a hurry, Large Skippers appeared and Meadow Browns fluttered everywhere in the grassland. Speckled Woods landed on bracken in the woodland areas. Other moths seen: Nettle-tap, Garden Grass-veneer and a Straw Dot. A Dusky Cockroach showed itself.

Canada Geese, Branta canadensis and
Egyptian Geese, goslings, Alopochen aegyptiacus 

Common Nettle-tap, Anthophila fabriciana

Cytisus scoparius seed pods

Dingy Flat-body moth larva, Depressaria daucella feeding on
Hemlock Water-dropwort, Oenanthe crocata

Dingy Flat-body moth larva feeding on
Hemlock Water-dropwort

Dusky Cockroach, Ectobius lapponicus

Foxglove, Digitalis purpurea

Garden Grass-veneer, Chrysoteuchia culmella

Hedge Woundwort, Stachys sylvatica

Large Skipper, Ochlodes sylvanus

Mallard, ducklings, Anas platyrhynchos

Small Tortoiseshell pupa, Aglais urticae

Speckled Wood, Pararge aegeria

Straw Dot, Rivula sericealis

Viper's Bugloss, Echium vulgare

Silver-studded Blues and moths

Silver-studded Blue male, Plebejus argus

to view a gallery  with more photos, click here

On Sunday I visited Stedham and Iping Commons to see the Silver-studded Blues and find some moths. The SSBs were seen in both commons but all were males until I found one female on Iping Common. I was told that mating pairs were seen early in the morning. On the moth front I saw  Clouded Buffs, Common Heaths, Common Waves, Peacocks, an Inlaid Grass-veneer, a Four-dotted Footman and a Marbled White Spot.

Clouded Buff, Diacrisia sannio

Common Heath, Ematurga atomaria

Common Wave, Cabera exanthemata

Dock Bugs mating, Coreus marginatus

Four-dotted Footman, Cybosia mesomella

Foxglove, Digitalis purpurea

Inlaid Grass-veneer, Crambus pascuella

Iping Common

Marbled White Spot, Deltote pygarga

Peacock Moth, Macaria notata

Silver-studded Blue female, Plebejus argus

Silver-studded Blue male

Silver-studded Blue male

Stonechat, Saxicola torquata

Tormentil, Potentilla erecta

Wild rose, Rosa species