Birds and the Bee (Orchids)

The past couple of days have gone by with not a lot happening on the nature front, no Basking Sharks or dolphins through at Lands End, but I haven't really been there all that much. A long week last week meant my days off were moved a little later, a regional meeting in Weymouth and hours off in lieu all keeping me from the site.

It is quite a suprise that we haven't seen more marine wildlife other than the constant passers-by, (Gannets, Manx Shearwaters, Kittewakes, Guillemots and Razorbills mostly), considering the 'relatively' settled weather we've been having down here.... but, with May having been a bit unsettled, it seems that the plankton is still keeping down in the Bay of Biscay, so we await a decent spell of still and sunny weather to inspire its movement towards our coastline.

Bee Orchid (Ophrys apifera)

Away from the coast though, the wildlife has been fantastic, the trip down to Radipole Lake RSPB reserve after the morning presentations at the regional meeting gave the chance to catch up with an orchid that I've missed out on seeing for the past couple of years, the stunning Bee Orchid (Ophrys apifera).

This fantastic flower, (which, incidently, is the county flower of Bedfordshire), is called a Bee Orchid due to the shape and colouration of its lower petal which resembles the appearance of a bee. This is designed to entise male bumblebees to land on the flower and 'mate' with it, giving the orchid the chance to dust the fooled bumble with pollen ready for next visited flower. They can be found mostly in the south-east of Britain, but do crop up in the Midlands - I do know of a couple of places back home in Shropshire where they appear.

Another highlight of the day was watching a Marsh Harrier over the reeds, a sight becoming more regular in the UK. Having seen plenty in East Anglia and in Somerset at first I didn't take all that much notice, but then it dawned on me.... everywhere I'd seen them before were places right in the middle of no-where, far from any chance of disturbance as these birds are incredibly shy and secretive breeders..... yet, here I was, smack-bang in the middle of a busy town, the constant rumble of the by-pass on one side and a train trundling across the view on the other, watching this harrier fly with a back-drop of housing estates.... It was at that moment that I saw Radipole for what it really is... an urban oasis, giving people from the town a chance to see wildlife that just shouldn't be there..... not right in the middle of Weymouth! Obviously the guys at Radipole have worked furiously hard to get the reserve back to rights... for those of you who don't know, the RSPB's lease ran out and the reserve was in a terrible state 5 years ago,.... so much so, that the council were thinking about not renewing the lease and the reserve was classed as a 'unfavourable declining' area. Through a bit of a struggle the RSPB negotiated the lease successfully and through the years, loads of renovation work has gone into the site, clearing ditches and creating pools moving it up into a 'unfavourable recovering' site. This year however, the hard work has really done the job and it has now been classed as 'favourable' condition.... and you can see why.... if ever you get the chance, go and visit.... it's a cracking place!

Ghost Moth (Hepialus humuli)

The moth trap has been out the last few nights too, plenty of the usual suspects like the Elephant Hawks and the smaller noctuids, however, I did get a cool looking female Ghost Moth (Hepialus humuli) and, (incredibly),  a male Beautiful Demoiselle damselfly (Calopteryx virgo).

The trap is back out tonight, so hopefully the rain will hold off!

Beautiful Demoiselle (Calopteryx virgo)