Brimstone Butterfly |
Peacock Butterfly |
On the following day Jon and Kirsty and me went to have a look at the RSPB's reserve at Otmoor in Oxfordhire. Unfortunately the weather wasn't in our favour with the sun really struggling to shine through the thick clouds and the wind was becoming quite strong too. Luckily it was still warm and insects were out on force so we spent the morning scouring the hedgerows for any bugs we could find. As always the dragonflies were playing hard to get as they just wouldn't stay still long enough for a pic but everything else seemed to be quite approachable. Common Blue Damselfies were everywhere and we were very pleased to find quite a lot of Emerald Damselflies too.
Emerald Damselfly (male) |
Emerald Damselfly (female) |
Common Blue Damselfy |
Also the large amount of baby Toads meant that we had to be very careful where we trod. Some of them were absolutely tiny!
Baby Toad |
We had a very enjoyable morning there and despite the lack of birds (with the exception of the Turtle Doves but more about them later) we had a great time trawling through the undergrowth looking for what we could find. The sunny spells started to become a bit more frequent for a time and really brought out the colours on some of the flies I took pics of. It is nice to see these creatures up close and perhaps gives one a new appreciation for these tiny little insects.
Greenbottle |
Soldier Fly (I think? Please correct me if I am wrong) |
Scorpion Fly |
Harlequin Ladybird |
Ladybird Chrysalis |
Small Copper |
Lesser Marsh Grasshopper (once again please correct me if I am wrong) |
Turtle Dove |
Turtle Dove |
Turtle Dove |
Otter Tracks |
Isn't Otmoor a great place, you should also visit it in the winter, just as good. The Piddington section of Salcey and thanks to your previous post I was quite pleased to ID Purple Emperors too, I think we followed the same path (newly built with a Blue marker post?) if so I also found juvenile Spotted Flycatcher on the pathway, it was in the section that backs onto fields and had a couple of small wooden brdiges nearby, plenty of juvenile Treecreepers were also see.
ReplyDeleteAlmost forgot, cracking flight shot of the Turtle Dove, well done.
I reallly like your first turtle dove shot. Stunning bird! The emerald damselflies and the brimstone shots are wonderful too :)
ReplyDeleteAgree with Lou on the turtle dove shot! Stunning macros of beautiful subjects - the colours of the greenbottle are amazing !
ReplyDeleteTom