SS15 wildlife watching: Visit to St. Nicholas Church and surrounding areas

Date: 8th August 2024

Time: from 8 a.m.

Weather: dry, sunny, light wind, 17°C to 20°C

The main purpose of my visit this morning was to again record and photograph butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies.

However, it was less productive than my recent visits. The somewhat cooler temperatures maybe explained that although it was still warm enough for butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies to be on the wing.

This morning, I visited the complete site and recorded the following:

Grassland and hedges bordering St. Nicholas Lane and “Hilly Road” – butterflies: Gatekeeper (at least 10)

Grassland and hedges bordering St. Nicholas Lane and "Hilly Road" – dragonflies and damselflies: Ruddy Darter (4), unidentified hawker species (1)

Church cemetery – butterflies: Gatekeeper (at least 30 including around 20 together at a single small patch of ragwort), Meadow Brown (1), Speckled Wood (1)

Church cemetery – dragonflies and damselflies: unidentified hawker species (1)

Northern section – butterflies: Gatekeeper (at least 20), Meadow Brown (at least 10)

Northern section – dragonflies and damselflies: Brown Hawker (1), unidentified hawker species (1)

As noted previously, Marbled Whites and “golden” skippers (Large, Small and Essex) are still conspicuous by their absence from the grasslands bordering St. Nicholas Lane and in the northern section of the site.

Generally, but as expected during the summer months, birds continue to be more difficult to see and hear.

However, I did record the following: Chiffchaff (single birds heard calling in the cemetery and in the northern section of the site), Green Woodpecker (juvenile seen in the northern section of the site and single birds heard calling in the southern and northern sections of the site), Great Spotted Woodpecker (single bird seen in the area behind the church)

Rather unexpectedly, it proved to be a good visit for mammals with a sighting of a Red Fox in the central area of the cemetery (it walked up the path towards me but then did a quick U-turn when it saw me and ran off) and a Reeves’ Muntjac in the northern section of the site (which wandered off more slowly in to the dense woodland when it saw me). These are my first records of these 2 species since 23rd June 2024 and 12th May 2024 respectively. Unfortunately, I failed to get a photo of either of them.

Finally, the emergence of autumn fruits has started to occur in recent weeks and it does appear that there will be an abundance this year.

Species recorded during this visit were as follows (heard only records in italics):

Chiffchaff

Blue Tit

Great Tit

Robin

Dunnock

Blackbird

Green Woodpecker

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Jay

Magpie