Nature notes

July 2010
		You've heard of white elephants and red herrings? What about pink grasshoppers? Well, we managed to find one here at Carymoor! Most meadow grasshoppers are green, but occasionally you find them in varying shades of pink. Opinions differ as to why this is. Some people say it results from a genetic mutation, while others say that juvenile grasshoppers are often pink and they gradually change to green & brown as they mature.
		Volucella zonaria - another hoverfly in fancy dress (see June 2010), this time pretending to be a worker hornet. Hoverflies have evolved through natural selection to mimic wasps, bumble bees and hornets as an effective form of self-protection. No would-be predator is going to mess with you if they think you are going to sting them in the process. The Banded or Hornet Hoverfly is notable not only for being a very clever mimic but also for being a relatively recent coloniser of southern Britain from the continent - as a consequence of climate change?
		It seems to be a good year for Purple Hairstreaks, at least in our neck of the woods. Hundreds can be seen in the tops of the oak trees in Carymoor Drove, just to the south of Carymoor. Purple Hairstreaks are Britain's commonest hairstreak, but are easily overlooked as they spend all their time in oak trees, feeding on honeydew and laying their eggs at the base of oak buds on sheltered branches.
		The squeal of a water rail isn't that unusual a sound at Carymoor, but they're one of those birds that you very rarely see. This spring three males were heard calling in the neighbouring Carymarsh Wetland, so it was very exciting when a juvenile was spotted there recently. Independent of its parents but too young to have flown in from elsewhere, this is the first breeding record for this area of Somerset since 1982. The lack of records is partly due to their secretive behaviour, but this new record is also a satisfying result of creating of a new wetland in this part of the county. The picture shows an adult.
June 2010
		At first glance you'd be forgiven for thinking this is a bumble bee, but it's actually a hoverfly Volucella bombylans, which mimics bumble bees. Its the eyes that give it away - Volucella has the huge eyes typical of a fly, whereas bumble bees have much smaller eyes. It even comes in a range of abdomen colours, with each form mimicing a different species of bee. The larvae appear to develop in wasp nests but how they survive without being fed to the wasp larvae is not known. The adults are nectar feeders, and can be seen at flowers and along hedge bottoms. This one was spotted in one of our wildflower meadows.
May 2010
		After watching his blue tit family fledge, Jules checked inside their nestbox and was astonished to see this brightly coloured nesting material with colours to match their plumage! Now he's wondering which of his neighbours found holes in their clothes when they brought in the washing!
		A Holly Blue, seen on site for the first time in two years. Found mainly in the southern half of the British Isles, this species varies greatly in numbers from year to year. The fluctuations result from the fact that it is the sole host to a parasitic wasp.
		Jules found these two foxcubs when he was attracted by their loud squabbling. They had just received a meal of a baby rabbit from their mother and were determined not to miss out.
		The most widespread of the British hairstreaks, Green Hairstreaks are occur in a wide variety of habitats and feed on the widest range of foodplants of our butterflies. However their small size and the green undersides of their wings makes them easily overlooked. We have recorded three at Carymoor so far this year.

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Weather notes

The weather for June 2010

FLAMING JUNE

The 1st of June and 7th to 9th were wet, and light rain fell on 13th, 18th and 28th. The rest of the month was dry, giving a total of 35mm. This was only 57% of the average. (The June extremes in recent years were 8.2mm in 1975, and 145 in 1998.) However, the first six months of this year totalled only 293mm, against the average of 409mm, making it the driest start to the year ever recorded here. Nationwide it is the driest start since 1929. Surprisingly ground water and reservoir levels are reasonably good, though the Brue is hardly moving at all. It has also been phenomenally sunny, with cloudless skies on at least 15 days. Day temperatures were consistently high, with 12 days between 25 and 29.3° (12th), though there was always a little light breeze. Night temperatures varied widely from 3.5° on the 20th to 27° and 28° by the end of the month. The mean for the month was 16.14° - very similar to last year.

James Lang Brown

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James Lang Brown

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