Friday 4th July

It was quite cool early on, but with a cloudless sky, the Sun was allowed to warm things up. I began the morning with the company of a member of KRAG to survey the reptiles in the southern boundary of the Park. We were rewarded with 6 Slowworms. Unfortunately they had all warmed themselves up and all bar one were quick in dodging my camera’s focus.

Juvenile Slowworm

3 Blackcap, 4 Chiff Chaff, and 8 Whitethroat were singing, a Great Spotted Woodpecker called from an Oak in the rough grassland, a Coal Tit sang from a Yew along Laurel Walk, 5 Pheasants were heard throughout the visit – mainly from the area of rough grassland, 3 Jay was seen, a Nuthatch called from an Oak by the Claygate entrance, 3 Treecreeper were heard, roughly 14 Swifts were seen catching insects over the Park, 2 young Kestrels were watched hunting small insects, and, best of all, 2 young Little Owls had left the nest hole and were sitting up in the branches of an Oak with one of their nervous parents.

Young Little Owls

Young Kestrel

On the Lake were about 36 Canada Geese, 3 Great Crested Grebes, 3 Mute Swan, and the countless Mallards, Moorhens, and Coots. There were 14 Black-headed Gulls, and 4 Reed Warblers were heard singing around the perimeter of the Lake.


Several Meadow Browns were in the areas of grassland, a Small White fluttered past as I watched the young owls, 2 Ringlet were seen along the hedge on the Park’s southern boundary, 17 Small Skippers and 2 Essex Skippers fed on the nectar from the thistles and clover, 1 Common Blue Damselfly was seen, 1 female Banded Demoiselle was seen, a Black-tailed Skimmer hunted insects over the rough grassland, and a handsome dog Fox was seen carrying a suspected young Rabbit in the Long Valley.

Black-tailed Skimmer

Small Skipper

Monday 30th June

After a very busy week, today I was finally able to get back into Mote Park. It felt very hot, especially in the areas of rough grassland and meadow where most of todays butterflies were seen.

4 Blackcap, 3 Chiff Chaff, and 5 Whitethroat were singing, a Great Spotted Woodpecker called whilst I walked along Laurel Walk, a Coal Tit sang from a Larch on the Parks eastern boundary, a Goldcrest called as it searched for insects in a Yew along Laurel Walk, a Herring Gulls called as it flew north over Jenner's Bank, 2 Pheasants called from the large area of rough grassland, a Jay was seen by the Walled Garden, a Nuthatch was noted as it flew across my path and into a Sweet Chestnut on Jenner's Bank, a Treecreeper was along the track by the Weir, and a Spotted Flycatcher was heard singing from a Lime in front of Mote House.

On the Lake were 56 Canada Geese, there were 2 Great Crested Grebes, the resident pair of Mute Swan, and the countless Mallards, Moorhens, and Coots. There were 14 Black-headed Gulls, and 3 Reed Warblers were heard singing around the perimeter of the Lake.

3 Comma, 1 Red Admiral, 2 Speckled Wood, 8 Meadow Browns, 4 Small Skippers, 3 Large Skippers, and 1 Ringlet were seen. Lots of Common Blue Damselflies were noted, 1 female Banded Demoiselle was seen, an Emperor Dragonfly flew past, and a Brown Hawker flew up from a patch of Brambles.

- BLOG UPDATE - I have added 2 newly found blogs to my links section. The first is Greenie in the Wild, and the second is a blog from a regular patchworker in London's Regents Park.

Saturday 21st June

The Park was very wet this morning after some rain during the night. Because of the rain the only insects seen were a few Banded Demoiselles.

4 Great Spotted Woodpeckers were seen, a Coal Tit sang from a Yew along Laurel Walk, 3 Green Woodpeckers were seen, 5 Blackcap, 5 Chiff Chaff, and 15 Whitethroat were singing, a pair of Goldcrest were observed dodging the drops of water as they picked insects from a Yew, 3 Pheasants were heard in the rough grassland, 2 Linnet were seen making visits to and fro from a Hawthorn, a Jay was mobbed by a male Whitethroat, 3 Nuthatch were heard, 3 Treecreeper were heard, roughly 13 House Martin and 12 Swifts were watched catching insects low over the Lake, and a Spotted Flycatcher was heard singing from the top of a Beech.

On the Lake the number of Canada Geese has now increased to 109, there were 5 Great Crested Grebes, the resident pair of Mute Swan, and the countless Mallards, Moorhens, and Coots. There were 7 Black-headed Gulls, and 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull also on the Lake, a Cormorant sat on the island next to the Weir, a Grey Heron perched on the northern edge of the Lake amongst the Willows, and 6 Reed Warblers were heard singing around the perimeter of the Lake.

I also noted several of these Oedemra nobilis beetles. The beetle in the photo below is a male, easily recognised by it's swollen hind legs.

Friday 13th June

I was in the Park mid-morning today. With little Sun and a strong westerly wind blowing conditions for butterflies were not very good, and my chances of catching up with the problem Common Blue butterfly were very low. The photo of the very cute young rabbit was taken along Laurel Walk, where I was able to get so close I didn't even need the zoom on my camera.

Birds were surprisingly active bearing in mind the time of the morning. 3 Coal Tits were heard along Laurel Walk - with 2 singing and1 calling, 2 Great Spotted Woodpecker were seen, 4 Goldcrests were heard singing, 4 Blackcap, 5 Chiff Chaff, and 12 Whitethroat were singing, 2 Treecreeper were heard, 2 Green Woodpecker called, and whilst walking through the rough grassland 4 House Martin flew back and forth low over the grass catching the small insects that flew up from my path.

On the Lake 3 Great Crested Grebes were present, the local pair of Mute Swans were joined by another cob, 58 Canada Geese were around the feeding area, and the resident Mallards, Coots and Moorhens were also on the Lake. 4 Black-headed Gulls were seen catching small fish, and 5 Reed Warblers were heard singing around the a edges of the Lake.

A Speckled Wood and a Red Admiral were seen on the top of Janner's Bank, 12 Banded Demoiselles were found, 1 Blue-tailed Damselfly was seen, and lots of Common Demoiselles were noted around the edges of the Lake.

Male Blue-tailed Damselfly

Female Common Blue Damselfly

Wednesday 11th June

Young Mallards

I was in the Park from 10.30-12.30 today. It felt a lot cooler today with an overcast sky and an easterly breeze. Due to the timing of my walk not much bird song was heard, but plenty of insects were seen in the meadows and rough grassland.

3 Blackcap, 3 Chiff Chaff, and 2 Whitethroat were singing, a Goldcrest sang from a Yew, 3 Pheasants were seen and heard in the rough grassland, 3 Green Woodpecker were seen, a Great Spotted Woodpecker called from an Alder on the edge of the Lake, 3 House Martin were catching insects over the rough grassland, a Stock Dove was heard, 1 Jay was seen as it flew past, and a Cormorant flew east.

On the Lake the number of Canada Geese had increased to 69, there were 4 Great Crested Grebes, the resident pair of Mute Swan, and the countless Mallards, Moorhens, and Coots. There were 3 Black-headed Gulls, and 1 Lesser Black-backed Gull also on the Lake, and 6 Reed Warblers were heard singing around the perimeter of the Lake.

3 species of moth were seen. A Yellow Belle was spotted in the meadow next to the Old Bothy, and the photos below show the other 2 species which were found in the large area of rough grassland - I unfortunately cannot identify them, if anyone is able to identify them I would love to know!

2 male Banded Demoiselles were seen, and both Common Blue Damselflies and Blue-tailed Damselflies were seen,

Blue-tailed Damselfly
Ichnura elegans

I also found this immature female 'lactea' phase White-legged Damselfly - it is the first time I have seen this species of damselfly in the Park.

White-legged Damselfly
Platycnemis pennipes

A Black-tailed Skimmer was watched hunting insects over the rough grassland, returning frequently to a bare patch of soil on the track to eat its prey.

Black-tailed Skimmer
Orthetrum cancellatum

A Common Blue was seen feeding on the Birdsfoot Trefoil on the edges of the main track that runs through the rough grassland,

Common Blue

...and whilst taking the photo of the Common Blue I discovered this Six Spot Burnet caterpillar feeding on the Birdsfoot Trefoil.

Six-spot Burnet caterpillar

Friday 6th June

It was warm and overcast during this mornings walk.

5 Blackcap, 2 Chiff Chaff, and 4 Whitethroat were singing, a Goldcrest sang from a Yew, a Pheasant called from the area of rough grassland, a Spotted Flycatcher was catching insects from a Lime by the boating ramps, 2 Nuthatch were heard, 2 Pied Wagtails were seen by Mote House, and a Treecreeper could be heard singing from within the Willow Carr along the River Len.

Birds that were seen on the Lake were 32 Canada Geese and 1 pair with 5 Goslings, 2 Mute Swan,

Mute Swan

...3 Great Crested Grebes, and the countless Mallards, Moorhens, and Coots. There were 6 Black-headed Gulls, 2 Lesser Black-backed Gull, and a very handsome summer-plumaged adult Mediterranean Gull also on the Lake, a Grey Heron stood on the boating ramps preening,

...5 Reed Warblers were heard singing around the perimeter of the Lake, and bird of the day was a Sedge Warbler, which was singing from the edge of the marsh area by the Weir, and is the first of the year.

No Demoiselles, Damselflies, Dragonflies or Butterflies were seen.

Thursday 5th June

What a beautiful day it is today! With the Sun shining in a clear sky it is the perfect weather to try to absorb all what makes this time of the year so special…plenty of baby birds and mammals to discover, wonderful wildflowers to spot, and lots of butterflies, bugs and insects to enjoy.

7 Blackcap, 8 Chiff Chaff, and 5 Whitethroat were singing, a Goldcrest was observed collecting tiny spiders from between the needles of a Scots Pine, a Jay was seen in an Oak in the rough grassland, a Pheasant called from the area of rough grassland, a Spotted Flycatcher was spotted hunting insects from the top of an Oak, 2 Nuthatch were heard, and 3 Treecreeper could be heard singing in the Alder and Willow Carr along the River Len. The young of the following birds were also seen during my walk: Blackbirds, Mistle Thrushes, Jackdaws, Blue Tits, Robins, Chiff Chaffs, and Chaffinches.

Birds that were seen on the Lake were 34 Canada Geese including a pair with 5 Goslings, 2 Mute Swan, 3 Great Crested Grebes, 2 Cormorants, and the countless Mallards, Moorhens, and Coots. There were 8 Black-headed Gulls present around the 'duck feeding area', a Herring Gull flew north, a Grey Heron stood on the fallen Beech that overhangs the Lake on its western edge, and 6 Reed Warblers were heard singing around the perimeter of the Lake.

A total of 24 Banded Demoiselles were noted,

Male Banded Demoiselle

...2 Commas, a Red Admiral, a few Small Whites, 1 Peacock, and 1 Small Blue butterfly were seen,

Small Blue

...in the rough grassland a Burnet Companion Moth posed for a photograph,

Burnet Companion
Euclidia glyphica

...the 3 Southern Marsh Orchids continue to look stunning,

...and a young Rabbit and an adult Bank Vole were seen, the latter was watched darting across one side of a footpath to the other. Also of note is the Chicken of the Woods fungi, which can be found growing on a few of the old Oaks in the Park.

Chicken of the Woods
Laetiporus sulphureus