Not Quite The Emperor I Hoped For

 With the weather looking promising I took a walk around Harry's Park Wood in the hope of seeing some good butterflies. There have been a few reports of both Silver-washed Fritillaries and Purple Emperors this year though I didn't manage to catch up with any of these beauties today. That's not to say that the day was a complete failure however as I did manage to see some interesting wildlife.

Large White and White Admiral

Walking along Bears Lane produced a sighting of two Brown Hares chasing each other across the grassy landing strip near the farm while a Red Kite was chased off by a pair of Kestrels who were presumably nesting nearby. My first county Large White was also noted, this seems to be a very poor year for this normally common species. 

Emperor with Meadow Brown and Southern Hawker

Arriving in Harry's Park Wood I found a pristine looking White Admiral close to the entrance which lingered long enough for a photograph, the other two that I saw today did not settle. The wood's rides played host to Meadow Browns and Ringlets and it was one of the former that fell prey to a female Emperor. Speckled Woods were fairly common too while several Commas, a Small Tortoiseshell and Red Admiral were also seen. Another species present in reasonable quantities was Large Skipper with at least ten on the wing.

Fox and Great Spotted Woodpecker

Away from the butterflies a freshly emerged Southern Hawker was my first of the year and I was lucky that it settled long enough for a photo. A distant Fox was watched as it ambled along one of the rides while a young Great Spotted Woodpecker provided great views as it pecked away at the branches of a dead tree. Not much else to report, I'll have to pop back soon if I want to see those Emperors, the Purple ones that is!

Small Tortoiseshell and Yellowhammer.