Monday 2nd July - Levin Down

Continuing the theme of Butterflies, I went for a walk on Levin Down this morning, in glorious weather. Just near Singleton, it is only about 20 minutes away and I pretty much had the place to myself. I'm a bit of a novice when it comes to butterflies but this is a great time to look for them, especially when the birds are rather quiet. I did quite well, an enjoyable 3 hours eventually seeing 15 species.

Meadow Brown       - Abundant, they were everywhere
Marbled White         - Very Common  c40
Ringlet                      - c10
Small Heath              - c10
Small Skipper           -c8
Large Skipper           - 4
Painted Lady             - 2
Red Admiral             - 1
Large White              - 1
Small White              - 2
Green Hairstreak       - 1
Comma                      - 3
Dark-Green Fritillary - 2
Small Tortoiseshell    - 1
Common Blue           - 2

The few birds that were present were typical downland species, Yellowhammer, Whitethroat, Linnet, Skylark, Red-legged Partridge, Northern Raven and Red Kite.

Small Heath

Small Tortoiseshell

Meadow Brown

Marbled White

Small Skipper

Large Skipper

Painted Lady

Green Hairstreak - a rather scruffy individual hiding in the brambles

Common Blue (female)

Dark Green Fritillary

Comma