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Kiplin Hall

Fringed Water LilyAn interesting variety of shrubs and water loving plants were seen mainly in seed. The Loosestrife which would have looked very attractive earlier in the month had now gone over. However the Water lilies White and Fringed were in flower. Other noteworthy flowers and shrubs were Dovesfoot Cranesbill, Centaury, Red Bartsia as well as Dog Wood with its white flowers and berries. Three Waxcap specimens were found in a grassy area. At lunch time the group divided into "the softies" who went in search of sustenance in the cafe. They were successful! The "story telling group" enjoyed listening to Joan's tale of "Jack and the Beanstalk" while sitting on low benches in the children's play area. We toured the Walled Garden before assembling for an exploration of the Hall with its history, Maryland connection, paintings and porcelain. Blackening Waxcap Stages

We had anticipated meeting Andrew and Lorna however they were nowhere to be seen. In the late afternoon the party, some of whom had explored the gardens and grounds, gravitated to the excellent tea room. The minbus left around 4pm. En route some mini Welsh cakes were distributed in celebration of Margaret's birthday . As if people hadn't eaten enough during the day! We arrived back around 5 30pm having enjoyed good driving conditions. It had been a varied, relaxing and good day out. Thanks to Brian, Sue and Margaret.

Margaret

It was a treat for me to be out with the group today, and to be in the company of so many members was a pleasure. There were twenty two of us at Denso Marston for the first stop of this tour of Baildon sites.

The Denso Marston Reserve was created 25 years ago as a condition of the company building on the river corridor. They now employ a warden 3 days a week to manage the reserve and co-ordinate the education visits. Today we were led around by volunteer Harry Whiteley. His knowledge of the reserve and of insects in particular greatly enhanced our visit. Harry told us of two species of hoverfly whose larvae eat rotting wood. They have recently been identified at Denso - the first recordings in this area.

Southern HawkerThe weather was very kind with some end of summer sunshine encouraging the dragonflies around the pond. We saw a Southern Hawker laying eggs on the plants at the margin of the pond while the male patrolled nearby, and several Brown Hawker feeding over the water.

The Purple Loosestrife was in full flower, and in total 107 species of flower were recorded either in flower or fruit, including Musk Mallow, Lesser Bullrush and Fringed Water Lily. 

After lunch and group photos, we relocated to nearby Tong Park. The plants here included Greater Birds-foot Trefoil, Burr Reed and Water Pepper. John informed us the grassy bank with a good amount of Devil's Bit Scabious was one of the best places in Baildon for Small Copper butterflies and Wall Browns, however none had been seen this year. Several people were lucky to see the flash of a kingfisher across the large pond by the cricket ground, were there was also several Little Grebe, Moorhens and Swans.

The final stop of the day, via the ice cream van, was to the area of Baildon Moor where BEES Conservation Volunteers have undertaken bracken control for the last decade. I explained the principles of the work undertaken and we had a quick look at the moorland plants that are benefiting from management; Heather, Cross-Leaved Heath, Bilberry (still in flower) and Crowberry. With the Meadow Pipits singing we returned to the minibus and back to town.

See the rest of the photos in the gallery . Thanks for having me, Julia.

Marsh Gentian

Another fine weather day for an outing to this extensive YWT nature reserve north of York. Largely cloudy punctuated with periods of sunshine and a pleasant breeze. Warm enough for butterflies to be on the wing throughout the day.

Unusually, there was no toilet stop en route. There are also no facilities on the commons though fortunately sufficient discreet areas!

After parking the bus at the 'Common Road Crossing' car park, north of Strensall, we were led around the section to the west of the railway line by Mike Knaggs, a member of the Botany Group. The main objective was to see a nationally rare plant the Marsh Gentian and this was achieved within the first half hour by Donald who was typically scouting off the main path. Several of these lovely blue flowers, superficially similar to Harebells were found in this one patch. Tawny Grisette (Amanita fulva)All told some 150 flowering plants were counted by Joan, Alice and Eric including Saw-wort.

Lepidopteran interest was constant with 10 different butterfly species and several day flying moths. Particular mention must be made of Silver Y's which were literally everywhere and must have been in their thousands; species seen: Small Copper, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock, Small and Green-veined Whites, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Speckled Woods and singleton Small Skipper and Brimstone. Moths; Straw Dot, Shaded-broad Bar, Udea lutealis, Agriphila tristella and the rather splendid Chevron which was a new one for me. 'Hawkeye' Amanda spotted a beautiful Broom Moth caterpillar.

Hardly any birds were seen which is not untypical for August. Many different fungi were seen but except for Penny Bun and Suede Bolete most could only be identified in the field to the following families; Russula, Lactaria, Coprinus and Boletes. A frequently seen bright yellow russula was most probably Russula claroflava.

LizardLunch was taken in a patch of long grass alongside a path as there was an absence of logs or stones to sit on. We were however treated to the sight of the Scarboro express steam loco whilst we picnicked.

Towards the end of the walk Common Lizards were photographed basking on some fallen logs.

Stuart, who took over from Sue for the return leg, had the unenviable task of navigating the vast Clifton Moor Centre in order to find toilets. Another lovely day out and thanks to Mike Knaggs, the drivers and the organisers.

John Gavaghan

The South Humberside Heritage TrailTwo areas could not have been more different. Last week we were ambling around the limestone grassland and woodland of Brockadale. This week we were walking on the South Humberside Heritage Trail, a linear footpath following the banks of the mighty Humber Estuary and in sight of its magnificent bridge. We made good time on the motorway and met up with new friends Angela and Stuart in the Ness Farm car park of the Far Ings National Nature Reserve.They are both enthusiastic amateur botanists living in the area who met Alice and Margaret on their recent recce. They were helpful and informative companions. Small White We set off from Ness Farm at our usual slow pace. Angela pointed to a stream that had been alive with water voles in past years. The party was greeted by an overwhelming number and range of butterflies, the count was 10 (how reassuring as they are regarded as an indicator of the health of the environment). They were enjoying the nectar of the plants. Peacocks seemed to have a penchant for Teasel whereas the Small Whites, Gatekeepers, Comma and Peacock were seen dancing around a large patch of Marsh Thistle. Brown Hawker Dragonflies and Blue Tailed Damselflies were seen on the ponds and paths. John reported that he had seen 6 moths including Yellow Shell, Shaded Broad Bar, Silver Y, Udea lutealis, Dingy Footman and Nettle Tap. Looking Over The Bridge Our party took equal delight in the special flowers of the area. 138 were recorded in flower. The wetland, field margins, path, reed beds and chalk grassland gave us a varied mix of flowers.The wetland plants included Fool's Watercress, Celery-leaved Buttercup, Water Crowfoot and Water Speedwell. The field margins offered Common Poppy, Wild Mignonette and the pretty Field Bindweed. On the paths were found White Bryony and Prickly Lettuce. On the chalk grassland we found Marjoram, Lemon Balm, Ploughman's Spikenard, Eyebright and Fairy Flax, while in the reed beds were Common Reed, Sea Aster and Bindweed. Many of the flowers were in seed and shrubs and trees laden with fruit. The bird count numbered 20 . Again a variety of birds were seen but in small numbers. Common Terns, Tufted ducks, Small CopperGreat Crested Grebes and Greylag Geese were seen on the lakes; Goldfinch and Swallows on the field margins; Reed Bunting and Reed Warbler in the reeds; Lapwing, Curlew and Shelduck on the shoreline. However the highlight was a sighting of a Marsh Harrier. It was observed gliding slowly across a lake before descending into the tree canopy by Margaret on returning to Far Ings. The weather was ideal, warm but cool in places, sunny with a gentle breeze. It remained so throughout the day and for our journey home. A good day out for the 15 of us who enjoyed today's outing. A magnificent job was performed by Stuart in steering the old minibus, rattle and all and returning us to the Unitarian Church car park safely. Thanks to all those who contributed to our day out.

Margaret

Single File

The full minibus was forced to make an emergency stop at Pontefract Hospital en route – the emergency was that we had missed the toilet stop planned for Morrisons and our intrepid driver, Sue, thought this sufficient reason to divert into the hospital for a comfort break. Butterflies Mud-PuddlingWe all wondered whether this stop was appropriate, but as Sue’s in the nursing business we assumed that she knew what she was doing! Duly relieved we continued on our way and soon arrived at our destination. Brockadale in late July means lots and lots of clustered bellflowers together with hosts of other species, and being on the Magnesian limestone, lots of special plants of calcareous soil.

And butterflies – clouds of them throughout the day with 13 different species recorded,exactly the same number of bird species seen on a poor bird day. The butterfly stars were marbled white and dark green fritillary, Commabut commas and peacocks displayed themselves beautifully and we witnessed an activity not seen before by any of our group; mud-puddling. This entails a group of up to a dozen butterflies (small white and green-veined white together in this case) gleaning minerals from the earth whilst huddled together – a remarkable sight. Another highlight of a lovely day was Joan’s sighting of two plants which she hadn’t seen before. These were wild liquorice and wild clary. It’s not often that Joan adds to her lifetime list; full marks to Alice for the discoveries. Joan recorded 168 plants in flower or fruit, including sweet-tasting strawberry and raspberry; amongst the plant highlights were black horehound, small teasel, small scabious and possibly common calamint, but as this doesn’t appear on the Banded Demoisellespecies list for the site the jury’s out on that one!

Maddy disturbed a fox and Marilyn, that renowned spotter of amphibians, found a lizard near the banks of the river Went where banded demoiselles and an occasional dragonfly played. So we wandered happily through the meadows and woodlands of the 58 hectares of the reserve until it was time to head back, too soon, to the minibus to be conveyed back to Bradford comfortably and directly by Sue. Thanks to Eric for organising yet another successful trip – brilliant Brockadale.

Stuart

Umbrellas Up

The day started with a clap of thunder and a torrential downpour of rain. One member divulged that she thought the trip might be cancelled. Cancelled, no way, we don't cancel except in the most extreme circumstances! Our journey was completed in fine conditions but concious of a possible downpour later, following lunch, we walked hastily through Dalby Forest to Ellerburn Bank. Although the orchids - Common Spotted, Fly and Bee orchid were well past their best the limestone sward was outstandingly beautiful. Lady's Bedstraw, Field Scabious, Dropwort, Marjoram, Knapweed, Thyme, Eyebright, Wild Strawberry, Common Rock Rose, Salad Burnet provided a wonderful palate of colours. There were some special plants- Woolly Thistle, Saw-wort, Carline Thistle, Centaury, Wild Mignonette to name but a few.

Marbled White On Field ScabiousAlthough cloudy but nevertheless warm we were delighted to see a full array of butterflies more especially the super active black and white Marbled White butterfly. There were plenty of Ringlets, Meadow Brown, Small Skipper and Small Heath butterflies. Common Blue, Green Veined White, Red Admiral and Dark Green Fritillary butterflies were also spotted. The moths identified by John were Six-spot Burnet moth, Silver Y, Shaded Broad-bar, Barred Straw, Diamond-back Moth, Agapeta zoegana, Agriphila straminella, Ypsolopha parenthesella, Eucosma cana and Eucosma hohenwartiana.Dark Green Fritillary

Bird species included House Martins,Swift, Swallow, Common Gull, Black-headed Gulls, Whitethroat, Blackcap, a flock of Linnets, Goldfinch, Chaffinch, Yellowhammer, Carrion crow, Blackbird, Wood pigeons, Dunnock and Red Kite. Sue picked up a defaecating frog (correction a frog that weed on her); a Slow-worm was uncovered but no Adders.

The slower walk back to the minibus allowed Alice and Joan time to identify flowers and ferns of the acid woodland. We had escaped the showers and proceeded to enjoy our visit to the impressive eco-friendly visitors centre. Our meal at the Black Bull at Escrick was enjoyable and we returned to Bradford in good time. A long day out but with some good memories.

Margaret

The mini bus was full by the time it had picked up at The Branch Pub, Shipley; Cottingley, Bingley and Grayling On LimestoneKeighley. Sue was the outward-bound driver. She arrowed her way across country between the village of Whittington and Gaitbarrows, having already learned the route through her innovative usage of Googlemaps, thereby wisely avoiding Carnforth; though not an appalling stench from a farmer's field that permeated the entire vehicle for several minutes.

Joan was disconcerted by the unusual route until it was pointed out that Sue had travelled the route the night before in her 'flight simulator'! 

It was another 'Scorchio' day, the hottest July since 2006 and looking like it might stay like this for sometime.

There was of course the customary toilet stop at Kirby Lonsdale. Permits for the site had been obtained and we were thus entitled to park in the small parking area, which fortunately was deserted as it would have been very awkward trying to park on the narrow roadside.

Dark Red HelleborineThe group set off slowly, on the Limestone Trail, and because there is so much botanical interest got slower and slower! Fortunately, there was plenty of shade for those faster members to shelter from the heat, whilst awaiting the arrival of the botanists. This is not a place to wander off on your own as it is full of mazy paths. A person could get easily lost.

We were soon ready for lunch and we all sat down on the nearest shaded rocks. We were delighted to find that we had chosen a spot where Dark Red Helleborines (the sites' speciality plant) were plentiful. Several Broad Leaved H's were also seen but these were not yet in flower. In total 125 plant/grasses and sedges were counted.  Alice who had always wanted to see Dropwort was granted her wish. However, by the end of the day she had probably received a 'Dropwort Overdose'.

Butterflies were all around and species seen in order of abundance were: Ringlet, Meadow Brown, Speckled Wood, Large Skipper, Dark Green/High Brown Fritillaries, Northern Brown Argus, Grayling, Whites and a single Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary. The large fritillaries rarely settled for more than a few seconds and then soared quickly away. The only underwings seen were of Dark Green so we were not able to say that we had seen any High Browns.

Brown and Common Hawkers were wizzing over our heads and there were many damselflys: Common Blue, Blue-tailed and Large Red.  Birds however, were virtually non-existent. Not therefore a place for birders to visit.

Virginia, a BEES volunteer from Espana, enthusiastically managed some rather decent photos of a NBA butterfly on her tiny mobile phone.

Small Skipper

Lagoon

White Letter Hairstreak On Bramble

Stuart

Anthony Gormley FigureEn route to today's destination, we stopped off at Chain Bar to pick up Stuart and Gillian. At this point Phillip started to complain of feeling unwell and it was decided that it was inadvisable for him to continue so he and Janet were taken back to the Unitarian Church. This along with a little problem with finding the route meant that we arrived late for our rendezvous with our guide, Pat Lockwood. Yellow-tail Moth CaterpillarPat was very understanding and she was a fantastic guide even in increasingly inclement weather conditions. We started our exploration of the Sefton Coast at Crosby beach where numerous Anthony Gormley cast iron figures are scattered. We ventured into the Hightown dunes and meadow area to examine the flora - butterflies were not flying in the cold and overcast conditions. There was a lot of rubble and bricks on the beach, much of which was bricks from bomb damaged buildings in world war 2. Botanical highlights included Duke of Argyll's Tea Plant and the rare Isle of Man Cabbage.Isle Of Man Cabbage 104 plants in flower/ferns were seen. As we wandered through the sand dunes we came across a Drinker Moth caterpillar and then a Grass Eggar caterpillar and then we found a shrub that was heaving with Yellow-tail moth caterpillars. Close by we also spotted a couple of Yellow Shell moths.

It stayed dry until after lunch but light rain in the afternoon turned heavier and heavier so we didn't see all that we had hoped to see but we were very grateful to Pat for helping us make the best of a soggy, cold day. 

22 birds were seen including curlew, linnets, reed bunting, greenshank and black-tailed godwits. 

Sue

The MossesA full mini-bus driven by Stuart headed to this Natural England site in Southern Cumbria. As is the norm for these outings the sky was lovely; a mix of high clouds, blue skies and a cool gentle breeze.

On arrival we met Rob Pettley-Jones the site manager for this and several other sites including Gaitbarrows NNR. He had run a moth trap the night before and he had kindly waited for our arrival with a colourful selection of the best macro moths. This included; Poplar Hawk-moth, Iron Prominent, Common White Wave, Pale Tussock, Mottled Beauty, Ingrailed Clay, Flame Shoulder, Clouded-bordered Brindle, Map-winged Swift, Angle Shades, Coronet, Buff Ermine, Beautiful Golden Y, True Lover's Knot, Green Carpet and Peppered Moth, The favourite was initially Green Arches until he later produced Lesser Swallow Prominent and then the jury was split! So thanks must go to Margaret who had arranged this.

Green ArchesWe had our lunch sitting on logs and various items of equipment, close to the manager's office. I then came across an interesting carpet moth that Rob was able to ID as Devon. A melanic Common Lutestring moth was also present, presumably both escapees from the evening's catch. After that we began the 0.7 mile 'Bog Trail' which was mostly on a superb boardwalk. From here we were able to spot Four-spotted Chaser dragonflies, Large Red and blue damsels, a female Brimstone (Alder and Purging Buckthorn were seen on site) and several Large Heath butterflies around the Cotton grass. Unfortunately none of the party was able to see the latter at close quarters and yours truly therefore failed to get any photos of the elusive creatures!