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Butts Ash • Dibden • Dibden
Purlieu • Furzedown • Hythe • Langdown • Netley
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| What's On |
| Waterside Natural History Society goes to Holly Hill Woodland Park |
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| Fritillary |
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It has been a long spring this year. The primroses seem to have been out for ever, the swallows fly in then fly out again, even the cuckoo has a cough.
The weather was cold and wet the day before the visit to Holly Hill Woodland Park so the members of the WNHS were well wrapped up and ready for anything….then the sun came out. In the event the weather was warm and sunny and gave us a very pleasant day.
Holly Hill Woodland Park is made up of Cawtes Copse and Winnards Copse but it has been extensively modified by previous owners who have landscaped the area, created and extended the lakes and planted various exotic species of plants and trees. The area has partly reverted to natural broadleaved woodland leaving a haven for wildlife and flora.
We decided to walk round the ornamental lakes in an anticlockwise direction and were welcomed by the songs of a blackcap and song thrush and the scent of laurel flowers. The birdlife although not exotic was plentiful ; blackbird, blue tit, great tit, long tailed tit, jay, chiffchaff, tree creeper, as well as the mallard ducks on the pond, all added to the atmosphere.
Walking round the far side of the ornamental lakes we came across a patch of Fritillary’s. A member of the lily family Fritillary’s are relatively scarce-especially in our garden where we have planted bulbs but none have come up. Apparently they require damp meadows near streams but I suspect the ones we saw had been planted as part of the garden, never the less they were a nice thing to see.
We were also surprised to see in one of the ornamental ponds a terrapin, which looked just like a tortoise, lying on a log in the water. It must have been introduced deliberately but seems to have survived the cold weather.
A goldfinch was flitting round the ivy on a tree trunk. Their plumage is particularly striking at this time of year with a back eye stripe contrasting with a bright orange head. Orangecrest obviously does not sound as good as gold crest but it looks just as good.
When we were having our lunch on the viewpoint overlooking the Hamble river a bat flew out from under the wooden platform and gave a display of aerobatics over the water. Whether it was disturbed by our feet on the wooden platform or if it had just come out of its winter sleep and was looking for food we did not know but it seems strange to see a bat in the middle of the day.
Other birds we saw included green woodpecker, nuthatch, kestrels, curlew, and magpie.
Bluebells were in flower but not in great swathes. In fact most of the flowers were in small local groups and did not cover the ground. These included, wood anemone, wood sorrel, lesser celandine, primrose, marsh marigold, dog violets, stitchwort and green alkanet. Green alkanet is a misleading name as the flowers are deep blue and the roots are used to extract a red dye. It is a close relative of the garden anchusa.
Butterflies such as the Brimstone, Peacock, Speckled wood, Orange tip and Small white were seen in small numbers.
Plants indicating an ancient woodland such as Butchers broom and several varieties of fern mixed with wood spurge or Euphorbia were in evidence.
The members of the WNHS enjoyed a warm sunny day in a surprisingly countrified part of the county surrounded as it is by towns, villages and motorways.
Our next outdoor meeting will be to Micheldever for birds, butterflies and flowers. Meet at Oak Road car park Dibden Purlieu at 10am on Sunday 18th May
Our next indoor meeting will be at St. Andrews centre, Dibden Purlieu at 7.30pm on 19th May. Our speaker will be Mary South from the Woodland Trust.
All visitors are welcome to indoor and outdoor meetings. Contact the Secretary on 02380893803. Any comments to mharrison67@btinternet.com. |
| Related Internet Links: |
| Holly Hill Woodland Park |
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