Sharpenhoe Clappers Spider and Insects

We made a visit to Sharpenhoe yesterday morning as a prelim to our RPS Nature Group outing on Sunday. There are lots of Chalkhill Blues and 6-Spot Burnet moths but also lots of other subjects to photograph such as this Crab spider catching a fly,  hoverflies, caterpillars, and other butterflies such as Marbled Whites. On the way home, we called in at a known orchid site and photographed these delicate Green Helleborines amidst the Hare bells.

 

Sharpenhoe Early Morning

We made a short early morning visit to Sharpenhoe and enjoyed an hour or so as the insects warmed up. Mostly the Chalkhill blues were feeding but we found one pair already coupled. Lots of Burnet moths emerging from pupae and expanding their wings, a fine yellow spider enjoying a Chalkhill breakfast and a Small White basking on a leaf.

Sharpenhoe Butterflies and Burnet Moths

Weather is never what you want! - last year our RPS Nature Group outing to Sharpenhoe was a literal wash out with 24 hours torrential rain before the day. This year we chose Friday, which turned out to be the hottest day of the year (and third recorded hottest ever in UK). This brought the butterflies out in great numbers but meant we couldn't survive on the chalk slopes much beyond lunch. There was a strong breeze which helped cool us but further complicated the photography. Enough excuses - here are a few captures from the day - mostly Chalkhill blues of which there were 1000s  but also Burnet moth, Speckled Wood, Tortoiseshell and Brimstone. Mixture of straight shots and focus stacks, which unfortunately show defects if focus where the subjects were moving too much in the wind. A following post will show somewhat  better images from Saturday morning.