Dorset 17 When Camouflage Does Not Work

On the morning of our last full day in Kingcombe, we stayed around locally in the morning and were both delighted and dismayed to find a Peppered Moth (and a Lobster Moth) to photograph. Having recorded it on the window sill, I thought it would be good to show how well its camouflage worked on the wall but immediately a False Widow Spider shot out of a hole and in seconds had subdued it with venom and started to wrap it in silk. The fourth image is a focus stack at F22 which demonstrates what our eye sees and just how good the camouflage is. Rest of post shows a few more species recorded during the morning.

 

Dorset 16 Cerne Abbas and Minterne Gardens

On the Friday of our Dorset trip, we visited Cerne Abbas where I walked up to the Long Man. On our last visit in 2018 on an equivalent date, we spent the morning in the company of Marsh Fritillaries and Adonis Blue butterflies but, this year, there were none - hopefully because the season has been much earlier. The views were spectacular and we later visited the poppy fields. In the afternoon, we visited the gardens at Minterne, which was rich in wild flowers as well as cultivated species.

Dorset 15 Early Morning Contrasts

One of the joys of staying at Higher Kingcombe is the opportunity to photograph early in the morning either in the meadows above the Lodge to get the first rays of sunshine or around the lakes below to catch the insects covered in due. Here some comparisons of shots during the week. Most are 'if only' shots so plenty of reason to return.

Dorset 14. Studland Beach and Nature Reserve

We visited Studland Nature Trust Nature reserve last Thursday on a really hot day and, after a morning recording some of the wildlife speicalities of the area, had lunch on Shell Beach playing with slow shutterspeed and multiple exposure. The species shown are Raft Sspider, Emperor moth caterpillar, Meadow Grasshopper, Keeled Skimmer, Dune Robberfly, Red Wood Ant and Sundew

Dorset 13 Golden-ringed Dragonfly

 On our last visit to Kingcombe area, I missed out seeing the Golden-ringed Dragonfly so was delighted to photograph this one which had caught and proceeded to eat a beetle.