Dorset 18 Hooke Park - Final Location!

 Although not a great set of images as it was very windy and raining a bit so wide aperture/slow shutterspeed needed and no chance of focus stacking, this blog past records Hooke Park, close to Higher Kingcombe, as a great location for a future visit to Dorset. The Stilt Bug was definitely one of the strangest insect encountered during my 10 days!!

This Year's Marbled Whites

 Since we first recorded marbled Whites in Toft Wood in 2012, they have roosted in the clearing in large numbers (35-40 counted this year). They are at least a week earlier than previous years (we were away when they were first observed around 16th June. Here a variety of early morning shots with dew still on the butterflies as they climbed to the tops of plants to warm up in the sun. 

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.