Looking forward to
May

Go on green

This Saturday, May 10th, the Yorkshire branch of Butterfly Conservation are hosting a Green Hairstreak walk at Otley Chevin.

All are welcome, and the weather forecast looks good, so if you're interested in these delightful little insects and would like to know more, be at the West car park , East Chevin Road, at 11.30am.

Call Paul Brothers for further details - (0113) 260 2214.

Beating the blues

In May we can expect to see two blue butterflies flying - but which is which?

Most likely is Holly Blue which can be seen throughout the month. Records are plentiful from Pool to Addingham, but much less common further up Wharfedale. They are often seen in the Washburn area. Their Spring foodplant is usually holly and a large tree of holly in flower, with a sheltered sunny aspect, is always well worth exploring. Otherwise the butterflies may be seen flying through a glade or along a garden hedge, usually above head height.

Common Blue usually emerge in June, although a few may appear earlier in May. They live in colonies and are unlikely to roam far from these. The males, which emerge first, fly low ceaselessly seeking a mate throughout their flowery homeland. Towards the end of May look on the local nature reserves. There are a number of strong colonies in Upper Wharfedale, but so far their earliest records have been in June.

Surveys in the Dales



It's important that we keep tabs on our wildlife. The Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority is running a series of simple surveys, throughout the Park area, in which you can take part.

Red squirrels can be seen in some parts of the Dales. The ear tufts are distinctive.

The Golden-ringed dragonfly is unmistakable. It can be seen on upland streams from May to September.

The Green Hairstreak butterfly is found on moorland and is our only green butterfly. It flies from late April to early June.

The Common Blue is the most widespread blue butterfly across the UK. In the Dales area it is found on limestone grassland, between July and September.

Report your sightings here.

Gordon swabs frogs - true!



Wharfedale Naturalists are taking part in a nationwide survey to assess the health of British amphibians.

The disease Chytridiomycosis is currently wiping out frogs and toads in parts of the Americas and Australia. It is a fungal disease, which infects tadpoles' mouths and adults' skins. Exactly how it kills is still unknown, however. The fungus has recently been found in two areas of the UK - coastal Cumbria and around Canterbury and Tunbridge Wells in Kent - but the situation elsewhere in Britain is unclear.

To clarify matters, the Institute of Zoology has arranged a survey throughout Britain, taking samples from amphibians at 60 sites, and our secretary Gordon Haycock has been swabbing frogs with the best. Samples were taken at the Sun Lane reserve in March and more will be required in May.

More information here, and a colourful and informative booklet on amphibians can be downloaded from Natural England here.

Practice your plants



Now that wild flowers are popping out everywhere, it's time to get out that field guide and practice your identification techniques.

One way to check that you're as good as you think is with the Knowledge test at the Interactive Flora of NW Europe web site here. If you're a bit worried about your competence, go for the Easy alternative - it is!

Wildlife in
May

Settled weather (?) - so much to see!

• Swifts swooping
• Dotterel on Ilkley Moor
  
• Blue butterflies - Holly Blue first, Common if early
• Green hairstreaks on Otley Chevin
• Dragonflies! Large Red Damselflies, Four-spotted Chasers
• Leopard's-bane at Denton
  

More here

Plants now

Hawthorn is found almost everywhere in Britain. It spreads quickly, helped by its juicy fruits which are food for birds. It is of course often planted as hedging and was very popular during the Enclosure Act period.

It was just one plant of many which in the past made up 'the May'. The whitethorn was a protector against the evil waiting at the turning of the season. Yet as a powerful plant it could be dangerous - it should not be brought indoors. Lone hawthorns could be fairy places and should never be interfered-with. Hawthorn wood burns hotter than any, and the bush can live to a great age.

Nature Notes
by Jenny Dixon
featured in Wharfedale Newspapers

Reflection reaction

In a recent Nature Notes I included a description of battling moorhens, an example of how strong is the urge to win and keep a territory and mate at this season. Last week a friend rang with an even more extreme story. She was wakened at 5.30am by what sounded like someone throwing gravel at her bedroom window. She drew back the curtain to be confronted by a pair of chaffinches repeatedly flying at the window and furiously pecking the glass. Despite her efforts to deter them they continued the bombardment for two days, charging the window, then fluttering against it, furiously pecking the recently installed double glazing and leaving a trail of birdlime and spittle across the pane. It transpired that the pair had recently started nest building in a conifer about 15m from the house and her window must be so angled as to create a perfect mirror surface in which the birds saw themselves reflected as they established themselves in their territory. This immediately triggered the "attack and drive off" response which had such dramatic results. In their interaction with others of the same species, wild birds have evolved strategies to avoid physical contact and possible injury: through song, threat posturing and feints, they rapidly establish hierarchy and the weaker prudently withdraws. You have only to watch the blackbirds on your lawn to see all this in action. However, when challenged by the rightful owners of the patch, the chaffinch reflections didn't play the game and so the pair's aggressive behaviour couldn't be switched off with possible serious consequences to the birds as they repeatedly bashed against the glass. My friend finally achieved a cessation of hostilities by putting white sheets with super-imposed black buzzard silhouettes across the glass. No sign of the chaffinches since - we just hope they've found a more peaceful nest site.

As May begins and the woods and hedges irrupt into exuberant life, it's a temptation to write only about the flowers and the birds - the warblers returning, the primroses, violets and bluebells flushing the countryside with colour. However, other creatures are enjoying the rising temperatures too. Last week we particularly noticed bumblebees. Twenty-five species of bumblebee live in Britain and, of these, six are common throughout and are fairly easy to identify early in the year when only the large mated queens are flying, sole survivors from last season. Look out for Bombus lucorum, with her yellow collar, single yellow abdomen stripe and white tail. As soon as the weather warms up, the queens emerge from hibernation, build up their strength on nectar from early flowers and start looking for a suitable place to found a new colony, a small cavity or disused mousehole perhaps. Inside, a base of wax and pollen is constructed on which the first clutch of eggs is laid and a thimble-shaped honey pot filled with nectar is installed close by. The queen broods this first batch and feeds the hatched larvae herself. Once these have pupated and emerged as workers she can take life easier and, as the colony grows, devote herself, as one expert writes, "to housework and egg-laying."

More of Jenny's articles here .