There’s a hum about the meadows where Bumblebees; Carder, Buff and Red-tailed bury themselves into the pollen filled Woolly Thistle flowers. Standing 5’ tall, the flowers appear like something from another world - a spiral of deep purple anemone like arms, atop a bulbous thorny base which looks like its been rolled in spider webs.
Many flowers have gone over, turning brown along with the dry grasses. It’s great time to collect Hay Rattle seeds (named so for the sound produced as wind rattles the seeds around in their pods). This plant helps create meadows as it is semi-parasitic, supressing grass as it takes their nutrients, and enabling a diverse mix of wildflowers to grow.
I had fun collecting the Dyer’s Greenweed pea-like seed pods, which explode when you touch them after being baked in the sunshine, firing the seeds far and wide.
By contrast of colour, the remaining flowers stand out - countless white umbels of Wild Carrot, and the deep purple Knapweed. A closer look reveals the low growing Birds Foot Trefoil both yellow and orange, the lilac Field Scabious is interspersed, and the occasional ‘frothy’ Lady’s Bedstraw in yellow. This plant being the foodplant for the Bloody-nosed Beetles which can be seen trundling through the vegetation.
It's currently peak Glow-worm season, so a wander through here at night, and you couldn’t miss these their fluorescent green glow.
I head on the downs to check on the cows, meandering through the Blackthorn decorated with ripening Sloes. As the grassland opens, my ears are filled with whirring Grasshoppers. I pass a patch of Gorse filled with Goldfinch, and noisy Stonechats. Old Man’s Beard clambering over the thorny branches and beginning to flower. Butterflies flutter ahead of me, Red Admiral, Gatekeeper, and Wall Brown.
The volunteer bird ringers are ringing a Garden Warbler as I say hello. It’s pretty plain looking, with no distinct features, though Ian reports can be identified by it’s chubbiness. It’s one of five caught this morning, alongside good numbers of Willow Warbler and Chiffchaff.