While having to stay off social media as a Natural England employee during the election period, the trail continued to change as flowers bloomed then died and invertebrate species came in waves. Just as I got used to seeing one species, the seasons march on and new ones take their place.
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| Brimstone Caterpillar |
The ducks are starting to look a little shabby as they loose their mating plumage, and the grebe pair
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| Garden Moth Caterpillar |
that had been nesting just off the viewing platform, have successfully hatched their chick who now rides around on their back. The terns have settled onto their raft and there are now around 25 nesting pairs, some of whom already have chicks. Sadly this is about half as many as previous years but whether this is due to cold winds keeping them away in Spring or simply a natural population fluctuation, it is hard to say. The black-headed gull pair nesting in the corner of the raft now have three fluffy, speckled chicks which are sweet to see but worry the wardens. While they were incubating the terns and gulls seemed to tolerate each other - the gulls may have even benefitted the terns by helping to keep predators at bay. But now the eggs have hatched there could be trouble on the raft; a tern chick for the gulls makes for an appetising meal.
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| Blue-Tailed Damselfly |
When I first came to the Broad my favourite group of organisms was mammals and while I still feel a lot of love and appreciation for them, working on the trail has opened my eyes to the world of insects. Not only are they fascinating to watch and identify but I've been amazed by how much there is to see if you take your time to look. One group I've taken particular interest in being able to identify are bumblebees - you may notice some of the worker bees seem to be quite small, we think this is to the cold Spring stalling their development. Apart from several white tailed bees which are very difficult to differentiate without very close inspection, most bumblebee species have distinct banding on their abdomen and thorax. As the weather warms they are moving faster and resting less so it can be hard to get a good look but the bright colours of damselflies and dragonflies are easier to identify at a glance, and they've been out in full force along the dykes. While I've been seeing fewer large red damselflies the azure population is still strong and the red-eyed damsels can still be seen flitting about the lily pads as they find mates and lay their eggs off the edge of lily pads. The dragonflies emerged later than the damsels and the black tailed skimmers are currently the most common with the Norfolk hawker a close second in most likely to see due to its impressive size; one of the largest in the country. Seeing them patrolling Larkbush Dyke and fight for dominance has been impressive but nothing compares to the excitement of seeing a freshly emerged dragonfly drying out on a grass stem next to the staff mooring. Unable to fly until their wings have harden they remain perfectly still so is the perfect
opportunity to admire them close up, though they are very soft and vulnerable at this stage. The scene does look a little alien though as the brown nymph exoskeleton they've just emerged from sits just underneath them like a second head. Later, when the dragonfly had moved on, I collected the exuvia to treasure along with the photo.
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Newly emerged Dragonfly, not pigmented at
this stage they're difficult to ID but is most
likely a Black-Tailed Skimmer.
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One change I'll admit to being a little disappointed in is the movement of spiders. Earlier in the spring Dolomedes spiders - a genera of running spiders who actively hunt rather than spin webs - could be found all along the moorings, basking on leaves. But now the temperatures have risen even more and I can only assume it's become too hot for them there as they've all disappeared. Instead they've been replaced by the banded demoiselle damselfly and the occasional black-tailed skimmer. While a lot of people find the 8 legs and 8 eyes unnerving I've always found them interesting and enjoyed having so many individuals so willing to sit and be inspected by a curious human. I do still see the zebra jumping spider who hunts around the hut quite regularly, and seems to be as fascinated by me as I am by him, but with the important job of feeding to be getting on with they never stay still for long.
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Dolomedes spider, moved from the moorings
to appear outside the hut.
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| Drinker Moth caterpillar |
In most plants that line the boardwalk there are countless beetles, caterpillars and flies to find - the guelder rose has been voraciously eaten by the green larva of sawflies; predatory flies often mistaken for wasps. However there are many more that only come out at night such as moths; another group that has always been a favourite of mine. My colleague set out the moth trap the night before so I was lucky enough to try my hand at moth identification. Novice though my skills may be I ID'd 13 different species, all but two of which I'm fairly confident in my identification. Though I did have the help of my colleague who pointed me in the right direction in terms of Family so I didn't have to search the entire book which, for the micro-moths especially, was pretty daunting. Some were coming to the end of their time on this Earth and were looking quite raged and dull, but all were beautiful to look at, especially the Buff-tip who is an impressive twig mimic. Unfortunately moth trapping can't be done too regularly as when the moths are attracted to the white boards of the light trap they become much more visible and vulnerable to birds who, if the traps are put out regularly, may learn to recognise it as an easy source of food.
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Buff-Tip Moth, both the markings and the conical
way it holds its wings help it blend in as part of the branch.
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As well as improving my ID skills and learning about the wet woodland habitat, I've also improved my public speaking skills, become more confident greeting the visitors to the trail and found that my preconceptions about nature have changed. I'd always thought that while there are so many interesting species out there the chances of seeing any was very small. However I've seen so many species I never expected to ever encounter in person; such as my first real life osprey who'd stopped to feed before flying on to his breeding area, and a ruby-tailed wasp which is a brilliant red and blue, metallic wasp that predates on mining bees much like the cuckoo. Now I've noticed a change in perspective when I'm walking through any green area and I rarely miss a chance to have a look for what can be found in the vegetation lining the path.
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One of two Cock Chafers; large fruit eating beetles
who'd also been caught by our light trap
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