The
SuffolkArgus
encountered one of our "target species" the Small Blue, in reasonable numbers, also having pointed out to us, a single egg laid on Kidney Vetch. Hoped for sightings of the Duke of Burgundy did not materialise, these having emerged early this particular year. Other species seen during our visit were:- Dingy Skipper, Brown Argus, Common Blue, Small Heath, Green Hairstreak, Small Copper, Speckled Wood and a solitary Marsh Fritillary, seen by only a few people at the conclusion of our walk. Our thanks go to the members of the Gloucestershire Branch for making this an extremely enjoyable morning. After a rather hurried picnic lunch made necessary by the need to get to our final destination on time, the majority of our party once again set off in convoy and duly arrived at Somerford Common, approx. ten miles south of Cirencester. We were met by the warden, John Grierson, who is also the Chairman of the Wiltshire Branch and who was to be our guide for the afternoon. A few of our early arrivals greeted us with the news that they had already seen several Marsh Fritillaries in a grassy area adjacent to the car park. Somerford Common, situated in the Braydon Forest, is owned by the Forestry Commission and managed as a working woodland by Forest Enterprise. In the early 1960's the whole wood was cleared and replanted with fast growing conifers, thus restricting much of the flora and butterfly species to the system of rides. Now Forest Enterprise take active measures such as widening the rides to provide a recommended environment for those species at risk. Advice on managing it for butterflies is provided by a group corn prising representatives from the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, Butterfly Conservation (Wiltshire Branch) and the local officer of the British Trust for
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July 1998
f Small Blue, Bill SmyllieReserve by BerylJohnson Conservation Volunteers. The group work on the basis of a butterfly management plan written by Dr. Martin Warren. During our tour the following were noted:- Grizzled Skipper, Small Copper, Marsh Fritillary, Pearl-bordered Fritillary, Common Blue, Large Skipper, Small Heath, Green-veined White, Peacock, Orange Tip, and Speckled Wood. We were also shown, by John, a single egg of the Brown Hairstreak, laid on Blackthorn near the junction of a one and two year old growth. Many thanks to John for giving up his Sunday afternoon on our behalf and for giving us a detailed explanation of the management plan for the Common. This now brought our rather hectic weekend to a close, the general opinion being that it had all been a success. Our party then dispersed, some to stay on in the area and others to return home via the delights of the M4 and M25! I would like to acknowledge using various items of information from the following publications:- Guide to Monkwood Nature Reserve, Butterfly Conservation Nature Reserves and the Bill Smyllie Reserve, Annual Report on Somerford Common 1996.
More observations about the Speckled Wood by Steven Goss I was interested to read the observations reported by James Mann in the last edition of the Argus about the female Speckled Wood Pararge aegeria that apparently shunned the advances of a male by appearing to have died! It is well known that the Speckled Wood is a very territorial species. It will mark its territory, usually a patch of sunlit ground, and defend it from other males. It knows it is more likely to attract a female to a sunlit area, and when a female arrives it will approach her in the fashion that James described. As the sun moves, so does the area of ground lit by the sun, and thus a male will find himself constantly having to re-mark the territory he wishes to hold. A bout twenty five years ago I carried out a series of experiments in a wood in Hampshire whereby I introduced marked males and females into existing territories to see what happened. I also introduced pretend butterflies made from paper and attached to fishing line which I tried to make 'dance'in a similar fashion to the males whilst I was perched precariously up a tree above. Great fun!
Unfortunately I cannot find my detailed notes, although I do remember the pretend ones were investigated on occasions but quickly ignored. However, there is no doubt that the male observed by James was attempting to mate. The female will typically land in a sunny spot and the male will land nearby and approach her. The female will then either fly away, in which case the male is out of luck, or will sit or lie motionless. The male will then perform an elaborate display in front of her, which includes the apparent prodding of her with his antennae as decribed by James. By now he will be releasing pheromones which tell the female what a fine partner he would make, and be receiving similar information about the state of the female. One of the purposes of my experiments all those years ago when I was about 16 years old, was to try and ascertain whether the male produced a pheromonetype chemical to repel other males during the courtship and mating process. Exactly why the pair that James observed did not mate is impossible to say ... perhaps they knew they were being watched!! (.
• SpeckledWood . by Angie Steele
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