A slow walk through Cherry Lap Wood from one end to the other and then back to the car, which was parked opposite the gliding club, produced nothing on the Emperor front. Silver-washed Fritillaries, on the other hand, were everywhere and a good count of 60 (51 male, 7 female - one of which was valesina, and a mating pair) was soon amassed. These are clearly benefitting from the ride-widening, which has encouraged nectar sources of Marsh and Spear Thistles to flourish. Alas, only 1 Purple Hairstreak was seen at the top of an Ash tree.
I decided to go back through the wood and on across the field to Lady Wood. I had still drawn a blank until I reached the fork in the ride, just after the row of poplars, when I was delighted to record my first Purple Emperor of the year at 11:30. Here there were 3 males down on the ground, 2 of which stayed for a considerable time. The heat of the day was starting to kick in and so the Emperors' wings were firmy closed together; underside shots were the best I could hope for. Turning right at the fork, another 3 males were seen gliding over the tree-tops, 2 of which were sparring, and one a bit lower down, flying along the ride. As temperatures reached 28 degrees Centigrade, Emperor activity ceased and I failed to see any for exactly 2 hours from 12:41 to 14:41. I then met up with John Wiltshire and Brian Hicks and together we witnessed at least 3 male Emperors flying out of, and then roosting back up in, the large Cypress conifers. Bizarrely, the temperature in the shade of these large conifers was considerably cooler than in other shadier parts of the ride. Further male Emperors were seen, but only one more down on the ground at 16:13, seen by myself and John, as Brian had had to depart slightly earlier. My final tally for Lady Wood was 18 male Purple Emperors. Silver-washed Fritillary numbers were lower in Lady Wood with only 12 males being seen.
There then followed the long walk back to the car, across the field and back into Cherry Lap Wood. On entering Cherry Lap Wood, John and I saw our first male Emperor in this wood this year, but it just flew over the top of some large oaks, never to be seen again! We trudged back to the car and, with the car in sight, we packed our camera gear away. Fatal mistake! In the last 100 metres to the car there were 4 male Emperors down on the track, 2 of which we nearly stepped on. Thankfully we didn't and were able to get the cameras out for a few more photographs.
Final Score:
Cherry Lap
5 male Purple Emperors
Lady Wood
18 male Purple Emperors
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