Otmoor & Aston Rowant

Still playing catch up on the blog at the moment!

I was at a loose end for much of Saturday 28/07 and so for part of the day at least, I planned to give both Otmoor and Aston Rowant nature reserves ago in search of a few scarce butterfly species.

I arrived at Otmoor mid-morning, in broken sunshine/cloud and a heavy breeze. I wandered straight up along the old Roman Road to search for Brown Hairstreaks, the fifth and final Hairstreak species of the year to emerge. It would also complete the set for me for 2018.

Conditions were not ideal, but I will never forget seeing my first ever Brown Hairstreak here, in far worse weather five years ago. I spent a good hour and half in this general area, finding a few common butterfly species, including one or two Purple Hairstreak. A showy Migrant Hawker dragonfly also posed nicely.



While I failed to connect with any Brown Hairstreaks, I was pointed out a surprise female Purple Emperor by an enthusiastic young lad also looking for Hairstreaks with his Dad. I put the word out about it, but unfortunately some of the Otmoor regulars arrived too late as after a good 25 minutes, the Emperor cruised off, up and over the adjacent oak trees. Apparently the 3rd or 4th for the reserve so pretty damn notable!





With the sun behind some cloud, I wandered round to the cattle pens, hoping to find a Turtle Dove and I did indeed get some brief views of one in some nearby Blackthorn, before it flew. A very ominous cloud was looming rapidly from the west and so I marched back to the car for shelter, just making it back before the heavens opened. That put pay to finding any butterflies anytime soon, so I left for Aston Rowant, in the hope the weather would be a touch better.



I arrived at Aston Rowant around lunchtime and made my way down from the car park, to the flower-filled hillside. Despite a continued stiff breeze, the sun was shining and I was quickly enjoying stacks of butterflies on the wing. Chalkhill Blues were floating about in great numbers, some looking pretty fresh, while others looking very much past their best!





I was surprised to connect with a late-ish Dark-Green Fritillary as an added bonus too, flitting from thistle to thistle, although it quickly vanished into thin air, before I could get a photo.

A small warm brown-coloured butterfly flicked up from the path, soon alighting on a nearby flower. The first Silver-spotted Skipper of the day! They're great little things and certainly one of the more interesting of the skipper family. It had been a good 3 years since I last saw one so it was cool to become reacquainted once again!







I probably saw around 50 Silver-Spotted Skippers in total by the end, nearly all a nightmare to keep tabs on as they zoomed about the steep hillside. Later on though, as a bit of cloud appeared, I did find a few more docile ones, including a couple that seemed more than happy to wander onto my hand, as well as pretty fresh Chalkhill Blue too.





There were a few other species about, but it was mainly quality over quantity. There were lots of Common Blues & Meadow Browns, pretty much everywhere. Brown Argus were numerous too, many of which were amazingly small, pretty much Small Blue size! 

Having had my fix and with my calves starting to protest against me traipsing up and down the steep hillside, I hopped back in the car and headed for home.