2.6.13
Staying in the West Midlands, the western side of the country opens up and the promise of new butterflies comes closer. So I did a little research, and found that the Wyre Forest has both Pearl-bordered Fritillary and Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary, two species I've never seen before.
So being the ideal time of year, we headed there and had a very nice walk in lovely weather. The woods are very beautiful, being quite hilly and having a stream running through. The bluebells were still out and in quite good condition here, and a very good spread in the main clearing. This main clearing, near the new butterfly trail which follows the route of the railway, is the main site for the PBFs, and we saw about 20 individuals at one time near the entrance, feeding on Bugle and basking, and occasionally performing a fluttering mating display on the ground. No SPBFs were spotted as far as I can tell.
Throughout the rest of the wood, we spotted individuals in three other smaller clearings. There were also many Speckled Yellow Moths flying throughout the wood, but curiously very few other butterflies. A few whites and one Speckled Wood were all that were seen.
Pearl-bordered Fritillary
Wyre Forest Bluebells
Mating display
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