Nightjars at Hazeley Heath

On Wednesday night we went out bird ringing on Hazeley Heath and caught 2 nightjars a male and a female. They are amazing birds. The male has a bright white patch at the tip of his wings for display. They have a huge mouth which they use to scoop up lots of insect when they fly around at night. They are ground nesting birds and completely rely on their camouflage for protection. The male we ringed last year which is great data as he has travelled all the way to Africa and back to Hazeley Heath to breed, hopefully for many more years to come.

Spotted Heath Orchid

Lots of Spotted Heath Orchids at Hazeley Heath by the boardwalk at the bottom :D

Southern Marsh Orchids

There is an amazing display of Southern Marsh Orchids at Elvetham Heath Nature Reserve near the M3 :D

Stag beetle at Fleet Pond

Yey the rangers just rescued this lovely male stag beetle from drowning in Fleet Pond :D

Forester moths out on Odiham Common

Found my first Forester moth of the year on Odiham Common at 8am this morning on Ragged Robin. These are very beutiful day flying emerald green moths. The Common is only one of two places in hampshire that they live.  Ranger Steve

Stag Beetle Larvae

We winched over this tree at Hartley Wintney Central Commons with the help of JDB who brought one of their old tractors to do the job. We did this because of health and safety reasons. This tree is really important for stag beetles and other creepy crawlies so we have left the tree as it is full of Stag Beetle larvae.

Bug hunting

Had a great evening with the 8th Fleet Brownies bug hunting at Fleet Pond. We were comparing species from 2 different habitats. The girls found lots of species including 2 wood ants nests and cinnabar moths :D