Scabious Days

A Small Copper looking a bit tattered after weeks on the wing

Devils-bit Scabious flowers late in the summer producing blue pin-cushion like flowers rich in nectar and much loved by insects. It grows best in poor, moist and slightly acid soils and Crow Wood is perfect. We have an area beside one of the tracks where the flower grows very well and over the years it has spread to make quite a clump. The legends have it that the plant has this curious name because its roots end abruptly as though bitten off by the devil......why the devil is going about his/her business biting roots is less clear but then we live in more critical times and its a memorable name for a fine plant.  When the sun came out this week the flower heads in this patch were covered in insects - bees, wasps, hoverflies and butterflies. Our heather is also flowering and the honey bees were making the most of the pollen, hopefully converting it into more honey in the hives.

As the summer season draws towards its end there are fewer butterflies on the wing and those that are around are beginning to look a bit tatty. Its been a good butterfly year so far with plenty of sunshine so hopefully they will have done well.

A Large White feeding on the Scabious

The Scabious patch in full flower

A hoverfly tucks in

And a Honey Bee, you can see the pollen on its leg sacs

An unknown species of Sawfly pretending to be a wasp

A Meadow Brown Butterfly

Speckled Woods are still on the wing, they have a long flight season