Chris Lansdell's Birding & Nature Diary

A new orchid hybrid for Britain!? 8 June 2018

Well, today may have turned out to be a bit of a red letter day - it looks like I have found a new orchid hybrid that hasn't occured in the UK before!
A photo of the specimen is shown below. It is an Early Marsh Orchid which shows mixed features between the ssp ochroleuca and the ssp incarnata. Both of which grow within a few feet of this plant. The overall whiteness with a hint of yellowy-cream, the 3-lobed lip and the structure all resemble ochroleuca but the pink markings on the flower and the pink wash on the upper sepal hint at the incarnata.

Early Marsh Orchid ochroleuca x incarnata

Also in the same spot I found 5 ochroleuca Early Marsh Orchids, a few incarnata Early Marsh Orchids, Southern Marsh Orchid, Common Spotted Orchid and loads of Marsh Helleborines in bud.

Early Marsh Orchid ssp ochroleuca

Southern Marsh Orchid

Earlier I had called in at a roadside site near Finningham where there were 9 Bee Orchid plants including one showing mixed characteristics between the forms chlorantha and flavescens.

Bee Orchid, form chlorantha/flavescens

Bee Orchid

My final visit of the afternoon was 'The Sink' Redgrave and Lopham Fen which was odonata heaven! Wellies are absolutely essential here but I had mine with me so went for splosh about finding 2 Ruddy Darters, 1 Hairy Dragonfy, Four-spotted Chasers, a few Scarce Emerald Damselflies, a few Emerald Damselflies, Blue-tailed Damselfly and Azure Damselflies. Although I had to seek id help a Two-banded Wasp-hoverfly (Chrysotoxum bicinctum) was a new one for me.

Ruddy Darter

Scarce Emerald Damselflies

Emerald Damselfly

Hairy Dragonfly

Two-banded Wasp-hoverfly

'ochroleuca' Early Marsh Orchid - the rarest of all? 5 June 2018

We are lucky enough to have arguably the rarest of all UK orchids growing at it's only UK site which isn't a million miles away.
I visit the site every year and this year I took Andrew Johan De Klerk with me as he was keen to see some British orchids. And what a one to be your first - the creamy white and gorgeous 'ochroleuca' ssp of Early Marsh Orchid!
Sadly though, I was only able to find 2 plants this year despite there apparantly being several more 'in bud' on 29 May. I have since discovered another small population in a different location at the same site which shall forever remain hush!
Also there were Southern Marsh Orchid (inluding one of the schoenophila ssp), Common Spotted Orchid, Common Butterwort, Yellow Rattle, Marsh Lousewort and Ragged Robin.
Nearby at another site I spent a little time marvelling at a range of dact hybrids, some of which were rather impressive. A Barn Owl was also hunting there and a Cuckoo calling.

The next evening a Red Kite sailed over the garden in Pulham Market at 18.30 - a new garden bird!

'ochroleuca' Early Marsh Orchids

Southern Marsh Orchid ssp schoenophila

Yellow Rattle

Southern Marsh x Common Spotted hybrid, a gorgeous plant!

Norfolk tick - Moltoni's Warbler, Blakeney Point, 3 June 2018

News of this mega (although predicted) bird broke the previous day but when I got the call from Jus I was deep into Suffolk and heading in the wrong direction. So I chanced it, continued with my plans for the day and hoped for some positive news the following morning.

Luckily there was early news so I grabbed my stuff, drove up to Cley and prepared myself for the nightmare walk/slog! And it was every bit as horrible as I remembered but at least the Little Terns on the way were a welcome distraction, not to mention a yeartick . Reaching halfway house I switched over to the beach side and thankfully the going was much easier. I reached the small crowd by the old lifeboat station to the news that it has effectively gone missing and virtually everyone there was standing around chatting. A Reed Warbler was showing every now and again but not the bird we all wanted! Eventually, a few sharp words from another birder shut them up. Then another birder stood next to me decided to give it a quick blast of playback. The male Moltoni's Warbler didn't exactly respond but that did at least seem to wake it up and within a few minutes I had some views. Those views got gradually longer and better over the next 30 minutes as it moved through a bank of brambles. A quite a distinctive bird it was being noticably pale on both the grey upperparts and the buffy-orange underparts with a rather indistinct whitish malar stripe. A brown wash to the remiges indictaed that it was probably a 1st year male.
A county tick at last! My first since autumn 2016 with 2017 drawing a complete blank.
A quick look in the plantation revealed a Spotted Flycatcher, my 3rd new bird for the year of the walk. The return yomp was uneventful but just long, boring and tiring! Along the way I also saw Small Copper, Small Heath and several Common Blues while plants included Sea Spurge, Sea Holly, Yellow Horned Poppy, Foxglove, Tree Lupin and Sea Campion.

Moltoni's Warbler twitch

Sea Spurge

A quick look at Beeston Common next revealed 'pulchella' Early Marsh Orchids, Southern Marsh Orchid, Heath Spotted Orchid, Common Spotted Orchid and a spot-on example of what we once called Pugsley's Marsh Orchid but which are now regarded as ssp 'schoenophila' of Southern Marsh.

Southern Marsh Orchid, ssp schoenophila

For the 2nd time in recent years I then drew a blank with coccinea Early Marsh Orchid at Overstand and I now believe the colony must have died out.

Yearlist = 213

An Orchid roadtrip through Suffolk and Cambs, 2 June 2018

Despite the wet start to the day it had started to clear up by late morning so I took to the road to clear up a few orchids I've not seen yet this year.

First stop was a roadside nature reserve where I counted 73 Man Orchid flowering spikes. Most were starting to go over but there were still some nice ones too.

Next up was a private site where, after a long walk I easily located plenty of nice Fly Orchids together with 18 Greater Butterfly Orchids and 2 Bee Orchids. In the same clearing were a Brown Argus, 2 Common Blues, 1 Small Heath, numerous Burnet Companion moths and a bizarre-looking Giant Ichneumon looking like a large black dragonfly with a really long ovipositor! A mixed-singing Willow Warbler/Chiffchaff was also there plus Garden Warbler, 2 Common Buzzards and dozens of Speckled Woods and a Large White

Finally I headed west into Cambs where some White Helleborines were easily found in a beech wood. A nice surprise there was a singing Corn Bunting, new for the year.

Yearlist = 210

Man Orchid

Fly Orchids

Greater Butterfly Orchids

Burnet Companion

Bee Orchid

Small Heath

White Helleborines

Chilling in the meadow! 1 June 2018

My local wildflower meadow is one of my favourite places to go when I need some peace and quiet and my nature 'fix'. It also has the benefit of being botanically very good!

This afternoon I spent a relaxing hour or so there and was pleased to see Suffolk's only Frog Orchids are now up. I counted 12 plants but there are no doubt more. As usual both 'red' and 'green' forms were present. Wandering about, most of the Green-winged Orchids are now well past their best but one was enhanced by a Mother Shipton moth which alighted on it briefly! A blue female Common Blue posed nicely for my camera and then I located a single Common Twayblade which I've never seen at the site before. A Yellowhammer sang and as I was leaving a Grey Partridge flew from the roadside.

Mother Shipton on Green-winged Orchid

Common Blue, female of the blue form

Common Twayblade

Frog Orchids

Green-winged Orchid, var. alba

A splosh around on Buxton Heath, 31 May 2018

With a little spare time after chores and a visit to see Mum and Dad I ventured out to Buxton Heath for the first time in ages.

I concentrated my efforts in the wet valley finding loads of 'pulchella' Early Marsh Orchids, a confusing array of hybrids (again!), Common Spotted Orchid and eventually a couple of Heath Spotted Orchids. While sploshing about I chanced upon a couple of early emerging Keeled Skimmers, a male Broad-bodied Chaser and several Four-spotted Chasers plus Common Blue butterfly, Latticed Heath moths and a Common Butterwort.