Ghana Butterflies

After much online research and some help from a butterfly guide who works for Ashanti I have finally been able to put a name to all the butterflies we saw in Ghana back in November/December. 

Ghana was excellent for butterflies and we saw loads. Especially good spots were the Bobiri Butterfly Sanctuary and especially the Atewa Range where we were blown away by the variety, many of them quite spectacular. Ashanti run specialised butterfly tours to the country and I can see why. 

Here are the ones I managed to photograph and id. 

                                                                                                                             Blue Diamed

                                                                                                                          Dark Blue Pansy

                                                                                                                               Soldier Pansy

                                                                                                                          Common Ringlet

                                                                                                                                      Plain Tiger

                                                                                                                         Ussher's Palla

                                                                                                                            Light Bush Brown

                                                                                                         Western Yellow-banded Swallowtail

                                                                                                                         Gussfeldt's Ginger White

                                                                                                              Broad-banded Green Swallowtail

                                                                                                                        Forest Glade Nymph

                                                                                                                                Forest Admiral

                                                                                                                       Common Red Glider

                                                                                                                              Small Orange Dancer

                                                                                                                              Western Blue Beauty

                                                                                                                              Common Commodore

                                                                                                        Common White-banded Swallowtail

                                                                                                                        Common Fairy Hairstreak

                                                                                                                        Veronica Nymph

                                                                                                                        Forest Caper White

                                                                                                                            Blood Red Glider

                                                                                                                            Cambridge Vagrant

                                                                                                                           Alicnoe Bermatistes

                                                                                                                              Mocker Swallowtail

                                                                                                                               Widespread Forester

                                                                                                                                     Various!

                                                                                                                              African Map Butterfly

                                                                                                                         Veined Swallowtail

                                                                               Long-tailed Striped Swallowtail and Spotted Hairtail

                                                                                                                              Sabine Albatross
 

Arched Earthstar, Geastrum fornicatum near Norwich, 7 February 2024

Acting on a tip off from a friend I popped along to a location just south of Norwich this afternoon to see a new species of fungus for me - Arched Earthstar.

I knew the spot well having seen another rare earthstar Geastrum britannicum there a couple of years ago. Growing under a large old Yew tree (typical habitat) I found them in exactly the same place and without too much trouble counted 17 in varying states.

  

Three species of Snowdrop, 3 February 2024

On our way to a day walking in the Covehithe/Benacre area I called in at a spot I've known for many years. Here, within just a few meters of each other 3 different species of snowdrops grow. These are Greater Snowdrop, Common Snowdrop and Green Snowdrop. Within the first and second species there is also a good variety of forms making it an interesting place to visit. Early Crocus there was also a nice bonus. 

On Benacre Broad later in the day 5 Goldeneye (2 drakes) and a big count of 120 Gadwall were the highlights together with 3 Marsh Harriers, Stonechat and 3 Ringed Plovers while a flock of 80 Skylarks and 120 Linnets were in clifftop stubble near Beach Farm.

                                                                                                                           Greater Snowdrops

                                                                                                                                 Green Snowdrop

                                                                                                                               Early Crocus
   

Lovely Lichens!

With the winter blues in full swing (not my favourite time of year!) and most aspects of the natural world dormant I have started to look at lichens for some light relief. Visits to 2 local churchyards recently (Shimpling and Tibbenham) while out walking have proved happy hunting grounds and I have been surprisingly impressed with the variety and the colours. The id's of some have proved a good learning process too as I am very much a novice, albeit a keen one! 

Shimpling produced Variospora flavescens, Limestone Orange Lichen (Xanthoria calcicola), Dark Brown Speck Lichen (Verrucaria nigrescens), Field Rim-lichen (Lecanora campetris), Brown Rim-lichen (Lecanora chlarotera), Lecanora albescens, Stonewall Rim-lichen (Lecanora muralis), Flavoplaca ruderum and Crenulate Rim-lichen (Lecanora crenulata) 

Tibbenham produced Variospora aurantia, Common Orange Lichen (Xanthoria parietina), Calogaya pusilla, Circinaria calcarea, Haematomma ochroleucum, Field Rim-lichen (Lecanora campestris) and Diploicia canescens.

Macro photography really helps bring out the tiny details and colours of these fascinating organisms which I hope shows in these photographs. They are ordered in the same order as the text above.