OK, fair enough, this wasn't at Bradgate Park but its a nice photo I took out in Malaysia.. The tiger is an animal on the brink of extinction. As an animal it requires humans to leave it alone, to leave its food alone, to leave its habitat alone. It is specialised to an environment without humans. This specialism will unfortunately result in its extinction. The only animals that will survive the great human extinction will be those that can take advantage of our pathetic attempts to manage the land. Those creatures that can carry on in spite of our best efforts to kill the world will inherit "our" earth.We like parks. We preserve parks because they have a use to us. The animals that survive at Bradgate Park will survive our time. Having looked at the mammals, the larger flying species and those species that inhabit the "grasszone" I will turn the attention of this blog to the flutterby population.
This is a Small Heath butterfly (Coenonympha pamphilus). Though not particularly rare this has a butterfly conservation priority of high. Yet it has made its home in the short grasses of Bradgate Park. I took this picture whilst trying to find an adder. I suppose though this species is not as iconic, it is rarer.
This is a Small Heath butterfly (Coenonympha pamphilus). Though not particularly rare this has a butterfly conservation priority of high. Yet it has made its home in the short grasses of Bradgate Park. I took this picture whilst trying to find an adder. I suppose though this species is not as iconic, it is rarer. 
This is a Speckled Wood butterfly (Pararge aegeria) that I saw at Watermead recently. It was the first time I had knowingly seen one of these, so I was quite happy. It is strange that as soon as you have identified one, you then spot them everywhere. 
This cheeky chappy is a Small Skipper (Thymelicus sylvestris) that I also saw down on the meadows of Watermead Country Park. Unlike a lot of butterflies he didn't seem put off by the presence of the camera. Often, butterflies take off when you get too close, but this chap didn't mind one bit. 
The final butterfly of the day is this Ringlet butterfly (Aphantopus hyperantus) that I saw down on the Grand Union Canal. I didn't know what it was at first and had to use Wild About Britain to get it identified. Having now seen and identified theses butterflies I now almost see them everywhere.
I did see some wildlife on the way. This Common Wasp (Vespula vulgaris) caught my eye as it slowly chewed at this style. Wasps like this chew soft wood and transport the pulp to their nest, which itself is made from a paper like substance. What this wasp is doing is sourcing the raw materials for its nest.
I also saw a few of these pretty Gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus) butterflies. This really is butterfly season. I do like butterflies that are a more gentle looking, and less striking. If you were wondering why butterflies have eye spots then think about what kind of animals have a pair of eyes that look forward at you.
