Barkby Holt, a new stomping ground

I've been looking at it on the map for quite a while wondering what it was like. Barkby Holt appears as a large slab of woodland surrounded by agricultural land. What interesting things would we find if we went there? I didn't know, so we decided to go.

Progress was difficult but we got as far as we could, all things considered, so we got as far as the entrance to the wood and had to turn back. Standing there at the entrance we got a glimpse of some of the treasures within. This is my species list so far for Barkby Holt.


Butterflies and moths
Painted Lady - Vanessa cardui
Holy Blue - Celastrina argiolus
Common Pyralid Moth - Udea lutealis

Insects
Ground beetle - Harpalus sp



Lets take a closer look then.

This, believe it or not, is the first Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui) I have ever seen. Surprising since they are quite common. This year is supposed to be a bumper year for this creature but so far, I have not seen any. This creature has flown from the deserts of Africa to feed on our thistles. They must be good thistles!This is the first Holy Blue (Celastrina argiolus) that I have ever seen, so it really was a special occasion. The photo does not do it justice but the inside of its wings were a lovely vivid blue with dark black tips. Lovely.

I needed help identifying this one. It is a Common Pyralid Moth (Udea lutealis). I found it in the meadows feasting off the ragwort flowers. Its wings have pleats like a roll neck jumper. The final thing I noted is the menacing predator below. If you were a little creature you would run if you saw this coming. It is a Ground beetle (Harpalus sp) and I must say one of the best photos of one I have ever taken.

Animals that react to the bigascope

Most people that like watching wildlife generally do not want to disturb what they are looking at. Many nature seekers are filled with disgust when they come across some litter or witness an unchecked child being cruel to some small creature. A couple of years ago I saw this beautiful White Ermine moth (Spilosoma lubricipeda) down in Devon. I photographed it and looked at it closely for a little while. I marvelled at its beauty. It was astonishing, better than any work of art I had seen. Then a curiosity pushed me to give it a prod with my finger. I don't know why, but some primordial instinct drove me to touch the creature. Upon doing so the lovely little animal became startled and flew blindly into the dirty web of a house spider. Before I could do anything the large dark monster had engulfed its prey. I could see it injecting its liquefying poison into the creature that a couple of seconds before had been a priceless work of art. I felt bad. No, I felt awful. Nobody around me seemed to understand why I was so cut up about a spider eating a moth. But the point was, that I had caused it. Accidentally, yes, but it was me that made the moth fly. That horrible moment has stayed with me through the years.

Whilst out with the bigascope I always try to leave the creature I am studying undisturbed. Some creatures however seem to be aware of the great big lens from the sky that is now looking at them like some strange alien intelligence. The Speckled Bush-Cricket (Leptophyes punctatissima) above didn't seem to like the bigascope. Every time I moved closer, the cricket moved further away. The only time I could sneak up on the cricket was in its blind spot, directly behind him. So I have lots of footage of the crickets bottom, but not much else. On the other hand this slightly disturbed Ground beetle (Carabidae) is trying to find somewhere dark. For a ground beetle dark places means safe places. Whilst being filmed by the bigascope, the darkest place is in the direction of the bigascope and so the beetle chased the camera around my conservatory.