Leicester Literary and Philosophical Society

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Natural History Section Logo with a picture of a badger's head  Natural History Section

  • 26 Sep 2024 17:15 | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Panoramic view of grassland with the Turkey Oak in the centre.

    Russell led us round the old Western Park Golf Course, which is on the edge of the city and crosses the boundary into the county. It is home to a number of exotic trees, but the highlight is the Turkey Oak (Quercus cerris), which our measurements of the girth indicated to be over 200 years old.

    Members of the group measuring the girth of the Turkey Oak.

    Measuring the girth of the Turkey Oak (Quercus cerris)

    We found a wide variety of flowering plants, and Russell added 18 vascular plant records to his City flora database.

    We expected to see more butterflies, but they were very few, though bugs and beetles were found on trees and other foliage.

    Small black caterpillar like larva on an alder leaf.Red and black bug on the author's hand.

    Alder Leaf Beetle larva ( Agelastica alni) and  Cinnamon Bug (Corizus hyoscyami)

    It was also a good site for leaf mines and plant galls, two of which are shown here.

    Robin's pincushion plant gall, a wispy growth on a wild rose.An oak apple gall, round and green on an oak.

    (Photos: Simon Bennett and Peter Smith)

  • 26 Sep 2024 16:25 | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Peter Smith writes:

    This 200-acre country park on the edge of Hinckley was formerly a golf course so it has a large pond and its fair share of exotic trees.  However, its real glory is the extensive area of meadows.  The grasses were in flower at the time of our visit so, as well as admiring them billow in the breeze, it was the perfect opportunity to test our ID skills.  The meadows also contained great drifts of Betony (Stachys officinalis) and we found a small patch of Sneezewort (Achillea ptarmica).

    Grass with purple flowers of betony and trees in the background. White flowers of sneezewort on grey-green stems.

    Betony (Stachys officinalis) and Sneezewort (Achillea ptarmica)

    We found a good range of invertebrates, of which the highlight had to be the rather beautiful Coppery Longhorn moth (Nemophora cupriacella).  This was only the second record for Leicestershire, the first having been found just three days earlier! 

    Three small red and black chinch bugs on a stem.

    European Chinchbugs (Ischnodemus sabuleti)

    A small Coppery longhorn moth with iridescent wings on a grass.

    Coppery Longhorn moth (Nemophora cupriacella)

    (Photos: Peter Smith, David Nicholls and Pouran Khodabaksh)

  • 12 Aug 2024 10:49 | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Photo of Common Spotted Orchids

    Peter Smith writes: 

    Thunderstorms and flash floods en route failed to deter our 13 members, who were rewarded with glorious weather for the afternoon's visit to one of the Leicestershire & Rutland Wildlife Trust's finest reserves.  The earlier rain probably did put off some of the more unusual butterflies but we recorded the first Marbled White (Melanargia galathea) of the season, as well as a selection of moths and other invertebrates. 

    As a former limestone quarry, the site hosts an array of lime-loving plants that are less familiar to those of us living around Leicester, including Viper's Bugloss (Echium vulgare), Yellow-wort (Blackstonia perfoliata), Dwarf Thistle (Cirsium acaule) and Fairy Flax (Linum catharticum).  Orchids were also in full flower, namely, Bee Orchid (Ophrys apifera), Common Twayblade (Neottia ovata) and hundreds of Common Spotted Orchids (Dactylorhiza fuchsii).

    Photo of Viper's BuglossPhoto of Common Shell Moth

    Viper's Bugloss (Echium vulgare) and Yellow Shell Moth (Camptogramma bilineata)

    Photo of Bee OrchidPhoto of Common Spotted Orchids

    Bee Orchid (Ophrys apifera) and Common Spotted Orchids (Dactylorhiza fuchsii)

    Photo of Quaking GrassPhoto of beetle, Cryptocephalus cf. aureolus (possibly C. hypochaeridis

    Quaking Grass (Briza media) and Cryptocephalus cf. aureolus (possibly C. hypochaeridis but it's much less common)

    (All Photos - Peter Smith)

  • 7 Jun 2024 08:52 | Anonymous member (Administrator)

    Five of us visited Barnack with a focus on botany. The key plant of the site is Pasque Flower (Pulsatilla vulgaris), which we found in many places across the reserve. Much of the reserve is fenced at this time of year to keep visitors from trampling the Pasque Flowers and three species of orchids: Man Orchid (Orchis anthropophora), Chalk Fragrant Orchid (Gymnadenia conopsea) and Pyramidal Orchid (Anacamptis pyramidalis). We saw the first two of these as well as Early Purple Orchids (Orchis mascula). Other interesting species included Hound's Tongue (Cynoglossum officinale), Bladder Campion (Silene vulgaris) and Purple Milk Vetch (Astragalus danica).


    Clockwise from top left. Pasque Flower (Pulsatilla vulgaris), Early Purple Orchid (Orchis mascula), Chalk Fragrant Orchid (Gymnadenia conopsea) and Man Orchid (Orchis anthropophora). (Photos - Simon Bennett)

    We recorded 36 species of flowering plant and saw or heard a variety of bird species.  A full report will be published in the Autumn 2024 Newsltter.

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