Brown Hairstreak Bulletin 119
Dear Brownhairstreakers,
When I sent out the previous e-bulletin, in October, the 2015 flight season had just finished and the winter egg searching was about to commence. Well, I think it’s safe to say that the results of this searching have so far been slightly disappointing, with numbers at most sites (that we search on an annual basis), being down on previous years. There are though a few exceptions to this trend, most notably at Trench Wood and the Shurnock area.
At Trench Wood, if you remember, most of the eggs found the previous winter (which had been tagged in order to flag them up so they wouldn’t be accidentally cut-off during management work) were stolen. As there weren’t that many eggs there to start with, we were concerned that this loss could have caused significant damage to the fragile colony there. However, much to everyone’s surprise, egg numbers this winter were UP, substantially! 123 versus only 24 last winter (and 60 in 2013/14).
The other site to see a substantial increase is the area around Shurnock Court. We are indebted to Geoff Thompson for his tireless searching there and he has so far turned up a quite sensational 98 eggs on the Wheating Hill sector, which is again substantially up on last winter. Shurnock continues to defy all logic regarding what is generally accepted to be ideal habitat for the Brown Hairstreak, and finding nearly a hundred eggs on what is effectively an exposed and windswept hill is nothing short of amazing.
Over the last two Thursdays we have been attempting to implement the new egg monitoring methodology, devised by Head Office. It’s long been recognized that trying to establish long term trends for the Brown Hairstreak, using the normal methods of analysing transect data of adult sightings, is a hopeless task for this species of butterfly. This is mainly due to the difficulties involved in actually sighting the adults and hence the almost complete lack of transect data. Head Office have therefore come up with a new method, broadly based on recorded egg data instead. Our introduction into this new way of doing things, over the last two weeks, has largely been successful, and we have established several hedgerow routes at Bishampton, Abberton, and Kington, which we will now be monitoring each year.
On this coming Saturday – 23rd January - we’ll be meeting at Grafton Church at 10am, for the final installment of our annual three Grafton searches. Having found relatively few eggs on our previous two searches there, outside of the wood, we’re hoping to find many more, inside the wood. Extensive, excellent management work has taken place over the last few years in the wood, opening it up and coppicing old Blackthorn stands, and this has made it much more suitable for the Brown Hairstreak to breed inside. Numbers of eggs found there have been steadily increasing over this time, so we’re (confidently!!) expecting to see a further increase again this winter. Everyone is welcome and it is always a fun time with the opportunity to meet other members of the ‘Brown Hairstreak clan’!
In addition, we meet almost every Thursday, again at Grafton Church at 10am, to carry out weekly egg searches of the wider Worcs countryside, including Redditch, and again, all are welcome but best to let me know in advance if you are planning to attend as we usually move on from the church.
Most of you, I’m sure, will have heard about the new butterfly book that West Mids BC are producing, and that’s on target to be published in April. If you pre-order before 1st April you’ll get £5 of the full price. Please see the following flyer (and order via): www.naturebureau.co.uk/bookshop/butterflies-west-mids-detail
Finally, a reminder of the regular work parties that take place in Grafton Wood. Conservation days are held virtually every week, on a Wednesday, and once a month on the second Sunday of each month. Further details are available from reserve manager: John Tilt If you can help, it will be very much appreciated.
www.westmidlands-butterflies.org.uk
https://graftonwood.wordpress.com/
Brown Hairstreak Species Champion,
West Midlands Butterfly Conservation