Late Summer on Pevensey Levels

 Pevensey Levels is a wonderful place for seeking out dragonflies, damselflies and other interesting species. The landscape is predominantly agricultural, mainly livestock pasture with some crops but is criss-crossed with plenty of water ditches and channels which are havens for wildlife.

In the last couple of decades, new species have migrated across the English Channel from the European mainland, to take advantage of our warming climate in south-east England.

I first came across a colony of the Willow Emerald Damselfly (Chalcolestes viridis) in 2018 and it is now a well established resident across the levels.

In more recent years, the Green-eyed Hawker (Aeshna isosceles) and Southern Migrant Hawker (Aeshna affinis) have become more numerous on the levels.

Southern Migrant Hawker (Aeshna affinis) (males)

Migrant Hawker (Aeshna mixta) (males)

Willow Emerald Damselfly (Chalcolestes viridis)

(mating)

(tandem pair)

(male)

Southern Hawker (Aeshna cyanea) (female)

Common Darter (Sympetrum striolatum) (mating)

Fen Raft Spider (Dolomedes plantarius) (female devouring prey)

Wall (Lasiommata megera) (female)

More from the Woodland Edge

Although the summer species of woodland butterflies are looking rather tired and past there best, there is still plenty of interest to be found along the woodland edge at this time of year.

Holly Blue (Celastrina argiolus) (female)

Southern Hawker (Aeshna cyanea) (Immature male)

Willow Emerald Damselfly (Chalcolestes viridis) (male)

Ruddy Darter (Sympetrum sanguineum) (female)

Common Lizard (Lacerta vivipara)

Black-and-yellow Longhorn (Rutpela maculata)

Green Tiger Beetle (Cicindela campestris) (mating)

Scaeva selenitica (Hoverfly sp.)

Cinnamon Bug (Corizus hyoscyami)

Southern Wood Ant (Formica rufa)

Carrying material to nest.

Violet Helleborine (Epipactis purpurata)

An Autumnal Wealden Wood

 Autumn is a time of year when nature prepares itself for the coming winter. Deciduous trees start to shed their leaves and animals that go into hibernation will be feeding up in order to survive the winter months. If the weather is mild, there is still plenty of insect activity to be found and it can be a good time of year to look for caterpillars of several species as they reach maturity before wandering off to pupate.

Adder (Vipera berus) 

(male)

(melanistic male)

Migrant Hawker (Aeshna mixta) (male)

Southern Hawker (Aeshna cyanea) (male)

Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria) (male)

Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus) (female, form helice)

Birch Mocha (Cyclophora albipunctata) (larva on birch)

Pale Tussock (Calliteara pudibunda) (larva on sedge stem)

Hemichroa crocea (Sawfly sp.) (larvae on birch)

Pristiphora testacea (Sawfly sp.) (larvae on birch)

Another species of Sawfly larva (possibly Euura kirbyi) resting on sedge stem.

Southern Hawker Emergence

During the last week of June, whilst we were checking the acid pools of Ashdown Forest, Bob and I came across a female Southern Hawker (Aeshna cyanea) in the process of emerging from the nymph. The last photograph in the following sequence was of a different female cyanea found in another pool, with wings fully expanded.

 

 

Southern Hawker (Aeshna cyanea) (females emerging from nymph)

 

 

 

In May, I watched this male Hairy Dragonfly (Brachytron pratense) hawking along a hedgerow on Pevensey Levels. It caught a bee and then settled on an ivy bush to devour its prey.

 

 

Hairy Dragonfly (Brachytron pratense) (male devouring a bee)

 

 

The Small Red-eyed Damselfly (Erythromma viridulum) is a species that has rapidly colonised south-east England from the continent in recent years. Its smaller size and the blue 'saddle' under segment 8 of the abdomen are diagnostic in separating this species from the very similar Red-eyed Damselfly (Erythromma najas). Both species can be found in similar habitats and the male in the following image was photographed at a Wealden pond during the second week of August.

 

 

Small Red-eyed Damselfly (Erythromma viridulum) (male)



Gravel Scrapes and Acid Pool Margins

At the start of the week, Carol and I set off for Rye Levels to check on life in the gravel scrapes and ditches. I knew that we were probably a little late to see Marsh Helleborines at their best and so it proved to be the case with only one plant still sporting a few fading flowers. Star species of the day was the Marsh Frog (Rana ridibunda) several of which were basking amongst the weed in the ditches.

 

 

Marsh Frog (Rana ridibunda)     

 

On Wednesday, I met up with Bob on Ashdown Forest to search some of the acid pool margins that are hidden away in the heathland, to see what might be emerging. These pools rarely disappoint.

 

Raft Spider (Dolomedes fimbriatus).

 

 This seven-legged individual is displaying what I consider to be fairly typical fimbriatus markings (in comparison to D. plantarius) with a pronounced orange cardiac mark down the centre of the abdomen and with broad, well defined white bands along the abdomen sides. However, you can get quite similarly marked individuals of plantarius and less well marked specimens of fimbriatus which can be very confusing!

 

Black Darter (Sympetrum danae) (male)

Black Darter (S.danae) (teneral female)

Southern Hawker (Aeshna cyanea) (freshly emerged female) 

 

Brown China-mark (Elophila nymphaeata)