12 September 2021

 

I have played on each of the courses over the last few days.  All are looking good, particularly with the heather in full bloom on the Green and Red course.

Common Heather Calluna vulgaris [15th Red]

A few more trees fruiting, including this crab apple at the back of the 6th Green.

Crab Apple Malus sylvestris [6th Green]

There are lots of Black-headed Gulls on the fairways at the moment - earthworms are an important food source for them, hence their attraction to the short grass.  Earlier in the week there were large numbers of gulls above the reservoir feeding on a flock of flying ants that had taken to flight in the hot weather.

Black-headed Gull [2nd Red]

Black-headed and Lesser Black-backed Gulls [Reservoir]

Butterflies and dragonflies are still around in good numbers.  There were a couple of Brimstone butterflies on the Doghouse range earlier in the week and plenty of Common Darters.

Common Brimstone Gonepteryx rhamni [Doghouse range]

Common Darter Sympetrum striolatum [Doghouse range]

23 August 2021

 Two main areas of note on the course at the moment - the fruiting trees and shrubs and the number of dragonflies, particularly around the ponds.  Blackberries are the most numerous fruit, but in various places there are also plums, raspberries, damsels, snowberries, elderberries and sloes.  Snowberries are poisonous (to humans at least), but the rest are edible.

Wild Plum Prunus domestica [Doghouse range]

Bramble Rubus fruticosus [13th Blue]

Snowberry Symphoricarpos albus [Doghouse range]

Elderberry Sambucus nigra [Doghouse range]

The most numerous dragonflies at the moment seem to be Southern Hawkers.  There are lots down by the ponds on the Blue course, but they could turn up anywhere.  This one was on a gorse bush by the 18th Blue.

Southern Hawker Aeshna cyanea [18th Blue]

There are also a couple of reddish dragonflies around.  Common Hawkers are abundant around all of the courses.  I found this Ruddy Darter by the 6th on the Blue.

Ruddy Darter Sympetrum sanguineum [6th Blue]

Common Darter Sympetrum striolatum [Doghouse range]

29 July 2021

First time that I have been up to the club for a week or so after travelling to various golf events with Luke.  There were a couple of new dragonflies about.  The first is a Common Darter, which is fairly common around the course at the moment.

Common Darter Sympetrum striolatum [12th Blue]

The second is a Banded Demoiselle, which has a characteristic dark patch in the middle of its wings.  There were quite a few in the stream along the 2nd on the Blue.

Banded Demoiselle Calopteryx splendens [2nd Blue]

In Boundary Fen I came across this enormous caterpillar.  If all goes well it will turn into an Elephant Hawk Moth.

Elephant Hawk Moth Deilephila elpenor [Boundary Fen]

The heather on the Red and Green courses is starting to flower.  If you look closely you will see two different types.  Common Heather is the most abundant, but mixed in with this there is some Bell Heather, with somewhat larger bell shaped flowers.

Common Heather Calluna vulgaris [15th Red]

Gatekeeper Pyronia tithonus on Bell Heather Erica cineria [15th Red]

Other flowers around the course at the moment include:

Water Mint Mentha aquatica [3rd Blue]

Harebells Campanula rotundifolia [4th Red]

Purple Loosetrife Lythrum salicaria [9th Blue]

Square-stalked St. John's-wort Hypericum tetrapterum [18th Red]

There are also numerous small birds around the course at the moment, enjoying the large numbers of flies. I spent some time around the 3rd on the Blue with the course closed for maintenance and the area behind the green was teeming with Blue Tits, Great Tits, Long-tailed Tits, Chaffinches, Treecreepers, various warblers and at least 4 Spotted Flycatchers.

Spotted Flycatcher [3rd Blue]

Chiffchaff [3rd Blue]

Whitethroat [15th Red]