White form of Saw-wort (Serratula tinctoria) amongst plenty of the usual pink/purple. North Dorset. @dorsetflora.bsky.social @bsbibotany.bsky.social
Wren Franklin
@wrenfranklin.bsky.social
Habitat creation and management. Butterflies, moths, plants, water beetles, cows. A simple rural life in Dorset.
Harvesting Common spotted orchid seed amongst numerous 2nd brood Common blue this morning in the the Blackmoor Vale. @savebutterflies.bsky.social @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social
Pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium) looking resplendent in full flower as the pond water disappears from around it. North Dorset. @dorsetflora.bsky.social @bsbibotany.bsky.social
Sneezewort and Marsh mallow looking good despite the drought in north Dorset today. @bsbibotany.bsky.social @dorsetflora.bsky.social
Started to survey Marsh fritillary larval webs today. This site had 42 webs last year. In 1.5 hours today, I found 50 in about .5ha, BUT the food plants are really suffering from drought - mostly crispy already. What are the ramifications? @martinswarren.bsky.social @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social
Dyers greenweed (Genista tinctoria) seed harvesting today, pods just starting to pop. 3 hours in the greenhouse and things are getting explosive. Without the mesh cover we would come back to a seed covered floor! Future Green hairstreak food. @bsbibotany.bsky.social @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social
Joined at morning coffee by a Small tortoiseshell. Far from common in the garden these days. I love the tiger pattern on the leading edge of the fore wing. @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social
Back in the spring of this year, I posted about carpets of Oak seedlings following the 2025 mast year. Most are now not faring well against drought and mildew.
Today, I led a @dorsetflora.bsky.social field meeting to record plants on some unrecorded chalk grassland in north Dorset. 111 species, 27 Dorset notables. At some points the butterflies stole the show! Thanks @jostephen.bsky.social for your help.
Seeds are beginning to come in. Yellow rattle, Kidney vetch and Cowslip. Easy conditions for harvest with all this dry, calm weather.
A couple of interesting observations from north Dorset today - many Purple, White-letter and Brown hairstreak down at flowers or other moisture sources. Second brood Dingy skipper out in number. @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social
Gatekeeper is having a super year in north Dorset. There must have been 50 on this bank, nectaring on wild marjoram. @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social
Weasel's snout (Misopates orontium) growing on my mums vegetable patch in north Dorset. @dorsetflora.bsky.social @bsbibotany.bsky.social
This Hummingbird hawk-moth has spent ages nectaring on Feild scabious in our garden over recent days. @dorsetmoths.bsky.social @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social
Another fascinating visit to the @durotrigesdig.bsky.social dig near Winterbourne Kingston. They are discovering so much about late iron age culture and the arrival of Roman people in Dorset. Thank you all for sharing what you are discovering. @bournemouthuni.bsky.social
The front garden meadow is reaching a high summer crescendo right now. These few square meters bring our family untold joy. @dorsetflora.bsky.social @bsbibotany.bsky.social @wildflowerhour.bsky.social
Met this magnificent Beech tree on Anglesey - a real monster. @ancienttreeforum.bsky.social @angleseyfloragroup.bsky.social
Back to work in north Dorset after a break and welcomed by a sea of Dyers greenweed (Genista tinctoria) @dorsetflora.bsky.social @bsbibotany.bsky.social
Early Marsh-orchid (Dactylorhiza incarnata) and Marsh helleborine (Epipactis palustris) from Newborough Warren today. The whole place is a botanical paradise. @bsbibotany.bsky.social
Newborough dunes and woods. Lots of botanical goodness, including Dune fescue (new to me). Big sky, big sand.
Inspiring morning at Hooke Park, where forestry meets architecture. Thanks to @woodlandheritage.bsky.social for organising the open day.
1st Clouded yellow of the year and masses of Peacock caterpillars - I can't remember a better year for these. @savebutterflies.bsky.social @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social
Brimstone caterpillars today, hanging out on mid-ribs of Alder buckthorn leaves. On the same bush there was evidence of parasitism too in the form of small black and white pupae where once there was a young caterpillar. @savebutterflies.bsky.social @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social
Moth trapping on the high chalk near Chettle yielded a couple of species I don't see in the clay vale. Pretty chalk carpet and Green arches. @dorsetmoths.bsky.social @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social
Small blue laying eggs on Kidney vetch in newly created habitat. Seed was sown directly onto a raw chalk path. Build it and they will come! @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social
Brown day - 1st Meadow brown of the year and the first Small heath seen on this site in north Dorset since 2018! @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social
Bacon and eggs. Common bird's-foot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus). Insect powerhouse - somewhere in the region of 120 insect species rely on it for nectar, pollen, foliage, seeds and sap. Often found lurking in lawns, awaiting reprieve from the mower to raise its flowery head.
