Flowers, Insects and Fish at NT Oxburgh Hall, Norfolk

The weather was set fare on Saturday so we took a picnic lunch to NT Oxburgh Hall in Norfolk.

It was good to see more signs of spring, including this Arum Lily and...

...these lovely primroses.

There were a number of 7-spot Ladybirds, mainly on the dry leaves. I guess some may have been emerging from their over-wintering layers.



Some were scuttling about or resting in the sunshine.



We ate our sandwiches by this flint churchyard wall where I noticed a Red Underwing (Catocala nupta) in 2016. Sadly we failed to find any moths this time.



This was the view over the wall, of which more in a moment.

I always enjoy seeing the Oxburgh Hangings, stitched by Mary Queen of Scots and Bess of Hardwick, but on this occasion the spring weather kept us largely out of doors (though we did visit the tea room and secondhand bookshop).

I noticed this log-bench by the path in the woodland area, and thought what a brilliant bit of recycling. I could do with one of these benches in our own garden!

We could see these beehives in the area near the orchard. If you don't keep bees or have space for a hive, you might like these Green&Blue bee-bricks, which I read about on Instagram - or you might prefer to place an insect hotel in your home patch: my hotels have certainly been taken over by some grateful residents.

We heard a lot of munching in the stream and wondered if there could be a Water Vole. We stood and waited, but nothing actually appeared.

However, in another part of the stream, we noticed quite a few fish. I guess they are Sticklebacks, but my fish knowledge is negligible. I wondered if one was preparing to lay (or 'fan') some eggs. Unfortunately my camera failed to cope well with the underwater conditions...

The scene above brought back memories of the tiny BBC Springwatch hero from RSPB Minsmere, Spineless Si!

It is always a joy to find a Bee-fly. I must add this record to the recording list.



The 'summer house' by the stream, designed along the lines of an original that was used by Sir Henry Paston-Bedingfeld and his friends and relations, draws me every time.

On this occasion the summer house was empty so we were able to take up residence for a few minutes!

It was soon time to head to tea room for a slice of lemon and lime cake.

We decided to pay a quick visit to the church next door. There are extraordinary pink terracotta carvings in the chantry chapel.



You will note from the signs above and below that the village uses a different spelling from Oxburgh Hall.

village sign

Light was fading and it was time to head for home.

The Oxburgh Hall sundial

Excavation at NT Sutton Hoo (and a Damselfly, of course)

We decided to visit to NT Sutton Hoo again this afternoon before the heavy showers arrived, and we were so pleased that we did as we discovered it was the last day of an excavation, the first for almost three decades, which is being carried out by MOLA (see this link too). There was plenty of digging and panning going on, and we were able to see some Neolithic flints and Bronze Age potsherds that had come to light.

It was a strange afternoon, with short bursts of hot sun followed by humid swathes of grey cloud. There were plenty of people about but few insects. We noticed one very large orange and black sand wasp (like the Red-banded Sand Wasp here), but it was too fast for my camera. I see the linked website actually mentions Sutton Hoo as a location, so perhaps I am on the right ID track.

I presume these little holes in the area near the mounds were made by ants, wasps or some other 'digging' insect. 

What a lovely spot for an excavation! 

A new viewing tower is to be built in this area, but I was disappointed to find that there are no plans for a lift to make the feature more accessible.

 You can see just how sandy the soil is.

We had a good look around this area of the site before heading back towards Tranmer House (below).



I kept my eyes open for insects and eventually found (what I think may be) a Common Blue Damselfly on a leaf ...

On our way back to the exhibition area we paused to check the small patch given over to wild flowers...



There was a good-sized carpet of this yellow-green sedum: I'm not sure how 'wild' it is and I'm sure I know it by another name (update 4 June: the name I was trying to remember is Stonecrop). 

The dog rose below in the wild flower garden reminds me that June is already upon us. We bought a few bedding plants to brighten up our own garden on the way home, and hopefully to attract more insects. We checked again for bats this evening, but failed to see any. There was one Cockchafer/Stag Beetle floating around: it narrowly missed my hair!

Hole for a Vole?

Snowdrops and Crocus, St Mary's churchyard, Martlesham

Sunday afternoon was dark, wet and cold. We decided to go in search of a bit of colour in the form of the spring flowers that we guessed would be peaking in St Mary's churchyard. The area perches above Martlesham Creek and the River Deben, and has lovely views on a sunny day. The snowdrops were just past their best, but still giving a good show. The crocuses were a bit bedraggled by the rain, but the overall picture was one of beauty as you can see.

St Mary's is one of many churches in this area with flint-facings. Grimes Graves, the neolithic flint mine site, is a two-hour drive away or thereabouts, and a place we have often visited. You can read more about the use of flint in East Anglia in this EDP article here. 

There had been rather a lot of rain. At one point, in among the purple crocus heads...

... we found a single golden flower.

There were a few primroses, looking a bit the worst for wear, but nonetheless a joy to see on a dreary afternoon.

David stopped me in my tracks at this point with a quick nudge. 

I looked and there peeping out of this hole just in front of a gravestone,

30 cm from the church path, was a round rodent head with beady eyes. 

Sadly it retreated the (split-)second it saw us. 

We stood back and waited for a while, but it did not reappear. 

I took a quick photo with my zoom lens and we left the little creature in peace.

I looked up rodent holes on the web once we were back home, 

and I suspect the rodent was a vole.

The churchyard prides itself on its wildlife,

and since the birds were making themselves extremely scarce that day,

it was good to feel that we had seem something truly wild.

*

P.S. You can see a vole hole here.

For those undertaking a survey, 

a coin certainly helps to give a sense of scale,

if placed without causing a disturbance. 

Butterflies in the 'French Garden' at Oxburgh Hall, Norfolk

Summer is my favourite season at NT Oxburgh Hall because the gardens are not only a blaze of complementary colours but are also alive with beautiful butterflies. This was the view of the parterre, known as the 'French Garden', on Bank Holiday Monday.

The Marigolds were looking good...

... and the Heliotrope had almost tripled its normal size. You can probably just see how much taller it is than the Marigolds.

And yes, there were butterflies! It was terrific to see good numbers of Small Tortoiseshell.

Frustratingly for the photographer, most of these beautiful creatures kept their wings closed when they were not airborne ...



... most, that is, but not all.

I included this photograph because it shows the flame-coloured flowers of the Canna Lilies in the centre. The parterre was laid out in 1848 and follows a design from an early 18th century publication.

This is the view in the other direction.

Sadly I didn't see a single Painted Lady: normally there are quite a few on the Heliotrope. However, there were a few Small Whites, nectaring in the sunshine.

The Honey Bee below was also hard at work.



The Herbaceous Border along the wall usually attracts a good number of Peacock and Red Admiral butterflies. This year I saw a few Small Whites, but only a single Red Admiral. The flowers were magnificent.

This was the lone Red Admiral...

There were a few dragonflies in the air but few of them landed. The one below, however, perched on a branch near the churchyard wall for much of the time we were eating our picnic.

And here is the wall in question, a beautiful flint wall, with nooks and crannies for insects. Last time we found what we believe is a Red Underwing moth resting on it.

With an array of pumpkins in the vegetable garden, it was hard not to think that the summer is ebbing away...

Oxburgh Hall is a beautiful place to visit, with its moat, gardens and exquisite Oxburgh (needlework) hangings (do click the link and take a look at this excellent post from Agnes Ashe). I wasn't able to go inside the hall on this occasion, but I usually make a beeline for the hangings. These were undertaken by Mary Queen of Scots, Bess of Hardwick and a few ladies-in-waiting: I particularly like the 'frogge' and the dolphin.



It had been a busy Bank Holiday afternoon, but this was the tranquil scene we left behind at 5pm. 

P.S. Inspired by the butterfly books I have been reading (mentioned here in a previous post), I have decided to look through my photos to see how many UK species I have photographed since I began taking digital images. I'm guessing there will be about twelve species, but it will be interesting to find out. It will take some time to scroll through my photo library, particularly since I have not been as efficient at tagging as I should have been!