BRECKLAND: Cranwich lunchtime leafminers

13th October 2018

Whilst most of the Lynford attendees either went to a nearby restaurant for lunch or pottered around the car park, Stewart and I visited Cranwich Camp for a working lunch. The aim was to see some scarce poplar leaf mines, and we were successful, seeing Ectoedemia hannerovella in hybrid Black Poplar then Ectoedemia turbidella and Phyllonorycter comparella in Grey Poplar.

 Ectoedemia hannerovella

 Ectoedemia turbidella

 Phyllonorycter comparella

Having checked lots of sorrel leaves for the red spiral-like mines of Enteucha acetosae, we found one presumably aborted and slightly phallic mine. Stewart pointed out a case on Yarrow made by Coleophora argentula and I noticed some Coleophora feeding signs on Common Rock-rose that turned out to be Coleophora potentillae.

 Enteucha acetosae

 Coleophora argentula

 Coleophora potentillae feeding signs

 Coleophora potentillae case

A quick walk down the track turned up a couple of naturalised garden throwouts, Virginia Creeper and Cotoneaster simonsii. That concluded a very productive lunch break - there was even time to eat some food too. Thanks as ever to Stewart for sharing his knowledge and finding skills.

BRECKLAND: Weeting Castle & Cranwich Camp

30th July 2016

After leaving Brandon Country Park we headed back into Norfolk. I wanted to look for a couple of scarce breckland plants, but firstly we diverted down a small track at Weeting to visit the remians of Weeting Castle. Like several Norfolk 'castles' this one was actually a stately home with a moat, but nonetheless it made a pleasant diversion.

After looking at the ruins we carried on to Cranwich Camp, an area of dry grassland managed by the NWT. The first (and rarest) plant I wanted to see was Proliferous Pink, and I found one almost straight away near the car parking area. Later on I found some more out on the camp, although it was starting to go over. We walked around one edge to look for the second plant, Spanish Catchfly, but at first couldn't find any. There was a range of other interesting plants, including Wild Thyme and Restharrow. Re-tracing our steps we headed off along the other edge. I had been looking for a rare micro-moth, Powdered Grass Veneer, and having spotted one I then looked round and found that it had led me to an area of Spanish Catchfly. 

 Proliferous Pink

 Spanish Catchfly

Although the plants were the main objects of my searching, I was also looking for Marbled Clover moths. There were lots of macro moths on the knapweed particularly, but most were 6-spot Burnets and the rest were Ear Moths, the latter a bit odd for diurnal observations. The meadow area looked good for invertebrates too, but my casual glance gave up just the one new species, the bug Calocoris roseomaculatus. I did keep an eye out for Smooth Rupturewort too, but I think that it is actually found at a nearby area called Cranwich Heath rather than Cranwich Camp.