July

Bad weather & other commitments have kept me away from the countryside for a lot of this month. The few short trips out have been spur of the moment & without a plan. The only real exception was an afternoon at Collard hill on the Poldens, to try & see the rare large blue butterfly. Several were seen as they went about their business, but only one was brave enough to sit in front of my macro lens! Marbled whites, Ringlets, Small heath & Common blue were also present.

A trip to Bristol at the start of the month, allowed a short visit to Ashton court where these three fine gentlemen were grazing blissfully on a rare sunny afternoon.

The Avalon marshes continue to attract some good birds. Further to the Little Bittern which is still present at the time of writing, Bitterns can be seen in flight above the extensive reed beds with a little effort. Purple heron has put in a brief appearance & a Great white Egret has been present for most of the month. This vagrant from the Mediterranean & North Africa has been showing well on Meare heath, where i managed these distant shots, late one evening.

The Great white is almost the size of a Grey Heron & the first shot shows a good size comparison with a Little Egret.