Spring2007
Tk~.SuffolkArgus
Safety Code As with any other activity, there are
hazards in the countryside and everyone takingpart in a Field Tripor Work Party has a responsibility (duty of care), for their own safety ~,and that of others. We try bardto ensure thatour Events present no greater hazardthan any other walkin the countryside, but please note and act on the following: ■
Wear appropriate clothing and footwear. If there are unusual requirements, these are noted in the individual trip details. Stout shoes are a minimum requirement for any walk.
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During the main summer season you may be exposed to strong sunshine for much or all of the walk. Take a har, use sun cream or protection for exposed skin. Make sure that you have adequate food and liquid to drink with you. Equally, sunshine can easily turn to cold and rain during the day. Be prepared.
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The leader will provide a briefing on the trip before setting out, with details of any known particular hazards, and will also give advice on what to do in an emergency. Please listen carefully.
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LargeWhite byDouglasHammersley ■
Children are welcome on our walks, but if under 16 must be accompanied by at least one adult for two children. It is the responsibility of the accompanying adult(s) to ensure that the trip is within the children's ability.
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Dogs are normally welcome on walks, but must be kept under control. Any exceptions are shown in the individual trip details.
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If you are uncertain about any details of the trip, ring the leader/contact in advance. There is always a telephone number given with the trip details.
At the briefing, please let the leader know if you have a mobile telephone and are able to take it with you on the walk,or if you have First Aid qualifications.
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If you decide to leave the event early, tell the leader.
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Joining the walk is an indication of your interest in butterflies. By their nature butterflies do not remain conveniently by the main path and will offer many opportunities (temptations) for you to wander away.Take particular care to look out for hazards - rabbit holes, fallen or hanging branches, barbed wire, boggyareas etc. Beware of wet grass, particularly on sloping ground.
Take care at all times, but ENJOY YOURSELE
ourselves engrossed amongst the buddleias, apprehended a passing female and proceeded to marjorams and knapweeds thriving on a rough repeatedly swoop beneath her in characteristic bank by a redundant lime kiln chimney. The courtship flight. common Vanessids, with the exception of small We broke for lunch in Brockham lime pit. tortoishell which was to remain puzzlingly absent High· above us flew a pair of peregrine falcons and for the duration, were all quickly accounted for we strained, even with binoculars, to watch as they the highlight being a number of pristine peacocks. landed on a precipitous ledge at the top of a sheer A few minutes later and the neat profiles of brown cliff face. Around us common blues and brown argus had been discerned amongst the common argus nectared. Occasionally, a silver-spotted blues, small skippers differentiated from Essex. skipper would also pause on a flower, instantly The terrain around Betchworth has been dosing its seemingly spring-loaded wings to reveal shaped by recent human activity to a much greater two jagged arcs of crystalline markings set into the extent than that along the better known underside. Below our vantage point, marbled lepidopterists' trailbetween Gomshall and Dorking. whites and ringlets worked the regenerating Accordingly; we paused next in the lee of a long excavation channels. bank now recolonised after yearsof landfill. Here, We nosed around the various microdimates the lustrous wingsof freshly-emergedsmall coppers formed by these shallow workings for a while after were noted amongst the shorter grasses. A few lunch. Small heaths were detected amongst the metres away, two silver-washed fritillaries were skippers and then, to much greater excitement, a nectaring from the upper fronds of a buddleia. Approaching Brockham, we diverted from the main path to check an old working comprising areas of extremely dose-cropped turf compartmentalised by scrub. Appropriately, the day's first silver-spotted skipper was recorded here - its frenetic flight and crash landings on to chalk scree so difficult to follow until it was temporarily sedated by buddleia nectar and could be observed more readily. Such is the quality and diversity of the habitat around Dorking, in excess of twenty five species may be seen on a July walk and fully recording the common butterflies consequently assumes considerable importance. It was therefore something of a relief to uncover green-veined whites and a skulking large skipper amongst the long grassesbordering Brockham lime pit. For a few moments these two species took precedence over a number of silverwashed fritillaries which again had been ~~ attracted by buddleia. The balance was ,ol=<d, h=<, whro• m,i, &;tilluy (
SmallCopperEtSmallHeath by BerylJohnson 8
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