New Ferry Butterfly Park doesn’t open until 12, so we pottered about in Port Sunlight in the morning. We always walk through the Dell, looking at the trees there. Uncommon ones include a Brewer Spruce, a Honey Locust, a Manchurian Cherry and a Dove Tree (= Handkerchief tree), the last two confirmed by app. We hoped to see the Tulip trees in flower, but all they bore were these young seed heads or cones. I thought they flowered for longer.
After lunch in the Rose Garden we crossed Bebington Road and headed up the path at the back of Bebington station car park. A Buddleia on the corner had Red Admirals and Meadow Browns, while blackberries were ripening and young white hazel nuts were forming. The sun came out and it became quite hot. The pond was full of Common Blue damselflies, and a single dragonfly was patrolling up and down. It was a male Broad-bodied Chaser (the females are brown, the males are blue).
The site was chosen for its poor soil, then it was planted with all the food plants of our native butterflies, on the principle of “If you build it, they will come.” And so they have. The best butterfly of the day was a Hummingbird Hawkmoth on red Valerian, very busy and active. (I have a collection of “missed it!” photographs). We also saw a Green-veined White, many Large Whites and Meadow Browns, and this rather worn Gatekeeper.
There are paths mowed through meadows, with signs not to stray off them to avoid damaging other phases of the butterfly life cycle. There was a row of Alder bUckthorns (food plant of the Brimstone) and this lovely Honeysuckle in another hedge.
Common Red Soldier Beetles were everywhere. The Wildlife Trust says laconically “The adults spend much of their short, summer lives mating, and can often be seen in pairs.”
There was a clump of Mistletoe on an apple tree near the pond and two others further along, two on apple trees and the one near the far end on a Hawthorn tree. I had once been told that THAT one was an exotic, perhaps an African mistletoe, but it came up as plain European mistletoe on Alan’s app.
Also on Red Valerian were these two Small Skippers. They might have been a male-female pair, but it’s hard to see the significant wing-stripes on this picture.
The train we returned on was packed to the doors with cyclists, their bikes and supporters, all returning from the Liverpool to Chester charity bike ride. We swapped trains at the next station and waited for the next one, which had started at Ellesmere Port and so was nearly empty, with plenty of seats.
Public transport details: Train from Central towards Chester at 10.15, arriving Port Sunlight station at 10.30. Returned from Bebington station at 2.09, then on the 2.14 from Rock Ferry, arriving Liverpool at 2.29.
Next week we are visiting several open private gardens near Southport under the National Garden Scheme. Meet Central Station about 10.15 for the 10.32 train to Southport, arriving Hillside around 11.10.
Anyone is welcome to come out with the Sunday Group. It is not strictly part of the MNA, although it has several overlapping members. We go out by public transport to local parks, woods and nature reserves all over Merseyside, and occasionally further afield. We are mostly pensioners, so the day is free on our bus passes, and we enjoy fresh air, a laugh and a joke, a slow amble in pleasant surroundings and sometimes we even look at the wildlife!
If you want to join a Sunday Group walk, pack lunch, a flask, waterproofs, binoculars if you have them, a waterproof pad to sit on if we have to have lunch on the grass or a wet bench (A garden kneeler? A newspaper in a plastic bag?), and wear stout shoes or walking boots. We are usually back in Liverpool City Centre by 3pm at the latest.
If you are interested in the wildlife of the north-west of England and would like to join the walks and coach trips run by the Merseyside Naturalists’ Association, see the main MNA website www.mnapage.info for details of our programme and how to join us.