Explore the diverse flora and fauna on the Downs from season to season through personal observations and photographs

Friday, 1 May 2026

The month of May began with the hottest day of the year so far and the grass on the Downs ...

Saturday, 2 May 2026

Yet another warm sunny day and hardly a breath of wind. The Brimstone butterflies were out by the dozen, but ...

Monday, 4 May 2026

A warm but very overcast day. Not a single butterfly seen in almost 3 hours. In fact not too much ...

Tuesday, 5 May 2026

A bit more sunshine today, so the butterflies are back, but not many. Just a handful of Brimstone, Speckled Wood, ...

Friday, 8 May 2026

A rather cloudy afternoon and a much-shortened timeframe for my walk today. I stuck to a route that kept me ...

Tuesday, 12 May 2026

Despite it being a warm, sunny day with only light winds there were still not many butterflies to be seen ...

Friday, 15 May 2026

A largely overcast, cool day with a fresh breeze, not boding too well for insects on the wing. Nor did ...

Saturday, 16 May 2026

With weather conditions the same as yesterday I was again expecting to see very few insects on the wing. Unsurprisingly ...

Monday, 18 May 2026

Rain was forecast for lunchtime, so I headed for the Downs early. Perhaps too early. Another cool morning, largely cloudy ...

Thursday, 21 May 2026

A much hotter day today, increasingly sunny through the morning, but still very windy. While still not present in large ...

Friday, 22 May 2026

A much hotter day today, which even as I started my walk was already close to being the hottest day ...

Saturday, 23 May 2026

With the temperature already hitting 20°C by 09:00, I returned from my walk today around the time I’d normally be ...