Tetrad name: SU7822 West Heath Common (2km sq)
Near to: Rogate
Details: This square is right over in the west of the county. There's a pleasant walk in the bottom left part of the square which contains some interesting butterfly habitats alongside a sandy area which is being restored to heathland. I remember walking here about 5 years ago and seeing a lot of Woodlark.

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Tetrad name: SU7802 South Chidham (2km sq)
Near to: Southbourne
Details: A circular walk around the edge of Chichester Harbour and a visit to the village of Chidham would make a lovely spring or summer stroll. The village's name is derived from the Old English words ceod (meaning bag or pouch) and ham (meaning settlement), referring to the shape of the peninsula on which it is situated. You learn all sorts when your butterfly surveying. And while you're there pop into SU7804 too!

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Tetrad name: SU7804 North Chidham (2km sq)
Near to: Southbourne
Details: This area is accessible by train (Nutbourne station) and contains some pleasant walks around Chichester harbour- so some great birdwatching here too. Can be surveyed along with SU7802

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Tetrad name: SU8002 Bosham Quay (2km sq)
Near to: Bosham
Details: Another walk around the edge of Chichester Harbour. Not too many fotpaths through this square - but some nice country lanes. If you survey this square you'll have to cut through SU7802 too (see that square above)

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Tetrad name: TQ0404 Black Ditch (2km sq)
Near to: Poling / Rustington
Details: The name of this square sounds a bit like something out of Lord of the Rings - but if you live in this area we'd apreciate you checking out the square just south of the A27 as we have no records here at all.

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Tetrad name: TQ1032 Roman Woods (2km sq)
Near to: Slinfold
Details: Nice straight roads, footpaths, rivers, woods, ponds. Plenty of variety in this square. I can just smell the Purple Emperors!

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Saturday 11 August 2012

This square appealed due to the variety of habitat it offered and the fact that it had a large wooded area. I set out from Slinfold and, en route to the square itself crossed farmland and a small patch of wuzzy that, together, offered small numbers of Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown, Peacock, Ringlet, Red Admiral, Small Copper and Small White.
My route through the tetrad itself went from C to A, B and then D. Section C of the tetrad started out with farmland. This was not incredibly productive for butterflies, being set to crops or grazing for cattle. The cattle-grazed fields were heavy going as the mud had been turned over by the cattle and meant I had to watch my step carefully or risk a twisted ankle. However, these fields were broken up with narrow strips of woodland and eventually gave way to paved paths with verges that hosted many damselflies alongside several of our more common butterfly species (see list below).
Roman Woods itself (spanning sections A and B) is private land. I had to pass through a fishery to get to it and the lakes that look so appealing on an OS map are actually fishing lakes. It is a pleasant path alongside the lakes and I would love to have explored more but there are large "Private Property" and "No Public Access" notices all over the place to discourage walkers from straying from the public footpaths. The woods proper start just beyond the lakes and the public footpath that runs through them turned out to be wet, muddy and dark. It wasn't until TQ 111 336 that this changed. At this point the path widened and became sunny, making for a lovely walk back to the main road. This was definitely the most productive part of the walk for butterflies, they were everywhere. At one point I was treated to a fight between two Speckled Woods and at another point there was a tussle between a Brown Hawker dragonfly and a Silver-Washed Fritillary.
The rest of the route (section D) was back through the same sort of habitat in section C and offered very little in the way of butterflies with the exception of Gatekeepers and one Meadow Brown.
Butterfly tallies per tetrad section were as follows:
Section A
Gatekeeper 1
Holly Blue 1
Large White 1
Peacock 1
Silver-washed Fritillary 4
Small White 4
Speckled Wood 2

Section B
Gatekeeper 4
Large Skipper 3
Large White 1
Meadow Brown 1
Peacock 4
Ringlet 2 Small Skipper 3
Small White 2
Silver-washed Fritillary 14+
White Admiral 1

Section C
Comma 1
Gatekeeper 9
Large White 1
Meadow Brown 2
Small White 5

Section D
Gatekeeper 8
Meadow Brown 1 (Sherie New)

Tetrad name: TQ1412 Great Barn Farm (2km sq)
Near to: Chanctonbury Ring
Details: I can't believe that this square on the Downs hasn't been covered. There could be all-sorts in here. Opportunities for a nice walk and a car park too - what more do you want! The 2km squares to the north (TQ1414) and the east (TQ1612) need more records too if you fancy a longer walk.

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Saturday 4 August 2012

Today I covered sections A, C and D of this 'suitcase square'. The weather was mostly overcast but with sufficient beams of sunshine here and there to encourage some butterfly activity. Section A was a bit disappointing, yielding just 2 Meadow Browns and one Large White (no butterflies were seen on any garden buddleas along the route). Section C was a little better with 2 Meadow Browns, 4 Small Whites, 5 Gatekeepers and 3 Large Whites. Section D did best with 4 Meadow Browns, 3 Small Whites, 4 Large Whites, 8 Gatekeepers, 1 very faded Small Skipper and a beautiful fresh Wall Brown. The latter was a (very welcome) surprise visitor, having dropped to the path in front of me after a tussle with a Gatekeeper only to promptly move off again before I could train my camera on it. I must admit I'd hoped for Speckled Wood and Holly Blue but saw no sign of either. There is plenty of mature Ivy on this route so I'm a bit surprised at the lack of Holly Blue. It may have been down to the less than perfect weather. I have to confess I didn't make the ascent to the very edge of Chanctonbury and that could have yielded further species.
P.S. My division of Whites into Small and Large is mostly based on my estimation of their size so may not be terribly accurate. However, I saw some at close quarters and thought I could distinguish the species by the degree of black on the wing tips. I also thought I spotted a Green-veined White but cannot be sure as I didn't get a terribly good view of it. There are two or three small patches of Blackthorn and the odd Ash tree in section D which would be in full sun during the afternoon (assuming we see any 'full sun' during the rest of this summer!) so there may be potential for Brown Hairstreak.

Friday 10 August 2012

I went back to this area today to cover the small corner at the edge of Chanctonbury Ring in the hope of seeing a greater diversity of species. Unfortunately the only species I could add was a moth. I have tentatively identified this as the Wood Carpet. I have a pretty awful - little blighters would not let me get close and I'd left my long lens at home - photo to help confirm identification. Butterflies seen were Meadow Browns (lots), a couple of Small Whites and one Gatekeeper. There were a couple of Wall Browns on the path leading up to the Ring but this is not in the Great Barn Farm square so cannot be included. (Sherie New)

Tetrad name: TQ1816 Bines Green (2km sq)
Near to: Henfield
Details: We don't have many records from this square adjacent to Henfield where there are plenty of footpaths and some nice river walks alongside the Adur possible.

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Wednesday 25 July 2012

Ironically, I have visited part of this tetrad many times over the past few years walking the dogs by the River Adur. So on arguably the hottest day of the year an evening walk by the river was perfect.
At first thought the habitat here is not necessarily a first choice to look for butterflies. The river has more or less grazed pastureland on one side and the eastern side is an area which many times of the year is under flood water, sometimes many feet deep which is probably not ideal for grassland butterflies in whatever stage they may overwinter. In addition, nectaring sources are sparse along the river banks as these are also sometimes mown and or grazed by dairy cattle. However, it is a favourite spot of mine for finding Small Tortoiseshells as the tops of the river banks support lots of nettles. I initially walked down the footpath from Chates and turned south at the weir where the Adur divides.
Along this stretch in 1 Km square D. I counted 10 Red Admirals, 8 Small Tortoiseshells (many worn), 2 Small Whites, one pristine Small Copper, three Commas, Meadow Browns 2, Gatekeeper 1, and a pristine Peacock on thistles. I doubled back past the weir into 1 Km square B again along the river bank. In small patches of flowering brambles I started to see Gatekeepers as well as more Meadow Browns, again Red Admirals (2) and once again every so often a Small Tortoiseshell (4) holding a territory. Some of the Small Tortoiseshells intercepted the Red Admirals in dog fights. I then cam m across a solitary Marbled White which I am sure was just transient along the river bank. I did also start to see Small Skippers (5) fairly spread out along the top of the river bank. As the habitat was pretty much the same heading down to Betley Bridge on the Downslink I headed away from the river along a hedgerow. It was here that numbers of certain species increased considerably as Gatekeepers and Meadow Browns were significantly more numerous nectaring on bramble flowers. I also saw a nice Large White and another Small Copper yet two more Red Admirals and a worn Comma. On the way back I came across quite a lot of Banded Demoiselles starting to roost in the grass for the night behind a hedge. As I retraced my steps to Chates I headed for the biggest Oak along the footpath and at about 18.45 counted three Purple Hairstreaks (D) and two more Red Admirals. I had actually seen a lot more butterflies than I expected and the suitcase challenge certainly sharpens you up.
On a slightly different note I may also point out that although this seems a fairly innocuous part of the river there are actually monsters that live here. On a previous walk looking for Small Tortoiseshells (20.06.12), I found the remains of a dead pike on the river bank, nothing special you may say, until you look at the size of its head? I wish I had kept it, I bet it would have been good for attracting Purple Emperors.
Note. I can also confirm that in the square D a few weeks ago there were Speckled Woods at Chates and I have also submitted records for Brown Hairstreak eggs in squares D and B. (Richard Roebuck)

Tetrad name: TQ1618 Hobshort's Farm (2km sq)
Near to: Partridge Green
Details: Plenty of footpaths, fields and woods. We have a lot of Brown Hairstreak eggs in this area - but no records of adults or any other butterfly for that matter!

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Thursday 16 August 2012

This was a lovely tetrad to explore. I reached it via the South Downs link from Partridge Green and walked through farmland with golden fields, lots of hedges, an occasional patch of rough ground and a sprinkling of rather dark strips of woodland. There was a small pond at one point and I really enjoyed following alongside the (relatively) young-looking River Adur. Naturally, I had hopes of sighting a Brown Hairstreak but it was not to be. I reached the Downs Link at prime time (about 11.15am) and scanned the hedges both low and high but had no sightings. I did see some other species along this short section of the Downs Link though, including: Comma, Green-veined White, Meadow Brown, Speckled Wood, Small Tortoiseshell and Small White. I then took an anti-clockwise path through the various sections of the tetrad, starting with B and working through to A, C and D. The terrain in all the sections was pretty similar with the pond at TQ 18144 19838 and some nice-looking stands of Blackthorn at TQ 16590 19309, TQ 16288 19179, TQ 16356 18635, and TQ 17119 18739. These all got scanned for Brown Hairstreaks with no success but it was a bit breezy with some cloud from time to time and I could not spend long at any one location as I had some ground to cover so I guess conditions were not optimal. I think it would be worth another look if someone has the time and it is a nice walk (but beware the footpaths between Sands Farm and Eder Farm which have some difficult stretches of 6' bracken and nettle beds).

Sightings were as follows:
Section A
Gatekeeper 2
Meadow Brown 15
Peacock 1
Red Admiral 1

Section B
Comma 1
Gatekeeper 1
Meadow Brown 2
Speckled Wood 1
Small White 1

Section C
Gatekeeper 2
Meadow Brown 13

Section D
Gatekeeper 2
Green-veined White 1
Large White 1
Meadow Brown 3
Small White 2
(Sherie New)

Tetrad name: TQ2004 Shoreham-by-sea (2km sq)
Near to: Shoreham-by-sea
Details: Are you telling me that there are no Meadow Browns in Shoreham?! There must be one in here somewhere.

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Tuesday 24 July 2012

Ellie and I have taken advantage of the good weather to check out what's in our local patch. Here are the results:
Small Skipper - 8B
Large White - 2B
Small White - 7A 2D
Red Admiral - 1B 2A
Painted Lady - 1A
Gatekeeper - 4B
Meadow Brown - 5A 6B
That's it! (Helen & Ellie Corrigan)

Tetrad name: TQ2020 St. Hughes Monastery (2km sq)
Near to: Cowfold
Details: If it's peace and quiet you're after this square could be for you. This monastery south of Cowfold is in an un-recorded square and is the only post-Reformation Carthusian monastery in the United Kingdom. Why not get into the 'habit' of recording here and send in your records.

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Tuesday 19 June 2012

We walked through Michael's suitcase square TQ2020 (St Hughes Monastery near Cowfold) today. There are some quite nice meadows there but not much else to attract butterflies. Anyway, in 1-km square TQ2021 we saw 3 Small Heaths, 4 Meadow Browns and 1 Common Blue, in 1-km square TQ2020 we saw 1 Small Tortoiseshell and 1 Red Admiral, and in 1-km square TQ2120 we saw 6 Meadow Browns and 1 Speckled Wood. There is no pub in that tetrad so we had to extend the walk down to the Bull at Shermanbury for lunch. In 1-km square TQ2118 we saw 2 Meadow Browns and 2 Large Skippers, and in TQ2119 there was 1 Brimstone and 1 Speckled Wood. We tried our best today but there are potentially still plenty of species to be found in the St Hughes Monastery suitcase square! (Helen and Nick Crabtree)

Tetrad name: TQ2034 Faygate (2km sq)
Near to: Horsham
Details: Take a train to faygate station and take a walk around the paths and lanes here. The 2km squares to the north and west need help too!

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Tetrad name: TQ2222 Four little ducks (2km sq)
Near to: Cowfold
Details: It's eyes down for a full house in this square just east of Cowfold. There's plenty of footpaths here and if you want a 'line' then there is a great overhead cable that cuts through a wood. Typically these pylon glades support Fritillaries, White Admirals, Skippers and maybe a Purple Emperor. Bingo!

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Saturday 28 July 2012

I went to this Tetrad mid-afternoon it was warm but overcast and as a result there was little activity but I did find some promising areas. I parked in the centre of Cowfold stepped out of the car and a Holly Blue flew past. I then diced with death, walking down the A272 until I could reach the way sign into 1Km square C and then followed a bridleway seeing a few Gatekeepers on the way. The path then entered a wood which was fairly dark but on the edges I saw, Meadow Browns, a Peacock, a Red Admiral, and a Comma, Part way through the wood I reached an open area carved through the landscape by pylons. This was a good habitat for butterflies (potentially Brown Hairstreaks) but again activity was minimal. I saw two Large Whites nectaring on a thistle and a Peacock on the ground. Continuing up through the wood, I found another cleared piece of woodland that was now a small plantation with lots of flowers and a curious collection of Bedford trucks and other heavy equipment. I found more Meadow Browns and Gatekeepers and a few Small Skippers. The footpath re-entered the wood and crossed into the next square (A) until finally at the end I reached a large release pen and in the field beyond a Pigeon shooter. I decided to turn back not wishing to interrupt events. Having retraced my steps I only saw, a couple of Meadow Browns and a Comma in a small glade. There were however some large Goat willows, so you never know who else could be here. I followed another foot path which lead to the east of the wood and came across a large uncultivated grassy area. The sun finally emerged and there were lots of Gatekeepers, Meadow Browns and several Small Skippers. I also found one dead Marbled White obviously caught by a spider and then one nice individual on the wing. A Six-spot Burnet and a couple of Silver Ys were also seen. The fields in the surrounding area were either pasture or arable so I decided to call it a day and return to my perils walking along the busy A272. I am sure there is more to find in this tetrad in perhaps better conditions. (Richard Roebuck)

Tetrad name: TQ2404 Southwick (2km sq)
Near to: Southwick
Details: Nesting peregrines but no butterflies. At all. We don't have records from any butterflies in this square. If you live here please plant a buddlea and let us know what lands on it. Or take a summer stroll around the area and nose into other people's gardens. Any records would be appreciated.

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Tetrad name: TQ2426 Warninglid (2km sq)
Near to: Cuckfield
Details: Apparently the name Warninglid is believed to originate from two words meaning "Werna's Path" and the village has won the Best-Kept Village competition three times in the past 25 years - which probably means all those lovely rough bits of habitat that our wildlife needs have been neatly trimmed and manicured by small-minded, self-obsessed locals. Sounds horrible to me - but don't take my word for it - find us loads of butterflies here and prove me wrong!

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Friday 22 June 2012

I have been visiting suitcase square TQ2426 (Warninglid) every month for the last couple of years to count the birds at Slaugham Mill Pond, but although I must have seen butterflies there I haven't been recording them. Realising that this is an unrecorded square for butterflies, when I did my bird count today I was specially looking out for butterflies. It's a pity that the weather was less than ideal for butterflies! I thought I was going to draw a complete blank, but just south of Slaugham Mill Pond I finally spotted one Meadow Brown struggling against the wind, and then amazingly in Slaugham churchyard (the bottom bit is JUST in the square) I saw a ringlet amongst the orchids and other wildflowers surrounding the gravestones. Two species! Hopefully I'll have better luck when I return to do my July and August bird counts.

Wednesday 18 July 2012

I returned to the Warninglid suitcase square TQ2426 today to do my July bird count at Slaugham Mill Pond and of course to look for butterflies too. Last month I saw just one Meadow Brown and one Ringlet, so I was hoping to improve on this. In fact I doubled the number of species! Today I saw more Meadow Browns than I could count, one Ringlet, one Red Admiral and two Small Skippers. Not bad, considering the cool temperature and strong breeze! (Helen Crabtree)

Tetrad name: TQ2618 Sayers Common (2km sq)
Near to: Sayers Common
Details: A nice footpath network and some riverside walks near to the A24 - just be careful when crossing the dual carriageway

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Tetrad name: TQ3608 Loose Bottom (2km sq)
Near to: Brighton / Lewes
Details: Access may be tricky for this square off the A27 but once you're in there's plenty of nice downland in this area - and access too - so there's a good cahnce to meet up with a nice variety of chalk downland species. Could be nice to incorporate this square in a longer downland hike.

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Sunday 26 August 2012

I did the TQ3608 tetrad this morning starting with the C square. I should say that anybody looking for access to this land (Court farm) via Falmer village, is confronted with "Private-no public access" signs. I did manage to track down a friend (Mervyn Elwell) of the farmer (Eric Huxham) and he telephoned the farmer on my behalf to get permission for me to enter the site. I gave Mervyn my card and so I hope that he will pass on my details to the farmer because I would like to visit this location in the spring, when I'm sure there will be other butterfly species to record.
At the square C location I recorded the following species: Large White 5, Small White 5, Brown Argus 10 (a nice colony on the eastern side of Cranedean Plantation - where there is a lot of Dove's-foot Crane's-bill) Common Blue 4, Chalkhill Blue 5 (a tiny colony near Loose bottom) and were I photographed a newly emerged aberrant, something like the ab. postcaeca that we saw at the Gallops this year, although not identical. It has lost two thirds of the spots seen on the hindwing underside. I also recorded Holly Blue 2, Red Admiral 3, Small Tortoiseshell 5, Speckled Wood 1 and Meadow Browns 15.
In square D I recorded the following species Small Skipper 5 (near sheepfold) Brown Argus 1, Common Blue, Chalkhill Blue 15 (another larger colony) Red Admiral 1, Small Tortoiseshell 5, Peacock 1, Wall 1, Small Heath 1 and Meadow Brown 50+.
If I have time on another good day, I will try to do sub squares A & B.

Tuesday 28 August 2012

I visited the B section of TQ3608 today. This part of the tetrad is owned and farmed by Chris Rae. This is a slither of chalk grassland in this section that varies in quality along its length. The species recorded included Large White (4) Small White (1) Common Blue (3) Small Heath (1) Meadow Brown (100+). One large vanessid flew over the site but I could not identify it. Thats all we got for a 2 hour visit!

Friday 31 August 2012

On receiving David Taylor's contact details I was able to visit the last square in the TQ3608 tetrad.
However, I started first by looking at that part of Housedean Farm that I had not visited in the D section of the tetrad. Here I recorded Small White 6, Brown Argus 1, Common Blue 4 and Chalkhill Blue 2, Meadow Brown 50+ and Small Heath 1 but probably the best find of the day was a new colony of Adonis Blue. This colony is not very strong and I saw about 4 males over quite a large area. It would definitely benefit from more intensive grazing, restricting livestock to these specific areas.
I then walked into the section B of the tetrad to see the chalk cuttings where Michael, Clare and Crispin found the Adonis Blue colony on Thursday 23 August. This was an excellent find and for the past 18 years I have been passing this spot in the car, having been convinced it would be good early successional habitat for Adonis but never bothered to stop the car to find out. So well done the Crispin, Michael and Clare! The habitat is nearly perfect for Adonis, steep slopes make it difficult for much vegetation to get a foothold and so there is a lot of exposed chalk, allowing the butterflies to thermoregulate relatively easily. It has also got quite a high proportion of Horseshoe vetch. Another thing that I did notice on this site was Autumn-lady's tresses orchids (Spiranthes spiralis) a great addition to an already good location. The Adonis Blues were plentiful 50+ and a great deal of copulatory and ovipository behavior was taking place. In the grassland just above this colony I also saw Small Heath 1, Common Blue 1 and Holly Blue 1.
I then passed into the final section of this tetrad, section A. Habitat quality is minimal within this area and so I recorded a single Green-veined White, Meadow Browns 50+ and Small Whites 5. The later was so rare in the Big Butterfly Count this year that I spent quite a bit of time trying to photograph a copulating pair.
Overall, this was a very interesting exercise, I now know a lot more about the landscape, farmers and butterflies, on my very doorstep, than I did before I undertook this survey. I'm really pleased to have discovered Adonis and Chalkhill colonies so close to home. (Dan Danahar)

Tetrad name: TQ3426 Grange Farm (2km sq)
Near to: Lindfield / Haywards Heath
Details: I know at least one website editor who lives just a few feet from this square - so there's no excuse for us having hardly any records from this bit of Sussex. Hop to it Bob!

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Thursday 6 September 2012

This square is largely arable fields, some pasture and small patches of woodland all criss-crossed by hedgerows rich in blackthorn. Having been alerted by Terry Oliver's report from 31 August I set out in search of butterflies, and in particular, Brown Hairstreaks. After just a few minutes I couldn't believe my luck when one flew up from the top of a hedge on Buxshalls Hill. It landed again allowing a decent view through binoculars but when disturbed by a passing lorry headed straight up into a nearby ash tree. An excellent start I thought. I headed onwards along Hoad Lane, an ancient, seemingly long disused track bordered by high banks out of which grow huge beeches. It was very dark with just a few pools of bright sunshine reaching the floor one of which was home to my first Speckled Wood of the day. I deviated from the path briefely to examine the edge of field but didn't see a single butterfly.
Just over the boundary between sections B and A the path runs through a gate into what looks like someone's garden, neatly mown grass and clipped hedges on either side. A Holly Blue was patrolling the hedge by the gate, a couple more Speckled Woods were sunning themselves and a buddleia was playing host to a pristine Red Admiral. A little further on, on two more buddleias I counted 5 Red Admirals (one of which really had seen better days) and 2 Small Tortoiseshells. I followed the footpath through a maize field spotting 2 Green-veined White and a Large White on the way.
Before the path crosses The Ouse it runs through a boggy area of dense scrubby blackthorn and sallow which despite the promising number of nectar sources only yielded a Snout and a Silver Y. Crossing the Bridge I saw a Comma flying over some of the vast number of nettles which grow throught this section. Fianlly, as I walked back into square B I saw a Meadow Brown.
The number of butterflies I saw was a little disapointing (especially as I didn't see any more Brown Hairstreaks) but I am sure that the amount of barbed-wire and rather unwelcoming "Private - Keep Out" signs prevented me from accessing some of what looked like might have been more productive areas. (Bob Foreman)

Tetrad name: TQ4436 Pollard Wood (2km sq)
Near to: Forest Row
Details: A series of footpaths through woodlands in the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Look out for White Admiral, Silver-washed Fritillary and Purple Emperor.

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Tetrad name: TQ4412 Ringmer (2km sq)
Near to: Ringmer
Details: Surely someone out there must live in Ringmer?! WE have no records at all from the village that was the home to Gilbert White's tortoise. If you live here please send us your garden butterfly list! - or take a stroll around the village.

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Tetrad name: TQ4812 West of Laughton (2km sq)
Near to: Laughton / Park Corner Heath
Details: Oh, the shame! Loads of us must drive through this square on the way to our reserves at Park Corner Heath and Rowland Wood. If it's a nice day why not park the car and take a 10 minute walk around the footpaths here before heading off to the reserve.

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Monday 30 July 2012

The sun was shining - a real 2012 rarity - but the wind was a-howlin'. Undaunted, we headed out to a suitcase square near Laughton. Despite spending a lot of my life at our Park Corner Heath / Rowland Wood reserves I really don't know the neighbouring area and this gave me an opportunity to explore. I was rather impressed with TQ4812. The area in the NW of this square (TQ4813) is managed as fishing lakes and the fields and woodland that surrounds them were a pleasant place to wander and ideal for butterflies - we were soon in double figures and recorded Purple Hairstreak and Marbled White here. The thing that kept me on my toes was the amount of sallow lining the lakes and woods. I'm convinced that there are plenty of undiscovered Emperors in Sussex and it would be great to find one close to Park Corner Heath. Sadly the wind was really blowing and if there were any Emperors up there in the tree tops they would have been clinging on for dear life. I'll certainly come back in 2013 though. (Michael Blencowe)

Tetrad name: TQ5030 Crowborough Warren (2km sq)
Near to: Crowborough
Details: Does anyone live in this corner of Crowborough? A rather urban square but that doesn't mean there's no garden butterflies here.

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Tetrad name: TQ5410 Lower Dicker (2km sq)
Near to: Hailsham / Abbots Wood
Details: Some nice contryside and plenty of footpaths in this area -it would make a nice afternoon walk in the country (there's a pub in The Dicker just a few feet south of the square. An online review of the pub, The Plough, states that the food and beer is good and that the pub "gets a couple of extra points for the barmaid's gravity-defying chest". Why do I get the feeling we'll get a load of records from this square now?

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Tetrad name: TQ5812 Hellingly (2km sq)
Near to: Hailsham
Details: There's the possibility of a nice riverside stroll around the footpaths and lanes of Hellingly. Rock fans may be interested to learn that Led Zeppelin's legendary manager, Peter Grant, is buried here. So check out those foodPLANTs and send in PAGEs of your butterfly records.

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Wednesday 20 June 2012

Red Admiral, Meadow Brown,Comma, Red Admiral, Meadow Brown, Speckled Wood,Small Heath.

Sunday 24 June 2012

The day dawned sunny and bright, the perfect day for a Holiday Square. Walking along the Cuckoo Trail was a joy apart from the cyclist's and the walker's there wasn't a Whole Lot of Love between them. We Rambled On seeing butterflies all the way until Wendy and I had a Communication Breakdown when I followed a Black Dog into a field and she didn't see me disappear, the field was like Climbing a Stairway to Heaven with clouds of Meadow Browns, Skippers and Marbled Whites far to many to count.

Thursday 5 July 2012

Ringlet, Meadow Brown, Marbled White, Large Skipper, Comma, Red Admiral.

Tuesday 24 July 2012

Marbled White, Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown, Ringlet, Small Heath, Small Skipper, Essex Skipper, Large White, Small White, Red Admiral, Comma, Silver-washed Fritillary, White Admiral, Green-veined White. (Keith & Wendy Alexander)

Tetrad name: TQ6008 Horse Eye Level (2km sq)
Near to: Hailsham
Details: A walk to the east of Hailsham will take you out on to the Levels around Whute Dyke farm where there are a series of footpaths where you can yndertake a nice circular butterfly survey.

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Friday 10 August 2012

Bright and sunny and warm, a perfect day for a suitcase square. The walk across the levels looked perfect for a round trip, but somehow I missed a footpath and could only do squares C & D. Most of the butterflies were in square C which had the best habitat, the marsh squares were pretty barren apart from distant white butterflies and the odd Small Copper.
12 Species seen in all. 2 Holly Blue, 4 Small Tortoiseshell, 1 Comma, 11 Small White, 3 Large White, 1 Green-veined White, 2 Peacock, 4 Meadow Brown, 6 Gatekeeper, 1 Red Admiral, 4 Small Copper, 1 Wall. (Keith Alexander)

Tuesday 14 August 2012

It's not often you can do a 2km2 square for the Butterfly Atlas on the way to the bank but on a muggy and ultimately very warm and sunny Tuesday it seemed like a great idea (at the time). TQ6008 is a nearby tetrad for me, lying at the Hailsham end of the Pevensey Levels just west of Horse Eye Level. It's also another familiar square from bird-watching walks and, needless to say, not the first time I've hiked across the Pevensey Levels to go to the shops! As Keith Alexander probably found out only last Sunday, it's quite an interesting tetrad too, with some promising White-letter Hairstreak habitat (I was a month too late!) in square C. I also met Simon Rayburn covering the same route clockwise but heading in the opposite direction around the tetrad. Not surprisingly, we bumped into each other twice and given Keith A's recent visit, this square must be pretty well covered now... or is it? Highlights for me yesterday were the number of second-brood Wall Browns along the bridleways across the Levels (8 in B including a mating pair, 3 in D and 13 in all), a resurgence of Small Tortoiseshells along the meadow and bridleway edges, plus some very photogenic Holly Blues on dogwood well out in the middle of the Levels. Speckled Woods were also plentiful throughout and there was still a reasonable number of Meadow Browns and Gatekeepers in surprisingly good nick. One solitary Common Blue suggested this is a species whose first-brood may well have struggled with the dire late-spring weather. The overall species count was 15: Small White, Green-veined White, Wall Brown, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Speckled Wood, Small Heath, Peacock, Red Admiral, Comma, Small Tortoiseshell, Small Copper, Common Blue, Holly Blue and Small Skipper. Tetrad totals: Squares A, B and C = 12, 11 and 13 species respectively; and square D = just a measly 5 species (mostly in open, recently cut & baled hay-meadows out on the open Levels). And the downside... a long, hot and sweaty walk back to Herstmonceux Church! Might also be worth mentioning that I found Marbled White and Red Admiral in square A in June 2011 while doing the Bird Atlas there. (Mike Mullis)

Tetrad name: TQ6426 Stonegate Station (2km sq)
Near to: Stonegate
Details: Ooh - this looks nice. A train station and a network of paths around mixed habitat - even a nice footpath by the Rother too.

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Tetrad name: TQ6632 Bewl Water (2km sq)
Near to: The Kent border
Details: This square offers the chance for a nice walk around Bewl Water. Apparently it was completed in 1975 having been filled with over 31,300 million litres of water. It is now the largest body of inland water in south east England. Wonder how much water will be left in it this summer? There is also a passenger boat, a restaurant, conference facility and gift shop. It even has it's own website. www.bewlwater.co.uk. But no butterfly records, yet.

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Tetrad name: TQ6610 Boreham Street (2km sq)
Near to: Herstmonceux
Details: Some footpaths around the village and a nice pub in the middle which could make this a gentle Sunday afternoon out. The food sounds good - one reviewer recommends the half chicken in a tarragon and lime juice sauce with chips and salad. No mention of the barmaid in the review though. If you fancy a mini pub crawl you could walk into the next square...

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Sunday 5 August 2012

Felt slightly guilty that the Boreham Street tetrad was still vacant as it's on the eastern side of my home square, not far from Wartling/Herstmonceux Castle. Waller's Haven also partly fills this square - the largest drainage ditch on the Pevensey Levels - so an area I've covered before on birding walks. There aren't too many places to park apart from Boreham Bridge (on the A271) or at the Bull pub so I left the van behind the garage (closed on Sunday) in the village. Decided to skip the pub (nothing wrong with it though!) and set off for Waller's Haven to do a Sunday afternoon butterfly circular via Hogtrough Bridge, across the A271 to pick up the 1066 trail and then back to the village. Can't honestly recommend the nettle-strewn footpath to the Haven in shorts and T-shirt; more to the point, there weren't too many butterflies down there either, at least not in the eastern two 1km squares, nor along Waller's Haven itself. I suspect most of the butterflies are to be found in and around gardens and meadow edges close to the village at this time of year. Overall, the walk was very pleasant, despite the nettles - maybe more productive earlier in the spring or summer - but I only found ten species in three hours: 35+ Meadow Brown, 32 Gatekeeper, 1 Speckled Wood, 5 Red Admiral, 1 Comma, 5 Green-veined White, 3 Small White, 4 Small Skipper, 2 Essex Skipper and 1 Small Copper. Moths: 1 Oak Eggar, 1 Six-Spot Burnet, 1 Silver-Y. Not surprisingly, odenata was well-represented along or not too far from the main Haven and its side ditches: 12 Brown Hawker, 3 Black-tailed Skimmer, 1 Broad-bodied Chaser, 3 Common Darter, 10 Red-eyed Damselfly, 15 Blue-tailed Damselfly and 8 Azure Damselfly ..... but I wasn't searching too hard for these. NOTE: there's no public footpath along Waller's Haven between Hogtrough and Boreham Bridges. (Mike Mullis)

Tetrad name: TQ6810 Hooe Common (2km sq)
Near to: Hooe
Details: Footpaths lead around the village - or there is a chance to stray further north on a footpath out of Hooe Common. Nice pub in the village too - the Red Lion which according to the pub review website www.beerintheevening.com is a "lovely unspoilt village pub" and a "hidden gem". Send in your pub and butterfly review to us!

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June, July & August 2012

This square was more a series of mini breaks than one long holiday. I only managed to visit sections B & D, I did try to visit A but after almost being run over twice, it is a fast narrow road with no footpath, I decided I didn't want to be a posthumously entered in the atlas credits and gave up.
Following instructions to the letter a visit to the Red Lion was called upon, very nice pint of Harvey's, food looked like typical pub grub in all a very nice local.
20th June: TQ696104 - Speckled Wood, Meadow Brown, Common Blue.
4th July: TQ696104 - Meadow Brown, Large Skipper, Red Admiral, Comma, Speckled Wood, Gatekeeper, Large White.
30th July: TQ695117 - Comma, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Small White, Small Copper, Small Heath.
12th Aug: TQ696104 - Essex Skipper, Green-veined White, Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell, Holly Blue. (Keith Alexander)

Tetrad name: TQ7226 Hurst Green (2km sq)
Near to: Etchingham
Details: There's the opportunity of reaching this square via train (Etchingham station is just to the east). Look like there's plenty of footpaths through the local woodland. Hurst Green is twinned with the village of Ellerhoop in Schleswig Holstein, Germany. Not too sure if that is important.

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Tetrad name: TQ7426 Brickhurst Wood (2km sq)
Near to: Hurst Green
Details: I've just added this as it's adjacent to the Hurst Green square above. It looks like an interesting square with good access in case you fancied combining the two for a longer walk.

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