Welcome to my blog. My name is Sean Locke from Norwich and I am autistic. But this does not stop my passion for nature and wildlife. I am a volunteer for RSPB Strumpshaw Fen and I also help out at Mousehold Heath with surveys and I birdwatch whenever I can. Since 2011, i have been writing a wildlife diary filled with my adventures, drawings and photos. Now i have decided to go online to share with you all.
Thursday 20 June 2019
June 20th North Norfolk
I've been given the heads up that a lesser butterfly orchid was out in flower yesterday in a place that I can not name for protection reasons up in North Norfolk. So today, I took the train up there for a spot of solo orchid hunting. Finding the site was the easy part, but finding the orchid, on the other hand, was a different matter. I had only been to this site once for a rare bird, but as the bird wasn't far from the entrance, I never really had the opportunity to explore this place. It was inevitable then that I got completely lost. I asked a dog walker if she knew where the orchid was. She was kind enough to call someone who was in the know, but the person failed to pick up. After some wandering later, she returned to me and directed me to a warden who could help me.
Lesser Butterfly Orchid
The warden was mowing out paths with a lawnmower, so I ended up following the noise. He was a very nice man and gave me some further directions. However, I went to the landmark of where his directions were telling me to go to only to not find the protective cage it was supposedly under. I detoured down a well trodden path that only ended up leading me into a bog. My feet was getting soaked and I was starting to get really confused and frustrated. Thankfully, the sound of the warden's lawnmower was getting closer and I approached him.
"Did you find it?"
"No" I replied.
"Really?" He said, sounding a tad puzzled to why I haven't found it yet. "Its just over here!"
I couldn't believe it. I felt like such an idiot. I had approached the landmark in the wrong direction. I should had approached it from the front and not from the back of it like I actually did. If I had or had continued on that path instead of making that detour, I would have found it by now. All I could do now was thank the warden. If it wasn't for him, I would still be lost in a bog.
So there it was. A tiny version of the greater butterfly orchid that I had ticked off just weeks before, protected under a small green metal cage that was there to preserve it from hungry deer. It may be similar to its larger cousin, but the lesser butterfly orchid does have slightly wider 'bodies' and their pollinia are straighter with a narrow gap in between them. Here in Norfolk, this species is, as far as I know, reduced to just one site and, as far as I can tell, just this one flowering spike. Though you can find lesser butterflies in small populations across the western and southern parts of the UK, it appears as though they may be close to extinction in this county. I hope I am wrong, but in any case, I am felt so privileged to see this orchid today.
So there it was. A tiny version of the greater butterfly orchid that I had ticked off just weeks before, protected under a small green metal cage that was there to preserve it from hungry deer. It may be similar to its larger cousin, but the lesser butterfly orchid does have slightly wider 'bodies' and their pollinia are straighter with a narrow gap in between them. Here in Norfolk, this species is, as far as I know, reduced to just one site and, as far as I can tell, just this one flowering spike. Though you can find lesser butterflies in small populations across the western and southern parts of the UK, it appears as though they may be close to extinction in this county. I hope I am wrong, but in any case, I am felt so privileged to see this orchid today.
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