Nature in July

Now that the warmer weather is here, there is a flurry of activity from nature.

There are 18 species of hawkmoths in in the UK and July is a good time to be able to see them as the species emerge from pupae between May and July. They are nocturnal as adults. Dawn and dusk would be the best times to see them. They can be found in parks, gardens, the edges of woodland and in sand dunes.

You may see some fledging peregrine falcons learning how to fly and strengthen their wings. Or lucky enough to see them dive to the ground as they learn to catch their own prey.

On a nice evening if you live near woodland you may hear a feeble sort of warble of a tawny owl chick calling to it’s parents to be fed as it starts to leave the nest.

July also means a lof of flying buzzer things in all directions and all shapes and sizes.

From the house fly, to flying ants that have recently grown in huge numbers from an existing colony, where they take flight in all directions to look for new colonies to construct.

There will be butterflies and dragonflies, although dragonflies usually stay near water such as ponds, lakes and rivers.

There are three species of lizard that are native to the UK. The common lizard, the sand lizard and the slow worm. The slow worm is often mistaken for a snake, but it is a legless lizard. None of the lizards in the UK are poisonous.

There are four types of snakes native to the UK. Only one of them are poisonous.

Common Grass snakes are brown, dark green, grey or black in colour with a yellow collar behind their head. About 100cm long. They are often near water.
They can normally be found in the south of England and in central Wales.

Smooth snakes are grey, brown or a reddish colour with two rows of spots running down their back. About 60 to 75cm in length. They can normally be found in the south east and west regions of England.

Barred Grass Snakes are more greyish in colour and have dark bands on their body. About 100 cm in length. They can normally be found throughout the UK.

Adders are the only venomous snakes that are native to the UK. They are white, grey or light brown with a zigzag pattern down their bodies. There are some that are black, although these are rarer. About 60 to 70 cm long. They can normally be found throughout the UK.

Even though adders are venomous they are not naturally aggressive.
They will usually try to escape before using their venom.
Most recorded bites are due to the snake being cornered, startled, accidentally trodden on or even picked up!!