On Saturday 6th several LNHG members took part in the annual Marsh Fritillary web count at the Ballachuan SWT reserve, the marshy part of which is managed for this endangered butterfly. At this time of year the young larvae are feeding actively and making protective webs on their foodplant, Devilsbit Scabious.
This photo shows a group of young caterpillars feeding outside their web which was close by. I don’t yet know how the figures compare with previous years but we found good numbers of webs and larvae.
A number of other interesting items were found including some amazing blue sawfly larvae which have yet to be identified. The marsh is ideal for the Garden Spider, our Species of the Month, and its large webs were frequently encountered with big fat females in the middle of them or lurking in their retreat at the top.
Carl