Summer butterflies

There have been a lot of butterflies on the wing this summer, and this is the last month for the best sightings of summer butterflies such as the gatekeeper and meadow brown – though both can still be seen into September. 

The two butterflies look similar, but the gatekeeper can be told apart by its distinctive eyespots with two 'pupils' on each forewing (the meadow brown has one ‘pupil’) and when the wings are open, the gatekeeper has bright orange wing patches, while the meadow brown lives up to its name with predominantly brown wings!

How to help butterflies in your garden

Diabolic flowers

The pincushion-like, lilac-blue flower heads of Devil's-bit scabious attracts a wide variety of butterflies and bees. Found in damp meadows, marshes, and on riverbanks, see if you can spot them at Lashford Lane Fen near Abingdon or at Woodsides Meadow south of Bicester. There are also great stretches of them at Yoesden Nature Reserve in the Radnage valley.

The name ‘scabious’ comes from the Latin scabere, meaning to scratch, after its traditional use as a treatment for skin conditions such as scabies and the sores of bubonic plague. Its diabolic association arises from the fact that its roots look truncated as if bitten off by the Devil – as legend has it, he was angry at the plant for foiling the misery he created with these skin ailments!

Hoverflies in disguise

The hornet mimic hoverfly is the largest hoverfly species in the UK – and it looks like one of the most intimidating. But as its name suggests, while it is an excellent mimic of the hornet, it is harmless to humans. This clever disguise not only helps the hoverfly to ward off hungry predators, but also allows it to enter the nests of hornets and wasps to lay its eggs!

Only a very rare visitor to the country up to the 1940s, it has become more common in Southern England in recent years, and is still spreading northwards, perhaps as a result of climate change.

Discover more black-and-yellow invertebrates

Robin (not so) red breast

Robins are one of our most familiar and well-loved garden birds, but you may notice something different about them at this time of year…

Young robins lack the iconic red-orange breast and face which make the adults so recognisable. Instead, they have a speckled brown plumage – this helps to hide them from predators, and also prevents them from being attacked by territorial adult robins who are triggered by red colouring!

As their moult progresses over summer, you will see the iconic red begin to emerge.

Hedgehoglets

In the past two decades, the number of hedgehogs in the UK has plummeted from an estimated 1.5 million to around 500,000. Housing estates with impenetrable garden fences, pesticides killing invertebrate food sources and general pollution are all contributory factors. Putting out bowls of water is a great, simple way to help - especially with vulnerable hoglets wandering around during these heatwaves we’ve been experiencing.

How to help hedgehogs

Baby grass snakes

Another of nature’s newborns to look out for are grass snakes. These reptiles are the only egg-laying snake in the British Isles, because adders and smooth snakes incubate their eggs internally until they hatch. Female grass snakes usually lay their eggs in June or July and many of them will start to hatch in August - perfect, miniature versions of the adults. Look out for them in fields, meadows and heathlands like our Sydlings Copse reserve near Oxford and Snelsmore Common near Newbury.

How to identify UK snakes and slow worms

Singing crickets

One of the most distinctive sounds of August in a few special parts of the UK is the penetrating call of the great green bush-cricket. This vivid green singer is one of the UK's largest insects and instantly recognisable. Males sing while clinging, perfectly camouflaged, to tall plant stems, and can be surprisingly difficult to spot event when they're right in front of you! Look out for them at Yoesden or our Dry Sandford Pit reserve near Abingdon.

Rare local flowers

The Chiltern gentian is a rare flower, only found in the UK, and largely confined here to a few spots in the Chiltern Hills. Its wrinkled, tubular flowers erupt into a pentagram of purple petals with an alluring green centre and a fringe of white hairs. We are extremely lucky to have them at several of our nature reserve including Homefield Wood near Marlow and Warburg Nature Reserve near Henley, and this is the month to see them!

How to tell the difference between Chiltern and autumn gentians

The dragonfly other dragonflies fear

Late summer is a great time to spot lots of dragonflies and damselflies hovering around ponds, lakes and streams, but also zipping across gardens and even through urban areas as they hunt for new breeding grounds. One of the most spectacular is the golden-ringed dragonfly - the UK's longest species, and a voracious predator of smaller insects – and even other dragonflies! They can found by small, acidic streams in moorland and heathland, so look out for these golden wonders at Wildmoor Heath and Snelsmore Common in Berkshire. 

Bountiful blackberries

Last but not least, one of the most exciting sights of August is bulging dark blackberries gleaming in hedgerows waiting to be picked. In the UK there are more than 300 recognised varieties or 'microspecies' of blackberry - some of them tiny and tart, some of them succulent and sweet, but all of them providing invaluable sugary fuel for birds, mammals and insects, so if you do go picking, please leave plenty for the animals!

How to make a wild blackberry crumble

How to help wildlife in August