Ketton Quarry 03/05/2009

I'd promised the boys that we'd go to look for snakes, and so with the day looking to be partly cloudy with sunny spells we all headed off this morning to Ketton Quarry, all except Isabelle who is far to teenage to bother going out for family walks these days! After a brief search around the geological survey area, we found a Common Lizard - I honestly can't remember if I've seem one before but certainly not at Ketton. No sign of any snakes so we walked down through the donkey paddock to check the tin sheets where a Grass Snake was hiding - before it shot off at high speed. After milling around looking at a few Common Heaths, Green Hairstreaks, Grizzled Skippers and plenty of commoner butterflies, we headed back to the geological survey area and found quite a few more Common Lizards (I reckon at least 15 different individuals). I got talking to Graham Munton (one of the growing Melton Crew) whilst there and he put me onto a reliable spot for Adder - after a brief glimpse I waited a while and was then able to show the boys what I think must have been two males and a larger female. Bloody hard to get a shot of though as too close! I need a macro lens for the DSLR - had to make do with the family compact to get a shot of them before they sloped off into the undergrowth. A contrasty male and the partially hidden duller female Green Hairstreak Speckled Wood