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CORNWALL!

Just back from a few days in west Cornwall. It was dull and damp when we arrived,but things improved so I walked the South-West coast path from Mullion Cove in afternoon,arriving at Porthleven by early evening. Although mostly cloudy,a few butterflies were seen,including Painted Lady,Red Admiral ,Speckled Wood and Wall. Stonechats are common on the Cornish coast,and several were spotted,as well as buzzards, kestrels, ravens and swallows. An enjoyable afternoon.

Lovely view of the harbour essex, I'd like to visit Cornwall next year all being well. Goldie

You'd love it Goldie,fantastic scenery,and birds and butterflies too!

Tuesday. Today we visited Kynance Cove,and walked to Lizard Point and village,where we sampled the delights of Ann's Pasties,before walking slowly back. There was a lot of cloud,but it was quite warm,and a few sunny spells. And these brought out lots of Small Coppers and several other butterflies .

The coppers were abundant,especially near Lizard Point,but there were plenty elsewhere, in varying stages of wear,as the pictures show. Females were fresher than males,but with considerible overlap. As Neil F found when he visited a couple of weeks ago, They varied a good deal in size,one near the lighthouse was the size of a Small Blue. One female was laying eggs,choosing young sorrels with small leaves,ignoring bigger clumps. Many had blue spots,all were a pleasure to see.

Looks like a couple of abs. there Essex, the first one looks like an intermediate between normal and radiata and the tatty final one looks like it is (or was in its younger days) a full on radiata

Other butterflies were seen. Lots of Small Whites,and a Large White was laying egg. One aged Common Blue was found,and we also saw Comma, Painted Lady,Red Admiral, Speckled Woods and Walls. Buzzards,ravens,swallows,wheatears were noted,and I was pleased to see Autumn squil,as this is the only place I have seen it,all against a backdrop of the most splendid scenery you can imagine .

The next day, Wednesday, we walked the 12 mile stretch of coast path from Portreath to Hayle. Although mostly cloudy,it was quite warm,and butterflies were about. Small Coppers were again seen in several places, with Small and a few Large Whites. At the Portreath end, high cliffs and deep valleys dominated,with little sandy coves far below. At the spectacular Hell's Mouth, two newborn grey seal pups were in the cove. Now the path levelled out on the high cliffs, and Red Admiral and Painted Lady were noted. Continuing along, the splendid Godrevey lighthouse came into view. Another rocky cove here had many grey seals hauled out. After a refreshment stop nearby,the path lowers down onto the beach,and with the tide out,we walked the 3 miles of sand, before heading up into the scrub approaching Hayle. A Speckled Wood was seen. By time we arrived at Hayle viaduct, it was late afternoon, and we could reflect on a very nice walk.

Birds today included buzzard,kestrel, peregrine ,raven, swallows, house martins , stonechats and wheatears.

Pic's coming up...

Pictures from Wednesday ,

Hello Essex,
Really enjoyed reading through your diary ,particularly liked the Cornwall visit ,we were down there back in July,but reckon we were at the right place at the wrong time
where the Coppers are concerned,didn,t manage one ,between broods I reckon,don,t know if you,d noticed but I reckon your tatty individual (Copper) is.Ab; Radiata ,shame you never found it a couple of weeks earlier. We also tried for Ann,s pasties ,but the couple of visits we made,she was closed both times ! regards Allan.W,

Hello again Essex,
Apologies I didn,t read the other posts properly, Bugboy had already pointed out the abs,sorry about that !! regards Allan .W.

That's ok, Alan! Thanks for your comments. Can't believe Ann's pasties was closed though, I thought she was always open! Coppers reach their peak in September and early October on this sunny coastline, and you avoid the crowds too!

The next day dawned gloriously sunny,so it was back to the Lizard for another look at all those lovely Coppers. I first walked from Mullion Cove to Lizard Point,a distance of 7 miles- but it took until 2 pm because of all the stops. Coppers were everywhere , but especially from Kynance onwards. Again, they were variable, some had bold blue spots,others had just a few blue scales,and others were clear. The amount of black varied,too. They gathered in any flowery areas, finding wild mint, Autumn hawkweed and yarrow particularly attractive. I have probably seen more Coppers this year than ever before. And I'm not complaining!

Hi Mark,

Great reports and photos from Cornwall...bringing back memories of all those Coppers when I was there back in early September. Love the shot of the footprints on the beach at Hayle, I walked back along there a couple of times after wandering through the dunes at Upton/Gwithian Towans

Cheers,

Neil.

Thanks Neil,as always. Yes,before I went,I read your pages with interest . So thanks for posting...

Other butterflies were seen on this day. I was particularly pleased to see several Walls, and near Lizard Point,a Clouded Yellow male shot past. Small Whites were common,with a few Large Whites. Common Blues were faded,as was a Meadow Brown. A Small Tortoiseshell was nice to see,and Painted Lady and Red Admiral complete the picture.

In places,Cornish heath was still in flower. This heather is found only here,so a treat for the nature lover to find. Several other Autumn flowers were still around,including the sea aster below. A hovering kestrel gave a great view,and an adult buzzard soared overhead. It had gaps in its primaries,as hey moult this time of year. Cornish chough's were heard,but remained out of sight. Ravens were seen too.

In such glorious weather the scenery was more spectacular than ever,and I couldn't resist including a couple of images! .

Wild flowers,

And the scenery,

Cracking Coppers Essex - a brill Blue Badger and a lush Wall too

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Some great coastal scenery, Mark. It sure is a lovely part of the UK - and the butterflies seem to keep going late too!

It sure it a glorious place, David! I've been coming to Kynance for as long as I can remember, and it is still one of my favourite palaces, anywhere.

Thanks, Wurzel. I was particularly pleased to see the Walls,as I was hoping a new generation would be emerging!

So,we come to Friday,our last day in Cornwall-it goes so quick!
We started with a walk around some of the mining district near Camborne. Some of these mines,especially near East Pool,have been beautifully and lovingly restored by National Trust and others. But these grey old stone buildings are such a part of our heritage that few Cornish people would want to see them all restored. A few butterflies were around,including Comma and Small Tortoiseshell. A very noisy juv buzzard was begging for food from a parent.

What a great report of a late season break in glorious coastal scenery. Splendid views, flowers and of course butterflies!

Dave