www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Jack recently ran a theme on the 'hazards of butterflying'. It seems, too, that orchid photography is not without its moments. Last week, I went with Adrian Riley and another friend to Samphire Hoe, Dover to photograph the early spider orchid. We arrived on site just after 7am and quickly found our orchid which we started to photograph. We had finished and were walking back to the car park when we saw a police car and an ambulance, blue lights flashing, come racing into the car park. The paramedics and policeman came running onto the reserve towards us. They asked us if we had seen the 'dead body' lying near the small lake as reported by a passenger on the Dover to Folkstone railway which runs along the side of the reserve. I had to admit that I was the dead body, lying on the ground to photograph this tiny orchid. The paramedics were quite relieved but old Bill was none too happy having had his breakfast interrupted. Such is life!!
Alex

It's an easy mistake to make. I was once mistaken for a dead body by 40 griffon vultures I happened to be filming at the time on a hillside across a small valley. One by one, they had disappeared from the hillside and when the last vanished I assumed they had all flown off. They hadn't. They had crossed the dip and were circling 40 ft above my head, as I dicovered to my great alarm when I stood up.

The books say griffons don't take lving animals. But griffons can't read. I was quite frightened.

Guy

I'm constantly amazed how UKB members make me look normal - long may it continue

Great stories. I'll save my midnight encounters on chalk downland looking for Chalkhill Blue larvae for another day

Cheers,

- Pete

Guy
I agree that Griffons can be quite intimidating. I remember some years ago sitting on the edge of Kensington Cliffs in Cyprus watching the griffon nests on the ledges below us when some of the adult birds started to 'thermal' slowly up the cliff face passing literally within yards of us. We had eye to eye contact with them. They're ugly brutes!

Pete
Normal? Hardly the word to describe someone wandering over the Downs at midnight looking for caterpillars
Alex