Wild Plants, Insects and Birds. Birling Gap, Beachy Head and Lullington Heath NNR. 09.06.22
I visited the Downs to the west of Birling Gap, and the east, specifically the area around Horseshoe Plantation, and north of Shooter Bottom, because they are identified in The Butterflies of Sussex: A Twenty-first Century Atlas, as good places to see Butterflies. I decided on the day to walk onto Lullington Heath, Lullington Heath is also known for its butterflies, but it is best known as a unique habitat: The 62 hectare Reserve is nationally important and was established in 1955 to conserve one of the largest areas of chalk heath remaining in Britain. Chalk heath only occurs where, by the remotest of chances, acid soils have been deposited on the alkaline chalk, allowing acid loving plants to grow together with these of the chalk. Lullington Heath National Nature Reserve; Nature walks - NE362 (naturalengland.org.uk)
I caught the 12 bus to East Dean Pond Today and then I walked through Crowlink, Birling Gap, Horseshoe Plantation to the Beachy Head Hotel (for cheap lunch). Then I walked via East Dean and Jevington to Lullington Heath Natural Nature Reserve. From the Lullington Heath Nature Reserve I walked into Littlington and back to Exeat (Seven Sisters Country Park Centre), and caught the 12 back to Brighton
East Dean Pond
The Walk from East Dean Pond via Crowlink to the coast at Gap Bottom (Seven Sisters Cliffs)
A Whitethroat singing
Rabbits in Gap Bottom
Gap Bottom
Crowlink
A rather tatty Red Admiral in Crowlink
A Rabbit
Heal-all
The grass is greener on the other side of the fence
A Blue Tit bathing in the Gap Bottom dew ponds
Same Blue Tot after bath!
Dunnick on a fence post round the dew pond
An Azure Damselfly
A Pond Snail
The dew pond
Another Azure Damselfly
Sheep
A Small Heath Butterfly - the most common butterfly I saw on the walk
A lamb on the wrong side of the electric fence
Looking up Gap Bottom
Flagstaff Brow to Birling Gap
A Jackdaw on the edge of the cliffs (Jackdaws nest on cliffs)
A bad photo of a Small Tortoiseshell
A female Stonechat (Stonechats were the most frequent bird I saw on the day),
The Stonechat above flying off
A fledgling Stonechat
A male Stonechat
The Belle Tout Lighthouse and Birling Gap
A ,ale Linnet; I saw many Linnets along the coast, in small flocks (2-8 birds)
The Bell Tout Lighthouse and Baily's Hill
A Small Heath Butterfly
Viper's Bugloss
Probably a Peacock Butterfly
Viper's Bugloss
A Common Blue (possibly an Adonis Blue) on Bird's-Foot Trefoil
Another Small Heath
A Common Blue
Birling Gap to Horseshoe Plantation (below the Belle Tout Lighthouse)
Sheep amongst Viper's Bugloss
Along the path below the cliffs from Birling Gap to Horseshoe Plantation, there were many pairs of Stonechats, calling to each other with their clashing stone call.
A Goldfinch
A Linnet
A male Stonechat
A Stonechat flying off
A Common Blue
A Common Blue on Bird's-Foot Trefoil
A Small White on bramble, fringe of Horseshoe Plantation
A Speckled Wood, one of many on the edges of the Horseshoe Plantation
A Burnet Companion Moth
A Speckled Wood showing its underwings
Buff-tailed Bumblebee on Yellow Rattle
A Painted Lady
A View from the East side of the Horseshoe Plantation to the Belle Tout Lighthouse
Scarlet Pimpernell
Small Heath next to Yellow Rattle
A Pied Wagtail
Campanula
Small Heath on Oyeye Daisy, Shooters Bottom
The Daisies and Red Clover of Shooters Bottom
Shooters Bottom and the Belle Tout Lighthouse
Bullock Down
Walking south to north toward East Dean
A male stonechat
A juvenile Stonechat?
Another Stonechat
Viper's Bugloss
A Linnet
Buff-tailed Bumblebee on Viper's Bugloss
A Common Blue
A Red-tailed Bumblebee of Yellow Rattle
A Male Linnet
A Buff-tailed Bumblebee on Yellow Rattle
A Common Carder on Viper's Bugloss
A Silver-Y Moth
A Dog Rose
Another Male Stonechat
Crows
Starlings
Flax
Skylark
Restharrow
Stonechat
Woodpigeon
Viper's Bugloss, Oxeye Daisy, Dandelion, Buttercups, Shootters Bottom
Speckled Wood
Small Tortoiseshell
Silver-Y Moth
Stonechat
Lunch
Shooters Bottom to Lullington Heath, via Bulling Dean, Bullock Down, Kiln Combe, Bramble Bottom, Crapham Hill, Eastbourne Downs Golf Course, South Down Way, Borne Hill, and Jevington
Shooters Bottom to Bullock Down
Common Toadflax - Frost Hill
Looking back to Belle Tout
Mignonette - Frost Hill
Speckled Wood - copse at Long Down
Highland cattle - Long Down
Small Tortoiseshell
Ringwood Bottom, recently shorn sheep.
Kestrel
Bramble Bottom
Fox
Small Heath
