Ziggy and the Spiders from Durlston

Last year as part of my on-going quest to see all the UK orchid species I'd fully intended to pay a visit down to the south coast to see the Early Spider Orchids. However with their flowering in April and the fact that as usual we went to Cornwall during the Easter holiday, in the end I never managed it. So this year I vowed to make a special effort to get down there though in the end it wasn't until the last day of April that I finally made the trip. I opted for Durlston Country Park, a spot where I knew they were present and which I'd previously visited to see my last UK butterfly species, namely the Lulworth Skipper a few years back. The two and a half hour journey down from Oxford was uneventful though a road closure meant that I had to detour closer to Bournemouth than I'd originally planned but I arrived at around 1 pm to find conditions sunny and warm. I quickly yomped down to the steep slopes where I'd seen the Lulworths before, thinking that this would be where the orchids were also located but alas there was not an orchid to be seen.

Durlston Lighthouse

I therefore had to slog my way all the way back up the very steep slope and to head to the visitor centre to ask where they were to be found. It turned out that they were all in one field at the back of the Education Centre instead so I headed back towards where I'd parked the car and then on to the track behind the Centre. In the third field past the Centre I started coming across orchids - I was at last in the right spot! It turned out to be a large grassy meadow with quite close cropped grass with clusters of orchids dotted about in various places. The Early Spiders were mostly to the north and east sides whereas the other two species (Early Purples and Green-winged) were dotted all over the field. 

As it was getting rather late in the season many of the ESO had already gone over but I still found enough specimens still in full bloom to be worthy of a photograph.

Early Spider Orchids

I wandered about for a fair while, enjoying the EPO and GWO as well.

Early Purple Orchids

Green-winged Orchids

After I'd had my fill I wandered down to the cliffs to look at he Auks that were nesting on the cliffs. There was a fair collection of them bobbing about on the sea as well as a few that were visible at the base of the cliffs.

Shag, Razorbill & Guillemots at the base of the cliffs

Auks on the sea

My first Wall Brown of the season

Then I headed back to the visitor centre for a quick cup of tea and some cake before heading back to the Gnome Mobile and set the coordinates for home. Unfortunately due to a problem with my charging cable my phone soon ran out of battery and without the aid of my Sat Nav app I ended up going around the outskirts of Bournemouth in the rush hour so it took much longer to get back than it should have done. Still I arrived safely back at Casa Gnome in time for another cup of tea and a catch-up with the family. It had been an enjoyable first orchid sortie of the season.