Last weekend I spent an enjoyable day walking along the river from Beccles to North Cove and then through some of the woodland in the valley. The spring flowers were really starting to show well and butterflies and other insects were flying between the colourful heads seeking nectar. The first to be seen were the Marsh Marigolds with their bright yellow flowers which were attracting many bees and hoverflies. A few white butterflies were seen most of which were Small Whites but upon closer examination some of them were Green Veined Whites which would sometimes come to rest on the vegetation as shown below.
Walking away from the river into more wooded areas I encountered a few Bluebells in the shade of the branches and fluttering in a clearing were the first Orange Tip butterflies of the year for me, the first below on a Garlic Mustard flower and the second on a Bluebell which really made a good picture with the mixture of colours. Both of these butterflies were males as they are the only ones with orange on the wings, the females being white with a black spot and tip to the forewing.
Driving along to Aldeby I came across a patch of Cowslip (primula veris) on the road side and so stopped to take a few pictures. There were also some patches of common Primrose (primula vulgaris) but being in the full sunshine these were past their best.
Parking the car I walked into a small woodland where I have seen orchids in flower before and began to search through the undergrowth coming across a few remaining Wood Anenomes at the end of their flowering season with their gorgeous yellow centered white flowers striking amongst the new seasons green growth. Eventually I came to a patch of Early Purple Orchids but very few were in flower and they need another week or so to reach their best but I took a picture of one that seemed to be ahead of the rest.
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