Male ferns and Dog’s Mercury at Warburg Nature Reserve
Another superb area of ancient woodland and chalk meadows hidden away in the Chilterns near Henley-on-Thames.
Unfortunately the few photographs below don’t really record just what a wonderful nature reserve this is. With our visit taking place in early summer the combination of thin, chalky soil and the lack of rainfall had taken its toll. Notably fewer orchids than on our previous visit in June 2015.
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- Great Spotted Woodpecker – female
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- Great Spotted Woodpecker – male
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- And the male returns again
Fly Orchids (including within the wildlife garden), Common Twayblades and White Helleborines were relatively easy to find however despite the warden giving us directions we couldn’t find any Bird’s Nest Orchids.
Plenty of birdlife with the ever present Red Kites and typical woodland species including Marsh Tits, Spotted Flycatchers, Nuthatches and a family of Great Spotted Woodpeckers.
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- White Helleborine
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- Yellow Archangel
Common Cardinal Beetle at Warburg Nature Reserve
Jake also enjoyed a wonderful view of a pair of Muntjac Deer and a lone Roe Deer – our view was far more brief !
Also evidence of other woodland mammals on site. Interesting to see a lone Common Lizard basking on a log. Insects were well represented with Common Blues, Small Tortoiseshells, a Painted Lady and numerous Dragonflies around the pond. Even managed to find a Hornet’s nest close to the visitor centre that we decided to give a wide berth