Sand Lizard walk 12th August

A fairly sunny, but cool morning. Highlights were Sand Lizard, Slow Worm, Dartford Warbler and Grayling.

10 of us met at the car park. The object of the walk was to view the area where Sand Lizards have been reintroduced onto the New Forest. We were even hopeful that we might see some lizards!
We walked over the road from the carp park seeing Chamomile on the short-grazed grass. Ling, Bell Heather, Cross-leaved Heath and Dwarf Gorse were all in flower as we walked across the heath. Margaret found two caterpillars of the Fox Moth. We crossed the bridge over the old railway line and saw Wall Rue growing in the cracks of the bridge.
The Sand Lizard release site is fenced off to prevent grazing animals getting in. There are also small numbered sheets of corrugated iron under which snakes and lizards often go. Under the first sheet we saw we found a Slow Worm. Further on we went into the release area and walked around looking for lizards. We saw many Grayling butterflies and more Slow Worms under other corrugated sheets. Dennis saw a lizard briefly and at the far corner we started looking under logs. Here Maureen quickly found a Sand Lizard which ran off before the rest of us could see it. We got brief views of one other Sand Lizard and a couple of Viviparous Lizards. Jonathan found a young Smooth Newt under a log.
On the way back we saw a Dartford Warbler briefly and Gatekeeper and Grayling butterflies.
Simon Curson