I walked from Southease Station (train from Brighton to Southease; 31 minute journey; 1 train an hour) to Beddingham Hill, via Itford Hill, for a field meeting of the Sussex Botanical Recording Society. I returned home by walking down the bostal (a path that steeply climbs the side of a down) from Beddingham Hill that leads to Little Dene and then Glynde (train from Glynde to Brighton; 25 minute journey, 1 train an hour).
Map is a screen shot from the OS App OS Maps App | Get Unlimited UK mapping on mobile & online (ordnancesurvey.co.uk)
Attending local meetings of the Botanical Society of Britain & Ireland (bsbi.org) is a great way of developing your botanical knowledge. The Sussex branch, Home - Sussex Botanical Recording Society (sussexflora.org.uk), field meetings are always excellent and very friendly.
The photographs are presented chronologically, in the order of my walk through the commons. I did not photograph every plant we recorded; just a selection.
All sections of text in italics are quotations, sources sited.
The identifications of the plants in the section of this post on the Sussex Botany Recording Society survey of a dry valley (combe) pm Beddingham Hill were made collectively by the group (I have much less expertise in botany than the the other member). The identification of the plants in the Itford Meadow and the walk up Itford Hill were made by me alone. I am only an amateur naturalist; thus my dentifications are provisional; if you note a mistake in identification please feel free to tell me. If you want to contact me about any aspect of this blog, email me at simeon[underscore]elliott[at]gmail[dot]com.
Southease to Beddingham Hill
Outside the station at Southease there is an historic swing bridge across the Ouse
The River Ouse south of Lewes was canalised between 1791 and 1795, to create the Lower Ouse Navigation, designed by William Jessop and supervised by Cater Rand. This work cut off a lengthy meander of the river between Itford and Durham Farms, and severed farmland, necessitating statutory provision of a bridge across the new canal at Southease. The current structure, which replaces an earlier bridge approximately 10m upstream, dates from 1880 and incorporated a swing span to permit the passage of masted vessels. SWING BRIDGE OVER RIVER OUSE, Southease - 1393389 | Historic England
Around the bridge many birds were singing in the early morning sun.
Whitethroat, Curruca communis, a summer migrant
A Goldfinch, Carduelis carduelis
A Greenfinch, Chloris chloris
There were many Red Admirals; the first time I had seen a large number of Red Admirals in 2023
Gatekeeper, Pyronia tithonus - the first Gatekeeper I had seen in 2023.
Marmalade Hoverfly, Episyrphus balteatus on Mouse-Eared Hawkweed, Pilosella officinarum
Ragwort, Jacobea vulgaris with female Swollen-thighed Beetle, Oedemera nobilis
Before walking up on Beddingham Hill, I walked across the bride to Southease Village. Beside the road is a dyke bordered with reeds, in which a Reed Warbler, Acrocephalus scirpaceus, was singly loudly
The banks of the dyke also had many Water Horsetails, Equisetum fluviatile
The C11 nave, possibly pre-Conquest as it may have had porticus, and mid-C12 round tower remain. The chancel has gone. Most windows are later and there are C13 and post-Reformation wall paintings. Southease – St Peter – Sussex Parish Churches only one of only three in Sussex [with round towers],the others being at neighbouring Piddinghoe and at St Michael's in Lewes Introduction (southeasevillage.info)
Next to the Southdowns YHA, at Itford Farm, the South Downs Park Authority have created a meadow going up Itford Hill. In 2014 South Downs Way ranger Ben Bessant and National Park ranger Jan Knowlson set themselves the challenge of turning a large patch of nettles into a wildflower meadow. For National Meadows Day, on 7 July How to make a meadow - South Downs National Park Authority We have lost 97 per cent of our meadows in Britain since the 1930s, a shocking statistic. So when the opportunity to convert a large patch of nettles next to the South Downs Way at Itford came along we jumped at the chance – whilst nettles are a great food plant for some butterfly species, a meadow with a variety of native plants can support a much wider range of pollinator species.
The Meadow
Oxeye Daisy, Leucantheum vulgare
Brown Knapweed, Centaurea jacea
Field Bindweed, Convulvulus arevensis
Lady's Bedstarw, Galium verum
Restharrow, Ononis spinosa
Meadow Brown, Maniola jurtina
Wild Marjoram, Origanum vulgare
Bird's Foot-Trefoil, Lotus corniculatus
Musk Mallow, Malva moschata
Alsike Clover, Trifolium hybridum
Black Horehound, Ballota nigra
The walk up Itford Hill to Beddingham Hill
On Itford Hills and Bedding Hills, I heard many Skylarks; an iconic bird of the short grassland habitat of the South Downs. In their valleys I saw Marbled White, Meadow Brown and Small Heath butterflies, and one Dark Green Fritillary, although far fewer Marbled Whites, Meadow Browns and Dark Green Fritillaries than I typically see at the beginning of July. There was a complete absence of Common Blues, which I would expect to be seeing on the Downs throughout the summer. Last years drought has had a significant negative effect on butterflies UK butterflies hit hard by extreme weather, findings show (yourweather.co.uk)
The Ouse Valley from Itford Hill
Mullein sp., Verbascum sp,
Cut-leaved Crane's-bill, Gernaium dissectum
Great Hairy Willowherb, Epilobium hirsutum
Hoary Plantain, Plantago media
Small Heath, Oenonympha pamphilus
Corn Bunting, Emberiza calandra
Black Medick, Medicago lupulina
A South Down's Dry Valley's flowering plants
The Sussex Botanical Recording Society field meeting entailed recording the species in a dry valley (combe) to which there is no public access by the farmer who manages the site. However. there are many dry valleys (combes) on the South Downs that have open access and have many of these species
Agrimony, Agrimonia eutopia
Yarrow, Achilea millefolium, with Four-spotted Orb Weaver, Araneus quadratus
Scarlet Pipernel, Anagallis arvensis
Burnet saxofrage, Pipinella saxifraga
Gromwell, Lithospermum officinale
Cinquefoil sp., Potentilla sp
Ploughman's-spikenard, Inula conyaze
Glaucous Sedge, Carex flacca
Downland Chafer, Omaloplia ruricola, seen in it's typical habitat south-facing dry valley (combe) on fringe of woodland. A typical habitat for this species Omaloplia ruricola | uk beetles
Fairy Flax, Linum catharticum
Field Rose, Rosa arvensis
Bittersweet, Solanum dulcamara
Pyramid Orchid, Anacamptis pyramidalis
Mouse-ear Harkweed, Pilosella officinarum
Black medick, Medicago lupulina
Views of the valley
Marsh Thistle, Cirsium palustre
Yellow Wort, Blackstonia perfoliata
Weld, Reseda luteola
Small Skipper, Thymelicus sylvestris or Essex Skipper. Thymelicus lineola
Cat's-ear, Hypochaeris radicata
Small Scabius, Scabiosa columbaria
Marbled Whites, Melanargia galathea
Squiancywort, Asperula cynanchia
Eyebright sp., Euphrasia sp
Restharrow, Ononis spinosa
Cut-leaved Crane's-bill, Gernaium dissectum
Six-spot Burnet, Zygaena filipendulae
Musk Thistle, Carduus nuntans
Curled Dock, Rumex crsipus
Dark Green Fritillary, Speyeria aglaja
Cinnabar moths, Tyria jacobaeae
Seen on my walk back down Beddingham Hill to Glynde
Round-Headed Rampion, Phuteuma orbiculare
A summer walk on the South Downs is not quite complete to me unless you see a Round Headed Rampion
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