Samphire Hoe !

My quest to visit new wildlife reserves found me heading towards the south coast to check out a relatively new country park called Samphire Hoe, situated beneath the white cliffs of Dover and formed from the chalk marl from the channel tunnel excavations.

I was hoping to see one of Britain's rarest Orchids, the Early Spider Orchid a speciality of this reserve, and if not, a new reserve to explore.

Access to the reserve is quite dramatic, a steep, single lane tunnel bored through the cliffs takes you down to the reserve  which is bordered by the sea on one side and steep chalk cliffs on the other, complete with a railway line which disappears into the cliffs at each end of the reserve.

There are some very helpful notice boards giving you information on what you might see and where to look for the Orchid, Butterflies and birds seen around the reserve.

It didn't take to long to find the first Early Spider Orchid, quite exciting for me as this was the first time I had seen one, quite an insignificant plant amongst the other vegetation, it requires a close look to appreciate its beauty.

Early Spider Orchid

An interesting fact about this Orchid is that it relies on sexual deception for pollination.
The flower gives off the scent of a small type of female andrena bee.
The male bee lands on the flower and thinks that its mating with a female, apparently this only works for a few weeks until the genuine females arrive on the scene.

The Orchids varied considerably in height , but once you know what you are looking for, more and more are revealed. the hairy flower resembling the bulbous body of a spider which gives its name.

As I reached the end of the reserve a Butterfly I was also hoping to see came into view, The Wall Brown, sunning itself on a nearby plant decided to move on as I struggled to change the lens on my camera, annoyingly that was the only one seen all day. The Holly Blue below was a bit more accommodating.

Holly Blue

Other Butterflies seen were the Holly Blue above, Orange Tip and Brimstone.

A Stonechat with a full set of rings followed me along the railway track fence. and I thought I could see a pair of Ravens but a bit distant to confirm.

Stonechat

The star of this reserve is without doubt the Early Spider Orchid.