Speckled Wood in Hawthorn Dene

Had a short walk through Hawthorn Dene this afternoon, up through the woods and round by the disused quarry.
Lots of butterflies again. Meadow Brown, Small Heath, Small Tortoiseshell, Red Admiral and a pair of Speckled Wood. This is the third time I've seen Speckled Wood here this year. The previous occasions were in Late June and early July before I started this diary. It seems their range is shifting northwards. Figures from the North East Branch of Butterfly Conservation indicate that Speckled Wood have recolonised the region in the last couple of years, going from 17 records in 2004 to 144 in 2005. I didn't have the camera with me today so the picture above is one I took in early July.

However I did have the minidisc recorder and captured the sound of a goldfinch singing strongly in the top of a hawthorn bush. Click here to hear the sound file