Summer on Otmoor

On one of our recent outings we went to Otmoor which is a Nature Reserve managed by the RSPB. The AA (Automobile Association) describe it thus:

'A stone's throw to the north of Oxford lies Otmoor, a canvas of fields and hedgerows that seems to have been bypassed by the rest of the county. A curious ghostly stillness pervades this wilderness, inspiring various writers over the years to describe it romantically as 'the forgotten land', 'bewitched Otmoor' and 'sleeping Otmoor cast under a spell of ancient magic.

With its flat fields, ditches and dykes, it is, in places, reminiscent of East Anglia. On a cold winter's day, and even occasionally in high summer, you can sense Otmoor's sinister, sometimes unsettling, atmosphere. At times it is dark and mysterious, at times it exudes an air of calm and tranquillity. Cross Otmoor as a light mist drifts over the meadows and you'll find the image will linger long in the memory.

If time allows, journey to the village of Beckley, perched 400ft (122m) over the southern edge of Otmoor, and you'll see why Lewis Carroll was supposedly inspired by the view of this primitive 4,000-acre (1,620ha) landscape to write about the giant chessboard in Alice Through the Looking Glass. John Buchan, who lived at nearby Elsfield, described Otmoor in great detail in his novel The Blanket of the Dark.'

'For some minutes Alice stood without speaking,

looking out in all directions over the country....
I declare that it is marked out like a large chessboard!'

(Charles Dodson alias Lewis Carroll whose home overlooked Otmoor)

As I said at the beginning it is an RSPB managed Nature Reserve and unfortunately the birds were just that, reserved! However it is a beautiful place, well worth a visit and we will definitely go there again. The photo at the top of the post of Canada Geese was taken near the end of our visit, you can see the sky was preparing for 'shepherds delight' and the promise of another good day to come.

'Red sky at night; shepherds delight,
Red sky in the morning; sailors warning.'

While the birds were shy the butterflies were more noticeable, it was a beautiful warm and sunny day although a little windy. The Painted Ladies which we have all been so privileged to see in good numbers this year were in evidence.

'Butterflies go fluttering by
On colored wings that catch the eye.
On wings of orange, and silvery blue,
On wings of golden yellow, too.
Butterflies float in the air,
Making their homes most anywhere.'

(Author Unknown)

I think this is a

Green Veined White Butterfly on Vetch

This butterfly was looking spic-and-span, and like us, enjoying the sunshine

Gatekeeper Butterfly

On a wooden rail leading to a hide I saw another sunbather

'A Peacock Butterfly one day
Across a garden took its way,
Unto a spot where roses grew
Of noble form and lovely hue;
And seeing one of goodly size,
To sip its sweets she quickly flies;
And lighting on its crimson leaves,
Her breast with exultation heaves.'

(William Heaton)

Peacock Butterfly

This beautiful blue butterfly refused to open its wings for me but after considering whether it might be a Silver-Studded Blue I have opted for the

Common Blue Butterfly

I may not have been lucky with bird sightings but there was quite a plethora of insects, this one is usually not seen on its own and has the rather indelicate name of Bonking Beetle for obvious reasons!

Rhagonycha fulva

I don't think I have ever seen this particular beauty before

Ruddy Darter (male)

and the female

Ruddy Darter

We had taken a look from the hides as we encountered them on our walk around but there wasn't much to see. Towards the end of our visit, with evening approaching, we felt we deserved a rest so sat in one of the hides and just enjoyed the peace and beauty of the closing day and watched the reed beds.

'Swiftly walk o'er the western wave,
Spirit of Night!
Out of the misty eastern cave,
Where, all the long and lone daylight,
Thou wovest dreams of joy and fear,
Which make thee terrible and dear--
Swift be thy flight!

Wrap thy form in a mantle gray,
Star-inwrought!
Blind with thine hair the eyes of day;
Kiss her until she be wearied out,
Then wander o'er city, and sea, and land,
Touching all with thine opiate wand--
Come, long-sought!'

(Percy Bysshe Shelley)

I saw these

Coots

and this

Swan

To the side of the hide these Canada Geese were gathered


As we left the hide I heard and saw flocks of Canada Geese which made quite an impressive sight in the evening sky.

'Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.'

(Mary Oliver)

The only small birds I saw were this

Blue Tit

and as we left the Reserve perched on a rather ugly power line support this

Yellowhammer

As we walked back towards the car park I saw the teeniest tiniest froglet or maybe a toadlet, it was so small I thought it was a spider at first and not even a large spider! I would say it was no bigger than the size of a finger nail.

Finally (are those sighs of relief I hear? ! I do hope you have made it to the end! I am aware that this has been rather long but I do have to make up for not posting as frequently as some other bloggers :)) after getting back to the car and making our way along a slightly rickety track we were brought to a sudden halt by my cry of Hare! It's a good job there was no one behind us but I just had to get a photo, luckily it froze briefly when it saw me

'Each outcry of the hunted Hare

A fibre from the Brain does tear.'

(William Blake)

before continuing on its way


and we did the same.