Slonk
Hill Cutting: A27
Embankment
Slonk
Hill Cutting: A27
Embankment
|
The footpath runs parallel with the main road through the spinney (linear wood) on the southern side, immediately north of Slonk Hill Farm Road. There are several access points, notably at the top of The Drive (in the west) and by the bridge over the road to Slonk Hill Farm (in the east).
There are no practical access points to the steep northern bank. |
Slonk Hill Cutting Reports 2008
25
September 2007
A
Speckled
Wood was seen in the spinney part of the
southern bank of the Slonk Hill Cutting. On a blackberrying
visit to the hedgerow part, a Comma Butterfly
and a Silver Y Moth
fluttered amongst the Brambles.
Full
Butterfly List
29
July 2007
A
full sized Common Lizard, Zootoca
vivipara, was seen on a peice of foam
next to the south side of the main A27
road. Canadian Goldenrod
was in flower on the southern bank of the Slonk
Hill Cutting where the linear path opens out into a meadow-like habitat.
26
July 2007
On
the south side of the Slonk Hill Cutting when the linear wood path opens
up into some meadow-like vegetation, a few Gatekeepers,
Meadow
Browns,
one Small Blue Butterfly,
one Small/Essex Skipper
and a Large White Butterfly
were recorded.
24
July 2007
Along
the top of Slonk Hill Cutting south, I recorded one Essex
Skipper, 21 Meadow
Browns,
7 Gatekeepers,
1 Large White
and one Common Darter
(dragonfly). Along the bottom right next
to the road, I recorded 11 "Sussex" Skippers
(three of them identified as 2 Essex Skipper,
1 Small Skipper),
10 Meadow
Browns,
2 Peacocks,
1 Red Admiral,
1 Holly Blue,
2 Common Blues,
2 Small Blues, 1 Large White,
1 Speckled Wood
1 (end in cover); plus 1 Silver Y Moth;
and one 6-spot Burnet Moth
and two Common Darters.
 |
19
July 2007
At least two faded Ringlet Butterflies were quickly seen on the south side of the Slonk Hill Cutting, with a few Meadow Browns, Gatekeepers, Small Skippers and Holly Blues. |
11
July 2007
Late
in the day I made a trek along the southern side of the Slonk
Hill Cutting where a Speckled Wood
settled on the path and one pair of Ringlet
Butterflies where seen mating in the Common
Spotted Orchid meadow with a few Meadow
Browns,
a few Gatekeepersand
one Small Skipper. On
Buckingham
Cutting south I spied a clear
Small
White and a couple of amorous Red
Admirals.
3 July
2007
The
southern bank of the Slonk Hill Cutting produced about six Ringlet
Butterflies and about a dozen Meadow
Browns.
A
Cinnabar
Moth fluttered over the vegetation.In
the area where the path forms a small clearing, I encountered half a dozen
Marbled
White Butterflies and one Comma.
Occasional
Large
White Butterflies were seen along the
trail. Yellow Foxglove
has spread on to the bank from the nearby gardens.
Full
Butterfly Report
27
June 2007
On
the orchid-covered
southern bank of the Slonk Hill Cutting I spotted the languid flight of
my first Ringlet Butterflies
of 2007. It is
was difficult to be sure at first as I followed the butterfly around for
over three minutes before it settled at a distance for a mere second.
Then I disturbed a few Meadow
Browns
of
both sexes so I was no longer sure of my identification. Luckily, after
two minutes a few more Ringlets
appeared and I was able to get a closer look and poor photograph.
There were about half a dozen of each species and there may have been many
hiding on an overcast breezy day where four Large
White Butterflies also took flight.
There
were hundreds of Rough Hawkbits
as well as the Common Spotted Orchids.
Adur
Butterflies: First Dates
Adur
Butterfly & Large Moth List
10
June 2007
My
first
butterfly of the day was a Large
Skipper in a clearing next to the path
that runs through a spinney and hedgerows/scrub on the southern side of
the Slonk Hill Cutting. This was my first this year. The
positive sighting was confirmed by an out of focus photograph.
Full
Butterfly Report
 |
 |
|
On the southern road bank of the Slonk Hill Cutting, a clump of Peach-leaved? Bellflowers, Campanula persicifolia, showed bright blue and they were very distinctive. They were right next to the main road.
8 June
2007
There
were no butterflies on the southern bank,
although Small Blue Butterflies
were seen on the Buckingham Cutting, north
Shoreham.
In
the absence of any movement, I ascertained that the common yellow single-stemmed
plants were Hawkbits
and Mouse-eared Hawkweeds
in equal proportions. Both hosted a small green beetle
and one Hawkbit
was seen to host a handful of tiny black pollen
beetles, probably Meligethes
sp.
| There were no signs to indicate what animal had made this underground tunnel |  |
5 June
2007
A
flash of orange and now there were two female
Broad-bodied
Chasers (dragonflies),
Libellula
depressa, seen on the southern
part of the Slonk Hill bank over the vegetation
bordering the path. The flew energetically to and fro and settled in dense
vegetation out of camera range. A Burnet
Companion Moth made a brief appearance
on the northern bank, but there were no Small
Blue Butterflies to be seen and only two Kidney
Vetch were seen in flower.
Trailing
Bellflower, Campanula
porscharskayana, was noted as an alien
garden escape
in the linear wood between the
gardens and the road embankment on the south side of the Slonk Hill Cutting.
Adur
Dragonflies 2007
 |
3
June 2007
There was a pyralid moth Pyrausta despicata on the northern bank of Slonk Hill. Yellow Wort was flowering in the morning. |
At
first it looked like a gigantic wasp,
but it was just too big and recognised as a female
Broad-bodied
Chaser (dragonfly), Libellula
depressa, seen on the southern
part of the Slonk Hill bank over the vegetation bordering the path. This
was my first of the year.
Adur
Dragonflies 2007
20
May 2007
The
first Common Spotted Orchids (one
seen in full flower and others budding) and Salsify
were seen on the southern bank of the Slonk Hill Cutting. The first Grass
Vetchling, Eyebright
and Yellow Wort were
seen in flower on the norther bank with millions of Horseshoe
Vetch, Hippocrepis comosa,
flowers. Mouse-eared
Hawkweeds were in flower on both banks.
On
the northern bank of the Slonk Hill Cutting,
I recorded just a single male Adonis Blue
Butterfly amongst the Horseshoe
Vetch, one Burnet
Companion Moth and the yellow fluttering
was a Yellow Shell Moth
and not a Clouded Yellow Butterfly.
No Small Blue Butterflies
were spotted. On the southern bank of the Slonk Hill Cuttting, there were
a handful of Holly Blue Butterflies.
Cuckoo's
Spit was seen on Salad
Burnet and
the Thick-legged Flower Beetle, Oedemera
nobilis, was frequently seen on many flowers and there was almost
certainly hundreds and probably thousands of this abundant green beetle.
Smaller shiny green beetles were also seen
on the hawkweeds.
I think these smaller ones may be Cryptocephalus.
Butterfly
Report
Adur
Beetles 2006-7
30
April 2007
Horseshoe
Vetch was in flower on the steep northern
bank in large amounts. Alas, it did not seem to attract any butterflies.
25
April 2007
A
quick passage along the path on the southern side of the Slonk Hill Cutting
disturbed a pair of Jays.
They flew off separately, both of them following the path between two hedges
until out of view. Common Vetch
was seen in flower.
16
April 2007
Cowslips
are flowering in the central reservation of the A27 through the Slonk Hill
Cutting. There are hundreds of clumps.
 |
13
April 2007
A common species of small crab spider known as the Zebra Spider, Salticus scenicus was seen on the green roadside box on the southern side of the Slonk Hill Cutting. I did not know at the time that it had caught its supper. Click on the image for a bigger picture. |
 |
2
April 2007
This small spider was on Alexanders on the Slonk Hill Cutting path south. |
13
March 2007
There
was even less of interest than in February
with just Sweet Violets, Daffodils,
Red
Deadnettle and Oil
Seed Rape bordering the path.
Adur
Violets
28 February
2007
On
the muddy trail (not too muddy it is not well used) of Slonk Hill Bank,
running parallel with the A27 on the south side, there was precious little
colour: just the berries of Cotoneaster,
one Dandelion
and two Greater Periwinkle.
A Great Tit
flew over the open part of the path and perched briefly in the bare branches
of a tree.
Slonk
Hill Cutting Reports 2006
Link to the Slonk Hill Cutting 2006 Reports
Shoreham
Town & Gardens
Dovecote
Bank including the Mill Hill Cutting
Link to Slonk Hill Reports for 2004
