The rhododendron is pretty spectacular at this time of year along with the yellow azaelias which flower along the lake path. The flag iris is turning the marsh from green to gold, and the water lilies are in full bloom. Summer flowers are at their best this month. Heath and common spotted orchids are out in profusion along with bugle, tormentil, red campion, foxgloves, honeysuckle and ragged robin.

June is the month when thousands of tits fledge countrywide. The bushes and trees around the Park are full of young tits, nuthatches and wrens which will stay in their family groups. Swallow and house martin young hatch this month and the first of the young sand martins on the River Teign are due to fledge from their colonial burrows. Some of the older birds will manage to go on to rear a further two broods. A female nightjar was recorded on the heath on 23^rd May. The great-spotted woodpeckers have been filling Stover with the sound of their drumming. The young have now hatched out and can be heard calling to the adults. The tawny owl young have now fledged. The sparrowhawk’s nest has been located in the same conifer plantation as the previous two years.

Tawny Owl young

Fewer wildfowl will be on the wing this month because now is the time that they replace all their old flight feathers. For most breeding ducks, geese and swans this moult happens when they are rearing their flightless chicks. Some ducks, coots and moorhens are still sitting on eggs. The swans haven’t tried to nest again so they’ll be no cygnets this year unfortunately. However, both pairs of great-crested grebes were nest-building again at the end of May; let’s hope the second pair will be successful this time. Of the four grebe chicks that hatched out in April only two have survived to become juveniles. Two common sandpipers and a female goosander were recorded on 3^rd May. The goosander is a sawbill duck that feeds on fish, and is one of the few species of duck that nest in trees. They are usually seen at Stover during the winter months.

Nightjars arrive from their winter quarters in Africa in May

Bats are active at this time of year and can be seen on most evenings skimming over the lake feeding on moths and midges. They will give birth to their single young this month. Young hedgehogs are born in early June with badger and fox cubs starting to wander further afield. Roe deer young are born this month and lie hidden in the undergrowth. The summer months (May to August) is the peak time for the birth of otter cubs and the females are kept busy caring for their young families.

Keep an eye out for the young frogs and toads which will begin to leave the ponds and ditches in June. Newts will also be returning to land to feed after they have bred. They spend much of the day amongst the damp vegetation and under logs and stones. Sightings of grass-snakes and adders occurred during May.

The elder trees have flowered early this year – the flowers provide landing pads for hoverflies, wasps and beetles. Stag beetles are just one of the many types of beetle that emerge in June. Keep an eye out for glow-worms which will light up at dusk in rough grass. They tend to prefer areas where there are plenty of small snails, as this is what their larvae feed on.

Many butterflies and dragonflies are now on the wing. On the butterfly front the first small heath was recorded on 1^st May and the first common blue on the 4^th. Brimstones were busy laying eggs on the alder buckthorn at the end of last month. Speckled woods are now onto their second generation of the year.

Pearl-bordered Fritillary

The dragonflies are also getting more noticeable – the first sightings were recorded as follows : broad-bodied chaser on 1^st May; blue-tailed and beautiful demoiselle damselfly, and four-spotted chaser on 2^nd May; golden–ringed on 4^th May; emperor on 17^th; common blue and azure damselfly on 24^th.The rare downy emerald dragonfly was also seen on 24^th May.