Wildlife

Here's a sample of the wildlife found in Kingston Hill Fields.

Common Toad

A Common Toad hanging motionless in the water of the dew pond. This photo was taken on the 11th March 2022 at 9pm. Other Toads were croaking nearby but this one was silent. Each year in early March we see a ‘mass’ migration of Toads to our pond (and sometimes away from it - are they confused or is there better to be had?). The rest of the year they hide in rough grassland, hedgerows and woodland which we have lots of although we never seen them if they are on our land.

Bee Orchid

Bee Orchids have colonised a small patch of thin-soiled grassland, it took a decade or so for them to appear but then this is to be expected as all orchids need a fungus (mycorrhizal relationship) to grow. Despite its showy flower it doesn’t need insects to pollinate it, it does it itself. This photo was taken 19th June 2021.

Wasp Spider

This magnificent female Wasp Spider was seen in the field 26th August 2021 although we saw them throughout August. Her body is about 15 mm long and while it’s thought they can bite their striking colour is a bluff although they may of course not taste too good. They can run at an impressive speed as I found when one rescued one and it streaked up my sleeve.

Harvest Mouse nest

Found in the tall grass of unmanaged area. We have half a hectare of field that’s hasn’t been grazed for the last few years. Curiously, it has much fewer wildflowers making us wonder why we’re doing this when the grazed area seems so much richer. Well now you know. Although since finding this another nest has been found in the grazed part of the field amongst a bramble patch. The nest was smaller so that one may have been a bivouac and not a nest to raise pups.

Tway Blade Orchids

We have an increasing number of Tway Blade Orchids although they are incredibly difficult to find being the same colour as the grass. Once you get your eye in though you start to spot them.

Great Crested Newt

Although not found in the fields it was seen on the track above and we believe it has used the dew pond earlier in the year.

Ox Eye Daisy

The fields are developing their areas for different plants. From an arial photograph the field looks like one homogenous area. On the ground it’s many different areas. Some face north, some south and others every direction in between. Some areas have rich deep soil, as in the valley, others thin soils as on the higher parts. This area, Bread Nore as the old maps name it, has thin soil however grazing animals like it to rest up so it can get an unfair share of cow pats - it remains to be seen what effect this has on the ecology.

Species recorded in fields.

Birds

Barn Owl

Blackbird

Blackcap

Black Headed Gull

Blue Tit

Buzzard

Chaffinch

Chiffchaff

Collared Dove

Common Gull

Corn Bunting (likely nest in field)

Crow

Dunnock

Egret (Little)

Fieldfare

Goldfinch

Goldcrest

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Great Tit

Greenfinch

Green Sandpiper

Green Woodpecker

Grey Wagtail

Hedge Sparrow

Hen Harrier

Heron (Grey)

Herring Gull

House Martin

House Sparrow

Jackdaw

Jay

Kestrel

Kingfisher

Lesser Whitethroat (by pond)

Linnet (likely nested in summer)

Long-Tailed Tit

Magpie

Mallard

Meadow Pipit

Mistle Thrush

Moorhen

Partridge

Nuthatch

Pheasant

Pied Wagtail

Quail

Red-Legged Patridge

Red Kite

Redwing

Robin

Rook

Skylark (2 pairs regularly nest in Summer)

Song Thrush

Sparrow Hawk

Spotted Flycatcher

Starling

Stonechat

Stock Dove

Swallow

Swift

Wheatear

Whitethroat

Whinchat

Whitethroat

Willow Warbler

Wood Pigeon

Wren

Yellow Hammer

Dragonflies & Damselflies

Dragonflies

Emperor Dragonfly

Azure Damselfly

Small Red-eyed Damselfly

Common Darter

Ruddy Darter

Blue-tailed Damselfly

Southern Hawker –

Damselflies

Azure

Small Red-eyed

Blue-tailed

Mammals (see separate section for Bats)

Badger

Field Vole

Fox

Hare

Harvest Mouse

Mole (activity, not seen)

Rabbit

Roe Deer

Reptiles

Common Lizard

Grass Snake

Slow Worm

Flowering plants (forbs)

Agrimony (common)

Bee Orchid

bird’s-foot-trefoil

Black Medic (Medicago lupulina)

Blackberry

Broad Leaved Dock

Broom Rape

Bryony (White)

Buttercup (creeping)

Burdock

Campion (White)

Carrot (wild)

Catsear

Centaury

Celandine (Lesser)

Common Melilot

Common Mouse-Ear

Common Sorrel

Common Spotted Orchid

Cowslip

Cow Parsley

Creeping Thistle

Cuckoo-pint (Arum maculatum)

Curly Dock

Cut-leaved Cranesbill

Daisy

Dandelion

Dead Nettle (Red) (Lamium purpureum)

Dog Rose

Doves-Foot Crane’s Bill

Dwarf Thistle

Early Purple Orchid

Eyebright (Common)

Fairy Flax

Fat Hen

Field Bindweed

Field Scabious

Forget me not

Fragrant Orchid

Garlic Mustard

Goat’s-beard

Goosegrass (Galium aparine)

Goutweed (Aegopodium podagraria)

Grass Vetchling

Ground Ivy

Hedge-parsley

Herb Robert (Geranium purpureum)

Hedge Woundwort (Stachys sylvatica)

Hogweed

Houndstongue

Kidney Vetch

Knapweed (Greater)

Knotgrass

Lady’s Bedstraw

Lucerne (Alph Alpha)

Mallow

Marjoram

Marsh Woundwort

Meadow Pea

Mignonette (Wild)

Morning Glory (Ipomoea obsucura)

Mouse Eared Hawkweed

Oregano

Ox-eye Daisy

Pansy (wild)

Poppy

Prickly Sow Thistle

Purple Loosestrife

Pyramid Orchid

Ragwort

Red Bartsia

Red Clover

Restharrow

Ribwort Plantain

Rosebay Willowherb

Salad Burnet

Scarlet Pimpernel

Scentless Mayweed

Self Heal (Common)

Silverweed (Potentilla anserina)

Speedwell

Spear Thistle

Strawberry (Wild)

St John's Wort

Stemless Thistle

Stinging Nettle

Strawberry (wild)

Thyme (Wild)

Tway Blade Orchid

Vervain

Vetch (Tufted)

Wild Mustard

White Clover

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)

Yellow Rattle

Yellow-wort

Grasses

Barren Brome

Cocksfoot Grass

Meadow Grass

Orchard Grass

Quaking Grass

Rye Grass (Perennial)

Soft Brome

Tall Oat Grass

Timothy Grass

Tor Grass

Yorkshire Fog

Trees

Ash (Common)

Blackthorn

Dogwood

Elder

Field Maple

Goat Willow

Hawthorne (Common)

Oak (Common or Pedunculate or English)

Pussy Willow

Spindle

Wayfaring tree (Viburnum lantana)

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Fungi

Witches Hat (Wax Cap)

Glistening Inkcap mushroom (Coprinellus micaceus)

Petticoat Mottlegill

Butterflies

Brown Argus

Common Blue

Darkgreen Fritillary

Gatekeeper

Green-veined White

Large Skipper

Marbled White

Meadow Brown

Painted Lady

Peacock

Red Admiral

Small Blue

Small Copper

Small Heath

Small Skipper

Speckled Wood

Wall Brown

Moths

Cinnabar Moth

White Plume Moth

Spiders

Wasp Spider

Neoscona adianta

Araneus quadratus

Eriothrix rufomaculata

Araniella cucurbitina

Bats

Pipistrel

Soprano Pipistrel

Insects

Cockchafer (Maybug)

Common Green Grasshopper

Early Mining Bee (Andrena haemorrhoa)

Hawthorne Fly (Bibio marci)

Maybug (Cockchafer)

Meadow Grasshopper (Pseudochorthippus parallelus)

Slow Bug (Dolycoris baccarum)

Urophora cadui

Epistrophe eligans (a Hoverfly)

Eriothrix rufomaculata

Compost Fly (Ptecticus trivittatus)

Bees & Wasps

Common Carder Bee

Mossy Rose Gall Wasp (Diplolepsis rosae)

Red-tailed Bumblebee

Species lists updated 19 May 2023