Following the news that the Gravesend -Tilbury ferry service was being withdrawn due to funding issues, Keith and I thought we should pay a ‘last’ visit to the site at Tilbury Fort. It is very easy to access from the ferry but would require a journey via central London otherwise and so it seemed likely we were not to going to be visiting again once the Ferry was no longer running.
The land around Tilbury Fort has proved an excellent site for invertebrates, especially butterflies and we once recorded 11 species there in one day. That was later in the season but we thought we would see what we could find. It didn’t seem promising as it was cloudy and the forecast was rain, but the first sighting was a Red Admiral (the only one all day) and a probable Small White, but the star of the show was the Peacock. They seemed to be everywhere and throughout our walk, we must have seen at least 20 individuals.
Ironically, this likely being our last visit, we could walk the complete circuit around the Fort as the barbed wire fencing that had previously obstructed the footpath has been removed! For part of our walk, we acquired a companion, a rather inquisitive pig who followed us as we walked along the footpath.
Other interesting sightings on the circular path were Golden Dung Flies on a horse pat, about 50 in total. I have never seen this species before but they are certainly striking.
We also found several 7-spotted ladybirds, a parasitic bee (Nomada Flava, I think), a Dark-edged Bee Fly and a Dock bug.
Several Common Chiffchaffs and Blackcaps were singing from the undergrowth and we got brief glimpses as they moved around the bushes.
So a good day. It is a shame that this site will now be far more difficult for us to reach in future.
Pete's Favourite Things 