A Sunday morning trip to Shrewsbury Park with Sue and Jasper our dog. I was keen to look at this site as it has one of the longest list of Butterfly species seen in SE London.
The land was formerly part of the Shrewsbury Estates, owned by the Earls of Shrewsbury. It formed part of the grounds of Shrewsbury House, built by the 15th Earl in the 18th century. The Land was leased as a public open space in 1908 and purchased in 1928. The house had been demolished in 1923 and replaced by the current Shrewsbury House, a community centre and library.
The wide variety of Butterflies is likely due to the addition of Dot Hill, which lies to the north of the parkland and which consists of former allotments which have been allowed to rewild.
Sadly, the day we visited was not a good one for butterflies, being windy and overcast, and all we recorded were Meadow Brown and Gatekeeper. But certainly worth another visit in the future.
Ju
Pete's Favourite Things 