Wildlife

James Lowen

The past fortnight I have done some survey work in the Trinity Broads. After a few brief views of Lesser Emperors, the hottest day of the year saw me bump into at least 14 individuals (including one ovipositing pair and another in tandem) across three sites. This species has personal resonance. Back in 1998, it was the dragonfly that got me into Odonata. Britain's third record was found by Richard Thomas at Cambridge Science Park. I was working nearby at BirdLife International, in the same team as Philip Precey (now director atWildlife Travel), who persuaded me to join him in a lunchtime jaunt to see it. I confessed that I had no idea what a 'lesser emperor' was - never having previously looked at dragons and damsels. But that day turned me. Nearly thirty years on, Lesser Emperors are an established, if rare resident.

I have subsequently seen plenty of Lesser Emperors across the country. But it has taken me until this year to actually photograph one. And this past week has provided some nice opportunities.

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26 June 2026 What the pug?

Norfolk's most 'important' moth, if there is such a thing, is Scarce Pug. It is effectively endemic to the county (the Lincs site now being thought defunct). Moreover, it is restricted to the north-west coast of the county. Further, it depends wholly on a single food plant (Sea Wormwood) on a very threatened habitat (salt marsh). It occurs only at one other site in Europe. It is globally Endangered. I have seen it once - back in 2019. When Josh Jones mentioned he was staying in Norfolk for a week, I thought it might be fun to have a wander along the dunes and see whether we could find any. And indeed we did: Josh spotted three, two of which posed for photos. One was a bit sun-bleached, the other (part of a presumably mating pair) was in better nick. They are lovely creatures - readily flying by day and perching 'vertically'. Let's hope work underway by Butterfly Conservation helps protect this lovely species.

In other news, a male European Honey-buzzard flew over me in Norfolk. Another species new for the photographic list - and always nice to see.