Wall - Lasiommata megera

Located in the Tamar Valley area, Kit Hill Country Park is an ideal place for much wildlife. This wild, rugged granite hilltop is famous for its fine views, with Plymouth and Devon visible on the horizon.

 

The Hill supports a variety of insects, not least this beautiful Wall butterfly, which I found basking on a granite rock. With its fast, flashing and golden forewings, this species suggests a fritillary or Comma. However, when seen at rest, its bright ‘eye’ spots confirm its identity as one of the ‘browns’. This is by far the most showy and active of all the British brown butterflies.

 

There are also plenty of reptiles, birds and mammals. Cuckoo, stonechats, skylarks and tree pipits nest in the heathland, while birds of prey such as buzzard and kestrel hunt overhead. Furry moth caterpillars are common on the heather and during the summer months the sunny slopes are popular with basking adders. Nature has even reclaimed mine workings with bats roosting deep underground.

 

Kit Hill, Near Callington, Cornwall, England

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