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About the Trap Grounds


The Trap Grounds Town Green & Local Wildlife Site in north Oxford lies immediately south of the Frenchay Road canal bridge (nearest postcode OX2 6TF). An information board on the towpath marks the entrance to three acres of reed bed and seven acres of woodland, grassland, stream, and ponds. The site (open to visitors 24/7) is owned by Oxford City Council and managed for conservation, recreation, and education by the Friends of the Trap Grounds, a group of local volunteers. For more information about current events and activities, the history and wildlife status of the site, and our campaign to save it as a Town Green, visit www.trap-grounds.org.uk. You can also contact the Secretary via the website.

If you are not an authorised poster and would like to submit a photo for consideration for posting on this blog then please e-mail: cmrobinson DOT oxford AT gmail DOT com

Thursday, September 26, 2019

Brown Hairstreak butterfly and Emerald damselfly

Belatedly catching up with some of Nicola Devine's most notable photos from earlier this summer ...


Brown Hairstreak (Thecla betulae) is a conservation priority species, in severe decline all over the country, but Nicola has photographed it on the Trap Grounds in every year since 2015. Its larvae need Blackthorn to feed on; we planted several Blackthorn trees five or six years ago, and it has paid off.

Brown Hairstreak butterfly (Trap Grounds, 20 August 2019, Nicola Devine)

Emerald Damselfly (Lestes sponsa): this mating pair were spotted on 23 July. The last of all damselflies to emerge, this is a late-summer species; the eggs won't hatch until next Spring. Emeralds colonise shallow pools that temporarily dry out in summer, which is just as well, because our Dragonfly Pool dried up completely during the August/September drought.


Emerald damselflies mating (Trap Grounds, Nicola Devine, 23 July 2019)

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