Dark-green Fritillary - Longstone Edge

There were some sunny spells when I left home early this morning so I thought there may be a chance of some butterflies on the wing but the spells of sunshine were very intermittent when I arrived at Longstone Edge. Distant views of a Red Kite were some compensation as it drifted towards Monsal Head. I had a single Dark-green Fritillary but it stayed in the long grass making a decent shot impossible - looked fresh though.

Dark-green Fritillary

Common Blue Butterfly - Longstone Edge

Several Common Blue flying this morning during the odd spells of sunshine.

Common Blue Butterfly

Jacob's Ladder - Lathkill Dale

Voted Derbyshire's 'County Plant' in a nationwide poll by PlantLife in 2004 Jacob's Ladder is restricted in the UK to just 15 10Km squares which are largely divided between the Derbyshire Peak District and North Yorkshire. There is a fine display of this elegant plant in Lathkill Dale at the moment.

Jacob's Ladder

Broad-bodied Chaser - Lathkill Dale

Three males and a female on the small dew pond, this male attracted the attention of a Large Red Damselfly.

Broad-bodied Chaser

Azure Damselfly - Lathkill Dale

Arrived at the small dew pond at the Monyash entrance in heavy cloud but as the sky cleared a myriad of damselflies appeared. Including both Azure and Large Red.

Azure Damselfly

Almost certainly - Uncertain

The past few years I have largely stopped trying to separate the very similar moths The Rustic and The Uncertain and report them aggregated. However, every so often if I catch one that show all the features of one or other I am inclined to put a name to it. This individual with the very distinct dark contrasting stigma and rather warm yellowish tones looks like The Uncertain.

The Uncertain

Peregrine Falcon - Belper

James went down to Belper this afternoon for the Peregrines. Three juveniles have successfully fledged and there is one bird still in the nest. It looks like this is keeping the adults busy providing food. Great action shots taken with his Canon 7D and 100-400mm.

Peregrine - female with prey

Bird's-nest Orchid - Shacklow Wood

I went out as usual shortly after first light and returned a couple of hours later, thoroughly wet. Updated my moth records for the year; 91 species for the garden, looking at Simon's twitter feed it looks like he has recorded well over 100 species https://twitter.com/ddbirder. My shortfall is down to effort I think as Simon only lives about a mile away.
Thinking about what to do for the rest of the day birds, butterflies and dragonflies were out due to the weather. I had noted that Bird's-nest Orchid occurred locally so checking the Derbyshire Flora Website it gave Shacklow Wood just north of Ashford-in-the-Water as a location. I've just bought the Canon 5D III so this would be an ideal opportunity to test its performance in low light, if I could find the orchids.
When I arrived there were a couple of PlantLife volunteers who kindly directed me to a location for Toothwort, a rare and strange saprophytic plant very similar in habitat requirements to the orchid so it perhaps wasn't too surprising that the orchid was also present at the same location when I got there - and a new species for me. 
The Plantlife 'Discover Deep Dale Nature Reserve' gives directions to both the orchid and Toothwort although it looks like the Toothwort is just about finished flowering now.

Bird's-nest Orchid

Toothwort - Shacklow Wood

Most of the flower spikes had gone over but their were odd ones still on display with the dead flowers in the foreground.

Toothwort

Heath Spotted Orchid - Wraggs Quarry

As mentioned below I thought the 'spotted orchids' in Wraggs Quarry were Heath Spotted but I popped over to Bonall Moor to make sure and photographed the Common Spotted there. The difference is very obvious with the lower petal on the flower of the Common Spotted divided into three distinct lobes whereas the petal is undivided in Heath Spotted.
Bird wise quiet today, the weather didn't help with it more like April than June with regular heavy rain showers. Roger had a Red Kite over Beeley Moor, there have been quite a number of sightings in recent weeks, particularly in the Bonsall direction.

Heath spotted Orchid

Common Spotted Orchid - Bonsall Moor

Common Spotted Orchid

Northern Marsh Orchid - Wraggs Quarry

A couple of years ago Ken noted a single Northern Marsh Orchid, the first we had seen in Wraggs Quarry and it appeared again last year. This year there must be over fifty orchids just starting to bloom. They are intermingled with an orchid that looks like Heath Spotted Orchid. I'll have another look when the flowers have fully opened.

Northern Marsh Orchid

Narrow-winged Pug

The warmer weather, especially the nights has made a big difference to my moth catches at home, I'm behind with the list but will update it at the weekend. This evening there were good numbers of Narrow-winged Pugs flying over the moor.

Narrow-winged Pug

Common Sandpiper - Chatsworth

The Common Sandpiper at Chatsworth is at the extreme south-east of its main breeding range in England which is predominantly on the upland rivers and reservoirs of the Derbyshire High Peak extending north up the Pennines to the hills of Cumbria and Northumberland.
Arriving in mid-April the adults have usually departed for wintering quarters in north and west Africa by mid-July. 
I have occasionally seen birds on the river at Rowsley down to Darley Dale but I think Chatsworth is the only regular breeding location. At least one of the pair was colour ringed which I think is as a result of a study by the Sorby Breck Ringing Group, I'll see if I can get further information.

Common Sandpiper

Leveret

No sign of the Osprey today but I came across my first leveret of the year, also Wheatear on Beeley Moor which is my first for a while.

Brown Hare - leveret