The beach and land-slip at Eype, west Dorset - home to the rare Slender Centaury.
Kev mentioned this site to me a few weeks ago, so I popped over the border this morning and found lots of Slender Centaury below the beach carpark. It's a stunning stretch of coastline and one that I've rarely visited. I also nipped over to nearby Burton Bradstock. The last time I went there, can you believe, was January 14th 1989! I remember it with fondness as dad used to often recount the story of a non-birder approaching us, as we scanned from the clifftop, to ask what we were looking for. Dad replied 'Surf Scoter' - to which the guy replied "Oh - one of those jet-ski things"! Unfortunately we never achieved more than a 'possible' sighting of the Surf Scoter but did see 20+ Velvet Scoter, which just wouldn't happen nowadays.
This is the pale pink form of Slender Centaury but the white form, pictured below, predominates. As far as I'm aware the cliffs at Eype is the only place in the UK where Slender Centaury is found.
Looking west from the coast path above Eype beach.
Essex Skipper - Burton Bradstock.
Skipper sp.
Skipper sp.
Looking east from Burton Bradstock cliff-tops.
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