The heath is now at it’s best . The vast purple spread is beautiful to behold and the honey bees are all over the flowers.To see animals amongst the purple such as reptiles, insects and deer is what a stroll at this time of year is all about. The colours can be be very bright. In the damper areas of the humid heath are native cockroaches such as this dusky cockroach(Ectobius lapponics). It is one of two similar species.The Tawney cockroach (Ectobius pallidus) has less spots and is a more orange brown colour.
Reptiles are still active and a female sand lizard(Lacerta agilis) basks in the open in a humid patch of mud made by male sika deer as they start to open up their wallowing pools in preparation for the rut.
A smooth snake (coronella austriaca) also basks, but not often in the open but hidden under the heather or under refugia.