Viewing page 75 of 191

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

145
28.5.44, afternoon, which was very warm & not a breath of wind - almost sultry.

At 4.20 set off past ruins of Ballinacourty House by field N. of stables & up through woods to top of Slieve-na-muck ridge, ca. 1200 ft.  Collected a few insects on way up & on way down in crossing the big boundary ditch at top of wood stumbled on a track made by the Wood Ant (Formica rufa) of which I had been talking all afternoon.  As we were already very late for tea had not time to locate nest, but took a few very large specimens & a couple of extremely small ones (all ☿☿ of course!) The colony would be difficult to re-locate as the woods have been so much torn about by the despoilers, but it is roughly in line with the second row of trees west of the old garden behind stables & Ballinacourty House. If one stands at this line of trees with one's back to Galtyore & looks up at the rocky crag on top of Slieve-na-muck ridge (not the summit!), the line would roughly pass the colony, which is beside a large Holly tree on the boundary fence   
The only Holly at this place! AWS 6.6.44.

146.

28.8.44, aft. cont. Ballinacourty Woods, ST., cont.

Also in line from row of trees to crags on ridge as a deep gully in the woods (made by a stream in flood time) & above upper track through roads in an oak from which 5 main branches have been cut, leaving it standing 8 or 10 feet high like a scarecrow & just below colony is an extensive scrub of almost pure birch.

[[image]]
[[labels on image]] 
Crag 
Slieve na-muck ridge
Heath 
Ditch 
Holly
F. rufa track!
Woods
[[?]]
Woods
Cut down oak
Upper track through woods
deep gully
lower track.
Woods
Woods
Big Field
Avenue
[[<-]] To Lisvaranane

2nd row of trees
in line with Galtymore

1st row of trees
Old Avenue
Garden
Stables