Attack of the holly leaf miner

Acres Down, New Forest These flies are seldom seen, but they leave their mark on every holly leaf they attack

I climb the slope to the down in bright sunshine. The wispy tops of leafless birches sway against broken white clouds and I pause to photograph them, with splashes of buttery gorse adding closer interest. The sun is snatched away as I near the crest. As I look down over the forest, a ferocious blast rattles the knee-high birches just breaking leaf beside me. The view has not changed much for months. A brownish patchwork, much of it now flattened bracken, leads to the mixed hues of the conifers that edge the tree line.

Here and there, so-subtle shades of spring signal silver birches, whose sheltered position has given their leafing a head start, with the more yellowish tones and rounder tops revealing a few oaks determined, this year, to beat the ashes in greening the canopy.