Just wandered round the garden at dusk, and ended up gazing into the leaves of our two 20 foot Elms, Sapporo Gold, I planted some approx. 7 years ago. Whilst wondering which moth catty was creating all those ragged leaves, my eyes settled on first one, then a second slug like silhouette - low enough...

Just about 3 weeks have passed, and things are beginning to move on, tho' few flowers yet... IMG_2768.jpg IMG_2766.jpg IMG_2764.jpg just a few violets and wild strawberries, the yellow rattle is growing taller, and just about everything is now jostling for position. I was in Kent yesterday, and I re...

I have heard horses definitely seem to be the best grazers on a larger scale, Collard Hill etc, depending on timing. I cut my stuff back in autumn/winter, using scissors if necessary ( barrel of badgers :wink: ) but am hoping this year the rabbits will do it. I think on a small scale what I have don...

Thanks David... I think it sounds better than it is!! I just wish it was bigger! Oh, and I also wish I lived in a part of the country where Small Blues and Grizzled Skippers etc might also come to stay :D Anyone can do the same, the weed-proof is there to keep creeping thistle out and the "soil...

Does this count?... P. argus female, Vercors, France 2012 It's not as Blue as caernensis , but... IMG_6136.jpg I have 16 different argus individuals imaged in overseas shots, 7 of which are female and only the above one has any blue. I think Piers has a very strong point regarding "collector bi...

Have been working on this for 5 years now... have posted pics before, but this year will try and update this thread from time to time... :D weed-proof membrane over ordinary ground with 1-2 ins of subsoil/ grit/ sand mix, fortunately we have a very limey soil. Aim - to replicate an "Alpine mead...

More Green Hairstreaks today... 2 reasons.. firstly I love them, secondly, there's not much else to see here at the moment. :D :( http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd306/ptkip/140426CrubiSE04962485_zps979a1292.jpg http://i223.photobucket.com/albums/dd306/ptkip/140426CrubiSE04962409_zps9740d0f0.jpg

That was from about 30 feet away.... never had one let me that close before.... think I dragged myself across every moorland thistle on my way though

PBFs a bit of a way off for me yet. Hope U both well

A trip out for our local rubi provided a couple of decent images, the white spotting being a bit off white in a couple of them this year, no idea why. Also a rather pleasant bird encounter, excuse the poor quality, using a macro lens for bird photos is a bit hopeless :D http://i223.photobucket.com/a...

2014 Finally the new season is underway up here. Wall to wall blue sky, and following the Commas, Peacocks and Small Tortoiseshells which have been braving things for a while, today bought the first Orange Tips ( 2 males and 2 females) and Green-veined Whites. So to celebrate.... IMG_web2200_edited-...

Only just seen this thread, and the superb examples of butterflies herein. My own fave from last year was this Chapman's Blue... I had been trying to get a decent shot of this species since I first went abroad... especially as the species looks so much like Common Blue...... well, high in the Tayget...

Hi Roger...glad you put these up in the end, some of the best photos ever imho and interesting choice of species. loved the flikr set. Wish I could join you this year, but not a cat in hell's chance.

I would be very grateful for any advice regarding these skippers from Itally, previously posted, but not responded to on....

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=7065

They still sit uncertainly in a file... I would really appreciate advice

I would be very grateful for any advice regarding these skippers from Itally, previously posted, but not responded to on....

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=7065

They still sit uncertainly in a file... I would really appreciate advice

I would be grateful for some ID opinions on these, left over from the Italian Alps, first week in July... mostly malvae I think!... sorry, no undersides!
Thanks for any advice

I love the Southern White Admiral !! nice one!

catching up.... I am extraordinarily envious ( in the nicest possible sense) of your nivalis photos, they are brill, and I was going to ask how you saw them as not tyndarus, but a quick look at Tolman put me right, - wow... what a beauty!. I'm sure I could never have got up there!!! Well done indeed!

As explained to me by GP during several discussions over the years, lately included.. thought I would collage 3 pics all taken in the Alps this year showing trends between Alpine and Darwin's Heath. Poor quality given the 800 pixel limit but open for comments if any!

Last full day, and only a few to add, though it includes my best of the trip, Thor's Fritillary, encountered somewhere we were not expecting it or much else for that matter.... proves you don't have to visit known square inches to see things when abroad, unlike our butterfly museums over here... Les...

Hi Pete... every time I log on I have to wait 30=90 seconds for each screen change, and it is frequently "expiring" me from the site.... internet explorer is the browser, it takes yonks to add a topic, and as I write this I'm going to have to copy it in case I get kicked out again.... is i...