DD at Burwell Cutting: About a dozen or so male CHB out (no females) Ringlets, Meadow Brown, Small Heath; a single Marbled White, plus 2 Large, 1 Small and 5 GV White. CHB_m_1a_low_Burwell_17th_July_2012.jpg LW_1a_low_Burwell_17th_July_2012.jpg Large, Small and Essex Skipper... and a lovely summer C...

Just caught-up with the excellent report - sounds like a great trip, Dave :) I am just as confused with Erebia and Pyrgus as I ever was.....Good job we have Guy to give us a steer! (And funnily enough, I was also watching Henry IV, II last night too; I also watched part I..... Excellent production t...

Nick. Am I right in thinking DGFs are a new arrival at Fleam Dyke? They have been expected for a long time but I have never seen one there. Jack They re-appeared after a long absence (1994) about 4 years ago; this is the fifth summer in a row that they have been seen. They also appeared on the near...

...just keep dodging the rain-drops, Gary....
The best thing to do is to go out anyway, in the hope you will see something if the sun shines again...
(You know me,the interminable optimist.....)

I note I can see the names of those entering the Summer Comp........

Out this morning: My first sighting on the Fleam Dyke of a passing Marbled White. Lots of Ringlet, Small Heath and Meadow Brown, 5 Small White, 1 BA, Brimstone, RA, Peacock and ST. Also several Large, Small and a single Essex, Skipper. The breeze made the butterflies jumpy Ringlet_MB_1_low_FD_12th_J...

Found this RA sunning itself and defending territory against all-comers, including me!
Fortunately, once I sat down it finally settled nearby for me...

Several Ringlets and Meadow Brown in the Cemetery, plus this Small Skipper...

Several GVW today. plus 1 Comma, 1 RA, one geriatric male CB, a female Large and several Small Skipper...

Indeed, David! And yet this is in Dr. George's garden, which he plants specially with flowers to bring Swallowtails to his garden to nectar. I arrived one morning to find at least 8 or 10 Swallowtails in a feeding frenzy to nectar-up and get on with their serious business of the day. Not only does h...

SWT_17_low_Strumpshaw_25th_May_2011.jpg I enclose an example above of how difficult it is to base judgements on one photograph of an individual out of context. This specimen is as britannicus as they come, taken at Strumpshaw, but does not have the tapering black band on the fore-wing that Guy high...

Since this is in my patch (Cambs & Essex BC) I watched with interest as the reports and pics came in.... My immediate thought was either an immigrant or a release of a captive specimen (as the other odd sightings elsewhere might indicate)... The debate here has helped to cement that first impres...

Obviously, the proper name was "lost in translation"......

This cat just got overwhelmed by the sheer numbers of butterflies (From Russia)....
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... uties.html

First Small Skippers here.....

Visited one of the only 2 sites for DGF in Cambs today - and saw at least one male on the wing but didn't manage any pics....
(Also 15+ Ringlet, 10+ Meadow Brown and Small Heath and at least 5 each of Large and Small Skipper)

Nice to catch a female Small Tortoiseshell laying in a local patch of nettles... She returned repeatedly to the same patch, laying one egg each time... I'll be keeping my eye-out for the off-spring....

My surprise at seeing 2 Small White today was compounded when one started to search nearby Hedge Mustard for places to lay... Also found some more Mullein Moth caterpillars....

Nice to see some things emerging; I've managed to get-out for a few minutes and found some Meadow Brown (males and females) close-by... Typically the males were very photo-shy...

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1 ... x/abstract

Link from Facebook page of Butterfly Conservation Europe.....
http://www.facebook.com/ButterflyConservationEurope

I immediately thought of Roger.....
and Guy and Paul and RogerG