1 Peacock, an 1 Brimstone sighted yesterday...just leaves me a Small Tort now, to get all the hibernators. I really expected to see more butterflies on the wing, with plently of sunshine, light winds, good temps. etc. ?? 3 Common Lizards, 2 male Adders, an 1 Slow Worm also sighted at the same locati...

...Spot the Comma, if you can?! Yes, that freakish shadow is mine!! Glad you got some closer images, Paul. I'd never have spotted it in your first one! Looks like they're all being slowly tempted from their winter slumber. :) Thanks David. To be fair, i wouldnt of seen it from that distance/spot ei...

Theres some great shots of our hibernators in this thread so far, keep em coming. Tomorrow looks even better for butterflies...i might have to try in my lunch break from work (before Thursdays rain comes!). Today, after work, i visited one of my good locations, in the hope of an early Adder (an mayb...

Lovely images, Paul. Sure does seem strange seeing butterflies on snowdrops. I guess we have to accept it as the 'new reality'. :) Cheers David, if you look close at the Snowdrop (in my images) you can see a small fly too. I also saw a few Bees an Hoverflies feeding on the Snowdrops...I guess all t...

A nice sunny day today, but a chill was in the air! Ist location drew a blank, no insects at all seen. 2nd location was way more active (a local Church yard). Just the 1 Red Admiral seen, but what a beauty!! It landed on a wall (no pics) then it landed on some dried up/dead twigs/bramble (got come p...

A lucky lunchtime garden sighting for me today! That's fair warmed my heart, seeing that, TM. :) Looks like it'll stay mild for the rest of January so perhaps there'll be a few more. Thanks for that David, weve had a freezing cold week down here in Kent (which has meant no work for me) so i was at ...

A lucky lunchtime garden sighting for me today! :shock: Brilliant sunshine, still quite cold in my (Kent) back garden, but warm enough to coax out a beautiful Red Admiral :D I wasnt planning on using a camera this time of the year, so when i spotted the Red Admiral, i had to run in the house, grab a...

Another great season for me, heres looking forward to 2023. My 3 entries, all shot in Kent, single images, minimal editing, no images are cropped, just downsized. Panasonic G80/45-150mm lens/Canon 500D close up lens attached. Small Copper (f.) 10/7/22. Darland Banks, Kent. Specs - f/10, 1/320, ISO-5...

It would appear that a couple of scumbags were seen "netting" at Cliffe Pools yesterday (Sunday). I didnt actually see them in action myself, but the Warden/Ranger did see the "net." I was in 2 minds yesterday...do i join the "crowd" an go for the QofSF's (100+ mile rou...

Yes David, nature can appear cruel sometimes, epecially when you invest some time in observing these caterpillars. 5 species of Spiders were sighted over the weeks, but the Nettle patches were infested with a Spider known as the Common Candy-striped Spider, an it was this species that would inflict...

Last Saturday was again tough going, really struggled to find more than 10 species, an low numbers for all of em! Returned to Queensdown Warren in Kent for a session......picked up 10+ Ant stings for my troubles too (which are just starting to calm down now!!). Nice to see some fresh Small Heath on ...

A sad and rather macabre scene, Paul. I guess spines give protection from birds but spiders are a different threat entirely. Yes David, nature can appear cruel sometimes, epecially when you invest some time in observing these caterpillars. 5 species of Spiders were sighted over the weeks, but the N...

Crickey Paul I don't know about Crab Spider that looks more like Shelob especially the final close up image! :shock: 8) Have a goodun Wurzel I had to search the word "Shelob" :oops: ..............Ive watched most of the "Potter" films with my youngest son, but that was a fair fe...

This last Saturday meant a return trip to Darland Banks (in Kent) target species were both male an female 2nd brood Adonis Blues. The "drought" conditions have had an impact for sure! Low numbers were found, an it was certainly hard going! I would say no more than 5 males, an maybe 3 femal...

Excellent continuation, Paul. I trust things advanced without any major casualties? Thanks David, unfortunately things took a sinister turn of events...Predation by Spiders being the main problems for all the instars!!! :( I would think predation was going on in the back ground for some time, but f...

Benjamin wrote: ↑Tue Aug 16, 2022 7:50 am Excellent stuff Paul. It’s good to compare dates for development around the country - roughly where are you?

Cheers Ben, yes comparing development dates will be interesting.
Im approx 6 miles West from Maidstone in Kent.
Cheers Paul.

Not my usual style of photography...but hey, sometimes you get an idea, an you just go with it!...Does it work?...I dont know, but i kinda like it. Back on the 29/7/22, i took my 1st trip to Queensdown Warren (in Kent) to look for SSS's...I found 3, an come early evening, when the sun was just setti...

Great stuff, TM, I hope you will have further images as the larvae mature. Cheers David, as i said, i took heaps of images! On to the 1/7/22, an the 4th instar of the main groups had emerged/molted, wow!! they looked awesome up close too! At this point i should say that im using onboard camera flas...

16 species seen yesterday at Darland Banks, Gillingham, Kent. Including a few fresh Brimstone, an 2 "strays"!!...as in- a female DGF, an a Clouded Yellow! Im still seeing very small (in size) female Common Blues too! some of these females are smaller than a Brown Argus. Also, seeing brown ...

30/6/22, an the 1st batch showed zero activity throughout the day, i guess they were making ready to molt. Main group. P1370482-copy-to-800.jpg P1370475-copy-to-800.jpg Smaller group. P1370505-copy-to-800.jpg 2nd batch started the day slow, but soon turned into eating machines...good job the garden ...