Thanks all - so many stunning butterflies species out there - not to mention the other arthropods: MAX03139.JPG MAX01612.JPG MAX01097.JPG MAX08534.JPG MAX09621.JPG MAX05213.JPG MAX09789.JPG MAX03693.JPG MAX04404.JPG PXL_20220329_170448825.jpg Will get to work on some bits and pieces from Ecuador!

After 8 days at Kasanka, it was time to leave and head over to Kafue. Another bumpy 14 hour mini-bus journey took us to our camp site, where we would stay for 2 nights before heading back to the UK. At Kafue, opportunities to wander around and explore were far more limited, with most activities requ...

As the days went on, the students became more focussed with their projects, and one of those that I was set to supervise was focussed on dung beetle assemblages in different herbivore dung. As part of this particular project, we had collected dung from a number of herbivores and set them up in trays...

On the 4th day at Kasanka, as we were making our way along one of the main tracks, we came across some very popular dung piles. The diversity of species visiting the dung was staggering. Frequently, there would be upwards of 10 butterfly species on a single pile – not to mention the dung beetles! Th...

Thanks both - very fortunate to have been given the opportunity to go out there. Glad that I can share some of my enjoyable experiences with others!

Just thought I would share some of my experiences from a trip to Zambia with the University earlier this year. Back in April, we took around 24 students to Zambia to visit two National Parks over 12 days as part of an ‘African Zoology’ field trip. While we spent most of the time directing students t...

Long-tailed Blues are slowly increasing in numbers in Sussex, with what looks like a few first British-born adults already on the wing. 2F874405-C55C-4C11-908B-0456E253AE14.jpeg 4256B356-C503-4497-9265-E09A0FB2F125.jpeg 1F269AA3-B0FE-4992-ACF1-211B507DB5A2.jpeg On a separate note, I’ve also seen 6 b...

Thanks all, Great to meet you too Bugboy - looking forward to seeing you again in the near future! Cheers Wurzel - I think you're right. It's pretty clear that the LTB is a regular migrant now. They do appear further west, but just not quite in the numbers that are seen here in the Southeast. I'm su...

Chalkhill and Common Blues It's been a reasonably good year for both Chalkhill and Common Blues locally. I did notice that there were particularly good numbers of female common blues around over the last few weeks, with a good deal more variability in the upperside than I have experienced in the pa...

Long-tailed Blue As Neil has already mentioned in his PD, 5 males spotted on 6th August at Whitehawk. Again, for those that are interested in visiting, please avoid trampling the Broad-leaved Everlasting Pea, and do your bit to remind others as well. PXL_20220807_155224875.jpg As soon as I arrived,...

Small Blue I've been following some Small Blues at a local site, trying to get a better understanding of their ecology as larvae. Despite the site only being around 1 acre in size, you can reliably find tens, if not hundreds of small blues. Eggs are easy to spot, as they tend to be quite conspicuou...

I'm familiar with the wing-rolling behaviour of European lycaenids, and the mystery surrouding the function of this behaviour, so I've spent a fair bit of time reading through this topic a number of times. I've seen this behaviour in many other lycaenids in Africa and South America, and I wouldn't b...

Thanks Wurzel - Yes, I agree about the wing shapes, really bizarre. It also highlights the precision they have in flight, something that's very difficult to gauge otherwise.

Silver-studded blues After seeing some other posts of SSBs from Iping common earlier in the year, I was tempted to head over when timing permitted. In mid-June, I was due to head to Ecuador for work, and my window of opportunity was slim. Fortunately, I managed to find some time in the afternoon af...

Thanks all for the kind comments on the photos, much appreciated!

Small Pearls at East Budleigh common I went for a walk through Bicton and East Budleigh common in East Devon this weekend, hoping to stumble across some Silver-studded Blues. Unfortunately, I had no luck, but the wind certainly didn't help. I did, however, manage to spend a good few hours admiring ...

Thanks Pete - I'm getting better at including more contextual shots in my blogs - they give so much more information than the flat on macro shots, and I think they're crucial for story-telling.

Rather than repeat what Pete Eeles has already said in his PD, and share some photos of the same individuals - thought I'd just chip in with some slightly different images from the day with Large blues. By my count, we had at least 25 individuals, with some newly emerged females, a few mating pairs ...

Thank you all for the kind comments - much appreciated!

It took some patience and a considerble amount of tweaking to get things in focus.

Thanks both, much appreciated. Anchor bottom I visited Anchor bottom a week or so ago. I know the site to be particularly good for Adonis Blues, where they can be found in their hundreds and thousands. Cow pats and other sources of dung can be covered in males. I walked along the slopes, saw countle...