please let me know if you wish to see my cassoulet pic

Yum-yum. Yes please.

Tony M.

This must be an escape or an illegal release. It is a Junonia species, possibly Junonia lemonias, the Lemon Pansy, found in India and the far east. Astonishing in UK!
Tony M.

I wonder whether the same is true for Mountain Ringlet? A couple of years ago I spent a morning at Irton Fell. It was warm (19/20/C) with very light cloud cover and, despite fairly vigorous searching, there was not an MR to be seen. At about 1. pm, the cloud lifted and the sun shone. Within ten min...

I presume you are now all going to buy ten quid light meters.

Nah! I just usually look at the sky...

Tony M.

How long have you got?? .

Tony M.

And they feed on Rosebay Willow Herb not carpet .

Tony M.

...it often lands in the shade at the base of a plant.

Surely this is mainly females looking for egg laying sites? But I agree, the general jizz is quite different.

Tony M.

In the fifties, I caught a fresh male CHB in an abandoned field in Shirley, near Birmingham. It was the only one I ever saw and must have been 40/50 miles away from any calcareous sites. I doubt if it was a release, but have no idea how it got there.

Tony M.

When I was a child I had a half grown Peacock larva in a jam jar with a small pile of nettles. To my shame, I forgot completely about it. :oops: When I remembered, I found that it had pupated among the dried out nettle stems. An apparently perfect miniature imago later eclosed. It was considerably s...

It is a micro. Mint Moth (Pyrausta aurata).

Tony M.

Me too .

Tony M.

Lovely shot of dorylas, David. They really are a very special butterfly.

Tony M.

Thanks, Guys, You're quite right, David, it was a bit of a marathon. I had to stay an extra day in Warsaw for my flight and spent most of the time in bed! I was a little disappointed initially, as we had failed to find several rare target species (False Ringlet, Scarce Fritillary, Scarce Heath, Balk...

Poland 2018. Just back from 12 days in Poland with 'Wild Echo Tours' (end of commercial!). The sheer numbers of butterflies was amazing. Near our first stop, every flower head had one or two Heath Frits and there was a whole atlas worth of Maps: DSC00182_edited-1.jpg At one site I saw 30 species in ...

I believe that some moths aestivate, but wonder if there are records of butterflies doing the same in hot dry periods. A Small Tort appeared in my outhouse a couple of days ago, and looks exactly like a hibernating insect. It is still there 72 hours later:
Tony M.

But Andrew, beware!! It is a VERY addictive pursuit

Tony M.

Thanks, Bugboy - I'm sure you are both right.
I've just found an image on the net, which is a dead ringer size and colourwise. And don't worry, I kept my soft bits well away from it's mouth .

Tony M.

Many thanks, Guy for your expert input. Delighted to have hyrax confirmed - it's a new one for me :D . The little blue is a mystery. I did see several Common Blues (at other locations) and they were exactly like our British ones. This beastie was much smaller and the blue colour (only seen in flight...

Just back from 12 days in the Antalya district of Turkey. Despite several trips into the local mountains, butterflies were very thin on the ground; sadly, most were common British species. :( . In Goynuk canyon, I did see a couple of Southern White Admirals, one of which seemed as interested in me a...

Drat! I was hoping for a very excited County recorder ...