millerd

[millerd]

Thanks, Wurzel. The Small Heath did seem to have an extra spot, though curiously this was not present on the other side. Another backlit perching Specklie coming up...

Nothing much else in a half hour of warm sun around five this afternoon on my local patch. A single Comma flying around and basking high amongst the brambles, and the aforementioned Speckled Wood.

Dave

[Wurzel]

Brill Dave

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

Saturday 19th September: Much more sunshine today. A look first locally at around 1100 reinforced the Autumn feel. There were a few new Red Admirals around, and a couple of Commas too.

Small and Green-veined Whites were nectaring everywhere on various yellow flowers, a few Speckled Woods perched in the shrubs and there were still a few worn Small Heaths in the grassy areas. No Holly Blues any more, but a very pale Painted Lady put in a brief appearance (heading south now?).

This afternoon, the clouds built a bit, but it looked clearer to the north, so I went up to Aston Rowant. There were still Blues around, and I saw males of all three species, and probably females as well, but the latter sex were so worn I had virtually no chance of telling them apart.

Chalkhill I think...

Not sure about this one at all

Probably the commonest species was the Meadow Brown, with quite a few large females flopping around the hillside and stopping to nectar. With less strength in the sun now, they were much more inclined to open up to absorb as much energy as they could.

One female Brimstone was also avidly feeding up, flying from flower to flower without a break.

Finally, I saw three Silver-spotted Skippers, including this surprisingly fresh female.

Still a bit of summer left here

Dave

[David M]

I'm getting more and more intrigued about the life-cycle of Meadow Browns. In general, they've disappeared in south Wales, although a visit to coastal Pembrokeshire on 10th September saw a few very fresh-looking individuals. Are there places where this species either has an additional brood or undergoes an extended emergence?

[Goldie M]

Hi! Dave, I really like your shot of the under side of that Speckie, in your post for the 18th , it's some thing different, also like the
Red Admiral's they're very fresh up here at the minute Goldie

[millerd]

It is a bit of a mystery about the Meadow Browns, David. It does makes you wonder what the caterpillar of a mid-September emerging butterfly has been doing all spring and summer...

Thank you Goldie - it seems Red Admirals are coming out round here too. Lovely to see them.

Sunday September 20th: Very limited opportunities today, just a half hour or so at Denbies on the way to pick up my son from cub camp, and about the same at home later on. A cloud sat over Denbies when I was there, which didn't help matters, and my sightings were restricted to Meadow Browns and Small Heaths. One of the latter was newly emerged, with floppy wings being blown around in the breeze.

At home, I did glimpse a couple of Holly Blues high in the ivy before being accosted by the latest incumbent of the Red Admiral glade. It came close to landing on me, but was more timid than its predecessors.

There was another sunning itself in amongst the brambles and ivy - a white-spot variety like the one I saw yesterday (but not the same one).

I caught sight of what appeared to be a pair of sparring Speckled Woods, but as they came out of the tussle, one butterfly looked a very pale orange-brown rather than the usual colour. It settled within sight, and turned out to be an ancient hutchinsoni Comma.

In sunlight

This extremely late to be seeing one of these, since they usually appear at the end of June and do not normally have the staying power of their overwintering cousins. It just shows what the vagaries of the British summer can do.

Under clouds

Dave

[Wurzel]

An H.Comma this late is certainly noteworthy Dave, lovely colours on the Red Admiral. I reckon the late emerging Meadow Browns are the 'students' of the of the butterfly world, sleeping in until September

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Neil Freeman]

You can see why Meadow Browns are such a common and widespread species, their extended emergence maximises their survival chances by making sure that some of them avoid periods of bad weather. Even around my patch there are a few still hanging in there.

Cheers,

Neil

[millerd]

Thanks, Neil - I didn't see any Meadow Browns today, but then I didn't go very far.

It's by far the latest "summer" Comma I've ever seen, Wurzel. They've usually long gone by the end of August. And talking of lovely colours on Red Admirals...

One of my Red Admiral chrysalids opened this evening (you can tell it's been cool and dull around here, as this has taken over three weeks to emerge since pupation). I took a photo with a bit of flash before I released it round the corner where the caterpillar was found. The colours are astonishing.

More Red Admirals later.

Dave

[Neil Freeman]

Beautiful colours and patterning on the Red Admiral underside Dave

Cheers,

Neil.

[Wurzel]

Beautiful colours on the Red Admiral underwing Dave

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

They really are amazingly cryptic when you get that particular view of them.

[millerd]

Thanks, everyone - they look pretty exotic like that and I don't think I've really had such a detailed look before. No doubt the type and intensity of the flash adds something that natural daylight couldn't. Quite beautiful nonetheless.

Friday 25th September: before returning to find the hatched butterfly, I had just been out round my local patch in the late afternoon where there had obviously been a parallel emergence of Red Admirals in the wild. I saw five or six individuals, all nectaring on the now profusely flowering ivy. Apart from these, there were one or two Whites, a few Speckled Woods and a couple of Commas.

As I photographed one of these as it sat on a branch overhanging the river, a Kingfisher flashed by a foot or two above the water in midstream. Very distracting! Here is a view of the river, complete with Comma in there somewhere, moments after the Kingfisher had whizzed through.

The Red Admirals were the star turn, though.

Dave

[millerd]

Saturday 26th September: Up in the Birmingham area today, and was able to have a walk around the lake at Ryton Country Park near Coventry in the afternoon. Not much to be seen aside from a few Commas and Speckled Woods taking advantage of the overripe blackberries.

A small sheltered bit of garden could be seen through the cafe window, and a Speckled Wood and a Meadow Brown could be seen nectaring.

I'm not sure what these flowers are, but they would seem to be a great source of late season nectar.

Dave

[bugboy]

Thats a very late meadow Brown. That plant is Verbena bonariensis. I've seen it in a number places (there's some been planted in a 'nature garden' at my work) and it's always got various nectar feeding insects on it. If I had a garden it would definately be on my list of plants to get. Has quite a long flowering season, from June til october and is hardy enough for our winters.

[millerd]

Thanks, Buggy - I've several times wondered what it is as it stands out at this time of year when other things are dying back.

Sunday 27th September: Another local foray today in the late afternoon - there were the usual Red Admirals, Speckled Woods and Commas.

However, I saw a magnificent female Large White which completely failed to stop, plus three Holly Blues (2m, 1f). One of these did stop a couple of times, both times high above my head, so all I could do was to zoom and hope for the best.

I found one shot had been photobombed by a Speckled Wood - the chances of that happening just as the shutter opened are a bit remote, but the brown blur is unmistakable. At least the Blue was not obscured.

I would assume by their worn appearance that these were late second brood individuals - though a third brood appeared last year in early October and into November, the weather has been quite different in 2015 and I doubt there will be a repeat.

Dave

[Wurzel]

Great Comma Dave and still Holly Blues

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

Thanks, Wurzel - no Holly Blues today

Saturday 3rd October: Despite a week of sunshine, today was the first chance I've had to get out even just locally since last weekend. Not a great deal to see; there were just four Commas, two Small Whites, a Red Admiral and a single Speckled Wood. I didn't get close to the last of these, but all the others appeared newly emerged.

The Red Admiral had a damaged antenna, but this appeared to make no difference to its behaviour.

Dave

[Maximus]

They look very fresh, Dave especially the Commas, it's great to see such freshly emerged butterflies at the beginning of October

[Goldie M]

Lovely shots Dave, the Comma's seem to be doing well this October Goldie