June 2016

[Jack Harrison]

7th June

Following yesterday's Painted Lady near Inverness, another today Nairn.

Maybe, just maybe, the recent weather pattern might have pushed Camberwell Beauties to this part of Scotland.

Jack

[Kip]

About a dozen nice fresh salmacis in North Yorkshire this afternoon...... Showing the rather variable amount of submarginal red spotting.

Context shot.... the side of the bank is pretty well covered in Rockrose, but the adults prefer the boggy bit at the bottom.

[sahikmet]

Back at College Lake this week. Common blues out in numbers. Still some small blues. Cheers Sezar

[Jack Harrison]

Rather good Chequered Skipper photos Rosalyn. Not just rather good, but very good. Beautifully sharp.

I am tempted to give Chequered Skippers a try on Wednesday but it's quite a long way (170 miles round trip). On balance, i am likely to give them a miss this year. It's quite late in the season in any case. Instead if the coastal fog/low cloud disperses early enough, might look for Small Blue near Spey Mouth.

Jack

[Neil Freeman]

A few recent sightings from our current trip up north with some quick crops and resize of some photos.

June 3rd and 4th

A couple of nights stopping in Silverdale.

Northern Brown Argus (salmacis) at Warton Crag, Arnside Knott & Gait Barrows, mostly looking fresh.
Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary at all the above sites, again mostly fresh.

NBA - Warton Crag 03.06.16

SPBF - Arnside Knott 04.06.2016

We then carried on to Scotland on the Sunday (June 5th) for a few nights at Fort William. A short stop off at Glasdrum on the way gave me my first ever Chequered Skippers, mostly well worn males but for me the last mainland UK species to see

June 6th & 7th

Chequered Skippers, Green Hairstreaks, SPBF plus Rosalyn & Phil seen at Glen Loy yesterday as described in Rosalyn's previous sighting report.
A return visit here this afternoon produced a couple more CSKs in better condition including a nice female. Also a couple of Large Heath of the scotica race were an unexpected bonus

Chequered Skipper - Glen Loy 07.06.16

Large Heath (scotica) - Glen Loy 07.06.2016

Earlier this morning a visit to Cuil Bay had produced a Painted Lady and a couple of worn Marsh Fritillaries.

Painted Lady - Cuil Bay 07.06.2016

Marsh Fritillary - Cuil Bay 07.06.2016

One more day in Scotland and then it is back to Silverdale for another couple of nights before going home.
Full reports will follow in due course in my PD when I get time after returning home next weekend.

Neil.

[Pete Eeles]

Hi Neil - nice shots!

Also a couple of Large Heath of the scotica race were an unexpected bonus

Why do you think this is a Large Heath? The proportions look wrong to me (and it would be early for ssp. scotica).

Cheers,

- Pete

[Neil Freeman]

Hi Pete,

The difference doesn't really come across in the photo. There were at least two, maybe three of them. All the same size, far larger than Small Heath, nearer to Orange-tip size. Flight and general impression was different to Small Heath as well.
They were on the other side of the track in Glen Loy to the river, loads of cotton grass in the area.

The season appears to be well ahead in this part of Scotland. When we arrived on Sunday the landlady at our B&B told us they had only had one light shower in two weeks. Temperatures have been up in the mid twenties for days.

Here is another shot of what I think is one of the others but not 100% sure as two of them briefly tangled and no sure which one I was originally tracking.

I have seen plenty of Small Heath here in Scotland over the past couple of days but none at this site. If indeed they were Small Heath, I have never seen their like before.

Cheers,

Neil

[Pete Eeles]

Here is another shot of what I think is one of the others but not 100% sure as two of them briefly tangled and no sure which one I was originally tracking.

That seems more like it - thx! I'll check with an expert in this species and get back to you!

Cheers,

- Pete

[P.J.Underwood]

I came across this at Ranworth Broad,Norfolk on Monday the 6th.June.We saw 4 more swallowtails yesterday.
P.J.Underwood

[David M]

The season appears to be well ahead in this part of Scotland. When we arrived on Sunday the landlady at our B&B told us they had only had one light shower in two weeks. Temperatures have been up in the mid twenties for days.

Here is another shot of what I think is one of the others but not 100% sure as two of them briefly tangled and no sure which one I was originally tracking.

I have seen plenty of Small Heath here in Scotland over the past couple of days but none at this site. If indeed they were Small Heath, I have never seen their like before

If that is a Small Heath I'll go to the opticians immediately!!!

Looks like tullia to me, though it's still a mystery why they're out in Scotland but not those places elsewhere which have had similarly warm conditions lately.

Curious.

[Pete Eeles]

Here is another shot of what I think is one of the others but not 100% sure as two of them briefly tangled and no sure which one I was originally tracking.

That seems more like it - thx! I'll check with an expert in this species and get back to you!

Cheers,

- Pete

And the expert opinion is that these are Large Heath! Nice one Neil. Mark Colvin and I were delighted to bump into you at Glen Loy today during our tour of Chequered Skipper sites this week, and many thanks for pinpointing the best areas for both Chequered Skipper and Large Heath ssp. scotica. Mark and I estimate we saw at least 15 of the latter, and it's the first time I've seen these in such mint condition! I hope that you and your wife have a safe trip back down to Cumbria and great to see you, once again!

Cheers,

- Pete

[Neil Freeman]

Thanks for the kind words Pete, it was great to see your good self and Mark this morning. I really enjoyed the company and conversation on various things 'butterflies'.
In truth, all credit must go to Rosalyn and Phil for showing me that part of the glen in the first place as I would probably not have found it myself.
I just couldn't keep away from such a great site and returned this afternoon at 4.00pm for another hour or so. Similar numbers of Skippers and Large Heath were flying and I found a nearly fresh male CSK holding a territory about a hundred yards along from where we were parked this morning.

Cheers,

Neil

[Jack Harrison]

Nairn 9th June

Not ideal weather being overcast, onshore wind and only 14C. But as already in the area, went to a reputed Small Blue site just off east beach. I wasn't optimistic as it has been a pretty dire spring so expected a late season. But I was greeted by a Small Blue but soon lost it across the car park. Didn't see another.

Wife Stella wandered off in another direction but when we met up again, she said that she had seen another of those "red moths" that had been in our garden yesterday. I had shown here pictures of Cinnabar and burnets but no, it wasn't either of those. She led me to this:



It really was that red - obviously very new - and far more docile than Coppers are normally. Maybe that was because it was a female.

Jack

[Tony Moore]

Maybe that was because it was a female.

I'd like to meet some of those females - sounds like someone spent too much time with 'trolley dollies'.

Tony M.

[PhiliB]

Looks like tullia to me, though it's still a mystery why they're out in Scotland but not those places elsewhere which have had similarly warm conditions lately.

David

Rosalyn and I saw a single Large Heath at Meathop Moss yesterday and we were told by a Wildlife Trust warden that they had been out at nearby Foulshaw Moss since the weekend.

Phil

[Neil Freeman]

Hi Phil,
Thanks again for showing me that spot further along Glen Loy the other day, it was really good to chat to yourself and Rosalyn You have no doubt seen that we went back a couple of times and found Large Heath on the opposite side of the track as well as Pete and Mark on Wednesday morning.

A detour to Irton Fell on our way back from Scotland yesterday (Thursday 9th) produced 20+ Mountain Ringlets during a quick hour or so in overcast but warm conditions. Males were mostly looking past their best indicating that they had been out for little while but there were some nice fresh females. I only managed a few record shots as they were doing their usual thing of hiding down in the grass.
Also seen were 50+ Small Heath plus 3 Speckled Wood on the lower part of the track.

Currently raining here in Silverdale so I reckon we will probably nip round the corner to RSPB Leighton Moss and spend a couple of hours in the hides there.

Heading back home tomorrow with hundreds of photos to sort through and reports to catch up on.

Neil.

[Pete Eeles]

In truth, all credit must go to Rosalyn and Phil for showing me that part of the glen in the first place as I would probably not have found it myself.

In that case, thanks Phil and Rosalyn also! I know I'm biased, but UKB is such a great community

Cheers,

- Pete

[PhiliB]

A detour to Irton Fell on our way back from Scotland yesterday (Thursday 9th) produced 20+ Mountain Ringlets

It was great to bump into you so far from home Neil, I look forward to reading your diary in due course.
I'm glad to see you made it onto Irton Fell for the MR - the north is certainly having an 'early' year.

In that case, thanks Phil and Rosalyn also! I know I'm biased, but UKB is such a great community

I totally agree Peter.

Rosalyn and I stopped in Glen Etive again on the journey south and we came across a life time first - not a butterfly though, I'm afraid to say.

Azure Hawker

On the other hand the beautiful Golden-ringed dragonfly was fairly abundant.

[lee3764]

Yep......I had a very early Large Heath 'scotica' at Glen Loy (western end) on 6th June, 2008 and the Chequered Skippers were still doing well in the vicinity of where I first discovered them there in 1988. I returned each year until 1995 & then again in 2008. Peter Eeles has put my report on this website to read on this website (Dispar) under "Trip Reports" ' 5. Revisiting a Colony of the Chequered Skipper Butterfly (in the Fort William Region Of The Western Highlands Of Scotland during the Summer Of 2008)'.......... http://www.dispar.org/reference.php?id=77
Hope you enjoy reading it folks. My only ever mating pair of Chequered Skippers I ever saw in Scotland photo attached!!
Cheers,

Lee Slaughter.

[adrian riley]

Here is another shot of what I think is one of the others but not 100% sure as two of them briefly tangled and no sure which one I was originally tracking.

That seems more like it - thx! I'll check with an expert in this species and get back to you!

Cheers,

- Pete

And the expert opinion is that these are Large Heath! Nice one Neil. Mark Colvin and I were delighted to bump into you at Glen Loy today during our tour of Chequered Skipper sites this week, and many thanks for pinpointing the best areas for both Chequered Skipper and Large Heath ssp. scotica. Mark and I estimate we saw at least 15 of the latter, and it's the first time I've seen these in such mint condition! I hope that you and your wife have a safe trip back down to Cumbria and great to see you, once again!

Cheers,

- Pete

Hi, Gang
There is no doubt that the images under discussion are of C. tullia ssp scotica.
Sorry I was so long getting into the thread.
Adrian Riley http://www.bugalert.net.