Padfield

[LancsRover]

Try getting this little baby in your rucksack Guy!
Russ

[Padfield]

Quite! They're wonderful dogs but not terribly portable!

For the first time in ages I had nothing pressing to do today and the sun was shining. As recently as yesterday the forecast was not so good but by about 11h00 I could see things were looking up so I took the portable dog to the Rhône Valley for a few autumn butterflies.

Within seconds of beginning my walk I saw a male brimstone and this lovely Berger's clouded yellow - one of many of that species on the wing:



Three hours later, as I left, there was a different individual in the same place:



As usual in October, tree graylings were the commonest species, flying by the dozen.



Often, they are to be seen gathering on rotting grapes and fermenting apples but it seems any alcohol will do - even cheap Swiss station kiosk beer:



That particular one would have spent the rest of the day there if I hadn't wanted some of the beer for myself:



A few normal graylings are still on the wing too:



Obviously, Queen of Spain fritillaries were out in force:





There are not many nectar sources around and many of those left were in the shade by the afternoon, so there was quite a bit of sharing going on:



Those are a male and female common blue with the wall and tree grayling.

High in the trees, flights of what I think are caddis flies were dancing in the sun:



There were a few small coppers, including this giant individual, at least as big as a gatekeeper. Unfortunately, pictures like this can't give an indication of size:



This, I believe, is the hibernaculum of a southern white admiral:



I couldn't see if there was anyone at home.

Other species seen and photographed included Chapman's blue, Adonis blue, northern brown argus, small and southern small white, Bath white and clouded yellow. I saw no skippers or swallowtails of any species.

Back home, the mountains still looked beautiful in the setting sun. Winter is on its way but it is not here yet.



Guy

[trevor]

A very impressive haul there Guy, and time for a beer!

All the best,
Trevor.

[Wurzel]

That's a great shot with all four butterflies on one nectar source! I really like the look of the packaging on the beer - almost like it belongs in a 'Furst Aid Kit'

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Padfield]

Thanks Trevor and Wurzel.

I don't know who thought of that can design, Wurzel - it's enough to put anyone off the booze. But I'm 52 and have drunk beer almost continuously for the last 35 years of my life, so if that's what's on the shelf, that's what I buy! I might add that I haven't been to a doctor or taken so much as an aspirin since 1985 (when I pulled a muscle the day before an important rowing event), so it probably is pretty good first aid too.

Against all the odds, Kenny is still alive, and gently changing colour:



Guy

[essexbuzzard]

It's official-Guy is superhuman! Do I spy a bit of snow on your mountains there,Guy?

It alway amazes me at this time of year the amount of species still flying in the Alps.

[David M]

Getting two species on the same flower is hard enough, but three is phenomenal (could have been four if it hadn't been male and female of the same species!)

If I were a butterfly, I think I'd opt to be a Tree Grayling. What a life, drinking yourself into oblivion in the picturesque mountains when the crowds have gone and the alcohol is readily on tap!!

[Goldie M]

Love the photos Guy and the mountains look ready for snow, they've just forecast snow for around here which seems early but if it means a colder Winter and better Spring for our Butterflies I won't mind . Goldie

[Padfield]

Thank you for your comments, Buzzard, David and Goldie. Yes, there is snow on my local mountains but it has mostly melted below about 2000m in the recent sun.

I didn't feel superhuman as I cycled down the hill this morning. The temperature was below freezing and my hands were completely numb by the time I reached the bottom. Poor old Minnie in the backpack - but she had me as a windbreak ahead of her and I didn't feel her shivering. It was definitely worth the trip, though, with at least 17 species of butterfly still on the wing on what turned out to be a truly beautiful day. This picture was taken in the afternoon, when I climbed back out of the valley to see what was flying on the higher slopes:



I'm fairly confident I found all three of the clouded yellows: clouded, pale clouded and Berger's. It's never easy to be sure with pale clouded, which isn't resident here, but both this week and last I noticed the individuals flying around a clover field were all of the shape and colour of pale clouded. This is one of them:



This one, from higher up the slopes (about 900m) is Berger's:



And here, for good measure, is a clouded yellow:



Unlike last week, I saw two skippers today - one each of mallow skipper and rosy grizzled skipper. The mallow skipper was enjoying the company of the big boys ...





... and the little boys:



The rosy grizzly, which I didn't find until I was on the way back to the bike, was all alone:





This is an aberrant wall - f. quadriocellata:



Compare that with these typical females, also photographed today:



There were lots of Queen of Spain fritillaries around - as always - including this rather distinguished individual:



Here is another:



Adonis blues vary from worn to quite fresh and will still be on the wing for a while if the weather holds:







The chalkhills, on the other hand, will not:



Here is a common blue:



Tree graylings are still flying but I saw no normal graylings today.





Lots of small coppers about. This one was not only caerulopunctata but had golden shadows on the blue spots:



It flew off before I could get better pictures.

Here is a northern brown argus:



And perhaps the last painted lady I will see this year (or perhaps not):



Over the hills, ravens were constantly circling, flying out, gathering and dispersing. They seem to be in pairs still - and one was even flying with straw, as if nest-building.

These ravens were clearly a pair:



And to close, one of my favourite insects ...




('Who are you looking at?')

Guy

Other species flying were small white, holly blue and brimstone.

[Wurzel]

Envy inducing photos Guy as the species count over here dwindles down to almost zero and a very attractive Wall and Small Copper

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

Two things stand out from your latest report, Guy:

1. So many species seen in late October when temperatures were freezing early doors is quite amazing.

2. How the hell do you distinguish between Pale/Berger's Clouded Yellows? Is it wing shape or are there reliable markings that can be used?

[Padfield]

I never mean to inspire envy, Wurzel - just to give a little pleasure!

Wiser men than I say it is not possible to separate alfacariensis and hyale definitively in the field, David. It is certainly not as easy as some books suggest, as they tend to hand-pick the individuals chosen for illustration so as to bring out the supposed differences. Nevertheless, I believe it is possibly to be reasonably confident much of the time. Hyale typically has a longer wing, with a swept-back and overall more pointy look. I see alfacariensis by the thousand every year and when I see hyale it usually stands out quite obviously. The ground colour of a fresh male is also paler on the upperside (the underside may be very bright) and when they fly close the difference in the orange of the hindwing spot is easy to see (or in the hand, if you catch them). I almost invariably see hyale in clover fields - and if several individuals in a clover field show the characteristic shape and colour I assume this is what they are. Obviously, a female laying is a give-away, but that can't always be guaranteed!

I misjudged the weather today, heading off for the Papiliorama despite it turning out to be a lovely day. It was not time lost, though. The Papiliorama was alive with butterflies and I saw one species I had long wanted to - Siproeta epaphus. This is closely related to the malachite, Siproeta stelenes, which is always present in the Papiliorama, but entirely different in colouration:





A little crumply but very much alive and well.

Here is a small selection of other species seen today:


(Danaus chryippus, f. alcippoides)


(Biblis hyperia)


(Myscelia cyaniris)


(Junonia iphita)


(and again ... I love this butterfly)


(Graphium agamemnon)


(Consul fabius)


(an as-yet unidentified Heliconid)


(a pair of Idea leuconoe)


(one of several Neptis hylas defending high territories; it is interesting to see how similar the behaviour of this species is in the Papiliorama to that of Neptis rivularis at my Italian river spot)


(an orange female of Papilio dardanus - males and white females were also flying around)


(Papilio palinurus)


(a pair of Parthenos sylvia)


(Kalima inachus, Hypna clytemnestra and Colobura dirce at the fruit and fake flower stand)


(the ants caused the dirce to open its wings every so often)


(Doleschallia bisaltide)


(Catopsillia scylla - the only Pierid in the Papiliorama today)

I could go on but will resist the temptation!

To close, one of the non-Lepidopteran residents - a beautiful sunbird:



I'm not at all a fan of higher animals like birds and mammals being kept in captivity but the sunbirds at the Papiliorama do seem to have an idyllic life.

Guy

[Lee Hurrell]

Stunning images in your last couple of reports, Guy. That Small Copper is something else!

Best wishes,

Lee

[Padfield]

Thanks Lee. It was a pity that particular copper didn't hang around -it was a lovely individual.

Yesterday and today I was involved with a funeral in Lausanne - yesterday for preparations, today for the funeral itself. It poured with rain all yesterday and was still pouring as we left Huémoz - but just as we came to Lausanne the sun came out and it was a beautiful occasion. Three butterflies put in an appearance - a red admiral, a large white and a small white.

Yesterday too I received delivery of a cheap outdoor tracking camera with a passive infrared sensor (to detect warm-blooded animals), for leaving outside at night and seeing what passes by. To test it, I stuck it outside my back door before I went to bed and threw a few dog treats out too. Sure enough, shortly before 03h00, it was triggered by two beady fox eyes:


(I accidentally set the date wrong by a day but the time is accurate)

M. le Renard tucked into his unexpected midnight feast ...







... then left his mark and went on his way:



So tonight I've left the camera strapped to a tree in a suitable part of the deep forest, and in video mode rather than photo. It is a pitch-black night. It will be interesting to see what passes. The ultimate aim, obviously, is to catch a wolf or lynx, but for now it's just a little fun and practice.

Guy

[NickMorgan]

Those cameras are great fun Guy. I bought one earlier this year and have been using it at our place in the Scottish Borders. Only roe deer, badgers and rabbits so far and a number of birds during daylight. Also lots of apparently empty pictures. I am not sure if those are caused by leaves blowing or animals that are moving too fast for it to capture.

[Padfield]

Hi NIck. The camera I bought does have a light motion sensor, for use with cold-blooded animals, and that can be set off by grass, leaves &c. But for mammals and birds I leave it on the passive infra-red setting, where it only responds to warm, radiating bodies. Then, when triggered, it shines an active infrared beam for filming/photographing. So far there have been no blank shots or videos.

Last night it recorded exactly two videos - Minnie and me walking away in the evening and Minnie and me arriving in the morning (both in pitch darkness)! Evidently, no other mammals passed along that path last night. But as you say, it's great fun! I'll try different spots, inside and outside the house as well as in the woods, and hope to be able to clock up quite a few mammals over the winter - especially when the snow comes and the tracks give their movements away. Beech martin would be nice, and there are lots of wild boar not far away ...

Guy

[David M]

...Beech martin would be nice, and there are lots of wild boar not far away ...

I'm sure you'd know about it if you'd had these porcine dustbins in your neighbourhood. They're redesigning gardens throughout the Forest of Dean at the moment!!

[Padfield]

Oh I know we have them, David! I sometimes hear them at night but much more often see where they have been rooting around. They don't pass by my house, though.

A few piccies from today. The season is diminishing but some species - notably Queen of Spain, wall and Adonis blue - are still common.


(Adonis blue)


(Adonis blue)


(Queen of Spain)


(clouded yellow)


(pale clouded yellow or Berger's - in this instance I'm not certain)


(this one is probably Berger's ...)


(... as is this one)


(tree grayling)


(small copper)


(male wall)


(female wall)


(Minnie, Adonis blue and my shadow)


(female mantis - not so many males around now they're all mated and egg-bound ... )

Guy

[Padfield]

Sometime between 22nd October and 26th October, Kenny left his leaf and went into hibernation (he was still on the leaf on 21st but gone by the morning of 27th). Cursory searches of his branch and nearby branches turned up nothing so I presumed he had wandered further, probably onto one of the thicker stems, and held out little hope of finding him again before spring. Sometimes they go up to hibernate, sometimes down almost to the ground, but always they travel some distance.

I didn't give up, though, and located him today some 1.5m as the caterpillar crawls from his seat leaf, pressed up against a bud:



Let us hope the tits are not as diligent as I am.

On the way back, I saw yet another presumed hyale - again seeking out the clover plants to nectar on. He was very pale indeed in flight, so much so that at first I took him for a female, but this in itself is inconclusive as he is old and worn. I cannot know his identity for certain, especially as alfacariensis is very common here - but if I'm right, it certainly seems hyale is on the move this autumn.



Guy

[Padfield]

Beech marten - tick!

These two videos were taken last night, in pitch blackness. I set the camera to record 20 seconds at a time, and not to trigger immediately after one recording finished. The first video is scientific evidence that beech martens eat Pedigree Biscrok originals, a fact that may or may not previously have been recorded:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1L88I2S-nRQ[/video]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_66PvkFBhLQ[/video]

Guy