Andrew555

[Andrew555]

For one reason or another I never got a good look at the last round of Adonis Blues. So here are some shots from May/June that I didn't get around to posting at the time.

I noticed how some males have a row of black spots along the edge of the hindwing, and some don't. Like these from Mill Hill.

Anchor Bottom is a grassy valley to the north of Mill Hill and, after the report of the numbers of Adonis there, I decided to pay a visit.
It was my first time at the site and it was brilliant!, with indeed lots of Adonis to be seen. It was also the first time I'd done some evening spotting, arriving at 5:30 and not leaving till 8:00.

This area of damp earth was very popular.

In the light of a setting sun, with the Adonis sitting up like jewels to catch the last rays, it was quite magical.

Definately on the list of places to return to next year.

Cheers

[Wurzel]

Fantastic images Andrew The early evening does have wonderful light for butterfly photography - female blues (especially Adonis and Silver-studded) seem to glisten more with an oily sheen when photographed at this time of day

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

I'd heard good reports of Anchor Bottom this spring, but those shots of puddling Adonis are amazing - not a sight you see very often in the UK, and the brilliance of the Adonis colouration make it really special.

Cheers,

Dave

[MikeOxon]

A remarkable series of shots, Andrew - I've never seen Adonis Blues clustered like this; what an amazing sight. You have captured the iridescence which gives such a variety of shades of blue according to the angle of the wings.

Mike

[Maximus]

Fantastic shots, Andrew, amazing to see the numbers of 'mud puddling' Adonis Great shot of the stunning female

Mike

[David M]

I too have noticed that a small minority of Adonis Blue males sport a row of black spots near the hindwing margins, Andrew. In north Africa, this is expressed in the form of Spotted Adonis Blue (lysandra punctifera), which has distinct species status. I often wonder what causes this phenomenon.

[bugboy]

Just catching up on a few posts but I shall join in the chorus of wow . I was there with Millerd during the second brood but it was a rare grey cloudy and rather dismal day by comparison but a few still came out when the cloud thinned, nothing like to the extent that you saw though!

[trevor]

Absolutely fabulous shots, Andrew. Especially the crowds of Adonis.
I've seen them en masse on a Doggie do, but they took flight as soon as I approached.
You had better luck !.

Trevor.

[Andrew555]

Cheers Wurzel. It does doesn't it ? A new experience for me this year.

Thanks Dave, Mike & Mike. Still being a relative newbie, I don't think I quite appreciated how uncommon a sight it was! Cheers guys.

Yes most seem not have them. Thanks David, very interesting.

Cheers Bugboy, fingers crossed for strong numbers again next year.

Thanks Trevor. That area must have been created by the cattle that were about, no doubt there were some smelly substances mixed in! Cheers.

[Andrew555]

Well I still have various 2018 pics to put up, here are some from my Silver-studded Blue encounters in June. This is a butterfly I had previously seen very little of, and I wanted to put that right.
Having been very impressed with Pauline's photos and reports, I decided to give Bramshott Common in East Hampshire a go. There I met Pauline herself, who had very kindly offered to show me around.


In the sunlight, at certain angles, you can see some beautiful colours on the wings of a female.

Pauline led me to these open areas of lush vegetation, that's where the SSB's were to be found.

There were a number of pairings.

The SSB's seemed quite a placid butterfly to me. They didn't fly very fast or high, and the males were happy to chill out together.

Not much sight of other species but this nice female Common Blue caught my eye.

It was fantastic to observe this butterfly up close. Thank you Pauline once more, hope to see you again sometime.

Cheers

[Paul Harfield]

Hi Andrew
Your Silver Studded Blues from Bramshott brought back some fond memories. Like you I was introduced to this wonderful site by Pauline, though I have not visited for a couple of years. Like you I found that the Silver Studded Blues seemed to have the place completely to themselves with just a few Common Blues to keep them company.
I particularly like the shot where the butterfly seems to be just floating in mid air completely unattached, lovely .

[Wurzel]

I'm with Paul on the 'floating' Silver-stud - that is a cracking shot It does seem slightly odd to me though to see Silver-studs amid lush grassy vegetation I'm so used to seeing them on Heather in boggy acidic heaths - makes a nice change to have a vibrant green backdrop to the images

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

Beautiful sequence, Andrew. Yes, this species is mightily photogenic but you have captured certain aspects which enhance the colours of this species.

[Andrew555]

Hi Paul, that's great! Thank you.

Cheers Wurzel! Yes, it's good to see they can thrive in different habitats.

Thanks David, I was very taken with the SSB's. It was easy to get close to see those lovely colours.

[Andrew555]

We all see various other critters as we're out and about looking at butterflies, some of these I like to get pictures of and identify if I can.
Here are some spiders that I came across last year.


Seen at Mill Hill in May, it was the colour of this spider that first caught my eye, white but clearly not of the Crab variety. Then as it moved about it's web I could see it had an unusually shaped abdomen, which helped identify it as Cyclosa conica.
The two thick spokes on it's web are called stabilimentum, the general consensus seems to be that thay are an aid to camouflage.

Uh-oh..

Not this time.

Also at Mill Hill a Wolf spider mother, with spiderlings riding shotgun. Exact ID I'm really not sure, possibly Pardosa palustris or amentata ?

Visitors to this Scabious beware! Crab spider at Butterfly Conservation White Hill in July.

Spotted near Seaford in August, I reckon this is a male Noble False Widow, Steatoda nobilis.

My first sight of a Wasp Spider happened in August. What a creature! After that they seemed to pop up everywhere. These females are from Lullington Heath, Mill Hill and Seaford, I'd like to find a male one day. I wonder how far north they have reached ?

ID pending for these two, possibly a male and female of the same species. Seen near Seaford in September.
*edit* I'm now sure these are Metellina segmentata, male on the left and female on the right.

Your classic Garden Spider, at Friston Gallops in September.

Talking of Garden Spiders, I saw the following drama at Shoreham by Sea, as I was looking for Clouded Yellows in October. There was a female sat in the middle of her web when a smaller spider approached from the side, clearly a male looking to mate. I don't know a great deal about spiders but given the reputation of their courtship behaviour I looked on with some trepidation!

He would slowly advance, waving his front legs, and if she made a sudden move scuttle back. Then start the process again.

I'm holding my breath at this point..

And then all of a sudden she grabs him and starts wrapping him in silk!

And that was that. Or so I thought..

Oh no. Fella! Did you not see what just happened?

So up steps contestant number two, same modus operandi.

And to precisely no one's suprise, she grabs him and starts wrapping him also!

That's two attempts and two strikes. I've got to admit this put a bit of a downer on my morning, I felt so sorry for the little guys!
Who would be a male spider?

So why do some female spiders consume their male counterparts? Even before mating. From what I've read of Garden Spiders the size of the male is a factor, the larger he is the less likely he will end up as dinner. Also by eating males a female increases her fecundity, so maybe they eat the smaller and mate with the larger?

As I said I don't know much about spiders, just a few things I've read. If anyone has any corrections I'd welcome them.

Cheers.

[bugboy]

Great shots of those spiders. I saw a fair few Wasp spiders last year myself and see them occasionally on my local patch in North east London, the heat island effect of big cities probably aided them getting a toe hold here.

That hungry female in the last set doesn't look anywhere large enough (when compared the males) to be fully grown and therefore in no position to welcome a male for mating, the silly boys really didn't stand any chance whatsoever against her!

[Wurzel]

Great set of photos Andrew of our Arachnid friends Really interesting to see the first species which I've never encountered in the field before - the patterning on the abdomen did remind me of the Kung Fu Panda for some reason Be careful with the S.nobilis as they can bite successfully and it can be really painful.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Goldie M]

Love your shots of the Adonis and SSB Andrew , beautiful, but I'll pass on the Sptders they give me the shivers Goldie

[essexbuzzard]

Loving your spider posts at the moment, Andrew. As you say, who would be a male spider. Even if they get to mate with the female, they are generally eaten after while trying to escape!

[Andrew555]

Thanks BB, that's interesting. Good point, I should have realised that myself.

Cheers Wurzel. Kung Fu Panda eh ? I thought of those rorschach test patterns.
Thanks for the warning!

Thank you Goldie. I don't blame you one bit!

Cheers Essex. I know right? Nature can be harsh!