I shall keep plugging away, Wurzel, though ironically days with a bit of cloud to ground them occasionally are more productive. When you think about it, you get better photos in the summer when they are not only more prone to settle and nectar, but are beautifully new as well!
Back to
JULY 2018 now, though:
11th July saw another trip up to Aston Rowant, and though early Silver-spotted Skippers did not appear, no fewer than 23 other species did. This included a surprise Purple Emperor flying around the treetops at the car park on the north side of the reserve. Other highlights of yet another brilliant day were brand new Chalkhills including one so fresh the meconium from its sojourn as a pupa could be seen below it.
There were also new Small Coppers, dark and dusky - a trait I saw commonly this year as I believe it is a characteristic of hot summers.
However, it was back at the car park that as well as the Emperor I found numerous Purple Hairstreaks, not something I've noticed here before...
...and a Painted Lady, seeking out the scrubbiest thistles and laying a selection of bright turquoise eggs.
On 12th July (which happened to be my birthday) I met up with Bugboy again down at Bookham Commons, and we were treated to a great selection of Silver-washed Fritillaries, with females in particular posing beautifully.
White Admirals played second fiddle, appearing somewhat worn now.
The many Purple Hairstreaks were also showing signs of wear, but there were a sprinkling of new Holly Blues.
From Bookham, we then went the few miles south to Denbies. Amongst the Chalkhills here was a great example of ab.
suavis, with small marginal orange spots, something that appears regularly here.
We noticed that many of the Brown Argus and Common Blues now flying were really very small, especially compared to the Chalkhills which all appeared to be their normal size. It would seem that horseshoe vetch is far more resistent to drought than the foodplants of the other two, providing normal levels of sustenance for the growing Chalkhill larvae.
There were a few DGF females around, and Bugboy followed one into the grass and successfully located the egg she had laid.
The next three days were notable for once again being very hot. I stayed close to home and spent more time counting butterflies rather than trying to photograph them. 18 species were seen overall, with a peak count of 288 butterflies on 14th. This included 25+ each of Common Blue, Holly Blue and Brown Argus - an excellent showing of each, particularly the latter which has steadily increased in numbers here over the last few years. A selection:
With a slightly cooler day in prospect I went down to Chiddingfold on 16th July. Second brood Wood Whites were on the wing...
...along with numbers of new Brimstones (the same individuals will be flying down there again as I type this I suspect
![Smile :)](./images/smilies/icon_smile.gif)
)...
...and more SWF. I was very chuffed to encounter my first ever SWF
valesina female - though she refused to open her wings other than briefly despite being mostly in the shade, I did get a few shots of the very green underside.
It was cooler again on 17th, and I met up with an old friend for a non-butterfly walk on Dunstable Downs. However, we had a very close encounter with an unusually lethargic female DGF which may have kicked into life a hitherto dormant interest in butterflies...
![Smile :)](./images/smilies/icon_smile.gif)
The remainder of July, especially another notable visit to Chiddingfold, deserves a separate post.
Dave