October 2019

[David M]

An end to this dull, wet and stormy weather please. There are Long Tailed Blues ready to emerge...

[Matsukaze]

1-2 Comma in the garden this morning - also Small and Large White still.

[David M]

1-2 Comma in the garden this morning - also Small and Large White still.

Amazing you saw anything, Chris. This morning in Swansea we had enough rain to bring the Sahara to life!

[essexbuzzard]

Despite spells of warm sunshine lunchtime, a Red Admiral was all I could muster in Essex, before the afternoon storms arrived.

[millerd]

Eight species seen on my local patch near Heathrow today:

Red Admiral 6
Common Blue 3
Small White 2
Painted Lady 2
Comma 2
Small Copper 1
Peacock 1
Holly Blue 1
(plus Box Tree Moth 2)

Sunshine in the middle of the day with temperatures actually reaching 21 degrees mid-afternoon. Storms raged not far to the north (as close as Uxbridge), but rain held off on my patch till nearly dusk. All change tomorrow, with appreciably lower temperatures forecast first thing - I might have to put a coat on!

We are now into the ninth calendar month of 2019 in which butterflies have been seen here. As ever, a full report and the odd photo to follow (in a week or two) in my PD.

Dave

[Deborah]

The rain has put paid to most butterfly action these past 10 days other than a few of the hardiest Small and Large Cabbage Whites. But finally a couple of hours of respite and a little glimpse of sun brought out a couple of Small Coppers, a Comma and 3 very fresh looking Wall butterflies. Still waiting for a Clouded Yellow...

[Matsukaze]

I saw a couple of Clouded Yellow in mid-September whilst on holiday in Morbihan, so they are out there. None in the UK this year though!

[essexbuzzard]

A good search today at Kingsdown, the old LTB site in east Kent, in reasonable weather, failed to produce any sightings. This is despite there being plenty off eggs at the end of August, and is most disappointing. So, perhaps because of the collapse in weather, is seems none have survived, sadly.

[millerd]

Sometimes staying at home instead of searching for more exotic quarry comes up trumps. Rather than go down to North Kent today (especially having seen the post above), I found this beautiful insect on my local patch near Heathrow.

Third brood Hollies are a regular occurence here and I saw the first few yesterday. However, this lovely new female today was a stunner.

More in my PD shortly (which is catching up fast now! ).

Dave

[essexbuzzard]

You’re right, Dave, she is a beauty.

[David M]

Fewer finer sights in the UK butterfly range - what a cracker, especially given the time of year.

[Katrina]

What a beautiful photo! Well done

[Jack Harrison]

Firstly, that Holly Blue. Stunning photo of a beautiful butterfly. I can guess what type of camera was used but please confirm Dave

15th October.

In my garden in north Scotland, two Red Admirals. But far more amazing was a Red Admiral and Small Tortoiseshell over open moorland to north of Drynachan Lodge Highland at NH864406 at an elevation of approximately 330 metres above sea level
(according to google, that is 1082 feet 8 inches – what a stupid conversion from an approximation – so let’s call that 1,100 feet above sea level)

Jack

[Cotswold Cockney]

The large potted Strawberry Tree [ Arbutus unedo ] in my garden has put on the best display of Blossoms and developing fruit in all the thirty odd years I have had it. It is smothered in Flower Clusters and developing berries from last season's blossoms. They started to appear about two-three weeks ago and during that time we have had long periods of rain most days. Today and yesterday saw that rarity, some continuous Sunshine and best today.

Cue hopes for the occasional Red Admiral to appear and feed from those flowers. In the past, have seen Red Admirals feeding on the Blossoms in both December and January. It is a delightful flowering shrub and useful for anyone like me who has bred Europe's largest and most powerful Butterfly, Charaxes jasius .. The Two Tailed Pasha.

Around mid-day saw several very large Bumble Bees and a few honey bees busy on and around the blossoms. Decided to get some pictures of their activity. Back with my compact Digital and no sign of the big Bees but, a bonus. A freshly emerged Red Admiral [ Vanessa atalanta ].

All told a delight to my old minces. These images show today's observations.

Close view of flowers.

Closer view showing detail.

First sighting.

A really freshly emerged example.

Because of the orientation of the flowers, the butterfly has to feed head down.

[Cotswold Cockney]

Strawberry Trees. That reminds me.

Back in 1972, my friend came down from London to visit us in Gloucester in his car where he had recently fitted an uprated engine into it. Invited me to take a spin round the block which I gladly accepted. My wife joined us ~ no kids back then ~ and that spin round the block involved over a one hundred mile round trip taking in some of the Heads of the Valleys Roads of South Wales and the Brecon area. My wife a keen gardener spotted a small roadside Garden Centre in a nice scenic spot and so we stopped and had a look round. I noticed a pot with a small single stem Strawberry Tree about 30 CM tall... One whole pound. So I bought it.

Planted that small seedling in the bottom of the garden soon after. A decade or three later, that became a massive Bush about the size of a bus. I raised several hundred Charaxes jasius on it over the years. Being evergreen not difficult to take them through the winter from late laid ova.

Twenty years ago I sadly destroyed that magnificent bush along with a twenty foot high Celtis sinensis grown from a cutting taken from a friend's small tree in Surrey many moons previously. That lucky man had the occasional Purple Emperor pass through his property! Yes they both had to go to make way for a double garage. Cars are another of my passions. Still have three Strawberry trees on my properties... two free growing in another part of the county but they do not like the soil there and are not thriving. Unlike the potted plant and that monster specimen where my garage now sits.

A beautiful shrub which gives pleasure all year round. Useful for the butterfly breeder too...

[millerd]

Firstly, that Holly Blue. Stunning photo of a beautiful butterfly. I can guess what type of camera was used but please confirm Dave
Jack

Thank you, Jack, and thanks also to the others who liked the Holly Blue. She was something special. More images in my PD now: viewtopic.php?f=29&t=6157&p=148825#p148825
The equipment (as I think you suspect...) is nothing special, just a compact Sony that probably doesn't even qualify as a "bridge" camera. Best results generally come from getting very close to the subject - as I was able to in this case!

Cheers,

Dave

[bugboy]

Went for a wander along the coastal path at Newhaven today, more for birding as I'd seen reports of Ring Ouzel at nearby Beachy Head. Didn't see any of them but I did see significant numbers of Red Admirals seemingly coming in from the sea and moving north. Only occasionally would one settle and never long enough to get any good shots but what I did see was very fresh. There was definitely a northward move going on, they were flying determinedly into the brisk and chilly northerly wind and made no attempt to search out shelter from it.

[peterc]

Went for a wander along the coastal path at Newhaven today, more for birding as I'd seen reports of Ring Ouzel at nearby Beachy Head. Didn't see any of them but I did see significant numbers of Red Admirals seemingly coming in from the sea and moving north. Only occasionally would one settle and never long enough to get any good shots but what I did see was very fresh. There was definitely a northward move going on, they were flying determinedly into the brisk and chilly northerly wind and made no attempt to search out shelter from it.
IMG_0114.JPG

Interesting, Paul.

Yesterday, someone tweeted that he witnessed a similar phenomenon at the Seven Sisters.

With the wind predicted to change direction to south-westerly in the next few days, will the migratory Red Admirals change direction too? Against the prevailing wind? Hmmm....

ATB

Peter

[Vince Massimo]

Over the weekend of 19th and 20th I was at Lancing on the Sussex coast. Some Painted Lady larvae were still to be found (1x3rd instar, 2x4th instar and 2x5th instar) on Common Mallow, Tree mallow and Burdock in sheltered locations. An adult was also seen flying eastwards along the beach on 19th.

Painted Lady larva 3rd instar -Lancing, Sussex 19-Oct-2019

Painted Lady larva 4th instar -Lancing, Sussex 19-Oct-2019

Painted Lady larva 5th instar -Lancing, Sussex 19-Oct-2019

If the weather holds, the first adults from these could start emerging in early November.

There were also six Red Admirals egg laying on nettles growing in the shelter of south-facing walls.

Red Admiral eggs - Lancing, Sussex 20-Oct-2019

On Sunday 20th the wind direction changed from a west south-westerly to a northerly and I was surprised to see two Red Admirals coming in off the sea despite having a headwind and there were several more on the beach. I now see that this ties in with sightings made at Newhaven by Bugboy and another from Seven Sisters which reported the same behaviour.**

Other observations were of two Ruby Tiger Moth* larvae on the same nettles the Red Admirals were using and four Large White larvae still feeding on Sea-kale. I will do a detailed check for pupae in November.

Ruby Tiger Moth larva - Lancing, Sussex 20-Oct-2019

Large White larva 5th instar - Lancing, Sussex 20-Oct-2019

Vince

* Corrected to Ruby Tiger (not Garden Tiger)
** See more information about this on the next page

[millerd]

Seen yesterday (20th October) on that stalwart late season nectar source verbena bonariensis in Vivary Park, Taunton, Somerset.

Presumably preparing to take advantage of the current northerlies and head off south to warmer climes.

Dave

PS. Love the "Woolly Bear" photo, Vince! That takes me back many years...