David M

[essexbuzzard]

Interesting that you are seeing so many Painted Lady over your way, as they have completely gone from where I live, though there is still time for a few late emerging adults.

Congratulations on your Clouded Yellows, too. Although certainly not a Clouded Yellow year, they are about in ones and twos in many of my sites now, and should continue for another month at least.

[David M]

Interesting that you are seeing so many Painted Lady over your way, as they have completely gone from where I live, though there is still time for a few late emerging adults.

I'm surprised to hear that, Mark. Are they still heading north and west or have they begun the reverse journey earlier in the SE of England and the rest are playing catch up?

Either way, with appalling weather forecast for this week, I expect their numbers to plummet before October.

Wednesday 18th September 2019 - Back to the coast...

I took today off as it was a glorious day - 19c, light winds and blue skies. I took my neighbour along to Port Eynon in the hope we might see more Clouded Yellows.

In the event, we only saw one, a male who was constantly flying round the dunes. He didn't stop once for a feed although he was down for approximately 3 seconds on the sand.

My neighbour also spotted a Hummingbird Hawk Moth, which we both watched with delight for a minute or two.

Lots of Painted Ladies again, though fewer than the previous Saturday. I'd say around 60.

There were 7 Small Coppers:

About two dozen Small Tortoiseshells were around:

Only four Red Admirals seen, all on the ivy at the top of the site:

I did finally manage to get an image of my 2019 nemesis though - Large White:

There were still a few Common Blues hanging on, as well as one Brown Argus.

[trevor]

It's good to see Wales enjoying late season butterflies, David,
the South East is a little quieter
than usual this Autumn, especially the Clouded Yellows I'm used to seeing about this time.
Still, LTB hunting this morning !

Best wishes,
Trevor.

[millerd]

It's certainly interesting to hear of so many Painted Ladies on the coast over there in South Wales, David. I was down on the Sussex coast last week at around the same time and saw just one or two very faded examples. I know the return migration (if that's what's going on now) often takes place at relatively high levels and is therefore largely unseen, but recent days have seen the wind down here blow from an unfavourable quarter for this movement (east/south). If you've had more westerly winds, perhaps yours have been an additional influx from Spain? Whatever is the case, this year's Painted Lady migration has been a far from straightforward event and a detailed analysis would make fascinating reading.

Cheers,

Dave

[David M]

Thanks, both. It's been pretty lively here lately. Interesting to know that numbers of Painted Ladies are much more sparse further east. The overwhelming majority of the individuals I've seen have been immaculately fresh, so they may be home grown and might not hang around too much longer.

[David M]

Saturday 21st September - Autumn closing in....

The unusually prolonged mild spell of weather was due to break on Sunday 22nd, so with storms set to arrive, I decided to take advantage of this last day of summer conditions to visit the National Botanic Gardens of Wales.

This location is always a delight, even more so when butterflies still abound to take advantage of the huge array of flora available at this site.

The Victorian walled gardens are always a focal point, and right beside the entrance I saw this female Large White dutifully laying her batch of eggs on planted nasturtiums:

I didn't want to disturb her, so I hesitated to go closer and count how many she'd laid, but it looked to be between a dozen and a dozen and a half:

Once again, Painted Ladies were around in abundance, probably approaching 100. There were also 20+ Small Tortoiseshells, including this one nectaring on aster:

Whilst watching this spectacle, a Peacock came by to visit the same patch of flowers:

There were plenty of Small Whites about too, as well as a handful of Red Admirals, but the Painted Ladies were the stars of the show, with this individual showing it's cryptic undersides very nicely whilst feeding from sedum:

A couple of Commas were also seen.

[David M]

Sunday 6th October 2019 - Brief respite from the storms...

A visit to Abergavenny held an unexpected bonus - a calm, sunny, mild day after a fortnight of cool, stormy weather.

I duly checked into Linda Vista Gardens and very soon I saw this Red Admiral nectaring on a buddleia which was almost in full flower (how does one prune them in spring to ensure late flowering like this?):

There were plenty of other nectar sources, including a patch of verbena which had several Whites flying around it. I felt sorry for this lone female Green Veined White who was pursued relentlessly by the other Pierids nearby:

The action took place just round the corner from this lovely looking spot:

Along with the three species of Whites and two Red Admirals, one other butterfly was seen - this male Speckled Wood which came down on some conifers:

[Goldie M]

Hi! Dave, looks like I may be lucky when I get home tomorrow ( that's if it's not raining ) I may see at least one Butterfly if the Admirals are still about Really nice surprising shots to give us a bit of hope Goldie

[David M]

Hi! Dave, looks like I may be lucky when I get home tomorrow ( that's if it's not raining ) I may see at least one Butterfly if the Admirals are still about Really nice surprising shots to give us a bit of hope

Thanks, Goldie. Must be honest, apart from a solitary Small White, I hadn't seen any butterflies in the fortnight since, although thankfully there were a few around today (Sunday).

[millerd]

That was quite a late GVW, David, and clearly very fresh. It could perhaps be a lone representative of another brood - this has happened once or twice on my patch (but not this year... ).

Cheers,

Dave

[David M]

That was quite a late GVW, David, and clearly very fresh. It could perhaps be a lone representative of another brood - this has happened once or twice on my patch (but not this year...

Given that it is extremely fresh early in the month of October, I am pretty confident it's a third brooder, Dave. Difficult to reconcile oneself with any other explanation to be honest.

Sunday 20th October 2019 – Numbers dropping off….

This seemingly endless run of stormy weather has, unsurprisingly, seen butterfly numbers plummet. A solitary Small White was all I had seen during the last fortnight, and I saw another singleton of this species on my way to Port Eynon on this rare sunny and calm interlude in this tempestuous month of October.

Having arrived in late morning, I saw several Red Admirals in flight on the dunes, as well as a Painted Lady. However, the ivy growth on the walls at the rear of this site saw reasonable numbers of butterflies feasting on the last vestiges of 2019 nectar:

A total of 16 Red Admirals, 2 Painted Ladies and that single Small White were reassuring given the conditions we’ve had lately, though I suspect the next time I see double figure numbers will, sadly, be March 2020.

[Goldie M]

Your doing well David with the Butterflies The rain has stopped here now but it's gone cold so I think all the Butterflies have vanished until next year. Goldie

[David M]

..The rain has stopped here now but it's gone cold so I think all the Butterflies have vanished until next year.

Thanks, Goldie. Yes, it finally stopped here yesterday and that was enough for a surprise appearance by two different Peacocks. Going 3 or 4 degrees colder from today though, so seeing any more will be a long shot.

[David M]

Sunday 10th November 2019 - Last butterflies....

Things get tough after Bonfire Night if you're looking to keep your butterfly season alive.

I managed to see three Red Admirals today, the first two in Oystermouth Cemetery in Mumbles and a third flying out to sea at Port Eynon dunes. I expect I won't be seeing any more unless we experience an abnormally mild late November/early December day.

Unfortunately, all three of these butterflies were seen in flight, meaning I wasn't able to get an image of any, but here's a view of Port Eynon Bay, looking towards the east, on what was a very pleasant November day, with blue skies, light winds and 11c temperatures:

[David M]

A look back at 2019

With winter set to officially begin tomorrow, putting paid to any prospects of seeing butterflies for all but the most fortunate, now seems a good time to take a look back at the 2019 butterfly year.

Spring

It’s normal to get the odd mild day in February, but this year’s was unique in my lifetime for hosting a succession of mild sunny days which saw the adult hibernators out and about exceptionally early.

Having already had a Red Admiral flying round my cottage on 17th January, my spirits were lifted still further when three Brimstones were seen flying around the light woodland adjacent to my workplace on 15th February.

Just over a week later, on yet another glorious February day, I saw an astonishing sixteen (including a female). This trend was to continue through the spring with numbers of this species being the best I’ve ever known.

A major surprise was had on 17th February, which was sunny but quite windy. A trip to the sheltered Oystermouth Cemetery saw only one butterfly, but it was nonetheless a surprising one – a Painted Lady.

My first Peacock was seen on 21st February, along with two Red Admirals on an extraordinarily pleasant day, with temperatures of around 14 degrees.

Neither of these species was around in my local area in huge numbers over the course of the spring, but they were still relatively commonplace.
One butterfly species I had been worried about in late 2018 was the Comma. I’d hardly seen any in the late summer and wondered if the heatwave might have led to dwindling numbers. I needn’t have been concerned though, as my first two, seen on 22nd February, were followed by plenty more over the subsequent few weeks.

The oddest part of this freak warm spell was that I struggled to find any Small Tortoiseshells. They are usually the first to wake up round these parts but they were, astonishingly, species number 6 for me in 2020 on the remarkably early date of 24th February, and I barely got into double figures by the end of May!!

[David M]

A look back at 2019

Spring cont….

A stormy first half of March eventually gave way to warm, fine conditions towards the end of the month and for a short spell there seemed to be butterflies everywhere. On 24th March, the blackthorn blossom at Cwm Ivy on the north Gower coast had burst forth and there were several vanessids using it as a nectar source:

Brimstones abounded, although the biggest surprise was this Hummingbird Hawk Moth:

On 28th March, I saw my first Orange Tip, beating my previous record of 1st April, and they were to have a splendid flight season:

A couple of days later it was the turn of Holly Blues to take centre stage. Over the course of the next few weeks I saw many, many dozens and managed to fill my boots with images of basking males (although the females proved far more elusive):

Small and Green Veined Whites also popped up during March, meaning that for the first time I had managed to hit a double figure number of species before April arrived.

[trevor]

Your February adventures mirrored mine, David. I well remember one day being
too warm for a jumper. The stand out images in your last post are of that male Holly Blue.

For me the season started early and finished early!.

Best wishes for Christmas and the new Decade.
Trevor.

[David M]

Thanks, Trevor. Yes, the season has certainly shifted forwards somewhat over the last 10 years or so.

All the best to you too, and thanks for reminding me we are about to usher in a new decade!

[David M]

A look back at 2019

Spring cont….

April started with the usual sunshine and showers, and it wasn’t until 7th April that I saw my first Speckled Wood, which was surprising given the late March emergences of Holly Blue , Small & Green Veined White and Orange Tip.

A male Large White showed up on that same day. Little did I know how few I’d see both in the UK and in Europe during the rest of the year – they had a dismal time.

The highlight was the Easter period, which was as glorious as any in my lifetime and had records for sunshine and warmth tumbling in many areas of the country.

A trip to Whiteford Burrows on Thursday 18th saw a surprisingly early Brown Argus, albeit deformed:

A few days later there were plenty more on the wing including this mint specimen:

On the following day, Good Friday, another ‘earliest ever’ record was set with the sighting of a Green Hairstreak at Welshmoor:

My one encounter with UK Grizzled Skippers also fell on Good Friday, at the Merthyr Mawr site near Porthcawl:

With plenty of vanessids still about to complement the range of newly emerged species, this Easter weekend will live long in the memory, and the icing on the cake was provided by a visit to Rodborough Common on the Monday, where Duke of Burgundy was seen in small numbers, followed by a drive to Ewyas Harold Common, where the first Pearl Bordered Fritillaries were just emerging. Heaven!!

[David M]

A look back at 2019

Spring cont….

May wasn’t particularly warm for the most part, but there were plenty of sunny days and the hot Easter ensured that species emerged earlier than they do normally.

I encountered my first Wall Brown on 4th May:

Later that day, I saw my first Common Blue as well as eight Small Coppers:

Like Speckled Woods the month before, Dingy Skippers were proving elusive; that is until a walk around my workplace at lunchtime on 10th May threw up half a dozen or so:

The following day, it was the turn of Small Heath to reveal itself for the first time in 2019:

On Sunday 12th, Small Blues had emerged at a coastal site on the east of Swansea, with at least 40 seen:

With my first foreign jaunt looming on Sunday 19th, it was more in hope than expectation that I visited Fairwood Common on 16th to look for Marsh and Small Pearl Bordered Fritillaries, but I managed to find both:

By the time I returned from France on Thursday 30th, numbers had skyrocketed, and I had best counts of 75 Marsh Frits and 39 SPBF: