Neil Freeman

[Neil Freeman]

Tuesday 21st April

My original plan for today was to catch up on a couple of little jobs in the house and I did indeed make a start on this. However, my willpower is not strong and by mid morning I could see a few butterflies fluttering about in the garden and went outside for a coffee break, taking the camera with me of course.
This break turned out to last a lot longer than initially intended and I actually ended up spending most of the day in the garden again, with the occasional 'work break' just to keep things ticking over .

After yet another cold and clear night the day was very similar to Monday albeit with a bit less wind and eventually becoming a couple of degrees warmer.

All the usual suspects were passing through again and I was pleased to see my first Large White of the year. This makes 10 species so far and completes all those that I would normally expect to see here at this time of year.

Large White female - Coverdale 21.04.2020

Large White female - Coverdale 21.04.2020

I seem to have been waiting a while for a Large White this year but I have checked my records and it is actually my second earliest sighting, only beaten by 2017 (15th April). Just goes to show how being on furlough in all this sunny weather is throwing out my perception of time.

Both Small Whites and Green-veined Whites were seen, with one male GVW with a slightly deformed hind wing making him easily identified as one that has been hanging around for a couple of days now.

Green-veined White male - Coverdale 21.04.2020

Two male Speckled Woods were back in their usual spots and two different females came passing through with both of them managing to avoid the males by staying low down whilst the males performed higher up.

Speckled Wood male - Coverdale 21.04.2020

Speckled Wood female - Coverdale 21.04.2020

Today I managed to identify three different male Orange-tips along with three separate females, all in varying condition with one particular male looking a bit ragged now.

Orange-tip male - Coverdale 21.04.2020

Orange-tip male - Coverdale 21.04.2020

Orange-tip female - Coverdale 21.04.2020

Orange-tip female - Coverdale 21.04.2020

I was watching one female when a male came along to try his luck but the female adopted the classic rejection pose and flew off giving me just enough time to get a couple of blurry shots.

Orange-tip pair - Coverdale 21.04.2020

Later in the afternoon I saw another example of this behaviour, this time involving the raggedy male and another female. This episode lasted a bit longer giving me time to put the camera on 'sports' mode and fire off a sequence of shots. Just a bit of a shame the male wasn't in better nick, although maybe that was why he was rejected .

Orange-tip pair - Coverdale 21.04.2020

Orange-tip pair - Coverdale 21.04.2020

Orange-tip pair - Coverdale 21.04.2020

Although I didn't end up going out, it was another enjoyable day in the end, making the most of the garden.

Bye for now and stay safe,

Neil.

[Wurzel]

Brilliant sports mode shots Neil and what a cracking Large White - still not got any shots of this species though I've seen one finally I like your way of working too definitely a style I need to adopt:D

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

[trevor]

That male OT is being told to get lost, every female I've seen this year has given
this signal to would be suitors. Good to see your female Speckled Wood, I've only
found one so far this season, but males by the hundred.
Your garden is certainly productive, a great Spring selection in your posts.

Stay well,
Trevor.

[David M]

It's comical watching those Orange Tips. I've observed similar scenes lately and each time the female has sent the males on their merry way.

Great underside shot of the Speckled Wood, by the way. I always find it tricky to capture them posing like that.

[Neil Freeman]

Brilliant sports mode shots Neil and what a cracking Large White - still not got any shots of this species though I've seen one finally I like your way of working too definitely a style I need to adopt:D

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

Cheers Wurzel. I have seen a few more Large Whites now but they are still thin on the grond compared with the Small and Green-veined Whites.

That male OT is being told to get lost, every female I've seen this year has given
this signal to would be suitors. Good to see your female Speckled Wood, I've only
found one so far this season, but males by the hundred.
Your garden is certainly productive, a great Spring selection in your posts.

Stay well,
Trevor.

Thanks Trevor. I have a few females passing through the garden now, they tend to sneak through lower down amongst the vegetation as opposed to the more boisterously obvious males.

It's comical watching those Orange Tips. I've observed similar scenes lately and each time the female has sent the males on their merry way.

Great underside shot of the Speckled Wood, by the way. I always find it tricky to capture them posing like that.

Thanks David. The Speckled Woods tend to perch with their wings edge on to the sun but they often fidget about a bit and I wait until the sun lights up the side. I have also tried using fill in flash to light up the shaded side with various results.


Wednesday 22nd April.

A busier day with the morning spent dropping some stuff around to both my Mom and Jane's Mom and checking that they are both OK, making sure we maintained all the social distancing protocols of course.

The afternoon was then spent getting on with the little jobs I had put off from the day before. Mind you, with the continuing sunny weather, it would have been remiss of me not to have the odd tea break out in the garden. I saw all the usual suspects passing through but conscious of needing to make some progress today I forced myself to crack on and only pointed the camera at a single Orange-tip and a couple of Specklies.

Orange-tip - Coverdale 22.04.2020

The same OT as above.

Speckled Wood - Coverdale 22.04.2020

This is a very popular perching spot.

The garden moth trap has only been on a few times recently with the clear, cold and windy nights giving poor results. The only moth of interest recently being another Brindled Beauty on the night of Tuesday 21st April. That was the second of these this year after not having one since 2017.

Brindled Beauty - Coverdale 21.04.2020

It seems that Holly Blues are having a good spring in some parts of the country, not here though. So far I have only seen one female and three or four males, all passing through my garden. I have seen none yet whatsoever on any of my local walks.

The last time I took a longer walk to Sheldon Country Park was nearly three weeks ago now (on 5th April), I reckon I will have another walk there tomorrow (Thursday 23rd)), mainly to see if I can find any Holly Blues.

Bye for now and Stay Safe,

Neil.

[David M]

Your Orange Tips have posed beautifully for you this spring, Neil. They look great on that bowles mauve. Your Speckled Wood perching post is a handy thing to have too - I really struggle getting underside shots of this species but they are very dutiful towards you in that spot.

The brindled beauty certainly is a beauty - another fantastic example of the camouflage many moths exhibit.

[Neil Freeman]

Thanks David. One of the upsides of being on furlough from work is that it has coincided with some very nice weather and I have been able to spend more time than usual in the garden which has given me plenty of opportunity - both with the Orange-tips and the Speckled Woods.

Thursday 23rd April

As mentioned in my last report, I decided to go on a longer walk this morning, to Sheldon Country Park which only takes about 15 minutes to reach on foot from my house but then extends for some way and includes various habitats including meadow areas, hedgerows and mixed woodland.

I set out at 09.30 so that I could be there before it got too warm as, after another chilly start, it was forecast to turn into the hottest day this week.

The first butterflies seen were male Speckled Wood basking in the morning sun before taking up their territories for the day.

Speckled Wood - Sheldon Country Park

These were soon followed by various whites of which I managed to confirm Small, Green-veined and female Orange-tips before they got too warmed up and flighty.

Orange-tip female - Sheldon Country Park

Green-veined White - Sheldon Country Park

Male Orange-tips seemed to take a little longer to get flying but when they appeared they were already in full patrolling mode.

The last time I was here, on April 5th, I had counted 36 Small Tortoiseshells and 25 Peacocks. Today, nearly three weeks later, I only managed to find 6 Small Tortoiseshells and 2 Peacocks. I guess that most of them have done their bit towards propagating the species for another year and faded away.

Small Tortoiseshell - Sheldon Country Park

Peacock - Sheldon Country Park

On of the main reasons for coming here this morning was to look for Holly Blues which seem to be having a very poor year around here this year. Well, on this count I was unsuccessful with none seen here today. This means that the only ones I have seen so far are still the single female and three or four males passing through my garden.
I didn't see any Brimstones here either and this is another species that seems to be having a rather poor spring around here, I have still not seen a female.

By around 11.00 it had become very warm and I retraced my route back towards home.

Back home in the garden later, I found a male Brimstone settled quite happily where he stayed for some time before being hassled by a Green-veined White which stirred him into action and he flew off. I have noticed previously that, although seldom settling through the morning and later in the afternoon, that they seem to dislike the midday sun on very warm days and will often take an extended rest...a bit like a siesta I suppose and for a similar reason.

Brimstone - Coverdale 23.04.2020

All the usual species were seen passing though the garden again, most of them supercharged in the warm sun but later in the afternoon some would occasionally stop for a brief refuel or to bask for a bit.

Green-veined White - Coverdale 23.04.2020

Orange-tip - Coverdale 23.04.2020

Orange-tip female - Coverdale 23.04.2020

Orange-tip female - Coverdale 23.04.2020

Speckled Wood male - Coverdale 23.04.2020

A single Holly Blue also passed through rapidly later in the afternoon, the only one seen all day.

Bye for now and stay safe,

Neil.

[Wurzel]

Really great shots again Neil my fave has to be the Small Tort - they're practically 'over' round my way and that one has very little orange on the hind wing - it gives it an almost Red Admiral appearance, though only a rear Admiral as the fore wings are definite 'Small Tort'

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

[David M]

Still looks to be plenty about round your way to keep you interested, Neil. Will it remain that way as we go through May?

Round my area, after the Marsh/Small Pearl Bordered Frits have withered away there's a bit of a gap until midsummer when not much is happening.

[Neil Freeman]

Really great shots again Neil my fave has to be the Small Tort - they're practically 'over' round my way and that one has very little orange on the hind wing - it gives it an almost Red Admiral appearance, though only a rear Admiral as the fore wings are definite 'Small Tort'

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

Cheers Wurzel. The Small Torts are definitely winding down here as well, as are the Peacocks. I guess the really warm April has burnt them out somewhat.

Still looks to be plenty about round your way to keep you interested, Neil. Will it remain that way as we go through May?

Round my area, after the Marsh/Small Pearl Bordered Frits have withered away there's a bit of a gap until midsummer when not much is happening.

Thanks David. I should be ok into May - weather permitting, it has collapsed the past couple of days. No Fritillaries locally for me, or indeed Green Hairstreaks or spring skippers, but I should be able to find Small Copper, Common Blue and Small Heath. Then I have my 'June gap' until the summer species build up.


Friday 24th April.

It was forecast to be a cloudier day today with a drop in temperature before more unsettled conditions blew in, but after some early cloud had burnt off we ended up with yet another day of blues skies and sun.
After popping down the road to get some fresh bread and milk, I went out into the garden and spotted a male Brimstone flitting about. He returned to the Lilac bush a couple of times where I got a few shots and identified him as the same individual I had photographed the previous day. I'm still not seeing many Brimstones and still no females yet this year.

Brimstone - Coverdale 24.04.2020

The Speckled Woods were about;

Speckled Wood male - Coverdale 24.04.2020

Speckled Wood male - Coverdale 24.04.2020

This spring I have seen Speckled Woods nectaring from flowers more often than usual, especially females. I suspect that the recent dry weather has led to a lack of the honeydew that they would normally be using. I have a Japanese Barberry (berberis thunbergii) and the small yellow flowers on this shrub have been a particular favourite, but I have also seen them feeding on Lilac, Forget-me-nots and (Sweet?)Violets in my garden.

Speckled Wood female feeding on Berberis - Coverdale 24.04.2020

Speckled Wood female feeding on violet - Coverdale 24.04.2020

At least two different males were in the usual spots again and two females were hanging about. One of the females was spotted by a male and he tried his chances but was met by the 'play dead' pose that the females will usually adopt if not interested.

Speckled Wood pair, female 'playing dead' - Coverdale 24.04.2020

After a short while he backed off but took up station a couple of feet away and watched her.

Male Specklie watching the female - Coverdale 24.04.2020

After a minute or so he lost interest and flew off, upon which she 'came back to life' and flew up onto a Lilac flower.

Speckled Wood female on Lilac - Coverdale 24.04.2020

I have posted photos before showing how different light conditions can make the same individual butterfly look different and the shot below, of this same female, again illustrates this.

Speckled Wood female, the same one as the photo above.

My first trip away was due to be late in May, a few days in a B&B down on the Lizard in Cornwall. Given the current situation, I was expecting that this would be cancelled and had an email yesterday confirming this to be the case. It remains to be seen if any of my other planned trips later in the year will be effected.

Bye for now and stay safe,

Neil.

[Wurzel]

Cracking set of Specklie action Neil Sorry to hear about the cancelled trip - hopefully things will improve so you might be able to make some of the later ones, fingers crossed

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

[David M]

..This spring I have seen Speckled Woods nectaring from flowers more often than usual, especially females. I suspect that the recent dry weather has led to a lack of the honeydew that they would normally be using.

I'm sure you're right, Neil. It's strange how you rarely see the spring brood nectaring yet the summer one can't keep of the bramble flowers!

Sorry to hear about your cancelled trip. It's impossible to predict when we'll be allowed to travel in our own countries right now, let alone abroad!

[Neil Freeman]

Thanks for you comments Wurzel and David .

I was expecting the Cornwall trip to be cancelled and was just awaiting the confirmation. Fingers crossed for some others I had planned but I suspect that the next one in late June will also be canned.

My attitude to this year now is that anything that I get to see outside of Solihull will be a bonus. There is always next year.

Sunday 26th April.

We finally started to see some clouds on Saturday (25th April) and by Sunday we were back to normal weekend weather with a mostly grey overcast and just a few short sunny periods. Butterfly activity had reduced in line with these conditions with just the occasional Speckled wood or white seen in the garden during the brighter spells.

Later in the afternoon, I was watching a male Orange-tip that had just flown in from next door during one of these brighter spells when the clouds covered the sun again and it went down on to a (Spanish) Bluebell. It would have been nicer if it had been a native Bluebell but I don't have those, these Spanish types have been there since we moved into the house and spring up all over the place.

Orange-tip male - Coverdale 26.04.2020

He then stayed there for well over an hour and I was beginning to wonder if he would roost there for the night when the sun reappeared for a couple of minutes and he was off straight away, with none of the brief opening of wings that they usually do. Perhaps he was in a rush to find a roosting spot where his camouflage worked better.

That was the the last butterfly of the day and the only butterfly I actually pointed my camera at over the weekend.

Monday 27th April.

A better day with more sun and a warmer feel than the weekend and although the wind was getting up again it didn't feel so cold.

As usual, Speckled Woods, Orange-tips and Green-veined and Small Whites were spotted during the day but once again no Holly Blues were seen. I have still only seen one Large White around here too.

Speckled Wood female - Coverdale 27.04.2020

Small White - Coverdale 27.04.2020

I was watching a female Orange-tip at one point and was just about to take a photo when a male pounced on her. Having already seen a number of interactions this past week or so, with the female adopting the rejection pose, I was expecting the same this time. On this occasion however, the male was successful and with no apparent courtship they immediately coupled.

Orange-tip pair - Coverdale 27.04.2020

Orange-tip pair - Coverdale 27.04.2020

Orange-tip pair - Coverdale 27.04.2020

They stayed in this position for about 45 minutes, during which time the sun was mostly hidden behind clouds, separating only when the sun came out properly again for a bit. I did wonder if they would have stayed coupled for longer if the sun had stayed hidden.

Orange-tip pair - Coverdale 27.04.2020

They then went their separate ways, the female over the fence into the neighbours garden and the male just fluttering around a bit until another cloud came over and he settled to bask for a bit.

Orange-tip male - Coverdale 27.04.2020

We had been forecast a few showers for today but in the end it stayed dry all day and reasonably warm. Just as well really as there was plenty of rain in the forecast for the next few days...and they were not wrong about that.

Bye for now and stay safe,

Neil.

[Wurzel]

Cracking stuff Neil I too was lucky enough to witness my first OT copulation and they certainly don't hang about It does make me wonder why the males don't seem to understand the rejection posturing?

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

[David M]

That's quite something to observe a mating pair 4 weeks into their flight period, Neil.

You've really done superbly with this species this spring, probably better than anyone else on here.

Any more surprises?

[Neil Freeman]

Cracking stuff Neil I too was lucky enough to witness my first OT copulation and they certainly don't hang about It does make me wonder why the males don't seem to understand the rejection posturing?

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

They may well understand it Wurzel, it may just be persistence in the hope of wearing down her defenses...after all you can see similar behaviour in some humans

That's quite something to observe a mating pair 4 weeks into their flight period, Neil.

You've really done superbly with this species this spring, probably better than anyone else on here.

Any more surprises?

Thanks David, I have been fortunate this year in having so much time available to watch them.
Not much of anything else yet, I have only seen a few Specklies and Whites since the weather collapsed last week and it is still mostly cloudy and cool around here.


Garden Moths update.

The end of April saw my tally of garden moths standing at a total of 34 species made up of 23 macros and 11 micros. It has seemed a slow start to the year but checking my records for the past few years gives the following by the same time of year;

2019 – Macros 22, micros 11, Total 33
2018 – Macros 18, micros 12 Total 30
2017 – Macros 23, micros 15 Total 38

This shows that despite a run of poor trapping conditions through April, my results are fairly normal for me for this time of year. I reckon that spending the longer time at home under the current circumstances has led to a distorted impression. We are after all only now at the beginning of May which is when moth numbers in the garden usually start to increase.

April is usually the time when the first Pug Moths appear, many of this family of small moths being difficult to tell apart. I have had 5 species of these so far, Double-striped, Brindled, Oak-tree, Ochreous and Foxglove. Luckily I have had fresh examples of all of these making them easier to ID with the Foxglove Pug being one of the easier and more attractive members of this family.

Foxglove Pug - coverdale 26.04.2020

Another typical moth that usually appears in my garden around now is the Flame Shoulder, a common and widespread species and one that it is easy to see how it got its common name.

Flame Shoulder - Coverdale 26.04.2020

Flame Shoulder - Coverdale 26.04.2020

The Pale Prominent is one that only occasionally shows up here so I was pleased to get one on the night of 26th April. This moth has an interesting resting posture with its 'prominent' tufts and extra long palps helping to break up it's outline and make it look like a bit of twig.

Pale Prominent - Coverdale 26.04.2020

Whilst I was taking photos, it decided to start warming up by vibrating it's wings, as many moths do before take off. I quickly put the camera on sports mode and clicked away, hoping to catch a shot or two in focus, and was quite chuffed with the result.

Pale Prominent - Coverdale 26.04.2020

This past week, the weather has collapsed and like most areas we had a lot of rain, in fact two days constant Tuesday through Wednesday. Thursday and Friday were cloudy and cold with some heavy showers and the weekend has been mostly cloudy and cool here. Next week is looking more promising, both during the day and at night, with temperatures looking to rise by the end of the week.

Fingers crossed I may be able to get out and start looking for some more local butterflies.

Bye for now and stay safe,

Neil

[Wurzel]

That Pale Prominent Neil reminds me of a line from 'Roxanne' (the movie not the Police hit) - to misquote "when the Lord gave out Palps,when he came to you, well he just keep on giving!" I love the kinks in the fore wings as well The Foxglove Pug is a bit of a beauty

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

[Goldie M]

Lovely shots of the Speckie Neil, my garden full of flowers and my Speckie lands on an hose pipe Goldie

[millerd]

Just catching up with what you've been seeing, Neil. The Orange Tip sequence is particularly interesting - you get so used to the typical rejection behaviour that when they actually do pair, for a moment you wonder what's happening! Difficult to get a shot too, of as it rarely happens right in front of you.

Cheers,

Dave

[Neil Freeman]

That Pale Prominent Neil reminds me of a line from 'Roxanne' (the movie not the Police hit) - to misquote "when the Lord gave out Palps,when he came to you, well he just keep on giving!" I love the kinks in the fore wings as well The Foxglove Pug is a bit of a beauty

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

Cheers Wurzel, I love the way you can often think of an appropriate line from a song

Lovely shots of the Speckie Neil, my garden full of flowers and my Speckie lands on an hose pipe Goldie

Thanks Goldie I know what you mean, all the plants in my garden and the Specklies squabble over a bit of dead tree.

Just catching up with what you've been seeing, Neil. The Orange Tip sequence is particularly interesting - you get so used to the typical rejection behaviour that when they actually do pair, for a moment you wonder what's happening! Difficult to get a shot too, of as it rarely happens right in front of you.

Cheers,

Dave

Thanks Dave. That was exactly what I was expecting to happen too and, like you say, it caught me a bit by surprise.

Monday 4th May

After the heavy rain last week, it remained cool, cloudy and showery for the rest of the week and over the weekend. The only butterflies I saw were a couple of whites that were being whisked along in the wind.
The thick cloud continued for the first half of Monday but then began to break up in the afternoon to let some sun break though, although the chill wind still made it feel a bit nippy.
Nevertheless, when the sun did come out it had enough strength to bring out a few butterflies in the garden with Orange-tips, Green-veined Whites, Small whites and Speckled Wood all showing up during the second half of the afternoon.

Orange-tip female - Coverdale 04.05.2020

Green-veined White - Coverdale 04.05.2020

One female Small White was interestingly marked with the lower set of black spots on her forewings almost split in two, similar to one that I saw that Goldie had in her garden the other day, although not so well defined in my case.

Small White female - Coverdale 04.05.2020

With Small Coppers, Common Blues and Brown Argus all now being reported from the midlands and the weather looking to improve later in the week, I am hoping to get out for a look for some of these locally myself.

Bye for now and stay safe,

Neil.