June 2020

[Stevieb]

Super fresh Peacock.

29th June

[Jack Harrison]

Just imagine the wow! factor if Peacocks were rare. It must rate as one world's most spectacular species.

Jack

[David M]

Just imagine the wow! factor if Peacocks were rare. It must rate as one world's most spectacular species.

Indeed, Jack. People would be travelling the length of the country if they were as scarce, for instance, as Large Blue.

Never finer than when fresh like in Stevie's image above.

[Deborah]

These two made me happy today. A large tortoiseshell in the garden. Sat open-winged on a cabbage leaf. Of course I didn’t have my camera, ran and got it. It was still there but as I arrived it fled off. Luckily it hung around for this picture on the Verbena bonariensis. Other pic is a Skipper. Any help telling me what kind appreciated!

[bugboy]

That's a Large Skipper Deborah

[Bertl]

Can someone ID please, large skipper?

[millerd]

That is indeed a Large Skipper.

Cheers,

Dave

[Charles Nicol]

another skipper... not sure what type

Paxton Pits Cambridgeshire this afternoon

[minty]

Thought I would post these two that was on my fence today,

I know zilch about butterflies

[David M]

Thought I would post these two that was on my fence today...

Lovely shot. Looks like courtship behaviour. Perhaps we're on for an additional brood later in the year.

[minty]

Ooops should have been in the July thread,sorry

[David M]

Ooops should have been in the July thread,sorry

Not a hanging offence, Minty!

Just glad to see it regardless.

[Jack Harrison]

minty wrote: ↑
Wed Jul 01, 2020 7:00 pm
Ooops should have been in the July thread,sorry

Not a hanging offence, Minty!

It might be in some parts of the Dis-United Kingdom

Jack

[David M]

Tell me about it, Jack!

Thursday 25th June - 2 Purple Emperors seen at Fermyn Woods. One skimmed the track but didn't settle, however the other was grounded several times during the half hour or so that I watched it zooming up and down the ride:

No Purple Hairstreaks seen, which was surprising, but there were quite a few White Admirals along with plenty of other high summer, woodland species:

[Pete Eeles]

Very nice!

Cheers,

- Pete

[David M]

My first positively identified Essex Skippers in Abergavenny on Fri 26th:

[Ian Pratt]

I've been glimpsing male white-letter hairstreaks in the canopy of our local elms for about 10 days. They always seem to settle out of sight, even though I point and shoot at 60x zoom whenever I see one - never anything in the picture. Then today, one such point and shoot bore fruit:





You can even see the relief of the sex-brand in that picture, confirming it is a male.

The elms are in a meadow in the middle of town (Woodbridge). This can be a highly elusive species, which I am convinced flies far closer to most people than they imagine.

Guy

I attach photos of white-letter hairstreaks taken on a Dutch elm-resistant tree in the centre of Newport Isle of Wight. The butterflies were just below eye level and easy to photograph.

[Chris L]

Those Large Blue photos are fantastic David. I was unaware that they were in Gloucestershire. Mental note made of that.

Yes, Otep, there are two public access sites for this species and Daneway Banks is one of them. It's a beautiful site and well worth a visit so if you get chance.....

Thank you David. Apologies for the belated response. A tough time at work in the last 10 days.