October 2020

[David M]

Doesn't look to be a promising start to the month, with wind and rain forecast for many.

Let's hope things improve so that we can all marvel at just how many Small Coppers are about this autumn!

[Stevieb]

Let's hope things improve so that we can all marvel at just how many Small Coppers are about this autumn!

Not the best specimen, but it's a start David

Small Copper 1st Oct

Red Admiral 1st Oct

Red Admiral 1st Oct

Green-veined White 1st Oct

[zigzag_wanderer]

Spotted this today - birthday card from my daughter.

She's very kindly making up for the fact that the everlasting pea i tried to grow to tempt a stray up from Brighton was not a roaring success.

[David M]

..Not the best specimen, but it's a start David

Hey....it's October! We'll happily accept anything copper-coloured.

[Stevieb]

..Not the best specimen, but it's a start David

Hey....it's October! We'll happily accept anything copper-coloured.

[Matsukaze]

A Small Copper and several whites, both Large and Small, in the garden today. Small Copper has not done well here this year but this is the third in the last week or so.

[millerd]

Two Small Coppers on my local patch near Heathrow today, joined by several Common Blues, a Small Heath and two Clouded Yellows.

However, the traditional autumn butterflies that usually throng the ivy flowers at this time of year - Red Admirals and Commas - were completely absent.

Cheers,

Dave

[Jack Harrison]

2nd October. Several Peacocks and Tortoiseshells on the Moray Firth south coast. And this when I got back home on my garden fence. Very fresh so almost certainly second summer generation

Jack

[downland boy]

Earlier this week I happened upon a mating pair of Vapourer Moths in an East Sussex wood, an event that I have not come across in the wild before. The next day, I returned to observe the female ovipositing. Nigel Kemp.


http://eastsussexwanderer.blogspot.co.uk

[Matsukaze]

Is that bracken being used for oviposition? I know Vapourer larvae eat many things, but had not heard of them using ferns before (although perhaps the fairly mobile larvae will move on to something else).

[downland boy]

Hi Matsukaze,

The cocoon is just visible on the left side of the second image and was covered in eggs....the female has just carried on laying her eggs on the surrounding foliage. You are right, the larvae will wander off to find their own foodplant. I doubt they will choose the bracken but more likely they will feed on the bramble that grows beneath.

[David M]

2nd October. Several Peacocks and Tortoiseshells on the Moray Firth south coast. And this when I got back home on my garden fence. Very fresh so almost certainly second summer generation

For once, your distance from the south of the UK paid dividends, Jack.

Friday was awful here, and today has been even worse. Even the birds were in hiding!

[Deborah]

A Clouded Yellow, 4 Speckled Woods, a single Small Copper and a few whites seem to have escaped Storm Alex. And I’ve still got two Swallowtail caterpillars in their final instant on my carrots.

[Deborah]

A Clouded Yellow, 4 Speckled Woods, a single Small Copper and a few whites seem to have escaped Storm Alex. And I’ve still got two Swallowtail caterpillars in their final instars on my carrots.

[David M]

..And I’ve still got two Swallowtail caterpillars in their final instant on my carrots

Excellent, Deborah. Be nice if you could find the resulting pupae.

[Jack Harrison]

More evidence as to why Small (and Large) Whites are scarce in this northern part of Scotland.
It seems likely that the main larval foodplant these days is Nasturtium as brassica crops are no doubt heavily sprayed with insecticide.  Nasturtium withers at the first frost so obviously then it is no longer available as a caterpillar food.

This fellow was just 2 centimetres long today. 

The first frosts will be any day now.  So he might not make it as far as the pupation stage. 
I have in fact saved him and he's now on Nasturtium in the greenhouse.

Jack

[David M]

More evidence as to why Small (and Large) Whites are scarce in this northern part of Scotland.
It seems likely that the main larval foodplant these days is Nasturtium as brassica crops are no doubt heavily sprayed with insecticide.  Nasturtium withers at the first frost so obviously then it is no longer available as a caterpillar food.

This fellow was just 2 centimetres long today. 20-10-06-053-Small White.jpg
The first frosts will be any day now.  So he might not make it as far as the pupation stage. 
I have in fact saved him and he's now on Nasturtium in the greenhouse.

Good work, Jack. Interesting (if sad) observation regarding the LHP.

[Maximus]

Wall Browns seen on 2nd of October, I believe must be third brood individuals.

Wall Brown Female.

Female and male.

Same female again.

Male that I believe may have mated with the female.

Same female nectaring on Verbena.

[millerd]

Clouded Yellows are still flying on my local patch near Heathrow. Not much sunshine today which assisted in tracking this one down...

A better forecast for tomorrow...

Cheers,

Dave

[Sylvie_h]

A sunny morning here in Swansea and on my ivy in the front garden, I counted 6 Red admirals, 1 small tortoiseshell, 1 small white. Lots of Ivy bees also (Colletes hederae). I also saw one speckled wood in my back garden at lunch time !