David M

[David M]

That's a great final(ish?) flurry David. As in the Spring, and at this time of year
we start to look out for Speckled Woods again. I am guilty of largely ignoring
them in between, though I do keep an eye open for spectacularly marked
female Specklies.

Yes, that was a final flourish for Specklies round my way, Trevor. You're right, most of us only really pay attention to them at the beginning and end of the season. I guess that's because we're practically never without them in between.

Wednesday 4th November 2020 – Last embers……

Knocked off work at midday today as I had a dental appointment at 2.40pm. That gave me a little time to kill, and seeing that the wet and windy spell had decided to give us a break, I thought I’d venture out to Limeslade Bay on the Gower coast to check out the hebe growing in the sheltered corner near the footpath.

To my delight, I saw a Red Admiral straight away. It was perched on this fabric sack, no doubt taking advantage of the additional warmth.

Here’s an overview of this little microclimate:

There was another Red Admiral on the hebe nearby:

A third Red Admiral was seen basking on foliage nearby:

At one point, two of them clashed and spiralled into the air, with the pursuer chasing his rival over the top of the wall. I strolled a couple of hundred metres down the track that leads to Langland Bay. This is a very picturesque spot which is ideal for walking at any time of year when the sun is out and the winds light:

Just the tonic I needed before having a tooth filled!

[David M]

Sunday 8th November - Brief opportunity....

A post-Bonfire Night butterfly is always a precious thing (although becoming commoner these last few years) and I was fortunate enough to see one thanks to a brief weather window where the overcast conditions on a mild day (14c) gave way to an interlude of sunshine in the mid-afternoon.

I headed down to Limeslade Bay just before 3pm and managed to find a solitary Red Admiral on the only stretch of flowering hebe that was still in full sunlight:

There were plenty of bees and flies too in this little oasis, and I suspect they will continue here unless we get some particularly cold conditions.

[Goldie M]

Hi! David, cold conditions forecast for here, snow on hills this week, it'll be a changs from the rain if nothing else Goldie

[David M]

..David, cold conditions forecast for here, snow on hills this week, it'll be a changs from the rain if nothing else

I noticed the reports, Goldie. Looks like the north had quite a bit of snowfall, as well as Dartmoor, although we seemed to escape here in south Wales. I guess that'll finish off most of the Red Admirals that were still about.

Wednesday 25th November 2020 - Hebe still producing results....

A still, mild, sunny late November day saw me try once again to find butterflies at Limeslade Bay.

I sat on a large stone bollard for 10 minutes, all the while glancing at the wall where the flowering hebe grows in such profusion. Several bees and flies zoomed past but eventually I saw what appeared to be a large butterfly taking to the air in the upper reaches.

Intrigued, I remained seated, but after a few more minutes without any further movement I walked to the southern edge to scan the part-obscured higher tier of this expanse of late-flowering non-native growth:

Something caught my eye in the sheltered niche above this patio area:

...and there it was, a solitary Red Admiral glued to a hebe flower in the most protected corner of the site:

[Goldie M]

WoW David, Seeing the Butterfly will make your Winter feel shorter, it's been much too wet and cold here since the beginning of October, we also missed the Snow though, it changed to rain here. Goldie

[David M]

WoW David, Seeing the Butterfly will make your Winter feel shorter...

Yes, I suppose that's right, Goldie. We're halfway through December but with things being so mild, it's almost like winter hasn't appeared yet. Maybe it will at some point but right now I'm quietly confident I'll go fewer than 3 months without a butterfly, unless we have another dire late February/early March.

[Goldie M]

All the best for Christmas David, lets hope the New Year is better Goldie

[David M]

All the best for Christmas David, lets hope the New Year is better

Thank you, Goldie. All the best to you too and I sincerely hope 2021 will bring a considerable improvement (although it's not looking that way right now, sadly).

[Matsukaze]

Those Hebes look familiar!

[David M]

Those Hebes look familiar!

Yes, Chris, and it's hard to believe that it's just a week short of a year since we were having a pint within a short walk of them! Everything seemed so familiar and straightforward back then.

[Matsukaze]

We had hoped to stay on Gower again this New Year, but it will have to wait. At the moment it is hard to believe that creatures like butterflies exist, but we could have wandered the beaches watching the wading birds, and making giant sandcastles. January 2022 perhaps...

[David M]

Thursday 26th November 2020 – One last outing…..

Yesterday was very pleasant for the time of year, but today was even better – a max of 9c, full sunshine & barely a breath of wind. I figured there’d still be valerian and scabious in flower at Port Eynon dunes so I ventured down there at lunch time hoping there might be a butterfly or two as well.

Sadly, in spite of the benign conditions I didn’t see any and decided to have a quick look round the churchyard about 5 minutes walk away. Again, there seemed to be nothing around, until I looked in the direction of this old wall:

I could make out a triangular shape on a valerian flower so I walked closer:

It was surprising to find it was a Small Tortoiseshell. They are usually tucked up in hibernation by now:

The homeowner came out on to his driveway having seen me pointing my camera at something, and he was delighted to find his property had a butterfly visiting it less than a month before Christmas.

From memory, this is the latest date in the year I’ve ever seen a Small Tortoiseshell.

[Goldie M]

I'd love to see a Small Tort David it might brighten the next few days No journey to Kent for me this Christmas, at least I'll stay safe, hope fully Goldie

[trevor]

Well done with your late Small Tortoiseshell, David.
My East Sussex total this year was six, and two of those were on the same day.

Have a great Christmas, and hopefully a more normal 2021.

Stay safe and well,
Trevor.

[David M]

I'd love to see a Small Tort David it might brighten the next few days No journey to Kent for me this Christmas, at least I'll stay safe, hope fully

Best to sit this one out, Goldie, given the circumstances. Like everyone else, I hope that 2021 brings some kind of accelerating relief from this Covid nightmare and yes, a Small Tortoiseshell in early spring would do wonders for morale!

[David M]

Friday 11th December 2020 – Major surprise….

At 2pm today, I ventured outside my workplace and almost immediately noticed a butterfly flying around the perspex-covered smoking shelter at the corner of the car park.

It seemed to be constantly testing the metal frame at the top but in between doing this, would fly around and settle elsewhere for brief periods.
Being at work, I wasn’t armed with my camera, but I managed to get a few images on my mobile phone:

I took a short video of it as its behaviour was intriguing – it would fly out into the open before coming back to the shelter as if magnetised:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7tju5CH5uNA

My last image of it before I went back inside was when it settled on the metal ‘a’ of the company’s logo on the front of the building. I guess the temperature was a bit higher here:

This is the second latest I have ever seen a butterfly in the UK, beaten only by the Red Admiral flying round the hanging baskets in Abergavenny town centre on 20th December 2008.

[Goldie M]

Hi! David, HAPPY NEW YEAR, the Butterfly wouldn't have lasted very long here, we've had Snow here since the 28th Dec and we're at -5 tonight UGH!
Just waiting for the Vaccine now, roll on Sign of Spring in the garden though, in spite of the cold my Snow Drops are showing through the Snow, roll on Spring Goldie

[David M]

Well done with your late Small Tortoiseshell, David.

My East Sussex total this year was six, and two of those were on the same day.

Have a great Christmas, and hopefully a more normal 2021.

Thanks, Trevor. I am aware how scarce this species is further east so I do not take them for granted on my 'patch', especially in late November!!

Hope you had a good festive period and I wish you all the best in 2021.

[David M]

We had hoped to stay on Gower again this New Year, but it will have to wait. At the moment it is hard to believe that creatures like butterflies exist, but we could have wandered the beaches watching the wading birds, and making giant sandcastles. January 2022 perhaps...

Good job you didn't, Chris. You might have been locked down!

Things looking grimmer by the day throughout the UK. I do hope by January 2022 we'll be alright again.

[David M]

Hi! David, HAPPY NEW YEAR, the Butterfly wouldn't have lasted very long here, we've had Snow here since the 28th Dec and we're at -5 tonight UGH!
Just waiting for the Vaccine now, roll on Sign of Spring in the garden though, in spite of the cold my Snow Drops are showing through the Snow, roll on Spring

Thanks, Goldie. All the best for 2021 to you too. It's been cold here since January began, but never worse than -2c so it's bearable, and we've missed the snow that many others have seen. Milder from next week though, so I suspect the spring bulbs will start pushing through a little more. Something to look forward to.