Neil Freeman

[Neil Freeman]

I wasn't going to do any more retrospectives of 2020 but trawling back through my photos for Wurzel's favourites threads prompted me to put some words together for one more.

Looking back at 2020 – Day Flying Moths.

I have mentioned before that, unlike more favoured areas of the country, we still usually get a ‘June Gap’ around here during which the spring butterflies have mostly disappeared but the summer ones are only just starting. In 2020, due to the warm weather we had during parts of April and May, this gap occurred here a good week or so earlier than usual and was more of a late May gap. Of course, this gap can be filled by travelling to see some of the more premium species, but from my location here in the midlands this would entail travelling further than I am willing to go for a day trip, especially this year when even when the travel restrictions were lifted, I didn’t feel comfortable going far.

However, there is still plenty to see during this period and last year the first few individuals of the typical early summer species were starting to be seen, with Large Skippers and Meadow Browns both putting in an early appearance and also being joined by the first summer brood Small Tortoiseshells and Speckled Woods, all of which appeared before the end of May as described in my previous reports. These were all still only just emerging however, and numbers didn’t really build until later in June and for a couple of weeks in late May into early June they were greatly outnumbered around here by various day flying moths.

The most numerous of these were Burnet Companions which were flying in good numbers at all my local spots, with particularly high counts at both Sheldon Country Park and over the other side of Solihull at Blythe Valley Park.

Burnet Companion - Sheldon country Park 26.05.2020

Burnet Companion - Sheldon country Park 02.06.2020

Not as numerous but still seen at all sites in fairly good numbers were Mother Shipton. All of my literature says that this species shows little variation but every year I find some that look distinctly more golden/yellow than the usual greyish tones. I don’t believe that this is down to differences between the sexes or entirely due to differences in light when taking the photos. Something to look into a bit more I reckon.

Mother Shipton - Sheldon Country Park 20.05.2020

Mother Shipton - Sheldon Country Park 26.05.2020

Cinnabar Moths seemed to have a good season but despite seeing quite a few, I usually find these difficult to get a good photo of with their habit of usually settling low down in the grass.

Cinnabar Moth - Castle Hills 07.05.2020

A few Cinnabars also turned up in my garden moth trap showing that they also fly at night, and which gave me a better chance for a photo.

Cinnabar Moth - Coverdale 25.05.2020

Latticed Heaths also tuned up regularly at most of my local sites although usually just a couple each time.

Latticed Heath - Blythe Valley Park 21.05.2020

Far less common around my patch, although they can be found at a couple of sites, are Chimney Sweeper Moths. I was chuffed therefore to find a small colony I was unaware of at Sheldon Country Park.

Chimney Sweeper - Sheldon Country Park 02.06.2020

Another species that is not widespread around here is the small but attractive Grass Rivulet. I have only ever seen these at one other site around Solihull so again I was chuffed to find another site for these at Sheldon Country Park. Like many of these day flying moths, they can be difficult to photograph with their habit of settling underneath leaves.

Grass Rivulet - Sheldon Country Park 26.05.2020

I only usually find the diminutive Small Yellow Underwing at Castle Hills and this remained the case in 2020 with around half a dozen seen each time on a couple of visits.

Small Yellow Underwing - Castle Hills 07.05.2020

Not strictly a day flyer but often seen in daylight when it is easily disturbed is the Shaded Broad-bar which was seen in large numbers at Bickenhill and also in lower numbers at most of my other local sites.

Shaded Broad-bar - Bickenhill 16.07.2020

Also often disturbed during the day is the attractive Yellow Shell which I saw at a number of sites as well as turning up in my garden moth trap throughout most of the summer.

Yellow Shell - Blythe Valley Park 29.05.2020

By the middle of June, the numbers of most of these moths were on the wane and the focus was shifting back to the summer butterflies.
Mind you, some of my moth trapping acquaintances maintain that butterflies are day flying moths anyway, and they actually have a point https://butterfly-conservation.org/news ... utterflies.

After all the wind and rain (and snow on Wednesday night) we had here earlier in the week it has settled down again, but clear skies have meant that temperatures have dropped giving us a good frost this morning (Friday). We also have a weather warning for snow and ice on Sunday morning and it does not look like it will be getting much above freezing for the next few days.

Bye for now and stay safe,

Neil

[Wurzel]

Cracking set of Moff shots again Neil - those Chimney Sweeps can be right little pains to get a shot of I too have seen a range in the colouration of Mother Shipton but I wasn't aware that they were considered to not show it

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

[Neil Freeman]

Cheers Wurzel. Not just the Chimney Sweepers, most of those moths can be a pain to get close to.
I reckon the Mother Shiptons around here are roughly 25-30% Yellow form and 70-75% greyish form. I have never seen an intermediate one (apart from well worn individuals), they are either one or the other. Most of my books mention the forewing markings having the likeness of an 'old hag' giving rise to the name (Mother Shipton being a 16th century Yorkshire witch) but otherwise just describe it as having greyish white and cream markings. My copy of Townsend and Lewington (2nd edition 2009) actually states 'shows little variation'.

I mentioned above that we have a weather warning for snow and ice on Sunday morning. Well!, we also ended up having quite a bit of snow last night (Friday) that wasn't in the forecast. This stopped before midnight but clearing skies afterward led to it freezing over to leave it treacherous (and still very cold) this morning.

A cold garden this morning.

Morning sun on snowy gardens - view through our rear upstairs bedroom window.

Still looking like we are in for more snow tomorrow (Sunday) morning, it just depends how far north the weather front comes.

Bye for now and stay safe,

Neil

[Goldie M]

Your Garden looks great Neil, we got lots of snow last night but hope fully I think we may miss tomorrows fall. Goldie

[David M]

Wow! That's something that's missed my area so far this winter, Neil. We've had quite a few frosts, but no snow thus far.

[Neil Freeman]

Thanks Goldie. I don't think today's (Sunday) snow went much further up than the midlands but we had a right bucket full here this morning.

Hi David. Quite a few flurries of snow here so far but most have been fairly light...until this morning.

Sunday 24th January

Well, the forecast got it right. It started snowing here this morning around 08.00, just a gentle fall of small flakes at first but within the hour we were getting proper large flakes coming down quite heavily. This lasted for most of the morning and with it settling on the frozen remnants of yesterdays snow, it didn't take long to build up to a depth of 3 to 4 inches.

The same view from rear upstairs bedroom as yesterday.

View of back garden from rear upstairs bedroom.

View from front upstairs bedroom.

Lots of birds were making the most of the garden feeders and I took a few photos, although with poor light plus the falling snow and taking them through double glazed windows, they were definitely not my best.

Great Spotted Woodpecker - Coverdale 24.01.2021

Blue Tit - Coverdale 24.01.2021

Greenfinch - Coverdale 24.01.2021

Great Tit and Goldfinch - Coverdale 24.01.2021

Long-tailed Tits - Coverdale 24.01.2021

Dunnock - Coverdale 24.01.2021

It eased off a bit this afternoon and we had another visitor to the garden.

Fox - Coverdale 24.01.2020

Fox - Coverdale 24.01.2020

With the temperature forecast to drop down to -5 or -6 here tonight, it looks like being an icy morning tomorrow.

Bye for now and stay safe,

Neil.

[Wurzel]

Great set of wintry shots Neil Mind you star of the show has to be the Greenfinch for me as it's been a long while since I've knowingly seen one and they used to be two a penny when I was growing up Hopefully the snow will knock all the butterfly parasites back so we'll have a bumper butterfly year

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

[Goldie M]

Love the Fox shots Neil, you certainly got your Snow, ( all in one go ) Goldie

[Neil Freeman]

Cheers Wurzel .
I have done well for Greenfinches this year, they have been bouncing back here over the past couple of years and I have been getting a few in the garden. This year there has been a small flock of a dozen or so visiting regularly. A couple of shots below taken on a frosty morning in early January.

Greenfinches - Coverdale 07.01.2020

Greenfinches - Coverdale 07.01.2020

...Hopefully the snow will knock all the butterfly parasites back so we'll have a bumper butterfly year
Wurzel

I must admit, I don't really get how it could be cold enough to kill parasites but not the potential hosts. Surely they have both evolved to live in the same conditions.
Also, and given what we have seen with covid this winter, I suspect that most pathogens can survive - and even thrive - in far lower temperatures than we often think. Conversely, last winter (2019/2020) was a wet and fairly mild one here and yet I saw large numbers of Small Tortoiseshells and Peacocks come out of hibernation in the spring, the most I have seen for some years.

Thanks Goldie .
We certainly did. Some of it is still lingering about as I write this (Wednesday morning) but the rain forecast for today will no doubt wash the last of it away.

It is looking to be milder (and wetter) again for the next few days but colder again by the weekend with maybe a bit more snow then.

Cheers,

Neil.

[Wurzel]

"I must admit, I don't really get how it could be cold enough to kill parasites but not the potential hosts. Surely they have both evolved to live in the same conditions." Good point - I'd just taken it as read that this happened as it's been mentioned plenty of times on UKB and I've read it in various books... Perhaps it's because the host are less likely to survive the harsher weather due to the drain of the parasites and so the parasites die with the host, so in the new season there are fewer parasites?

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

[Allan.W.]

Hello Neil ,
Interesting and pleased to see that you are still seeing reasonable numbers of Greenfinches in your "neck of the woods " ,when we moved into our house(mid-Kent ) we regularly had 4-5 in the garden ,on any day ,but these days they are very notable ,and i,ve only seen two (both in the neighbours garden !)
in the past twelve months .
Only this morning ,Owen Leyshon ,who is the Romney Marsh countryside project warden ,for Dungeness ,and the wider area ,noted a single Greenfinch in the trapping area at Dungeness ,and said that, that was now very notable ! especially (he said ) that fifteen years ago ,hundreds used to
spend the winter "on the shingle" !! He was more excited by the single Greenfinch ,than a couple of Firecrests and two overwintering Chiffchaffs !
How times change !
Regards Allan.W.

[bugboy]

"I must admit, I don't really get how it could be cold enough to kill parasites but not the potential hosts. Surely they have both evolved to live in the same conditions." Good point - I'd just taken it as read that this happened as it's been mentioned plenty of times on UKB and I've read it in various books... Perhaps it's because the host are less likely to survive the harsher weather due to the drain of the parasites and so the parasites die with the host, so in the new season there are fewer parasites?

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

When I say it I mostly refer to moulds and bacteria which do like milder damp conditions rather than sub zero. Although they will survive they will remain in a torpor state in cold conditions whereas when it's milder they will probably continue to procreate leading to higher densities the next year. I'm not an expert though so don't take my word as fact

I think I understand in my head how it works with insect parasites as well but trying to explain it is proving beyond me at the moment

[David M]

It's great you're getting so many greenfinches, Neil. This is not a species I see too often round my way (by comparison, bullfinches are much commoner).

Must say, that's a healthy looking fox as well. Is it a regular visitor?

[trevor]

Very enjoyable snow scenes, Neil, with a particularly beautiful Fox.
So far we have completely missed the snow, but the local Fox still
visits my drive for a quick snack after dark.

You'll soon be able to put your new freedom to good use!, not long now.

Stay safe and well,
Trevor.

[Neil Freeman]

Cheers Wurzel. I must admit, most of that stuff is above my head really

Hi Allan. The Greenfinches have only really returned here over the past 2/3 years. Before that I hadn't seen one around here for ages.

Thanks Bugboy. What you say about moulds and bacteria makes sense, although as I said to Wurzel above, most of that stuff is beyond me.

Hi David. Yes, it is great to see the Greenfinches after they were so scarce around here not so long ago. The fox is a regular visitor, along with a couple more that are a bit scruffier looking.

Thanks Trevor. We had a bit more snow last weekend but it was too wet to settle. Lots of rain since then but this coming weekend is looking dodgy again.

Cheers,

Neil

[Neil Freeman]

Friday 26th February - We’re Off…

After the wet and windy weather earlier this week, yesterday (Thursday 25th) was much calmer with some nice sunny spells so I decided to have a walk down to the patch of rough ground by my local park at Wagon Lane. I had seen a few butterflies had been reported from around the midlands and thought that it might be worth a look as this is the spot that often produces my first butterflies each season. I soon found that, despite the nice sunny spells, the ambient temperature was still quite low, especially when the clouds covered the sun and it felt decidedly nippy. I did a quick circuit and headed back home with nothing seen.

There was a lot more sun today (Friday 26th), especially in the morning with almost cloudless skies and although some more cloud had bubbled up by early afternoon, it still felt promising for another look down by Wagon Lane. At first, it felt similar to yesterday with an underlying chilliness to be felt when the increasing cloud covered the sun. I had just completed a circuit when the sun returned and I decided to have a second look at one of the sheltered spots. As soon as I did so, a movement caught my eye and I tracked it until I saw it settle. Approaching slowly, I saw my first butterfly of the year, a Small Tortoiseshell
I took a few shots before it took off again and I watched it patrol up and down the hedge before it went off over the top and was lost to sight.

Small Tortoiseshell - Wagon Lane 26.02.2021

I hung around this spot for a while in case it came back and shortly afterwards saw a butterfly approaching along the hedge. At first, I thought that it was the Small Tortoiseshell returning but as it got closer, I saw that it looked larger and darker and it turned out to be a Peacock. It went to ground briefly which just gave me chance for a quick record shot before it was off again. I normally wouldn't bother posting a shot like this but as it was the first Peacock of the year...

Peacock - Wagon Lane 26.02.2021

Shortly after, the Small Tortoiseshell turned up again and settled to bask for a couple of minutes before once again departing, this time for good. At least I thought that it was the same one but checking the photos afterward showed that it was in fact a second individual.

Small Tortoiseshell #2 - Wagon Lane 26.02.2021

By then the clouds had built up to cover most of the sky so I headed back home.

This particular spot has a large stand of blackthorn which is usually the first to flower here but looking at it today I reckon that it is at least a good week or two away from flowering.

This is only the second time that I have ever seen a butterfly around here in February, so I was well chuffed to find these today. Looking at the forecast, it is looking to be similar again tomorrow but then going cool and cloudy from Sunday and into next week. We will then be into March anyway and getting close to the time when I would normally expect to start seeing butterflies around here which usually occurs sometime after mid-March. This would also time in nicely with the blackthorn mentioned above beginning to flower.

Garden Moths.

With the cold and often windy weather we had though January, I ended up not running the garden moth trap at all that month. February started off in a similar way with some particularly wet and windy weather on some nights.
The conditions settled down enough from mid-February for me to run it a few times and the night of Feb 15th produced my first moth of the year, a Common Quaker.
I then ran it on the night of 20th Feb, when I had a blank and then tried again on the following night (21st) which produced a March Moth and Satellite. Interestingly, although I have had both of these species in the garden before, neither of them showed up last year.

March Moth - Coverdale 21.02.2021

Satellite - Coverdale 21.02.2021

The next time was on the night of Feb 23rd which turned out to be too windy and produced a blank but better conditions the following night (24th) resulted in five moths of three species, Common Quaker(2), Hebrew Character(2) and Dark Chestnut, the latter being a new species for my garden.

Common Quaker - Coverdale 24.02.2021

Dark Chestnut - Coverdale 24.02.2012

Hebrew Character - Coverdale 24.02.2021

Last night was clear and cold here with a big bright moon and we had a good frost this morning. The next few nights look to be similarly cold, so it will probably be next week now before the trap goes out again.

Bye for now and stay safe.

Neil.

[Goldie M]

That's great Neil, the first sighting's always give you a great feeling for the rest of the year to come Goldie

[trevor]

[Wurzel]

Great stuff Neil - it's great when you get of the mark Hopefully the Jet Stream swinging around again won't stall them

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

[Neil Freeman]

Thanks Goldie, Trevor and Wurzel

The weekend was good while it lasted but things have returned to more like normal February weather here, as I write this it is very grey, damp and cold outside and the week is not looking much better.

Cheers,

Neil.