Trevor

[millerd]

...Never mind it's all the sweeter when one settles just right, as they seem to near Heathrow...

Trevor.

That's if one actually puts in an appearance this year, Trevor! Numbers are hugely down on last year in the Heathrow area, so even seeing a glint of distant silvery blue is an achievement.

That's a great series of shots, and I have to add a for the Holly.

Cheers,

Dave

[trevor]

Very strange Dave. We haven't had what I would call golden years for Holly Blues
at the old railway for sometime, but sightings of them this Spring have been regular.
Maybe a parasite of some sort is responsible, when a species is plentiful the parasite thrives,
but not so when victim numbers have crashed, allowing the butterfly to recover once again.

We also saw some very late females last Autumn, possibly too late to do any good ?.

Keep well,
Trevor.

[Wurzel]

Cracking Holly Blue shots Trevor - they;re something of a rarity this year and don't seem to be having a good 2021 You did really well to get anything on yesterday, the weather over this way was quite frankly, pants!

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

[David M]

Early sunshine, but with a strengthening breeze, dictated that I needed to visit a sheltered site....Not a bad morning, given less than ideal weather.

Are we talking about the same Bank Holiday Monday here, Trevor? I am stupefied that anywhere in the country was sufficiently suitable for butterflies to be seen. It was, as far as my memory is concerned, the worst May day I can recall in my lifetime - gale force winds, lashing rain and temperatures no higher than 10c.

Fair play for even venturing out, let alone seeing some butterflies.

[trevor]

Thanks Wurzel & David,
An advantage of the old railway is that much of it is in a cutting,
and offers some protection from wind, and is something of a Sun trap.
The site can and often does perform in less than ideal conditions.

There are disadvantages, Dog mess, and high speed cyclists.

Keep well, both.
Trevor.

[trevor]

I arrived at my chosen spot in Abbots Wood at exactly 8.00 this morning.
Unsurprisingly all was quiet on the butterfly front ( though on a normal sunny Spring
morning the Pearl Bordered Fritillary would already be zooming around by this time ).

As time wore on an impressive number of Grizzled Skippers were seen, including a
chase which ended on a leaf near the path. Within seconds they had coupled resulting
in a ' lifer ' for me. bugboy joined me in the search for PBF ( Good to meet you again ),
and it was a pleasure to point out the mating Grizzlies to him, for whom it was also a ' lifer '.

When the Pearls really got going, so some cloud arrived, allowing for some reasonable shots.
One fresh female stole the show for me as her forewings had a ' dusky ' appearance.
All in all we had a great morning, and I am sure Paul returned to London with many shots to sort out!.

Stay well,
Trevor.

[millerd]

A very nice couple of Pearls there, Trevor. That female in particular is an absolute cracker of a butterfly. Those mating Grizzzlies are none too shabby either!

Cheers,

Dave

[Katrina]

Well done on the pair of Grizzlies an lovely Pearls
Also one of the Grizzlies seems to have quite large white markings

[essexbuzzard]

Congratulations on those Grizzled Skippers in particular, Trevor. One of my spring favourites!

[Benjamin]

Lovely ab Trevor - what is it? A not quite taras - no doubt has a name.......

[trevor]

Many thanks Dave & Katrina, Mark and Ben.

Given the cold air myself and bugboy couldn't have wished for better, All PBF were fresh.
Paul thought the Grizzlie you mention, Katrina ,was an ab. The mating pair was a real bonus.

Stay safe and well all,
Trevor.

[bugboy]

Good to catch up with you again Trevor . I do indeed have a lot of photos to sift through (tomorrow looks set to be a bit rainy so that's tomorrow sorted!)
That female Grizzlie is either ab intermedia, or scabellata both of which are sort of half way between normal and taras

[Wurzel]

Cracking set of shots Trevor - Grizzlies in cop and one of them is an aberrant - I'd have gone for intermedia but the other is possible That female is very dusky - is she an ab as well?

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

[David M]

Well, that's trip report of the year for me so far, Trevor - mating Grizzlies, one of which is an ab, Pearl Bordered Fritillary posing on a bluebell and another which looks like an ab. as well.

Excellent finds.

[trevor]

Many thanks everyone.
I would never have spotted the mating Grizzlies had I not seen the initial ' courtship ' chase.

With some shopping to do this morning, I stayed local.
My first butterfly at the old railway was a perfectly posed Red Admiral, followed by some
nearby Holly Blues. These once again gave the impression that they might land close by,
before sweeping up to the tree tops and back down again. Convinced that patience might
pay off I eventually wasted a lot of time willing them to co-operate, without much success.

An immaculate Green Veined White was late on the scene, and spent many minutes sparring
with a Small White, quite why they spent so long in the air was a mystery. They eventually
landed a close together on some bramble leaves.

At home I had a garden visitor in the form of a worn, but welcome, Red Admiral.

Stay well,
Trevor.

[millerd]

I wonder how long it will take the Red Admirals to reach my neck of the woods, Trevor... It seems Sussex has had a notable influx recently and with some strong southerly winds I hope some head this way. Some nice shots there, and once again a definite for you seeing Holly Blues, however distant!

Cheers,

Dave

[trevor]

Cheers Dave. I don't know about sending you some Red Admirals, I think some
Painted Ladies may well head your way, they have been reported from all over
this part of the world today.

Stay well ,
Trevor.

[trevor]

This morning I visited a part of Abbots Wood I rarely visit, part of the attraction being
the closeness of the ride to the road and my parked car.
Quite a few Orange Tips were flying, but Pearl Bordered Fritillaries were hard to find,
despite a nearby area cleared for them. I saw a maximum of three in the whole morning.
As I walked to the junction of the path I was on and the main ride I bumped into Katrina,
and we slowly walked to the end of the ride and I was able to show her an easy place to park.

Retracing our steps, we both nearly passed a mating pair of Orange Tips. Despite the fact
that they were right next to the path, at head height in full Sun and very obvious
The OT's did present a photographic challenge in the bright Sunshine, not good for photographing
white butterflies, so both Katrina and myself were constantly experimenting with various camera settings.

The other notable species today was the Painted Lady, and fortunately a nice specimen posed for me.
It transpired that quite a few Painted Ladies have been spotted in Sussex today.

Good to meet you today Katrina, and thanks for the company.
Stay safe and well,
Trevor.

[Chris L]

Fantastic photos Trevor, particularly the Grizzled Skippers on this page.

I have yet to see a Red Admiral this year. Consulting my records I had only seen 2 this time last year anyway so not much catching up needs to be done.

[Wurzel]

Cracking set of shots Trevor That's a great looking Painted Lady (hopefully the vanguard?) - it's got the blue 'pupils' in the spots on the hind wing, I've only seen one or two of those

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel