May 2021

[David M]

The weather for June is looking much better by the forecast.

Being relatively new to butterflies, what difference will a month of pretty much constant rain make?

Should that happen, Otep, after all we've had lately, it would be wipeout for most butterflies. There simply HAVE to be occasional days where they can go about their business even if conditions aren't perfect.

The problem at the moment is that temperatures are so suppressed that butterflies can only become active in sunny weather, and that has been in very short supply.

I too have seen the long range weather forecast. Whilst we aren't expecting a heatwave, 15-18c, largely sunny with light winds and hardly any rain should be just fine to help the recovery.

[Chris L]

Thank you David.

On Wednesday of last week I saw some butterflies that I had never seen before in my life !





I went to Gloucestershire and I figured that if I drove home having seen both of these and secured photos too, I would be happy.

[David M]

Good for you, Otep. Was risky travelling so far in such unpredictable conditions but it paid off.

[DaveO'B]

We've had poor luck surveying for Duke of Burgundy in North Yorkshire so far this year, with numbers way down on previous years.
However, we found three fresh males at one of the sites this afternoon, including one with almost no white on either the wing fringe or antennae. A quick look at the named aberrations doesn't show anything similar. Does anyone have any ideas?

Thanks.

[Neil Hulme]

Hi Dave
I've never seen (or heard of) anything quite like that dark-edged aberrant, which is probably undescribed. What a beauty. Congratulations!
Hopefully, your northern Dukes are still to come in good numbers. We haven't reached peak in Sussex yet.
BWs, Neil

[DaveO'B]

Hi Neil,

When I first spotted it I thought it was an older specimen with the fringes worn away, but a closer look reveals how fresh it is.

I was surveying today with Robert Parks, and he's hoping that we'll get a further emergence towards the Bank Holiday weekend if the weather picks up.

Cheers,

Dave

[Stevieb]

A rare hour of intermittent sunshine encouraged me out this lunchtime. Pretty dire butterfly wise though with a single Small Copper, two Peacocks, 3 Small Whites and a Marsh Fritillary

I did have the pleasure of bumping into James Gibbs (Medard) though. I managed a single Marsh Frit after you left Jim.
Bewley Common/Hazelbury Common, Wiltshire

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25th May

25th May

[MrSp0ck]

The Glanville Fritillary Butterflies have finallly started to emerge at Hutchinsons Bank, the first male seen this afternoon in the Cutting, still had floppy wings.

[Chris L]

Wow, what an incredibly attractive butterfly the Glanville Fritillary. I have looked at lots of pictures of butterflies I have never seen before and evidently the pictures I have looked at of this butterfly don't do it justice. Or they weren't fresh, pristine examples, like this.

[IacobnDG]

Leptidea juvernica has just begun to emerge at the best site I know of within walking distance. I saw this one yesterday.

[bugboy]

My first Adonis of the year today at Mill Hill, Shoreham-by-sea. Mostly looked very freshly emerged. Might be worth a visit in a few days if they continue emerging with this spell of more settled and less wet weather. No shortage of the foodplant this year either!

[Medard]

I recall finding my first Marsh Fritillaries at a site East of Bath, North of the A4 towards Colerne, my Mothers ancestral home, but cannot recall directions, can you help.
https://jamesgibbs6929.zenfolio.com/

With a little help from Wiltshire butterfly conservation website I managed to find the site of my first encounter with the Marsh fritillaries back in 2012  , parked and passed through a gap in the hedge and low and behold there they were waiting patiently for my arrival, oddly at exactly the same location where I had found my first, a dull cold day made them less active, some of the six accounted for, dark clouds arrived and they quickly vanished.
https://jamesgibbs6929.zenfolio.com/

No Butterfies on my local reserves but my first Scarce Chaser.

Hi Steve nice to have met you, always nice to put a face to the name on UKB.

[David M]

Good for you, Jim. Looks like these Marshies may now have a week or more of warm weather to go about their business. Long overdue.

[Stevieb]

Hi Steve nice to have met you, always nice to put a face to the name on UKB.

Jim can you e-mail me (snbaines@blueyonder.co.uk) as I can't post the map of Bewley Common on your web site.

Steve

[bugboy]

A day in the Chiltons to finally catch up with some Dukes which I missed out on last year and the god awful weather has kept me away from this year. Pleased to find some fresh looking individuals although the gully's behind Ivinghoe Beacon look to be getting a little overgrown and numbers of Dukes here seemed significantly lower than in previous years. Plenty of Skippers around but not much of the other usual supporting cast I would expect. Found my first Brown Argus of the year, only two though. Only one Small Heath seen all day, just two Green Hairstreak and no Common Blue.

It's a busy week off for me so full details may take a while to appear in my PD.

[Stevieb]

Nice to see the hill back to life with butterflies. Beacon Hill, Wiltshire

27th May

27th May

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27th May

[David M]

16th May - managed to double my Green Hairstreak count from 3 to 6 (only seen 5 more since, meaning my annual count is a paltry 11 for this species so far this spring).

Pleasingly, one of the Hairstreaks was nectaring from a bluebell, which is one of my favourite colour contrasts:

[David M]

17th May - very few butterflies again but I did get to see my first female Common Blue of the year:

[Bertl]

After a disastrous spring i took advantage of the sunshine to visit one of my favourite butterfly spots at Cambus o may on deeside near aberdeen. Seen my first speckled wood and pearl bordered fritillary of the season. Lots of orange tips also on the wing. Hopefully better numbers to come in the next week?

[Allan.W.]

Finally managed a couple of short visits to a couple of local sights ,and at last the Grizzled Skippers are now putting in an appearance ,had 14 sightings in all ,of probably 11 individuals ,all mostly abberant ,with a supporting cast of 4 Green Hairstreak ,the most i,ve ever seen on this site ,but all sadly past there best. Also found 2 excellent moth species an Orange Conch and Oleothreutes Arcuella. Two little beauties.
Allan.W.