Thanks, Ben. Yes, around now is the peak, but the flight season is quite long and I expect a few to make it to August this year.
If you need any information just let me know nearer the time.
Saturday 26th June – Welcome cloud cover….
It was warm and humid today thanks to this damp air we’ve got from the low pressure over northern France, and the weather forecast was for mainly cloudy skies all day.
I didn’t want to travel far in case there was a deluge, but I thought I’d use the cloud cover to my advantage to try and get close to Marbled Whites on Whiteford Dunes.
Prior to entering the dunes, I saw my first Small Skipper of the year near the woodland edge at this site:
About 15 minutes later, I saw my first Marbled White flying in one of the grassy craters. He was quite flighty considering how cloudy it was but he eventually came down:
Not long after, I saw a second one in this stretch:
He was content to settle for extended periods too, allowing a close approach:
At all times he was keeping his wings open, although I did manage an underside when he alighted on some bedstraw:
Lots of Small Heaths about, and a fair few Meadow Browns. There were also Large Skippers, Common Blues, a couple of Speckled Woods, a Dark Green Fritillary and a Large White.