Pauline

[Wurzel]

Love the detail on the Small Heath Pauline - mighty impressive macro work that

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Pauline]

Cheers Wurzel - appreciated, but it took a lot more work to get up close and personal with the DGF's.

Before I went out this morning I checked the duck shed for moths and amongst the selection there was this Ermine moth - very elegant looking creatures I always think:

I thought I would have a little wander around Alice Holt but the only butterflies of interest were several Large Skippers which I hadn't seen yet this season:

There were also lots of Beautiful Demoiselles but I couldn't get close to any of them so this was taken at quite some distance:

I did notice that some of the bushes (Hazel????) had many cocoons (?????) hanging from them - I haven't seen anything like this before. Anyone know what's going on?

[Pauline]

I can't believe I'm actually posting this as I absolutely hate flies. However, in Alice Holt today I saw 2 flies on a leaf and they seemed to be eating something. I watched for about 10 minutes but photography was almost impossible due to the strong winds which were causing the branches to sway about. What kept me fascinated was the apparent co-operation between these 2 flies - between them they actually lifted the item of their interest and appeared to share it. In between they would interact with each other - a sort of mutual grooming. I took loads of photos but they were all blurred, even more so than the ones below. I have never seen flies behave like this before and have tried to identify them but the best I can come up with is Flesh Fly??????

[PhilM]

"I did notice that some of the bushes (Hazel????) had many cocoons (?????) hanging from them - I haven't seen anything like this before. Anyone know what's going on?"

Hi Pauline,
I think these are not cocoons but rolled up leaves or 'cradles' made by female Apoderus coryli (Hazel-Leaf Roller Weevil) in which she lays her eggs. There should be around half a dozen eggs in each cradle.

Here is a link to a Wikipedia page about the species:-

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apoderus_coryli

Very interesting behaviour between the flies that you witnessed BTW, thanks for posting.

Regards,
Phil.

[Neil Freeman]

More great photos recently Pauline. I was interested to see your first DGF was perched up in a dogwood, as was mine on Monday at OWH .

Cheers,

Neil.

[Pauline]

Thank you for taking the trouble to answer that Phil - fascinating stuff. I am familiar with that site and often spend time there looking for WA larva but I have never seen that before. Either I've been walking around with my eyes closed or those Roller Weevils are having a really good year cos many bushes were covered in those cradles. I didn't unwrap any as I didn't know what I might find!

It was because of your photo that I started off looking on the Dogwood Neil. I'd love to go back but I brushed about a dozen ticks off my jeans whilst I was there and have brought several more back attached to me It is the worst site I know for them.

By yesterday afternoon the wind had become quite fierce but nevertheless I decided to nip over to Bramshott to see if there were any female SSB around. Because of the gale the butterflies were staying quite low down (even more so than usual) and nectaring on flowers I haven't seen them use before. This is an atypical site for SSB given that there is very little heather or anthills but lots of bracken. I saw only 2 females and given their irridescent oily appearance I assumed they were not long emerged. I did however see one female looking as tho' she was egg-laying although I could find no eggs. I shall include the shot of this just to illustrate, even tho it is blurred (like some of the others) because of the movement of the vegetation.

[Pauline]

Well, I decided to take another chance on Oxenbourne, and as I suspected I have taken another 5 ticks off me . My own fault I guess as I didn't stick to the paths and walked thru' some grass to reach the DGF which were hunkered down out of the wind:

Didn't see any females, just half a dozen males and my first Marbled White of the season:

Looking across to Butser:

[Wurzel]

Brilliant DGFs Pauline - even more impressive macro wok getting close to them indeed:shock: I went looking for my first this weekend but missed it by about 15 minutes

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Pauline]

Cheers Wurzel - they seem to be everywhere I go now. I saw several DGF today at Rake Bottom along with Green Hairstreak, Small Tortoiseshell, Dingy Skipper, Small Heath, Brimstone, Small White, Common Blue, 3 Adonis Blue (which was a surprise as I have never seen them here before - 2 M, 1F), Grizzled Skipper, Large Skipper, Meadow Brown, and something else which I can't remember I know some folk like to photograph everything they see and with a memory like mine that might be beneficial, but it was hot and the sides of that valley are steep ..............Anyway, I did stop to photograph this mating pair of Small Heath. He just pounced on her mid-air, dragged her down and the deed was done.

I also paused to take a shot of this Grizzled Skipper which I thought had pretty markings, a little different from the norm?

...and I also took a photo of a young Green Woodpecker - unfortunately it was about 0.5 miles away!!!!! I only slightly exaggerate. How do you get any closer to these birds?? They always see me before I see them.

Oh, I remember now - the other one was a very tatty Small Copper!

[David M]

I see you overcame your DGF nemesis, Pauline.

It's always a challenge to obtain close-up underside images so well done there.

I like the Small Heath pair too. For a common butterfly, it' surprisingly rare to see them in cop.

[Pauline]

Thank you David. I still haven't got quite the shot I'm after. There again, I'm never satisfied!

I've been seeing quite a lot of butterflies but getting photos has been a different matter. 2 days ago I saw my first WLH (the earliest ever) but frustratingly all their activity was at canopy level. Despite a return visit there was no change. I had a heart-stopping moment when I saw a small dark butterfly land on a daisy but getting closer it was the smallest Meadow Brown I have seen:

Large Skippers amused me whilst I waited. I really wish I had 10% of their energy:

I also saw my first Ringlet of the season on that day (14th) but it wasn't until today that I managed a few shots:

My first SWF zoomed by today but it was not stopping for any photos. This Comma was of the same mind so the shots are taken very much at a distance:

Goodness knows how the butterflies will react to the forecast (possible) 34 degrees tomorrow here in the SE.

[Pauline]

It was reassuriing to see the Essex Skippers today as this is a sure sign that the WLH won't be far behind at this site. Small Skippers also present along with Marbled Whites which hardly ever stopped moving:

I rapidly moved him on from this perch as it seemed a little unsafe:

[Wurzel]

Cracking shots of the Essex Skipper Pauline - that fourth shot is a definitive ID

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Pauline]

D'you know what Wurzel, I've been watching both species for a while now and I think they have slightly different body shapes.

Yesterday I had an early appointment near Farnham which meant my homeward journey was along a road that cuts through Broxhead Common with a convenient layby very close to the SSB. I knew that they could be found within about 10 paces of getting out of the car so I thought I would stop off for 15 mins and take the opportunity of seeing them in a very different environment to the one which which I am used to.

I didn't have to walk anywhere at all as they were all around me but given all the heather I was a little cautious of adders as I was only wearing sandals. It seemed that many were still emerging including these ones who were still drying their wings:

As soon as a female appeared she was pounced on by nearby males and altho this is a dreadful shot it provides the idea.

I watched this several times and although it was mainly unsuccessful with the female quickly relocating to a more distant area, a couple of times the male got lucky:

Being close to water there were loads of Dragonflies and Damselflies, several of the latter also seen in cop:

20 mins later I was back in the car and on my way. Butterflying doesn't get any easier than this

[Pauline]

Just time to squeeze in an update on immature stages before the serious stuff starts. You might recall my sighting of the Helice on my local common not long ago followed by a subsequent sighting which involved much egg-laying. I could not resist 'borrowing' one of the eggs for the short period of its development which to date is as follows:

29 May egg laid by Helice Clouded Yellow:

31 May egg changed colour:

Just missed egg hatching - larva only hours old:

2 days old and growing quickly:

10 days old and just missed seeing a moult - only the discarded head still visible:

2 weeks old now and growing steadily - no longer need a magnifying glass to see it!!!!

Currently almost 3 weeks old and starting to explore further afield:

[Pauline]

More garden stuff. The monster Mallow (you were right Vince) is now about 8' tall tho' how it has managed that growing out of brick and concrete I don't know. It has various larva on it and I believe this one is a Vapourer moth:

The 36 Brimstone eggs on the little Alder Buckthorn certainly did need a little help. As I suspected, this little bush was stripped bare by the early cats which grew rapidly and disappeared, to pupate I imagine. When few leaves remained and I witnessed Blue Tits picking off the small ones I intervened and took a handful for supplementary feeding (the cats not the Blue Tits!). The first of these has just pupated:

A fresh Holly Blue near a tall stand of ivy was trying to take some shelter from that punishing heat yesterday:

Last but not least a Speckled Wood egg. I watched this being laid, the female demonstrating some urgency and a sense of purpose and certainly didn't waste any time. I believe it was Neil F who took that fantastic photo of a Speckled Wood egg-laying some time ago. Still in awe of that shot.

[Wurzel]

Cracking Silver-studs Pauline I was trying to work out the chances of your Helice egg finally emerging as another Helice but only got as far as 50:50 (it is or it isn't ) would be great though wouldn't it? Fingers crossed

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Pauline]

Cheers Wurzel, but hey, let's not get ahead of ourselves eh? I don't know much about butterfly genetics (assume it's a recessive gene?) but there's still a long way to go and I know from bitter experience just how many things can go wrong in the interim. Having said that, yes it would be great

It really has been like the start of Summer today with lots of butterflies around. Because of a Pilates class I couldn't get out early and by the time I did they were well warmed up. It was good chatting to Rob again today and if you should happen to read this I hope you got lucky. (send me a pm if you did!). A selection of summer activity below:

[Goldie M]

Hi! Pauline, I can't wait to see if you've got an Helice Lovely shots of the White Admiral I was hoping to see a WA today.
I went back to EBW this morning and would you believe it, there was a camper van in there and three big dogs not on leads roaming the car park and it looked like they were there for a while. The dogs were big and one was an Alsatian , needless to say I didn't hang about , after the dog bite I received I wanted to live another day Goldie

[Wurzel]

Cracking shots of the White Admiral and Silver-washed Pauline Still need to add the former to my tally but managed to get a (very distant) shot of the latter. Not long now til His Nibbs enters the fray

Have a goodun

Wurzel