David M

[David M]

Love your shot of the Tortoiseshell David, that shot of the Holly Blue is great

Thanks, Goldie. So many Holly Blues at that site that getting reasonable images isn't too much of a challenge.

[bugboy]

Love your shot of the Tortoiseshell David, that shot of the Holly Blue is great

Thanks, Goldie. So many Holly Blues at that site that getting reasonable images isn't too much of a challenge.

Still yet to get off the mark with that species!

[David M]

A cracking Copper that one David..............nice find ! . I,ve seen similar Coppers to your beauty , from time to time at Dungeness ,although I don,t think i,ll be finding too many there this season ,after last years 3rd brood crash .............still we live in hopes !

Thanks, Allan. Not surprised you've seen similar given the amazing numbers at Dungeness. Hope your prediction regarding the species at that site this year does not become the reality!

Monday 17th April cont… – How much longer?….

In spite of the paucity of butterflies in the morning, I still headed down to Cwm Ivy in early afternoon to continue my hunt for Orange Tips.
Immediately upon arrival, I saw this Peacock on some young tree catkins:

There were a handful of Holly Blues about:

Three Speckled Woods were seen in the glade:

Apart from half a dozen Brimstones, there were no other butterflies. Orange Tips are still to appear!

[David M]

Still yet to get off the mark with that species!

Think we've all got a bogey one this spring, Paul - mine is Large White.

Tuesday 18th April – Time running short…

With just two days to go before spending 17 days in Spain, I was eager to get out and find my first Orange Tips prior to this window closing.

I didn’t have heaps of time, so I simply drove down to Park Wood which is a mere 3 miles from my house. The field immediately beyond the entrance is damp, sunlit and most importantly, replete with cuckoo flower:

I fancied I’d seen an OT within seconds of arriving, as I could see a whitish butterfly fluttering weakly in the part of this field where the foodplant was widespread:

I was not mistaken – over the next half hour or so, 4 male Orange Tips were active in this area:

I also stumbled upon a lovely female Green Veined White in the field on the other side of the car park:

Other butterflies seen were Brimstone, Peacock & Small White.

[Pauline]

Good to see you caught up with the OT's David - and lovely images too with a beautiful GVW thrown in for good measure. Another one I have yet to see!

[trevor]

That's a really great open wing OT shot, David. I know only too well the
limited time you have with an OT at rest. They do seem to pause more often
in the afternoon at my local spot.

[Goldie M]

Great shots David, of the OT's Please send some my way , not seen even one yet Goldie

[essexbuzzard]

Glad you succeeded, David. Lovely shots.

Guessing you’re seeing plenty of yellow orange tips in ESP at the moment...

[David M]

Good to see you caught up with the OT's David - and lovely images too with a beautiful GVW thrown in for good measure. Another one I have yet to see!

Thanks, Pauline. Was a relief to eventually find them. They really do brighten spring up, which is something this spring is certainly in need of!

That's a really great open wing OT shot, David. I know only too well the limited time you have with an OT at rest. They do seem to pause more often in the afternoon at my local spot.

Thanks, Trevor. Cooler weather seems to help with Orange Tips, especially if there are cloudy spells, and there have been plenty of those so far this spring.

Great shots David, of the OT's Please send some my way , not seen even one yet

Shame that, Goldie. They’re such an integral part of spring. Hope you won’t have to wait too much longer.

Glad you succeeded, David. Lovely shots. Guessing you’re seeing plenty of yellow orange tips in ESP at the moment...

Cheers, Mark. Seems strange for it to have been such a relief given the numbers I went on to see in Spain….including many yellow ones!!

[David M]

Wednesday 19th April – Final pre-travel outing…

With the pressure off on the Orange Tip front, I revisited Park Wood with my neighbour to take one last look at my local butterflies prior to flying out to Spain.

There were 7 species around, all in low numbers. However, I was grateful that 2 male Orange Tips were active in the sheltered area where the cuckoo flower is growing:

I actually spent more time following a lovely female Green Veined White which kept settling nicely close by:

Other butterflies about were Brimstone, Peacock, Comma, Speckled Wood & Small White.

[David M]

Thursday 11th May – Back home…

With much to catch up on, the little bit of sunshine tempted me out onto my local common just after 11 o’clock this morning.

I parked in my usual place by the Marsh fritillary hotspot, only to find that it had suffered a fire at some point recently:

Hard to comprehend given the wet conditions thus far in spring – the ground is still sodden underfoot and waterlogged in parts.

I managed to find my first Green Hairstreak very quickly. It was a handsome one with a well developed ‘streak’:

I couldn’t negotiate the boggy terrain so I drove further down to a drier spot whereupon I found a second Green Hairstreak nectaring on a bluebell:

In nearly an hour, the only other butterfly seen was this female Orange Tip:

Upon closer inspection, she had clearly suffered an attack to her right forewing. That black discal spot did its protective job:

[Goldie M]

Lovely shot of the Hair Streak David, I'm always surprised when I see how the Butterflies love to nectar on the Bluebell's Goldie

[David M]

Thanks, Goldie. Green Hairstreaks are one of the few butterflies that truly enjoy nectaring on bluebells. Brimstone & Marsh Fritillary can be seen on them too.

Friday 12th May – Time to catch up…

A nice, pleasant day today, just perfect for taking my open-top to the coast at Kenfig to see if I could catch up with some species that had not emerged when I left for Spain on 20th April.

The site looked green and lush after all the spring rain:

Whilst admiring the landscape, my first Small Heath popped into view:

I was shocked at how few butterflies there were whilst walking down towards the lake, and even more shocked to find the route through the best area of the site was still waterlogged and impassable!!

I navigated away and found another track leading to the hilltop where I normally find territorial Wall Browns. There were none there today but I did find my first Dingy Skipper of the year in this area:

Shortly afterwards, a male Common Blue appeared:

There were 4 Orange Tips, 3 Brimstones, 3 Speckled Woods, a Holly Blue, a Small White and a couple of Small Coppers during my time there:

Rather than go straight back to my car, I decided to do a circuit of the area to the right of the car park. I was glad I did, because there in the long grass was my first Small Blue of the year:

Fewer than two dozen butterflies in an hour and a quarter was worrying, although there was a decent range of species, with me hitting double figures for the first time this year.

[Goldie M]

Lovely shots David I went to Sea salter over the week-end not a single Butterfly, I think I'll try Temple Ewell next, I may get lucky.

I've not heard of any one going there yet but I did see Small Blue there this time last year, your shot of one is lovely Goldie

[David M]

Thanks, Goldie. Far too few butterflies round here as well. They're having a tough year.

[Neil Freeman]

Some nice photos recently. There seems to be a good selection turning up now around your way David even if total numbers are still down.

Cheers,

Neil.

[David M]

Thanks, Neil. Most of us on here are experiencing the same thing - the usual variety but in diminished numbers.

Such a shame as the lhps are in rude health right now.

Friday 12th May – Merthyr Mawr…

After leaving Kenfig, it was only a short drive to Merthyr Mawr where I traditionally get my annual UK ‘fix’ of Grizzled Skippers.
I headed over to the far eastern corner where the hotspot is:

I duly saw one here and managed to get an image:

I walked further on to another favoured spot and found this one nectaring from a dandelion:

There were precious few other butterflies around; five Orange Tips, three Dingy Skippers, three Brimstones, a Speckled Wood and a Small Copper. However, when observing the last of these, I noticed a darker butterfly swooping up to joust with it – my first Brown Argus of the year:

Two more were also seen, with one constantly battling with this male Common Blue:

I guess the relative absence of flight time is causing these small, feisty butterflies to be even more belligerent than usual.

[David M]

Saturday 13th May – Still hard work…

I fancied there might be a Wall Brown or two this morning, so I headed down to Dan-y-graig cemetery in the late morning to check out what was about in a reliable location for this species.

In spite of the sunny conditions, again there wasn’t much flying, although Small Coppers were rather unusually the commonest species with four seen:

There were three Green Veined Whites, two Speckled Woods and two Small Whites, along with a solitary Common Blue and this Peacock:

No Wall Browns were about, but I did get a new (and rather belated) new species for the year when this Large White settled at the far western end of the site:

May is continuing the theme by being largely unsettled, but usually sunny but cool….and still behind where we would expect in a normal year.

[kevling]

Nice photos from your recent jaunts David. This Grizzled Skippers are lovely. My favourite is the Green Hairstreak on bluebell, what a stunner.

Kind Regards
Kev

[David M]

Thanks, Kev. That green on a blue flower is always extremely attractive.