David M

[David M]

Friday 10th May – Pleasant return…

I was almost praying for a wet day today after 19 days abroad and a long drive home from Gatwick so I could have a rest. However, the sunshine and warmth got the better of me and by late morning I was off out to Cwm Ivy in the first T-shirt weather I’ve experienced all year at home!

After such a long hiatus, there were several butterflies new to me locally this year, with a female Large White being the first. She evaded my camera lens but this male an hour or so later settled nicely:

Brown Argus was another first:

As was Dingy Skipper moments later:

Small Heaths completed the set:

Other species seen were Orange Tip, Small White, Brimstone, Green Veined White and Speckled Wood.

[David M]

Friday 10th May PM – Easy win…

After leaving Cwm Ivy, I stopped at Welshmoor on the way home to look for Green Hairstreak.

Sure enough, there were two battling over territory in amongst a bluebell patch:

The only other butterflies seen there were a couple of Whites (probably Green Veined) and an Orange Tip.

[Goldie M]

Love the Green Hair Streaks David I went to Monkton NR but didn't see any, Goldie

[David M]

Love the Green Hair Streaks David I went to Monkton NR but didn't see any,,,

Thanks, Goldie, This species is always a sign of mid-spring and better times to come. Hope you find some soon.

[David M]

Saturday 11th May PM – Hour’s drive…

Another sunny and mild morning saw me drive outside my local patch to pick up a species that I cannot find in the Swansea area.

I arrived at Merthyr Mawr Dunes, near Porthcawl, prior to 10am and made my way to the prime spot immediately.

Initially, it was another butterfly that made me reach for my camera – my first Common Blue of the year:

A few Brown Argus were observed too and at one stage I started wondering whether my main target had yet to emerge, but thankfully I found one in a different area close to the path where I had entered:

Unusually, this butterfly presented its undersides for a half minute or so:

Not a great deal else about; a few Whites and two Orange Tips was a disappointing supporting cast.

[David M]

Sunday 12th May – Early start…

The fine spell of weather spilled over into today, making me get up early and go to Siccaridge Wood, opposite Daneway Banks, to see if I could find any Pearl Bordered Fritillaries following ernief’s sighting of a handful at the same location.

Upon entering the wood, I was immediately struck by how suitable the habitat was:

Although I didn’t see any butterflies at all for the first couple of hundred metres, things changed when I reached a fork in the track.

On the left hand side another butterfly enthusiast was busy setting up his camera apparatus beside a large tract of bugle flowers and I had barely begun chatting to him when the first PBF appeared:

Within a few minutes several more appeared, although all were males and were extremely flighty. Thankfully, this female then turned up and was rather more approachable:

In all, I saw around 10 in this hotspot, although underside shots were impossible given the level of activity.

That changed when I made my way back out. I saw another half dozen at least along the rides, and after being harassed by a male, this female took a rest and obliged nicely:

No other butterfly species seen at all and I left at around 10.45am to visit nearby Rodborough Common.

[David M]

Sunday 12th May cont… – Short drive…

The beauty of knowing that Pearl Bordered Fritillaries can be found in Siccaridge Wood means that I no longer need to drive from Rodborough to Ewyas Harold Common in Herefordshire. Instead, I can now take a leisurely 20 minute drive from Sapperton onto the nearby Commons where Dukes of Burgundy are extremely reliable.

That was the case this time, with 13 seen in total, with this male presenting himself as soon as I wandered into the first steep combe near the car park:

This same individual gave me an underside view as well:

It was nice to stumble upon this Duchess too:

I was surprised at the relative lack of butterflies though. Dingy Skippers numbered around two dozen, but the only other to reach double figures was Small Heath, with ten:

It was such a shame as the site was looking glorious, with the copious rainfall this spring giving the place a real green look to it:

Other butterfly species seen were Green Hairstreak, Brown Argus, Large & Green Veined Whites.

[David M]

Wednesday 15th May – No Small Blues…

I had Small Blue as my main target today and since Crymlyn Burrows is the best place to see them locally, I headed down there on a mainly cloudy day but with sufficient sunny interludes to tempt butterflies into activity.

One thing the predominantly cloudy conditions provided was an opportunity to get close to settled Orange Tips:

The other notable statistic was the lack of any Small Blues, which are exceptionally late this year. In spite of the swathes of flowering kidney vetch, no adults were seen on the wing:

Small Copper, Green Veined White, Common Blue, Speckled Wood, Small White & Small Heath were also seen, as was my first Painted Lady of 2024, which I disturbed whilst walking through the dunes. Sadly, it flew away quite strongly and I wasn’t able to pick it up again.

[David M]

Thursday 16th May – Hard work…

With just 36 hours to my next European trip, I devoted this day to finding Wall Brown and Small Blue.

Given the sunny and calm conditions, I ventured down to Rhossili Head on the exposed SW Gower coast as I had seen plenty of Wall Browns there in July 2023.

After arriving just before 10am, I walked down the main track around the perimeter of the meadows, seeing no butterflies at all for the first 15 minutes.

I turned a corner and suddenly a Wall Brown was flying right in front of me. Fortunately, she came down on the track a short distance away and I was able to get a few record shots:

That was the only one I saw, and there wasn’t a great deal else around either. The spot which produced greatest numbers was this field replete with brassicae:

There were around 20 or so Small Whites, as well as a handful of Large Whites, flying around this area.

Surprisingly, 5 Peacocks were seen, with both the two that settled looking to be in decent condition despite their age:

The only other butterfly I saw was a female Brimstone when walking back to my car.

[David M]

Thursday 16th May PM – Small Blues…

By midday, it was as warm as it had been this year, so I decided to visit Oxwich Bay which is only a short detour on the way back from Rhossili.

The dunes were carpeted in kidney vetch but I looked in vain for Small Blues, although this male Orange Tip chasing a female kept me entertained for a while:

Eventually, he left her in peace:

A sheltered bank saw a concentration of butterflies – another female Wall Brown to add to the one in the morning, as well as this mint fresh Common Blue:

A slightly wing damaged Dingy Skipper:

A nice Small Copper:

After almost an hour walking around, I finally saw a Small Blue, although I could only get this poor record shot:

I saw another a few minutes later but it was on the other side of a fence which was too high to hurdle. Still, it was nice to see a couple before I went overseas again.

Other species seen were Brimstone (the majority being females), Large & Small White, Brown Argus, Small Heath and Peacock.

[ernie f]

Nice to hear you had a good time at Siccaridge and Rodborough and glad to have saved you some travel time too!

I like the shot you took recently of two OTips in flight with the moment they both had their wings open fully at the same time.

[David M]

Sure does help on the travelling, ernie. Thanks once again for flagging it up.

[David M]

Romania, 18th to 25th May…

Romania is a country I’d never visited before, and when I arrived at Cluj-Napoca airport I was met with a language that looked familiar to the eye, but was incomprehensible to the ears.

Staying in the town of Dej for the first two nights, the schedule was to visit a humid woodland on the first morning to find Violet Copper. This turned out to be one of the most incredible site visits of my life.

About 150m down the woodland track, mission accomplished in the first clearing – there were double figure numbers of Violet Copper:

Pleasingly, there were a few Chequered Skippers too:

Then came the first big surprise:

Common Glider had given me the runaround in Greece last year but this one was extremely approachable.

Spring here had been unusually warm, which meant the season was well in advance. Still, I was astonished to see 4 Woodland Browns, all mint fresh:

There were a couple of Large Wall Browns in the woodland, which was something that seemed a little incongruous. More in keeping with expectations was the presence of several Black Hairstreaks near a patch of blackthorn:

Even the petrol station where the vehicle had been parked was productive. This Lesser Purple Emperor was flying around the forecourt and seemed to be drawn to the oil patches on the concrete:

Occasionally, it would settle on the nearby hedge:

Just three hours into the trip and I was somewhat in a state of disbelief.

[Maximus]

That's a pretty good start, David, to say the least! That Woodland Brown underside is stunning

[Katrina]

Lesser purple emperor at the petrol station is some bonus!

[selbypaul]

Such a wonderful first day on the trip David! Can't wait to hear more!

[David M]

That's a pretty good start, David, to say the least! That Woodland Brown underside is stunning

Sure is, Mike. An overdose of ocelli. One of the finest underwing patterns of any European butterfly.

[David M]

Lesser purple emperor at the petrol station is some bonus!

The whole morning was amazing, Katrina. The Emperor on the forecourt was a delightful surprise.

[David M]

Romania, 18th to 25th May cont…

The afternoon was bound to be a little less spectacular, spent in a series of lightly wooded meadows at the lower end of a hillside:

However, I did get my first lifer of the week by way of several Pale Clouded Yellows that were active on the grassy hillside amongst the clover and the buttercups:

Lots of other butterflies around too, which was pleasing to see. This Black Hairstreak proved irresistible:

This Pearly Heath likewise:

It sure was a first day to remember!

[David M]

Such a wonderful first day on the trip David! Can't wait to hear more!

Shall oblige shortly, Paul. Still a few interesting ones to come.