millerd

[millerd]

My starting point on Sunday 16th June was up at Box Hill. Traditionally, this is where I like to look for the first Marbled Whites of the year, and there they were, right on cue. Only a handful at this stage, but the knapweed was just coming into bloom for them (and for the DGF that hopefully will join them in a week or two).

While wandering the paths that criss-cross Burford Spur, I passed the patch of kidney vetch that hosts a tiny Small Blue population. The patch has spread, but I found just the one (somewhat worn) female of the species hopping from flower to flower and laying the odd egg.

After a bit of refreshment, next stop would be Bookham.

Dave

[millerd]

16th June - part two.

Currently, Bookham is a real pain to get to directly from home because of the huge works underway to improve J10 of the M25. However, from Box Hill there are fairly direct back roads, so it makes some sense to combine visits.

I was hoping to see some early White Admirals before they rip themselves to bits on the brambles, and maybe a Ringlet or two. In the end, I saw almost nothing except the Admirals - just a new Comma that persistently disrupted my efforts at distant shots of the other species but refused to stay still enough for its own portrait, and a couple of Meadow Browns and a Brimstone. However, there were probably half a dozen White Admirals flying in the relatively small area I visited today.

I didn't stay all that long at Bookham, and headed a few miles north to Fairmile Common to look for Silver-studded Blues.The second half of June is a bit hectic for newly emerging species!

Dave

[millerd]

16th June: part three.

It took a little while at Fairmile Common to locate the few Silver-studded Blues that had so far emerged. Heading down from the car park on the main road, I had crossed the majority of the common and was on the other side of the road leading to the school before I found any at all. However, the first one was a beauty...

It took off, but landed again when the sun went in (hence a change in colour)...

...and I found it had led me to a mating pair.

The weather (a mix of sun and cloud, mostly the latter now) kept the butterflies relatively inactive.

This one appeared to be entirely bereft of the "studs" that give the species its name.

A successful day, with all three target species seen and taking in three rather different habitat types.

Dave

[millerd]

Monday 17th June was what I would classify as an ideal summer's day: 12 hours of sunshine and a high of 24 degrees. I stayed local and counted the butterflies - which unsurprisingly had responded to the improved conditions. The tally for the day:

Meadow Brown 86
Common Blue 14
Small Heath 11
Red Admiral 7
Holly Blue 5
Speckled Wood 3
Brown Argus 2
Comma 2
Peacock 1
Large Skipper 1
Marbled White 1

The last on this list was the first here this year: the last half a dozen seasons have produced a handful of this species, one or two more each year. I'm afraid the individual seen was continuously active in the sunshine, and this is the best in-flight record shot I could manage.

I had hoped any Commas seen would be brand spanking new ones, given the date, but both the two I saw were ex-hibernation examples somehow struggling on.

In similar vein was the Peacock, the latest example of a hibernator I've seen. It could of course be from last year's small second brood, which would make its survival so late a bit less unusual.

Large Skippers have been a bit sparse this season, but have popped up in several places distant from one another, and rarely the same one on consecutive days. Today's posed nicely on the knapweed.

Meadow Brown numbers have been following their usual steep upward curve, but having more to choose from doesn't make them any easier to approach with the camera. Just the one played ball...

Small Heaths I find a bit easier, for all their flightiness. It helps a bit if they are new, though, as I suspect this one was.

The usual suspects all made contributions as well...

...but the number of Red Admirals was a surprise. Most were a bit old and a bit worn...

...but a couple looked newly emerged.

Looking back at last year as a comparison, things are not very different - though a few timings are a bit adrift. The gap in sightings of the three Whites always comes as a surprise (for some reason I expect to see Small Whites and GVW every day!), but in ten days or so they should be back.

Dave

[Goldie M]

Lovely shots of the Marbled White Dave and the Skippers, I've yet to see the MW's or the Skipper's hope fully soon , things are defiantly slower here this year Goldie

[millerd]

Thank you, Goldie - there will definitely be more Marbled Whites and Skippers to come in my future posts.

In fact, my first Small Skipper of the year appeared on my next outing, but in more auspicious company... On Tuesday 19th June, the forecast was good enough to tempt me down to Somerset to see the Large Blues at Collard Hill. Hopefully it wouldn't be as scorchingly hot and sunny as the trips I'd made in the last two seasons, and there would be a bit of cloud at least to tempt them to open up.

The grass was very long (as it was last year) but the first thing I noticed was that there were fewer Marbled Whites and Meadow Browns, There also seemed to be a lack of decent clumps of flowering thyme between the tussocks of grass. Usually a few Large Blues appear along the slopes as you walk along, but I didn't find any at all until I reached the furthest (steepest and most sheltered) part of the hillside. Understandably, this was also where all the butterfly watchers were to be found as well.

Once my eye was attuned to the species (it soon comes back, even after a year's gap!), I could see that there were a reasonable number flying. However, in the end the cloud was rapidly thinning, and very few settled with their wings open - and those that did were (of course) the less fresh examples. A selection from the morning:

As well as the Blues, there were Marbled Whites, Meadow Browns and Small Heaths, plus two more firsts for me this year - the afore-mentioned Small Skippers...

...and Ringlets.

Having come so far, it was now the plan to head back with only a slight detour for what would hopefully be another year first. I drove the relatively short distance up to the Mendips, and Priddy Minories.

Dave

[Wurzel]

Great to see the 'epic' day at Bookham et al Dave - White Admirals and Sivler-studs make an attractive combination Also good to see you got to Collard I'm just hoping that you saw more Small Pearls than the four I found Mind you I went when they'd only bee out a few days

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

You're right, Wurzel - those two species do make a nice contrasting combo, so much so that I repeated the exercise a few days later.

The next stage on my trip to Somerset was to visit the home of the colony of Small Pearl-bordered Fritillaries at Priddy Minories (the last remains of part of the long-defunct Mendip coalfield). Here is the view across to the site from the car park...

...and a general shot of the habitat where they are found here.

There were quite a few flying, but it was a couple of weeks or so after you saw them, Wurzel, so most were a tad worn. They were also very active in the sunshine and their favoured parts of the site are not conducive to easy movement if you try following them. Add to that an abundance of grass stalks and my excuse list for less than wonderful photos is pretty well complete!

The other butterfly in any numbers was the Large Skipper...

...but after that one I concentrated on the SPBF.

One butterfly in particular stood out. For one it was new, secondly it was female, and finally it was unusually heavily marked.

Not really an ab - just a mildly melanic variation - but still a nicely marked individual.

I now headed for home, and from here the most direct route across country to pick up the A303 goes right past the bottom of Cotley Hill. I could hardly drive past without stopping...

Dave

[millerd]

19th June (part three).

In due course, after a relatively traffic-free and pleasant drive, I arrived at the pull-in at the foot of Cotley Hill.

In the three weeks or so since my previous visit, the familiar paths had all but disappeared under vegetation and it was a bit of a struggle to emerge out onto anywhere relatively open. There weren't many butterflies about - one or two Adonis and Common Blues, Brown Argus, Large Skipper and Small Heath.

No Marsh Fritillaries now of course - summer had completely eclipsed spring. It's a little odd to visit somewhere outside of the normal time you see it... As I struggled my way back down to the car, I spotted a fresh Ringlet (now joint first of the year with the one seen earlier at Collard Hill). Unusually, it kept its wings open with the full force of the sun on it...

...for a while at least. It then closed up just as I pressed the shutter, and I caught it partway, catching by chance a flash of the iridescence very fresh dark brown butterflies can occasionally produce at certain angles to the light. The leading edges of the forewings glinted a lilac-blue.

I've seen this with Brown Argus, the odd Meadow Brown, particularly dark female Adonis and perhaps most often with female Small and Silver-studded Blues - but never a Ringlet.

Worth the stop (though it was useful as a comfort break as well! ).

Dave

[millerd]

With the relative novelty of continuing good weather, I set off on another multisite tour round some of the hearer bits of Surrey on Wednesday 20th June, starting this time at Denbies.

All was much as expected for the time of year, with the last dregs of the spring Blues just about flying and Marbled Whites beginning to appear. One of the latter found some privet at the top of the slope completely irresistible.

Dave

[millerd]

The next stop was just across the Mole Gap at Box Hill, an here all I could find were more Marbled Whites. Even the patch of Kidney Vetch had one in the spot where last time there was a Small Blue.

Dave

[millerd]

On 20th June, after Box Hill came Bookham again, to watch a few more White Admirals before they become too battered.

A couple of them had found some mud to puddle in.

[millerd]

The final stop-off on 20th June was once again at Fairmile Common. There were more Silver-studded Blues around now, but by no means large numbers. I did spot a few females, but they were fast moving today in the sunny and warm conditions, and most of the males displayed undersides only. With the majority being very fresh, there were some attractive poses nonetheless.

Dave

[millerd]

The solstice arrived, and on Friday 21st June I stayed local with a high of 26 degrees and 9 hours of sunshine. After a couple of days away, I decided to attempt a count of what was about, following my usual circuit. This is the tally:

Meadow Brown 239
Small Heath 24
Common Blue 8
Marbled White 5
Red Admiral 4
Small Skipper 4
Holly Blue 3
Comma 3
Large Skipper 2
Brown Argus 2
Speckled Wood 2

These were the first Small Skippers of 2024 here (and may possibly have emerged while I was away).

Three days before I'd seen a tired old Comma, a final survivor of those that had hibernated. All three today were new hutchinsoni ones.

A few others from the day...

This is the area where the Marbled Whites have been emerging. It is not surprisingly also full of Meadow Browns, and hosts a few of the Small Heaths too.

Dave

[Wurzel]

"They were also very active in the sunshine and their favoured parts of the site are not conducive to easy movement if you try following them." I hear that indeed, I think my ankles still haven't recovered from the near constant twisting and jarring Still despite it all you did a cracking job Dave and even more so with those White Admirals - lush

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

Cheers, Wurzel - I was definitely pleased with the White Admirals. It can be so much easier when there's no one else around... On the other hand, at Priddy with the uncertain ground there was no one else there either, and with one misstep I could still be lying there now!

Saturday 22nd June was a little cooler at a more comfortable 24 degrees, and it was cloudier too. This did nothing to deter my local butterflies, and on my usual walk I saw more than I had the previous day, including my first Essex Skipper - hot on the heels of the Small Skippers. Their emergence has been gradually coming forward over the years here so instead of a ten day gap they pretty well appear together. Unfortunately, though there are small areas where only one or other is found, over the vast majority of the site there is a mix of both species. This means that to establish rough numbers I dip sample and work out a ratio. Essex definitely appear to be commoner here (though I have a sneaking suspicion they are slightly less flighty and therefore easier to ID... ).

The scene-stealers today were the Marbled Whites. From an occasional wanderer a few years back, they have established themselves here, and the nine I saw today were newly emerged. The cloudier bits of the day kept them from constant movement, so I picked up quite a few shots - which I'll post separately.

Here is a selection of what else was about, with first of all the Essex Skipper...

...and some Small Skippers for comparison.

Everything else:

Marbled Whites to follow...

Dave

[millerd]

22nd June - Marbled Whites on my local patch adjacent to Heathrow. They are still a bit of a novelty for me here, hence the extra attention I gave them.

The presence of at least one female among the nine seen hopefully means that the colony will successfully continue in future years.

Dave

[millerd]

With more changeable weather apparently set to arrive from the west, I headed east on Sunday 23rd June to Essex. I started at Hadleigh Country Park, specifically the little bit of elm-lined footpath near Leigh-on-Sea station.

As reported earlier by Bugboy, the bigger elms here have been well and truly clobbered by Dutch Elm Disease, and consequently the White-letter Hairstreaks previously numerous in this spot were much diminished in numbers. I counted about half a dozen altogether, luckily including this one which landed on a nearby bramble and stayed for a while.

In fact the first encounter of the day here was with Essex Buzzard and his good lady, who I realise I'd never met on their home turf before. We wandered along the path up to Hadleigh Castle and though there is more elm along here (some healthy, some not), we didn't spot any further hairstreaks. However, there were Marbled Whites, Essex Skippers, Holly Blues, a Large Skipper and a new Comma.

I returned to the car leaving the others to carry on up to the Castle and other parts of the Park, spotting a rather worn female GVW on the way.

After this slightly disappointing interlude on the butterfly front (though it was great to meet and catch up with you both, Mark! ), I headed off to Pound Wood before returning westwards again.

Dave