August 2024

[bugboy]

Another sighting of an APL, this time from Oxwich Bay. Being touted as a 'third' specimen although the image looks like a heavily cropped phone picture so probably impossible to compare to other pictures.

[David M]

Thanks, Paul. Just seen that. I may have a wander at some point next week. It's just 20 minutes from where I live.

[bugboy]

Thanks, Paul. Just seen that. I may have a wander at some point next week. It's just 20 minutes from where I live.

Not beyond the realms of possibility that its the same one if its decided to head south.

[David M]

Not beyond the realms of possibility that its the same one if its decided to head south.

Not with the weather here this past week, Paul!

That original one out west is probably still sheltering in the gorse bushes over that way!

[millerd]

Back to my local patch today after my trip to Yorkshire and yesterday's rain. I counted around 80 butterflies of 10 species - about a dozen from a new brood of GVW...

an unusual male with additional forewing spots

and Brown Argus still going strong in the spot I only recently discovered.

In amongst them and causing mayhem by chasing any of them that came close was a Small Copper (a real rarity here this summer).

More in my PD assuming no further hardware mishaps...

Dave

[David M]

Lovely female Green Veined White, Dave. Nice to see a few Brown Argus too.

[David M]

Monday 26th, Nicholaston & Oxwich, Gower (3hr visit):

Meadow Brown 192
Common Blue 101
Hedge Brown 8
Small White 3
Small Heath 2
Speckled Wood 1

[Allan.W.]

Plain Tiger photographed on the cliffs at St.Margarets Bay (Bockhill ) near Dover this morning........I guess ,obvious escape.
Allan.W.

[Allan.W.]

Things weren,t looking good this morning on arrival at Lydden/Temple Ewell Downs (Dover) ,windy ,Sunny ,light rain ,Heavy rain I had the lot ! Still found a few butterflies .I was mainly looking for Wartbiter Crickets which i,ve tried for a few times this season and in the past with no luck ......until today .Thought i,d finally cracked it as I wandered along ,I stumbled across a Huge female Bush Cricket ,but on Close inspection .....a large female Great Green ,wandered on .......a bit dissappointed .Started to find good numbers of Silver-Spotted Skippers ,most past their best and a fair few fresh Adonis Blue ,mostly males .....but very few Chalkhills and Common Blues .I was surprised to see lots of fresh looking Meadow Browns.....but only 1 Brown Argus ,and (surprisingly!) no Wall Browns .When I finally reached the area I was heading for ,I noticed a fairly large Cricket on the short turf .......got it in the bins.....Bingo ! A Wartbiter !........made such a hash of trying to get it in the viewfinder......by the time i did it had gone ! But luck was with me ,and a few minutes later another showed itself a stunning male ,I took a few shots and left it in peace.
Allan.W.

[Bertl]

Only red admiral and peacock visiting the buddleia in my garden now.

[millerd]

Lovely female Green Veined White, Dave. Nice to see a few Brown Argus too.

There were good numbers of both GVW and Brown Argus again today, David - including another tiny one of the latter species on a fleabane flower.

12 species altogether seen today on my local patch, including several fresh Small Heath...

...and two new Commas. The first was initially seen indulging in blackberry wine before posing...

...but the second was newly emerged, evidenced by the drops of meconium on the leaf below the butterfly.

Dave

[aeshna5]

Plain Tiger photographed on the cliffs at St.Margarets Bay (Bockhill ) near Dover this morning........I guess ,obvious escape.
Allan.W.

Could well be an escape, but I wouldn't presume an obvious one. Given the location & recent direction of the winds I wouldn't rule out one that's come from further south. Lots of migrant moths have been coming in as well as dragonflies.

[Pete Eeles]

There have been around 15 sightings of Plain Tiger over the years, and all have been considered releases or escapees.

Cheers,

- Pete

[Pete Eeles]

Perhaps we need an American Painted Lady thread, since another was photographed on St Agnes, Isles of Scilly, on 24th August.

Cheers,

- Pete

[Matsukaze]

There have been around 15 sightings of Plain Tiger over the years, and all have been considered releases or escapees.

Cheers,

- Pete

I saw one at Sand Point (Somerset) around 2007 - it was too quick for me to photograph though so the record was (quite rightly) thrown out by the county recorder for lack of evidence.

[Matsukaze]

Rather surprised to see a Wall Brown on Saturday just after finishing my wider countryside BMS transect near Norton St Philip (Somerset). I see maybe one or two a decade in this area, more likely wanderers from the Wiltshire chalk or the Cotswolds than a low-density resident.

Adonis Blue and Chalkhill Blue out at low density at Lardon Chase (Berkshire) yesterday, amidst large numbers of Meadow Browns gambolling about my feet. The sward seems much thicker here than I recall it, though it's quite a while since I've visited and it could be a consequence of all the rain over the last 12 months.

[David Lazarus]

On the hunt for Wall Brown along the Essex Coast this week starting off at Holland Haven to The Naze yesterday where I had one success, the only one, as far as I can tell, recorded at Holland Haven Country Park since iRecords began in 1976 - another tatty male which seem to be the only ones I am seeing around Essex in August:

Wall Brown
Holland Haven Country Park 26/08/2024

But I got a little distracted by the activity of the blues at Great Holland Pit and did not have enough time to get to The Naze NR where I hoped to find one or two - but it was well worth the distraction with 18 Common Blue in total:

Common Blue male and female
Great Holland Pits 26/08/2024

and at Holland Haven chasing after a Brown Argus as well as the Wall:

Brown Argus male
Holland Haven Country Park 26/08/2024

Today, I did something different and walked the England Coast Path from Burnham-on-Crouch to Dengie National Nature Reserve in pursuit of the elusive Essex Wall along the Essex Sea Wall - land side between the wall and the dyke, sheltered with lots of vegetation. But not successful. It was full of Green-veined White [81] including 3 pairs in cop, Small White [21] & Large White [6] but sparsely scattered with groups of mostly female at particular patches of flowering plants:

Green-veined White in cop
Essex Sea Wall 27/08/2024

Small White female
Essex Sea Wall 27/08/2024

But once again, like yesterday, the highlight was the unexpected activity of the blues - 3 pairs of Common Blue courting. I must of watched courting Common Blues for over an hour today including taking my lunch break next to a pair hoping to get a really good photograph as well as enjoying the flight display. He wasn't successful though poor thing despite all the energy and very impressive courtship behaviour.

Common Blue male
Essex Sea Wall 27/08/2024

Common Blue female
Essex Sea Wall 27/08/2024

The females were all very brown as opposed to the very blue ones I was seeing earlier in the year - almost as brown as the two female Brown Argus I managed to catch up with - not only a pleasant surprise but a really good sighting given the poor year they are having.

Brown Argus female x 2
Essex Sea Wall 27/08/2024

So colonies of Common Blue and Brown Argus along the Essex Sea Wall but alas, no Wall Brown basking on the wall.

I will write more about my search for Wall Brown along the Essex Coast this week in my PD to go with my report about the expanding distribution of Wall inland through mid & South Essex with the latest distribution maps for each year from 2013. North Essex to come.

[bugboy]

Spent the afternoon on Malling Down. Good to see a few more Common Blues and Brown Argus now after the pitiful start to their seasons. Silver-spotted Skippers continue to have a disastrous showing, managed to locate two (possibly three) and Adonis seem to be having a meh second brood. A few standout individuals today though:

An Adonis (the other side was more normal)

a worn female Chalkhill

and the rarest of Sussex butterflies!

[zigzag_wanderer]

Not sure how often Middleton Farm Butterfly House do a stock check, but I bet they're always a few adults down...

This one was inside House #4 at lunchtime. It looks very similar to the one I saw outside the same house last year.

It was very skittish, having a couple of duals with a red admiral but was smart enough to fly out of the same open roof it must have flown in through (not a given with all butterflies). It certainly didn't want me getting close for a photo.

[David Lazarus]

A Painted lady at Two Tree Island along the Essex Coast but no Wall Brown, the target species, disappointingly. I think it made up for it though :

Painted Lady
Two Tree Island 28/08/2024

The Small White was the most abundant species coming in at 61 with the Green-veined White lagging behind this time on 29. A lot of females in the undergrowth and I am not sure what they were ovipositing on - perhaps a wild brassica for SW and hedge mustard for GVW. Some nice fresh Large White too.

Small White
Two Tree Island 28/08/2024

Then I walked all the way along the Essex Coast sea wall for the second day running, this time to Benfleet Downs where I once again did not find a Wall Brown although by the time I got there everything was starting to shut down. Before I even reached the Downs though, I added another species to my list of females seen & photographed ovipositing. This time a Common Blue on Alfalfa Medicago sativa along the road verge entering Benfleet Moorings - a lovely few minutes watching her busying herself laying her eggs oblivious to the fact I was there with my iPhone Pro stuck in her face [or ovipositor in this case]:

Common Blue female ovipositing on Alfalfa
Benfleet Moorings 28/08/2024

And the big winner of the day? The Brown Argus

I saw 17 at Benfleet Downs, most in one small meadow, where there were also 10 Common Blue and the last of the Gatekeeper, which was a surprise. I did not manage the usual shot of the upperwings as the ladies were roosting and the males were very busy searching for them - so active it was virtually impossible to nail them down. But obviously I got on my hands and knees and waited for a momentary pause. No such luck with the male Common Blues and an overheating iPhone that refused to focus:

Brown Argus male
Benfleet Downs 28/08/2024

Bloody hot, totally dehydrated, and my feet ache after the second 11 miles of walking in the open next to the sea in two days but well worth it