Pete Eeles

[Pete Eeles]

The Holies

With the promise of half-decent weather, I went back to The Holies, a really wonderful site! Unfortunately, the weather didn't play ball and, despite a record emergence of Adonis Blue here (and, by all accounts, across the country), I had to make do with roosting Common Blue which, when the sun shone for a brief nanosecond, opened their wings:)

Meanwhile, back home, the Orange-tip I've been rearing are all in their final instar, and a couple have already headed off to pupate (somewhere!).

Cheers,

- Pete

[ChrisC]

crikey, i have 3 OT caterpillars on my garlic mustard and they are nowhere near probably less than 1cm at the moment. well camoflaged little beggars they are too It was down to your initial post showing the eggs that i looked for them. weather looking better after the soaking we're in for tomorrow.
Chris

[Pete Eeles]

Adonis Blue fest

Given the recent reports of "explosions" in numbers of Adonis Blue, I decided to visit a Wiltshire chalk downland site to see what all the fuss what about, especially since I'll miss all the fun next week while working in the US. Now I know. I arrived at the site at around 0745 and, despite the cloud cover, found 10s of adults roosting in the long grass found on south-facing banks, along with carpets of Horseshoe Vetch (the larval foodplant). It's really difficult to put into words the sights that unfolded, but watching literally hundreds of blue gems open their wings as the sun eventually broke through is something I don't think I'll forget as long as I live. At one point, standing in one spot, I managed to count 78 adults. If I multiply this figure up to cover the whole site, we're talking over 1000 individuals. I was gobsmacked then, and am gobsmacked now as I write this!

One particular highlight was seeing female Adonis Blue in large numbers, something I’ve never experienced before, where I was able to observe individuals ranging from almost complete brown, through to almost complete blue, and everything in between. This particular visit has made my year and it wasn’t so long ago that I was desperate to get a photo of a female Adonis Blue! I also saw a few Small Blue at the same site, and my first Large Whites of the year.

I stopped off at Bentley Wood on my way home, where the Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary also seems to be having a good season.

All in all – very happy

Cheers,

- Pete

Adonis Blue male

Adonis Blue female

Adonis Blue female - rather a lot of blue!

Adonis Blue mating pair

Small Blue

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary (male)

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary (female)

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary (female)

[Pete Eeles]

Colin the Common Blue

I had a good sortout of my captive-rearing projects today, since I'm away next week with work in the US. If they don't let me through passport control I won't be disappointed, given the current activity on the butterfly front

Anyway - another species I've reared this year is Common Blue. The larval stage was fascinating, as the larvae would fall off the Bird's-foot Trefoil at the slightest disturbance, making them very difficult to photograph, especially as it would take an absolute age for them to crawl back onto the plant. One thing that puzzled me is where the larvae were pupating - so today I took a look. The only possible location was under the soil and so, using a fine artists' brush, removed the topsoil to reveal several Common Blue pupae, each nestled in the most-fragile of cocoons, with just a few strands of silk holding them together. Given that these have been bred in captivity, I wouldn't draw too many conclusions from this. Of course, I've given strict instructions on where to release any adults that emerge while I'm away.

More projects to be revealed in due course.

Cheers,

- Pete

[Rimo]

That matches where I've found Common Blue pupae before, both captive-bred and in the wild - matches both Adonis and Chalkhill blues too

[Pete Eeles]

Thanks Rimo!

Another Adonis fix

I couldn't resist it - and had to go back to see more Adonis Blues this morning! I stopped off at Gary and Lisa's (Gruditch and Gwenhwyfer's) to see the wonderful job they've done in producing the 2011 UKB calendar as well as a superb set of prints, the photos of which have been contributed by UKB members - really amazing. I'm tempted to buy a print of one of my own photos which, I think, says it all! Make sure you catch up at one of the events that UKB is supporting this year, including the Longstock Nursery Buddleja Collection open day on 24th and 25th July, the AES Exhibition, the Hampshire BC branch AGM and the BC National AGM (in Cambridge). Details to follow.

Anyway - I digress So - I spent a couple of hours deliberately looking for Adonis aberrations given the numbers of butterflies. Unfortunately, the all-blue female Adonis I was hoping to see materialised, only to disappear as quickly as it appeared! So no photo. However, aside from the many mating pairs (including several pairs where the female was still expanding her wings, having just emerged), I did find an extraordinary variety of colouring in the females, including the regular dark brown, partially blue, almost all blue, blue with a distinct male sheen (see below) and brown with prominent red spots extending to the forewings. As you can tell, named aberrations isn't my strong point - I'll leave that to Felix (Piers)!

Cheers,

- Pete

[Pete Eeles]

Back in Blighty!
After a week away in the US, I landed back in the UK on Friday and within a few hours was heading off to Stratford-upon-Avon to celebrate my in-laws' 50th wedding anniversary. This morning we decided to visit the Butterfly Farm which, I have to say, is one of the best I've ever visited! Quite a few different species flying and also a good number of larvae and pupae to see - including some that fill in gaps on UKB. Unfortunately, I only had my compact with me - but the shots are probably "good enough".

Just as we were leaving we noticed a Malachite flying in the grounds near the entrance. Another escapee for sure! It's easy to see how butterflies can "hitch a ride" to escape the greenhouses!

Cheers,

- Pete

Monarch larva

Monarch larva

Julia larva

[Susie]

Just as we were leaving we noticed a Malachite flying in the grounds near the entrance. Another escapee for sure! It's easy to see how butterflies can "hitch a ride" to escape the greenhouses!

The most surreal experience I have ever had was six years ago to the day when I visited Stratford Upon Avon with my husband to celebrate our wedding anniversary. We walked by the river on an exceptionally hot sunny day and there was a regatta taking place, as people punted along in fancy dress these large metalic blue butterflies swooped and glided just above the water. Only years later did I work out they were probably blue morpho and escapees from the butterfly house and that I wasnt hallucinating!

[Pete Eeles]

BMNH - British Museum of Natural History
A wonderful day spent in the company of Piers Vigus ("Felix") visiting Geoff Martin, Lepidoptera Collections Manager at the Natural History Museum. Not only did we interview Geoff (watch this space), but were also given access to the largest Lepidoptera collection on the planet and a supreme example of our national (and international) heritage! Another lifelong dream for me fulfilled. The interview will appear in due course, and with the paperwork complete, I can share a few images with you. And many thanks to Geoff for a brilliant day - a "top bloke" for sure.

Cheers,

- Pete

There are fewer crowds midweek!

The collection is now housed in airtight containers below ground

A randomly-selected drawer contained Orange-tip bilateral gynandromorphs

My first British Large Copper. Absolutely huge - at least 50% larger than "batavus" - the size of a Small Tortoiseshell

Geoff and Piers examining a selection of Purple Emperor aberrations

A selection of Purple Emperor aberrations

[Pete Eeles]

Hairstreak Fest

I've been rearing several hairstreak species this year - and they all decided to emerge over the last couple of days! The Purple Hairstreak larvae that I brought to the UK Butterflies photography workshop have all successfully emerged as adults, and have all been returned from whence they came. Although a little early, I managed to rear through 2 male and 2 female, so I hope they find one another. I was up at a ridiculously early hour to see if I could get some decent shots, and was very lucky to get a male and female sitting next to one another.

Female Purple Hairstreak

Mr and Mrs

As mentioned in a previous post, I've also been rearing White-letter Hairstreak. Again, they've all successfully emerged and are now inhabiting a row of elms not that far from my house. It'll be interesting to see how they fair. Again, a little early for this species.

White-letter Hairstreak

I've also reared through a small number of Black Hairstreak. At least these critters are in synch with the wild populations.

Black Hairstreak

And, of course, I couldn't resist attempting a shot I've always wanted to get, although highly unlikely in the wild - White-letter and Black Hairstreak sitting side by side. These shots were taken while the adults were feeding up on Privet blossom, and before they were released. These photos really show how badly-named the Black Hairstreak is, when it's much lighter than the White-letter. But at least I now have a decent shot showing this side-by-side comparison.

White-letter and Black Hairstreaks

White-letter and Black Hairstreaks

I have to say that captive rearing is both very rewarding and exhausting - just like children! I'm now looking forward to a nice rest - just one more species being reared this year. Details will follow in due course!

Cheers,

- Pete

[Trev Sawyer]

Oooh, Niiice!

They would be very useful on the identification pages to show the differences (I'm sure you already had that in mind when you were breeding them).
I love the pair of Purple Hairstreaks and the last shot of the White-Letter and Black Hairstreaks together is brilliant. Like you, I was amazed at how different the colours are. Never normally seeing the two together it is hard to imagine just how different they are. Reminds me of a Spitfire and a Hurricane
I would like to get photos of Purple Hairstreaks in the wild this summer and may have to spend a day sitting on a wooden platform above the oak trees in Norfolk sometime before the kids break up from school.

Trev

[Pete Eeles]

They would be very useful on the identification pages to show the differences (I'm sure you already had that in mind when you were breeding them).

Absolutely - but more luck than anything planned!

Cheers,

- Pete

[Pete Eeles]

Silchester Common

I decided to pay a visit to Silchester Common this morning, on the lookout for Silver-studded Blue. Once I'd found the right spot, they were everywhere, an estimated 40 in total, with several mating pairs, as well as several adults drying their wings, having just emerged. I didn't see that many black ants, although would loved to have seen some in attendance! I also bumped into Graham Dennis, warden of Silchester Common and Pamber Forest, and had a good natter about the season. Great company

Cheers,

- Pete

Silver-studded Blue female

Silver-studded Blue male

Silver-studded Blue male drying wings

Silver-studded Blue mating pair

[Padfield]

Just a thought. You say captive-reared w-album are generally early developers. Might it be that when you rear them in captivity the caterpillars are at a higher density than in nature, and aware of this, pheromonally? They might accelerate their development to increase their chances of competing on emergence.

The wild w-album I've been observing this year are at a very low density indeed. An unnaturally high density might signal an unusually populous year, with corresponding increased competition for resources.

Guy

[Pete Eeles]

Interesting thought, Guy. I'm afraid I have no answers. Although the larvae had more-than-enough foodplant (to the point that they never met!), pheremonal behaviour isn't something I took into account.

I think a much more likely explanation is the relatively-sheltered conditions in my garden, resulting in above-average temperatures throughout the larval stage. They certainly weren't being blown around in the cold wind!

Cheers,

- Pete

[Pete Eeles]

Spain - Day 1 (Saturday)

I'm currently in Spain with the usual crowd - based near Tremp in the north East of the country. The trip here was uneventful, with everything running on time for a change, which gave us plenty of time to investigate various sites as we travelled from Barcelona airport to Casa Guilla in Santa Engracia (http://www.casaguilla.com/). Since I have quite a few photos to process, I'll just include a selection for each day for my fellow UKB-members back home.

First off, really good numbers of Hummingbird Hawk Moth (yes, I know it's a moth!). Plenty of time to practice getting a decent shot and, before anyone tells me, I realise this isn't one

Another noticeable feature are the numbers of hairstreaks we're seeing. False Ilex Hairstreak are in ridiculously large numbers, and I've never seen so many Blue-spot Hairstreak before either.

False Ilex Hairstreak

Blue-spot Hairstreak

And finally, one of my favourites, the always-obliging Spotted Fritillary.

Spotted Fritillary

Cheers,

- Pete

[Pete Eeles]

Spain - Day 2 (Sunday)

Today we decided to visit Abella de la Conca, a village nestled in the foothills of the Pyrenees. Despite the breezy conditions, we managed to find some "hotspots" nestled in various gorges. We found good numbers of quite a few species (a fuller report will follow in due course), but there are noticeable numbers of Bath White and Clouded Yellow. We also came across familiar species, such as Scarce Swallowtail, as well as some Spanish specialties, such as the Spanish Purple Hairstreak.

Cheers,

- Pete

Bath White (male)

Clouded Yellow (mating pair)

Scarce Swallowtail

Spanish Purple Hairstreak

[Jack Harrison]

Bath White photographed like that shows just how beautiful it is. Lovely photo (as indeed are all the others).

Jack

[Pete Eeles]

Bath White photographed like that shows just how beautiful it is. Lovely photo (as indeed are all the others).

Jack

Thanks Jack. It's amazing how the "simplest" of critters appears absolutely beautiful both "in the flesh" and digitally. I guess that's why we love them so much

Cheers,

- Pete

[Pete Eeles]

Spain - Day 3 (Monday)

Today we spent 8 hours in the (very) hot Spanish sun - mad dogs and Englishmen and all that! We visited various sites around the town of Sort, around 30 kms north of Tremp. We managed to look at various flower-filled meadows at various elevations, resulting in quite a variety of species seen. Some specialities are shown below, although I've also included a very colourful female Adonis Blue, photographed in the last couple of hours of sun on the longest day of the year.

Cheers,

- Pete

Spanish Festoon

Iberian Marbled White

Moroccan Orange-tip

Adonis Blue (female)