Lee Hurrell

[Lee Hurrell]

Cuidad Quesada, Spain, 25th September - 2nd October 2010 - Part 4

African Migrants

After last year's Painted Lady bonanza (hundreds) this year they were probably back to normal levels. I saw two or three most days, with the highest daily count being six.

Also in lesser numbers (I only saw this one female!), was the Plain Tiger. She was along the track off the river with the Mallow Skippers. Still breathtaking though.

I'll include this as a migrant, the only one I saw.

Moths

Crimson Speckled were very common this year. Seen everywhere and in good numbers, even right by the sea. I only saw one last year!

A sort of Lappet?

A pretty Burnet

[Vince Massimo]

Great images Lee, particularly the Plain Tiger. Also some interesting observations. That's a good way to end a season.

Vince

[traplican]

The burnet on the last picture is Zygaena carniolica. Guy has it determinated somewhere, I thing (but I may be mistaken). It is interesting that the size of the white margins is dependent on the temperature. While in Spain are the wings nearly white, near me look so:

... and along to the north (in the Poland, for example) the white margins are missing. It evidently hangs together with the thermoregulation.

[Lee Hurrell]

Great images Lee, particularly the Plain Tiger. Also some interesting observations. That's a good way to end a season.

Vince

Thanks Vince! It sure is.

The burnet on the last picture is Zygaena carniolica. Guy has it determinated somewhere, I thing (but I may be mistaken). It is interesting that the size of the white margins is dependent on the temperature. While in Spain are the wings nearly white, near me look so:

10710_138.jpg

... and along to the north (in the Poland, for example) the white margins are missing. It evidently hangs together with the thermoregulation.

Thanks Traplican. You're right, as is Paul Wetton who ID'd it previously. (sorry Paul). I found this page showing the different forms:

http://www.hlasek.com/zygaena_carniolica_d1791.html

It's interesting, it looks like two different species! I took the white as the ground colour but it isn't, is it. I can see now it's the expanse of the white borders to the spots. Remarkable.

Cheers

Lee

[Michaeljf]

Lee,
enjoying all the photos...but the Plain Tiger, absolutely beautiful. Lovely crisp light as well.
Michael

[Lee Hurrell]

Cuidad Quesada, Spain, 25th September - 2nd October 2010 - Part 5

Last part - other creatures

As ever when you go overseas there are some wonderful creatures other than butterflies to see and this time was no different.

Dragonflies were very common and were to be found everywhere. They seemed to follow me and then as I stopped moving, they perched, only to move as I did and then follow me again. There were two types seen most commonly, a bright red variety and these beauties. Just look at the colours!

I found a wasp spider in my local cemetery last year but this beast literally stopped me in my tracks. It was HUGE, with a leg-span of around 3 inches. The body was bigger than my thumb ( shudder ).

While the dragonflies followed me wherever I went like the pied piper of insects, a myriad of different grasshoppers (and there were thousands) hopped, skipped or flew away from me with every step I took. They would occasionally get the direction wrong and jump straight into me with a thud. Most off putting when you're stalking butterflies, especially when they disturbed the butterfly These monsters were the size of a sparrow when they flew away

I saw a few different species of hoverfly. These ones were a lovely pale blue.

I found a few beetles too.

I saw this species in France in June

I was a little worried when I found this wasp's nest but they weren't interested in me at all, allowing close inspection. Quite fascinating.

This lovely long tailed lizard (more than likely not its name, just my observation) was along the track with the Mallow Skippers and Plain Tiger.

So that's it, Spain over for another year.

Finally, as regular readers might have noticed, I have a had a few canine companions this year. So I thought I should end with a photo of Dad's dog, Mickey. Here he is, the little bundle of fun.

[Lee Hurrell]

Lee,
enjoying all the photos...but the Plain Tiger, absolutely beautiful. Lovely crisp light as well.
Michael

Thanks Michael!

[Lee Hurrell]

I know I still have some way to go with a camera and that last year I spent the entire trip with the camera set to too much underexposure but it was still interesting comparing this year's photos to last.

viewtopic.php?f=20&t=3690

[Michaeljf]

Hi Lee,
a definite improvement on last year, though it's intesting that obviously the underexposure was bad for the Swallowtails and Whites but not bad at all for the Plain Tiger from last year. Given that the Swallowtail and the Whites are indeed 'lighter' butterflies this shouldn't come as a surprise! With butterflies such as the Purple Emporer, Ringlets and Red Admirals (i.e. darker butterflies), I would normally underexpose by a stop anyway, unless they are resting against a really light background. After a while you learn from experience what works well and what doesn't. If there are shortcuts with photography I don't usually find them
Michael

[Lee Hurrell]

Thanks again Michael.

When I got the camera last July, upon advice I started by under exposing by 2/3 stop. As you say though, you learn what works for you and I started to find that slightly too dark. I've changed to minus 1/3 stop now for most of the time.

The Spain trip last year was set for 1 and 2/3 under exposure.

That's a good point about darker butterflies though and I will have to play around a bit more next season I think!

Thanks,

Lee

[Lee Hurrell]

Sunday 10th October 2010

It what may well turn out to be our last decent weekend I took our friend's 4 year old twins over to the cemetery for a brief look.

We saw 2 Speckled Woods, a brief glimpse of a Comma and a family of 10 Long Tailed Tits. The girls picked a few dandelions for mum too.

[Lee Hurrell]

Sunday 17th October 2010

Although forecast for only 13 degrees today, in the sheltered spots of the cemetery, the sun felt warm. No butterflies but there were some lovely autumn colours. I have also noticed some sycamore trees affected by leaf miners as reported on Autumnwatch this week. There are a row of them on Scotch Common in Ealing and there's one in the cemetery.

My wild patch is to the right in this picture

And to the left in this one

EDIT - Forget to mention the hovering kestrel I saw.

[Lee Hurrell]

Inspired by Guy's website, here's my year list for 2010. Those in bold were new to me this year.

1 Red Admiral - 15-Mar - Horsenden Hill
2 Comma - 15-Mar - Horsenden Hill
3 Peacock - 09-Apr - Greenford Park Cemetery
4 Small Tortoiseshell - 09-Apr - Greenford Park Cemetery
5 Orange Tip - 10-Apr - Horsenden Hill
6 Small White - 10-Apr - Horsenden Hill
7 Brimstone - 10-Apr - Horsenden Hill
8 Speckled Wood - 17-Apr - Greenford
9 Large White - 17-Apr - Kemsing Downs
10 Holly Blue - 23-Apr - Acton
11 Green Hairstreak - 24-Apr - Danebury Hill
12 Dingy Skipper - 24-Apr - Danebury Hill
13 Green Veined White - 24-Apr - Danebury Hill
14 Duke of Burgundy - 15-May - Noah Hill
15 Grizzled Skipper - 15-May - Noah Hill
16 Small Heath - 15-May - Noah Hill
17 Wood White - 15-May - Botany Bay, Oaken Wood
18 Small Blue - 22-May - Swyncombe Downs
19 Common Blue - 22-May - Swyncombe Downs
20 Brown Argus -22-May - Swyncombe Downs
21 Small Copper - 22-May - Swyncombe Downs
22 Large Skipper - 30-May - Grafton Wood
23 Meadow Fritillary - 08-Jun - L'Etang De La Breche, Varennes Sur Loire
24 Painted Lady - 08-Jun - La Loire, L'Etang De La Breche
25 Marbled White - 08-Jun - La Loire, L'Etang De La Breche
26 Meadow Brown - 08-Jun - La Loire, L'Etang De La Breche
27 Marbled Fritillary - 11-Jun - Fields and woods near L'Etang De La Breche
28 Sooty Copper - 11-Jun - Fields and woods near L'Etang De La Breche
29 Lesser Marbled Fritillary - 12-Jun - Fields and woods near L'Etang De La Breche
30 Heath Fritillary - 13-Jun - La Breille-Les-Pins
31 Small Skipper - 13-Jun - La Breille-Les-Pins
32 Essex Skipper - 13-Jun - La Breille-Les-Pins
33 Black Hairstreak - 20-Jun - Bernwood Meadows
34 Silver Studded Blue - 26-Jun - Fairmile Common
35 Dark Green Fritillary - 26-Jun - Juniper Bottom
36 Silver Washed Fritillary - 26-Jun - Juniper Bottom
37 Ringlet - 26-Jun - Juniper Bottom
38 Purple Emperor - 02-Jul - Southwater Woods
39 White Admiral - 02-Jul - Southwater Woods
40 Gatekeeper - 10-Jul - Southwater Woods
41 Chalkhill Blue - 10-Jul - Windover Hill
42 Purple Hairstreak - 12-Jul - West Middlesex Golf Course
43 White Letter Hairstreak - 19-Jul - West Middlesex Golf Course
44 Wall - 31-Jul - Windover Hill Car Park
45 Grayling - 31-Jul - Windover Hill
46 Silver Spotted Skipper - 31-Jul - Windover Hill
47 Brown Hairstreak - 08-Aug - Bernwood Meadows
48 Adonis Blue - 15-Aug - Denbies Hillside
49 Swallowtail - 25-Sep - Urb. La Marina, San Fulgencio
50 Lang's Short Tailed Blue - 26-Sep - Campo De Guardamar
51 Geranium Bronze - 26-Sep - Urb. El Raso, Campo De Guardamar
52 Bath White - 26-Sep - Urb. Dona Pepa II, Cuidad Quesada
53 Mediterranean Skipper - 27-Sep - Rio Segura near Quesada
54 Clouded Yellow - 28-Sep - Urb. Dona Pepa II, Cuidad Quesada
55 Long Tailed Blue - 01-Oct - Rio Segura near Quesada
56 Plain Tiger - 01-Oct - Rio Segura near Quesada
57 Mallow Skipper - 01-Oct - Rio Segura near Quesada

[Padfield]

Inspired by Guy's website, here's my year list for 2010.

I'm honoured! It's been a real pleasure reading your notes and looking at your pictures this year, Lee. I think the new mechanism for personal diaries is a great success.

Guy

[Lee Hurrell]

I'm honoured! It's been a real pleasure reading your notes and looking at your pictures this year, Lee. I think the new mechanism for personal diaries is a great success.

Thank you Guy, I'm also honoured!

I'm glad you've enjoyed it, It has been a real pleasure in being out in the field and then sharing my experiences. I also keep a written diary which is more location and sightings, but the online personal diary format allows much more flesh on the bones as it were, with photos and extra observations. So I completely concur on the success of the format.

With the butterfly season all but over in the UK (I note you still have some flying!) I've been admiring my garden birds this weekend. Yesterday gave Great Tit, Blue Tit, Coal Tit, Robin, Dunnock, Wood Pigeon and Wren. I had a pair of Collared Doves last week too.

Lee

[Lee Hurrell]

Well maybe I spoke too soon...

Although chilly, it was still warm in the sun if you got out of the breeze. On a walk around my cemetery this afternoon there was a Red Admiral flying in and around an ivy covered branch. A very pleasant surprise.

There are still loads of wasps and flies on the ivy flowers too.

[Mikhail]

Not sure if you wanted names for any of your "other creatures" from your Spanish trip, but here goes with some:
The dragons are Red-veined Darter (lower part of eye bluish)
The grasshopper is the Egyptian Grasshopper (common all round the Med.)
Your hoverfly is a bee (?Megachilidae)
Your first beetle is a bug - the Fire Bug.
I pass on the beetles.
The lizard is the Large Psammodromus.
You were lucky not to be attacked by the Paper Wasps. They can be aggressive if their nests are approached too closely, as I discovered to my cost once.

Excellent pictures.

Misha

[Michaeljf]

I've been admiring my garden birds this weekend. Yesterday gave Great Tit, Blue Tit, Coal Tit, Robin, Dunnock, Wood Pigeon and Wren. I had a pair of Collared Doves last week too. Lee

Lee,
Sounds a bit like my garden, except without the Dunnocks (we'll get them later in the year). We also have mushrooms growing in the grass at the moment! And yesterday, I was shocked (in a good way) because we had a Sparrowhawk only a couple of feet from the back window. Unfortunately I was half way across the room when I realised it wasn't a dark pigeon..and by then the Sparrowhawk had seen me and it was off.

Interesting to see your sightings at West Middlesex Golf Course. It just shows all Golf Courses aren't completely bad I hope to bump into you sometime next year as I'm sure I'll re-visit Bernwood Meadows /Bernwood Forest next year, especially as I've now been told from reliable sources that the Purple Emperors are doing quite well again there. And I still want to get better photos of the Black Hairstreaks, at least now I know where they are in the Meadows (and at Whitecross Green Wood)!
Michael

[Lee Hurrell]

Hi Michael,

I love my garden birds. I'm fairly sure that we've helped raise broods of Blue Tit, Great Tit and Robin this year as they are all daily sightings and the young were in the garden too. They must nest in the trees between my house and the neighbours. In fact, we even had adult Blue Tits and Robins feeding the young in the garden, simply beautiful to watch

Greenford has a resident Sparrowhawk or two. I've seen them over the town centre but then there is the cemetery, 2 golf courses and a country park so although suburban there is a lot of green space. The best view I had was one morning on the way to work about 07.30. I'd just left home and was walking up the road when I noticed two pigeons sitting in a tree to my left. Suddenly, out of nowhere a Sparrowhawk swooped in made a grab for one of them from behind. It missed but feathers went flying and woke me up that's for sure...

The golf courses near me have a lot of wild space so aren't too bad. I've let Herts & Middlesex BC know about the hairstreaks as I don't think they had been recorded before. Best thing is I can take a different bus after work and walk through there on my way home!

It would be great to meet up next year, let me know if and when you go to either Michael as I'm no more than an hour away from Bernwood.

PS - my first ever PE was at Bernwood Forest last year, that's a moment I won't forget.

Cheers

Lee

[Lee Hurrell]

The dragons are Red-veined Darter (lower part of eye bluish)
The grasshopper is the Egyptian Grasshopper (common all round the Med.)
Your hoverfly is a bee (?Megachilidae)
Your first beetle is a bug - the Fire Bug.
I pass on the beetles.
The lizard is the Large Psammodromus.
You were lucky not to be attacked by the Paper Wasps. They can be aggressive if their nests are approached too closely, as I discovered to my cost once.

Excellent pictures.

Misha

Thanks Misha, that's brilliant. Well, apart from your wasp stings....ouch. Thanks for your kind comment too.

Cheers

Lee