Brian Anderson

[Brian Anderson]

I have just joined the forum, having been a keen birder for a couple of years and always taken a keen interest in nature of any kind I have now discovered how interesting the various butterflies can be. This interest was born from watching them visit a budliea bush in my garden.
I started counting the variety that visited and then took an interest in how many different species we get visit this island...and now i'm hooked.
I go birding now and find myself looking as much for the butterflies as I do the birds.
I have to say it's added a new dimension to the trips for me and i've started building a nice little list of species seen. (Sadly i think i missed the business end of the butterfly year so will have to start over next spring with the agenda to see as many as I can.
I took a trip this weekend to Vange marsh and have attached a few pictures from the visit along with a soutern hawker that emerged from my garden pong yesterday.
I've spent a couple of days at Devils Dyke this month and a day at Aston Rowant and built a little list of species thus far that reads...
COMMON, SMALL AND CHALKHILL BLUE. MEADOW BROWN, GATEKEEPER, SMALL, ESSEX AND SILVER SPOTTER SKIPPERS, SMALL AND LARGE WHITE, RED ADMIRAL, PEACOCK, SMALL TORTOISEHELL, SMALL HEATH, BRIMSTONE, PURPLE HAIR STREAKSPECKLED WOOD.BROWN ARGUS
The list may not be very exciting to those of you that have been doing this a while but I didn't even know half of these existed a month ago.
I'm enjoying catching them on film too.....and have attached a few of my pics.

[Brian Anderson]

I forgot..Comma and Small Copper
Probably one or two more that will come back to me later

[ChrisC]

welcome to the diarists Brian. if you're not careful it'll be moths next
look forward to more entries.
Chris

[Brian Anderson]

Tell me about it Chris...already i'm collecting photos of the ones i see and giving the missus the task of trying to ID them.....still it keeps me out of trouble.

[Lee Hurrell]

It looks like you're off to a flying start, Brian!

Welcome to the forums.

Best wishes,

Lee

[Brian Anderson]

Been to the bird fair at Rutland today. Picked up a nice wall chart for the wife (common garden butterflies) from the conservation stand and visited Richard Lewingtons stand where i purchased a signed copy of his Butterflies guide which he's illustrated so well. (He paints them better than the real thing)
Also picked up a collins bird guide and had that signed by the artist (Killian Mullarney) Other faces I stoped to chat with..Simon King, Simon Barnes, Jonathan Scott (big cat diary) lot's of other TV wildlife guys about.
Great to see the ringing tent and all the birds they netted and rung today. Beer tent was a welcome stop too £3.50 for a beer is not too bad but £4.30 is stretching it a bit for a small burger! (why do they need to do that to you after they've charged you £12.50 to walk round).
5 Osprey seen from the main road on the way home too but only a few large whites seen as far as the butterlies went.
All in all a good day out and i'll be going back for more next year.

[Brian Anderson]

Went down to Coulsdon today, lovely meadow and i'm sure at the right time of year it's alive with a good variety of butterflies. My motivation for the trip was to try to catch up with a Hoopoe ( A bird thta has given me the slip thus far) I arrived at 6.30am and walked the area until 10.30am with no sign of the bird despite locals telling me it was there yesterday. Good views of Lesser Whitethroat though which is always nice and 3 ring necked parakeets flying over was also good to see> (and hear)
As for the butterflies: Loads of small heath and meadow browns, a single small copper and common blue along with a few large whites.
I'll go back next year a little earlier in the season and my search for the Hoopoe continues. (I've dipped on NINE now)
Saw an extremly large snail on the downs too and i've no idea what it was...see the attached picture. (It was about 50mm tall...2 inches in old money)

[Gibster]

Hiya Brian,

your snail is an Edible (aka Roman) Snail. Never tried one, so can't really comment! (Actually I think they're protected?) Shame about the Hoopoe though. Missed NINE??? They can be surprisingly elusive, especially if just sitting low in the grass. Check the edges of the short-cropped pathways through the longer grasses. Dog walkers seem to get quite close - so if you've got one, bring it along next time (dog that is, not the walker!)

Fingers crossed it'll be tenth time lucky

Gibster.

[Brian Anderson]

Here's hoping Gibster! and as for the snail...i think i needed protecting from it. Nice to know what it is though, thanks.
No butterflies today but a quick stop at Abberton to see the Spoonbills was a bonus.
I'm left wondering what Butterfly will have me running around like the Hoopoe....i guess time will tell

[Brian Anderson]

Rain (and man flu) stopped play today

[Brian Anderson]

Had an early morning trip down to Dungeness today...sitting on the beach at 6am watching Arctic Skuas, Black Terns, Little Gulls, Sandwich Terns, Gannets etc fly by. Quick walk around the moat at the observatory revealed a few warblers but very quiet. Butterfly count was a little better with Painted Lady, L & S whites, Small Copper all in the moat. Moved on to Cheriton Hill where I had loads of Blues (small and what i believe to be Adonis perhaps somebody would be kind enough to let me know from the picture below), loads more whites, plenty of meadow brown and small heaths along with a couple of speckled wood and a couple of small tortoiseshells.
came home to find a red admiral in the garden so not a bad count today.
Got stuck on the M20 coming back which was a drag but didn't spoil what was a good morning in Kent.

[Lee Hurrell]

Hi Brian,

Lovely photos - definitely 2 male Adonis Blues.

Cheers

Lee

[Brian Anderson]

Thanks Lee, i'll put a tick against them in my little book ....thought they must have been as they were so bright.
Contemplating another trip tomorrow but not sure where i'll be heading!
Thanks again for confirming the Adonis's for me (Or should that be Adoni?)

[Brian Anderson]

Another early birding trip..down to Cliffe Pools (Kent) first thing and it was freezing....well really cold anyway.
Good birding with Greenshank/Redshank/Ruff/Avocet etc all showing well. Only caught a few whites/small heath and red admiral there.(Also took the picture below of what i think is a gatekeeper but it was tiny and at the time looked like and behaved like a small heath)
Moved on to Tilbury Fort and caught a few Dunlin and ringed plover there with a single wheatear. (Not great timing today as the tide was just about in when I arrived) As for butterflies I picked up more whites, small heaths and red admirals along with the single skipper pictured which i'm guessing is a small.
Rain stopped play again....Still i'm told September is the new August and i have two weeks off so here's to getting a little sun sometime soon.

[Lee Hurrell]

Hi Brian,

Red Admirals at this time of year are a real highlight aren't they?

Certainly a Gatekeeper and I think the Skipper is a female Small. I can't see any trace of black on the underside of the antennae that would suggest Essex, but I could be wrong.

Cheers

Lee

[Brian Anderson]

Thanks Lee.
thought it was a gatekeeper but it was tiny and that had me doubting myself.

[Brian Anderson]

Brief stop at Fen Drayton today while in the area....first vist here but i'll go back.
Hundreds of dragon fly /darters etc on the wing today.
As for butterflies only Comma, Whites, Speckled Wood, Red Admiral and a single small heath. Watched as a pair of Bull finch took a bath in a puddle close by too.
Highlight of the day a first on my garden bird list....Ring Neck Parakeet.
Small group flew over this morning followed by a larger noisier group a little later..takes my garden list to 58! (Happy Days...don't get new birds on the garden list often so got to be happy with these, hope they'll drop in at some point to feed.)
I'd be happy for anybody to put a name to the two dragon flies...i'm a lot happier with bird ID than i am these but have to say i'm enjoying watching them just as much.

[Gibster]

I'd go with Common Darter for both pics.

And you wouldn't be so keen for the Para-rats to drop into your garden if you had as many there as I do here, lol!!!

Cheers,

Gibster.

[Brian Anderson]

I can see that Gibster having worked around that area and had the pleasure of the constant noise they make. Still nice to get another garden tick tho...It got me thinking of a garden list on the butterfly front which doesn't read so well...Comma, Peacock, Red Admiral, Gatekeeper, Small White, Large White, Small Tortoiseshell and Painted Lady...making a total of 8. (Still now i know what i'm looking for i might find a few more? up to 2 months ago i didn't even know we had "little"ones like small heath and skipper etc...i would have called them moths and moved on)
Looking forward to next spring and a full season with my camera over the shoulder birding and the appreciation of the butteflies around has given my birding another dimension i didn't see coming until i bumped into a guy in a hide at Minsmere who was sharing his excitement at having found a purple emperor that morning. (And now i'm hooked)

[ChrisC]

your walks get longer in duration and yet shorter distance wise, so be warned

also do you have any other pictures of the caterpillar? closest i can get so far (if it is a single stripe down the back) is Star-wort Cucullia asteris

Chris