Marek (The Annoying Czech)

[David M]

Excellent stuff, Marek. Those fresh Apollos are stunning.

One for the next photo competition, eh?

[Reverdin]

agreed, that last Apollo shot is marvellous!

[The Annoying Czech]

One for the next photo competition, eh?

Maybe, but not necessarily.

(...)

Last couple of days was about the same - using short periods of sunshine (I'm probably becoming heliophile). Under such circumstances, charming Lesser Marbled Fritillaries were dominant, as first activating butterflies.

This one was a new-born with very weak aversion to photographing and touching. I like my butterflies obedient and defenceless It's such a "phlegmatic" species anyway!

The biotopes seems to be healthy and fine now, my goal is to keep them preserved in a long-term basis. I believe people from the village (or neighbourhood) should know there's something worthy to destroy (if some idiot needs eg. a pond, a house, golf course, whatever). A conservation activity from below...

[The Annoying Czech]

Time to show up and annoy some Britons with Large Coppers after a year

I made 4th transect in June 15, counting 76 butterflies - a decline compared to May. The "winner" was fairly interesting - Lesser Marbled Fritillary with more than 60% (followed by Large Skipper having less than 15%).

This photo pretty much shows what "surprisingly" happened when first ladies had emerged. In the biotope, they're more abundant than Meadow Browns up to this day, what an honest fight!



I think this photo has a solid "what's going on in bramble" atmosphere. Black Hairstreak sometimes also arrived for a feast, no photos I'd be satisfied about.



Eventually, some rather worn Large Copper males showed up nearby, a great fliers and absolute lady-killers of the sky



During June 17-18 I've been mapping Silesian Beskydy Mts. - lower abundances after the rains, with dominating glycerion, hippothoe and medusa, and one worn but successfully documented False Heath Fritillary, project's first target species.



Brand-new (or again seen) species for my village are: White-letter Hairstreak, New Forest Burnet, Zygaena epithales and Chimney Sweeper Moth. Total 39 species (hopefully running for at least 50); Dark Green Fritillary is claimed to be recently seen as well.

It's also Purple Emperors and (mainly) Lesser Purple Emeperors what makes my days happy...



...as well as Short-tailed Blues, emerging unexpectedly early, en masse, and sometimes endearlingly crumpled, or aberrated.





Give them one week and their wings will change out of all recognition.

P.S. does anybody have a clue what species is gonna be from this caterpillar? Thanks in advance.

[The Annoying Czech]

I was doing my transect yesterday, counting 204 butterflies of 18 species (despite some mowed parts), including 63 Ringlets, 32 Meadow Browns, 32 Lesser Marbled Fritillaries, as well as 1 Large Copper and 1 Queen of Spain I didn't expect in this time.

Meadow Brown is basically outbreak year by year, no matter what kind of weather is...



...as well as Ringlet.



Postponed mowing around some baulks made Short-tailed Blues also very abundant, by contrast to a very solitary Holly Blues, with males crowding on the wet ground and females... somewhere.



This is my this year's first and maybe also last Purple Emperor, less beautiful and probably less common species than ilia The truth is there's quite a lot of work with both Emperors.

[The Annoying Czech]

This post includes a potentially annoying photos of various exotic species, so perhaps make a good tea first

I visited two best mountains on butterflies - White Carpathians (maintained orchid meadows, former farm woodlands) and Vsetinske Mts. in Wallachia (extensive sheep pastures, often in heavy terrain), and I got excited as ever. Although I initially want to focus on niobe, daphne, hecate and arion, and found either worn individuals or the species didn't yet emerge.

Later, I've been mapping some rather "debutterflied" lowland squares and I wasn't that excited, especially at those temperatures (a thread of overheating). I love sun and so on, but 30-35 C every day is just too bloody much.

Large Chequered Skipper seemed to be reasonably fresh in Čertoryje, White Carpathians. Overlooked but fine butterfly, I didn't even know its English name.



Dark Green (and High Brown) Fritillaries were a different story. Later, I had to go for the fresh ones to a colder mountains, where were absolutely common.



Great Banded Graylings were immidiately my favourites. I rewarded one of them with my precious sweat, some Painted Ladies, Marbled Whites and Ringlets joined the feast too. I even couldn't get rid of two hungry galatheas.



Lušová Valley, Halenkov, Wallachia, 6 a.m. Marbled White, first activating butterfly, pretending to be a moth. Most of the valley was still hidden in the dark. On preserved places like this they may be literally on every flower, but they're scarcer around my village.



A Burnet of unknown origin slept longer, but the spider surprisingly didn't try anything stupid.



High Brown Fritillary from an abandoned sheep pasture (called "polana") right under the top. Those are wonderful biotopes but under imminent threat of abandonment - nice to see, but horrible to climb up on. Argynnises can be quite dominant in there.



It's rather silly idea to chase both (relatively common) Emperors in places like this, but I couldn't resist.



After shooting this one I had a feeling of a well made work. But who knows...



Egg-laying Holly Blue from the neighbourhood of my village. I must say I have been chasing this relatively common but tiresome animal for ages.



Now, some commoners: Small Copper taken during my transect...



...Meadow Brown buying the stairway to heaven made of thistles...



...and Large White (kicked in the ass?!)



No time left for the biotope and other species photos, perhaps later. Čau


EDIT: regarding my very first post, this is my new casa.

[David M]

Impressive stuff again, Marek.

Keep 'em coming!

[MikeOxon]

Superb pics, Marek - I enjoy them too much to feel annoyed!

Mike

[Gothic_dreams]

Stunning photos Marek, I look forward to seeing more of your stuff

Chris

[The Annoying Czech]

You're welcome.

Photos enclosed below comes from monitoring of neighbouring faunistic squares.

My second White-letter Hairstreak this year. Old, hungry and tame.



I found Weaver's Fritillary instead of Apollo in the old stone pit of Stramberk. Never mind at all, I already do have some Apollos in the gallery.



Queen of Spain occurs from time to time everywhere. It's a typical "rural road butterfly".



Now it's starting to be interesting: a Scarce Large Blue Unlike Dusky Large Blue, this one is locally threatened. I hereby discovered a new population in area where "should be" extinct. In a side ditch...



Of course, where are "Scarcies", there are "Duskies" as well. It's a gorgeous big blue, very aesthetically looking on the host plant, and my favourite. Both species totally dedicated to burnets, their whole-life love.



Some slightly worst photos.

[The Annoying Czech]

Surrounded by really high Great Burnets in a ditch, I found a colony of "Duskies" in my faunistic square yesterday. As 45th species for 2012 season.

Despite I got some Great Burnet distribution maps, it was still a serious piece of a hard work; unlike Large Coppers, I feel Dusky Large Blues (and especially Scarce Large Blues) need a long-term conservation and care about the particular populations. (At least in places like the surroundings of my village, where Great Burnet is not exactly widespread.)



So, one-photo update only - but of the species almost never seen here in the UKB forums.

EDIT - one more photo gravedig of a Mazarine Blue, another rather local, mountainous species.

[The Annoying Czech]

I'm presently following only the "Burnet Blues", a species harder to find than I initially thought. Sometimes I saw thousands of burnets but no butterflies: July/August mowing harms them a lot, while succession seems to harm the burnets in the long term.

I have three colonies of "Duskies" and one of "Largies" so far. And technically better Dusky Large Blue than earlier, with a particualry interestingly blooming host plant.



Today's site 2 photo. If the haying continues, another colony will give up the ghost. So much vulnerable they are.



Forgotten photo from Wallachia of a biotope originally inhabited with nausithous/teleius/selene, but sheeps will probably make their work and "arrange" conditions for arion/niobe.



...something you should know very well.



Also, second generation of Large Coppers is already on the wing. I saw a female when following Duskies. Those animals really seem to have a "reversed protandry".

Those are really widespread, but Phengarises seems to have an opposite tendencies - disappointing.

[MikeOxon]

Inspiring photos as always, Marek! Your English is very good but may I point out one very typical 'foreign' error The plural of 'sheep' is still 'sheep', never 'sheeps'. We talk about a flock of sheep, because this is how they are usually seen. An individual female is called a 'ewe' (or 'yow' if you are from Northern England) while the male is a 'ram'. Again, we would say 'hay-making' rather than 'haying' and I think 'reversed protandry' is better known as 'role reversal'. You seem to have a wide vocabulary, including a good collection of swear words!!!

Mike

[Debbie]

lots of lovely photos Deb

[The Annoying Czech]

Thanks for the clarification, Mike. I'm very talented regarding swear words in many languages, trust me!

No language or other problems with "Duskies" and "Largies"? I've always hoped it might take a root

[The Annoying Czech]

A certain job order sent me to eastern Beskydy Mts., kind of like Wallachia from the older posts, but slightly less grazed, more hygrophilous and slightly more mountainous (the highest peak - 1060).

I succeeded as an explorer and butterfly conversation missionary but often failed as a photographer. Anyway:

Arran Brown was found only at altitude 600+. This one's from the moor. One of the only six Erebias in CZE!



Niobe Fritillary, a critically endangered animal. Found 4 mostly worn ex. and 1 new locality.



Some evening moth with sexy background but wrong brightness.



On the way back home: once I sweared I'll find Eastern Short-tailed Blue in my faunistic square and after discovering this female ca 10 km far (in an abandoned sand pit) I dare to say I'm pretty f... close! (One of the northernmost European populations, I believe.)



Some rather garbage photos (of worn, "to be dead soon" individuals). Quite bad for the White Admiral that I've seen only 3 this year, never mind for the Argynnises that are not uncommon in all Czech Carpathians.



A biotopes.



Some of them were pretty gorgeous, although not always full of happy butterflies.



A traditional but slowly abandoned "Carpathian juniper pastures" have such an unique look (and scent). Kind of a national heritage of many Slavonic nations.

It's my absolutely favourite biotope. Some scarce species love them too, like arion, carniolica or niobe. Even B. circe is able to colonize them, despite a cruel winters of usually cold, hilly regions.



End of part 1. Take care

[The Annoying Czech]

Last photo from eastern Beskydy Mts. - a Silver-washed Fritillary, a reasonably widespread and common species, although rather mountainous.



During the ongoing monitoring of my neighbourhood, northern descents of the Beskydy Mts. seems to be quite rich on Sooty Coppers.



Later on, a horrible thunderstorm and shower had laid down half of the vegetation, but the individual has survived.



Once I tried to add an evening aspect into my photo repertoire. Fresh Common Blue females seems to be born to be shot under such circumstances!



After this Small Heath, no one can say I'm ignoring normal, common species (They're abnormally numerous from early May to Autumn.)



Another day I failed to shoot any Duskies that wouldn't look like a shit, but incidentally achieved a solid head detail on this one.



A biotope of 3 Natura 2000 species (dispar, nausithous, teleius) and one endangered (adippe). A rather weird place, eh?



Speaking of Large Coppers, I somehow couldn't focus on shooting them until this aggressive male occured this morning. A proud territory-winner and presumable father of another Spring generation. After he realised that another imago is a male so that he can't copulate with him, he forced his rival out.



Ende.

[Vince Massimo]

Speaking of Large Coppers, I somehow couldn't focus on shooting them until this aggressive male occured this morning. A proud territory-winner and presumable father of another Spring generation. After he realised that another imago is a male so that he can't copulate with him, he forced his rival out.

Hi Marek,

That's a great image of a Large Copper .
Could you put in in the Species-Specific Album please.

Many thanks,

Vince

[The Annoying Czech]

Why not

And it's not that great, could be sharper, with no need of sharpening in PS.

I have to find a girlfriend, who would keep the flower against the wind. Or buy a slave.

[Rosalyn]

Your pictures have come on in leaps and bounds Marek. Well done