Neil Hulme

[Ian Pratt]

Sounds great fun. Good number of species seen in the circumstances.
Ian

[Neil Hulme]

Arnside On Top Form

Some venues, very few, never seem to disappoint, and despite a grim season almost everywhere else Arnside Knott delivered the goods during my visit on Wednesday afternoon and all day Thursday (11th and 12th July). Butterflies were in abundance and the weather behaved impeccably. Dark Green Fritillaries were everywhere and during the odd duller spells the ground became littered with them in the better areas. The 70 - 80 I saw on Wednesday was significantly increased by the end of a very warm and sunny Thursday, with fresh males still emerging. The 5 - 6 High Browns I counted on Wednesday had reached double figures before I reluctantly headed for home. The HBF season is still young here and I saw no females. The most common species was Grayling, with 5 mating pairs amongst the 150+ spread over the site. Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary (11) and Northern Brown Argus (9) were both well past their best in terms of condition, but still going strong. As many UKBers already know, the Knott is a very special place.

HBF

DGF

HBF

DGF

DGF pair

Grayling pair

[Mark Colvin]

Hi Neil,

A great report and I'm really pleased you managed to catch some Arnside action.

Although they don't quite have the glamour factor of the HBFs and DGFs, the Grayling pairing is my favourite shot. Great composition and light.

Super stuff.

Kind regards. Mark

[Ian Pratt]

All great photos- reminds me of when my wife and I were there a few years ago returning from Scotland to the Isle of Wight!! Sadly only a very short visit. It is a wonderful place.
Ian

[Neil Freeman]

hi Neil,

I have really enjoyed your last couple of posts. The Big Sussex Butterfly Count looked like a lot of fun

Also very interested in your comments on Arnside Knott, I will be there in 2 weeks time for a couple of days with the wife. I am hoping HBF will still be around plus maybe early Scotch Argus.

Cheers,

Neil F.

[Jack Harrison]

Excellent reports by Neil and the Guardian. Strangely I couldn't find it on my Kindle edition of the newspaper.

Jack

[Neil Hulme]

Thanks all.

Neil F - yes, I reckon you should get HBF in reasonable condition (some of them), and Mc Argus too.

I agree Mark. The Grayling shot is my favourite and certainly the best I've ever managed of this species.

Neil

[Neil Hulme]

High Altitude Emperor

Twenty one people joined Michael Blencowe and me for a BC Sussex walk on Graffham Down today (15th July). As expected butterfly numbers were much lower than would normally be expected on this well managed downland reserve. Despite the fact that we only just scraped a double figure species count we were more than pleased that a male Purple Emperor made an appearance. At 728' amsl this is unusually high for Emperor populations in the UK. A fresh looking specimen made several flights around the assembly trees (pines) on the very crest of the downs, at one point sweeping quite low across an open meadow.

I later visited Alice Holt Forest where I met Pauline and Alan Thornbury. The last few butterflies were turning in for the night at Straits, so with brighter weather on the horizon I set off for the Goose Green assembly area where Pauline and others had seen up to 4 Emperors earlier in the day. At 5.15 pm the sun broke through and within minutes I was watching a bundle of 3 males. One particularly aggressive male launched an over-optimistic attack on a passing Swift before rudely interrupting the dance of the seven Hairstreaks. In this difficult season just a fifteen minute period of Emperor action made my short visit worthwhile. Image of the main protagonist below.

[Neil Hulme]

Chalkhills In The Rain

This afternoon (18th July) the skies were leaden grey and it was raining hard, so I headed to Springhead Hill near Storrington to find some butterflies. These conditions would have made me think twice about venturing out in the days when I was a very keen angler, but this year it's a case of making the best of it ... or suffering from Cabin Fever. It wasn't difficult to find some beautiful, fresh Chalkhill Blues. There has clearly been a substantial emergence here, although it wasn't the sort of day to attempt a population count. After getting a thorough soaking I returned home much happier and with my sanity intact (I think).

[Pauline]

That's a really lovely photo Neil (well they both are but I'm referring to the first one). 2 questions - how did you manage to get that beautiful background colour which so complements the butterfly when so often everything around is green? Next, do you happen to know what that plant is called as I don't recall seeing it before and it provides perfect colour co-ordination?

[Neil Hulme]

Thanks Pauline. The base colour was achieved by shooting from the steep road bank here, with the tarmac surface below as a back-drop. The flower-head will develop into the beautiful and localised Round-headed Rampion, also known as the 'Pride of Sussex'.
Neil

[Pauline]

Thank you Neil. Very well thought out composition - beautiful!

[Neil Hulme]

In Pursuit Of The Ridiculous

Today (19th July) I started early at Springhead Hill, where I met Colin Knight who had started even earlier in order to ambush the Chalkhill Blues as they opened their wings to the first rays of sunshine.

I only had an hour before I had to head West to meet Matthew Oates and Brett Westwood of the BBC Natural History Unit. We spent much of the day recording a piece for Radio 4, to be aired in November as part of a series called 'In Pursuit Of The Ridiculous'. This 15 minute programme will investigate 'why we do it' (Purple Emperor obsession), rather than the more scientific aspects of the butterfly. Although I can't say exactly where we were, for trivial reasons, this well-known spot came up trumps for us - spectacularly. For several hours the air was thick with Emperors. Sometimes 3 or 4 in view at a time, occasionally 6 or 7. We even managed to see our first Empress of the season, being hotly pursued by an amorous male. It was great fun to make and hopefully this will come over in the finished article.

[Neil Hulme]

Handful Of Emperors

There is little doubt that the start of the 2012 Emperor season has been much later than in recent years; much later than in any season this century. However, although numbers are now building in some counties there is even less doubt that the species has suffered a very significant setback in Sussex. It was therefore with some relief that Colin Knight and I watched two males clashing over the Madgeland (Southwater) Wood Assembly trees at 3.20 pm this afternoon (20th July), these being the first seen here this year. Even better, we watched an already mated female pass through the Trout Lane canopy at 3.04 pm, only to be immediately accosted. She spiralled down into the top of the tall ash and was joined by her suitor. For several minutes we could see a frantic quivering of wings, before he gave up and allowed her to continue her egg-laying run along the southern wayleave. Sadly, this still only makes a handful of sightings in Sussex this year.

[Neil Hulme]

New Wave

On Sunday (22nd July) I saw the first butterflies of the second brood in several species, unsurprisingly lured out by the better weather. An early stop at Rewell Wood produced my first Small Copper of summer amongst a good selection of other species.

At Botany Bay, while searching out the Emperor, I saw two second brood Holly Blue and three Wood White.

While here, a small group of us watched an Empress feeding from a weeping ash bud scar on the high point beyond The Triangle. She returned to probe the tiny wound repeatedly over several hours, before spending a further lengthy period in a large, adjacent sallow. Although we didn't actually observe oviposition there was little doubt about what she was up to, repeatedly 'striking' the upper part of the tall crown. While we were watching her a male passed through rapidly - the only view I had of Him before leaving mid afternoon.

I then moved on to a wood near Billingshurst where I had fleeting glimpses of a male Emperor in a large oak. Six fresh, second brood Large White were seen during the chase, along with a few Green-veined Whites which have been out for at least a week now.

[Mark Colvin]

Hi Neil,

That's a beautiful Small Copper underside - full of mood and atmosphere.

Good hunting.

Kind regards. Mark

[Neil Hulme]

Thanks Mark - that was my favourite shot of the day. You've got good taste.
BWs Neil

[Neil Hulme]

More Coppers And Emperors

Searching for Purple Emperors in Sussex is tough going this year, but numbers have at least now built sufficiently to almost guarantee action at either the Marlpost or Madgeland Wood Master Trees (Southwater Woods). Yesterday (23rd July) two put on a spectacular display over the former location, while at least two (possibly three) were seen over the latter. When woodland butterflies are slow at Southwater there are always the beautiful set-aside meadows to visit, and here I found a freshly emerged Small Copper amongst the numerous Meadow Browns, Gatekeepers, Marbled Whites and Skippers. The peripheral oaks are now hosting better numbers of Purple Hairstreak and there are still good numbers of Red Admiral about. The soundtrack of grasshoppers and crickets, which has sadly been absent until recently, has finally become part of the outdoors experience - summer at last!

[GOLDENORFE]

Great copper shots , have not seen any in weeks! , as u know ,had Awsome day at Fermyn yest with Matthew Oates , wait until u see pic of the Emp feeding on his hat!

[Neil Hulme]

Thanks Phil. I'm heading north myself in the morning.
Neil