Pauline

[Paul Harfield]

Hi Pauline

I quite agree with your comments re the lack of Small Tortoiseshells in the recent past. I too have seen hardly any over the last few years in our area. I am sure this will be a bumper summer for them, judging by the number of larvae I have seen. Yet when I was young they were perhaps one of the most numerous of all species during the summer. Others from further north probably wonder what we are going on about when we enthuse so much about them. Your beautiful pictures certainly do them justice.

I went for a longer than normal walk around my local patch yesterday evening, covering quite a large area (5.15 till 7.45) I have to say I saw so many I lost count, probably in excess of 35 covering several hotspots. There were still a few Small Tortoiseshells flying at gone 7.30pm

I am running a little behind with my own diary, but I will cover the Small Torts as soon as I can.

[Pauline]

Thank you all for your input which arrived way after my bedtime I believe you have hit the nail on the head Vince. I was not happy with any of my other theories and having seen Wood Whites' courtship antics, there seemed to be something subtly different about this behaviour. Your conclusion (the same one Guy came to) certainly fits well with my observations and because one female was so stubborn and resolute about not leaving that leaf I am wondering if she had already laid her eggs there and was 'protecting' them and their leaf. She certainly seemed tired enough to have done some egg-laying. I also now realise that I had misinterpreted the behaviour of the females disappearing under a leaf, not for shade as I had imagined, but to lay eggs! This had not occurred to me as they were so close to the ground (just a couple of inches tall) that I thought the location was too risky. However, having now read BadgerBob's report I am a little bit wiser. It is tempting to go back and check those nettles again as I watched the butterflies long enough to be able to identify that leaf easily. Well, I have learned something new again and had a fascinating insight into a small part of their daily lives.

[Maximus]

Hi Pauline, some very interesting observations of Small Tortiseshell behaviour and some nice photos too. When we were at OW Hill on Friday we saw good numbers and made a very conservative estimate of 30 plus, but during our visit they seemed to spend all their time nectaring. There is not much shade up there and there was not much breeze, so we ended up a bit dehydrated! The Dark Green Fritillaries were certainly very lively, and even when we saw them nectaring they did not spend much time on each flower.

Regards

Mike

[Pauline]

I grew up in the North east Paul and I agree that during those years ST were indeed a very common sight and one which we sadly took for granted. Let's hope your prediction is correct and we are in for a bumper crop - certainly looks that way

You have impressed me yet again Guy by your careful observation, previous experience and considerable knowledge which enabled you to deduce the gender and behaviour patterns of the butterflies.

Thank you Mike - I appreciate your comments. It certainly was hot up there and I think you did amazingly well to get those DGF photos. As you know, the Hill is covered with Small Heath, including several mating pairs of which these are one:

... and something which I have never seen before and that is a Small Heath up a tree! (although it isn't entirely obvious from this shot). Perhaps there wasn't enough room on the ground for yet another one

Another view from OWH:

PS. There is quite a reasonable pub at the bottom of the hill which can help with the dehydration factor

[Pauline]

There has been an explosion of colour in the woods today and the gold, silver, red and orange hues, that both glide and adorn the flowers and foliage, add a richness that was previously lacking. It was a pleasure to be there with a sense of relief that Summer has finally arrived. A few photos to be going on with.

[Pauline]

Butterflies were still very active at 6.30pm this evening at the Straits and I was lucky enough to see this beautifully fresh female whose colours could only be described as emerald and silver with a shimmer of gold as the sun glinted on her wings whilst she twisted and turned. She was a very active individual so it wasn't easy to get many shots but I was so impressed by this lady she deserves a post all to herself.

[Neil Freeman]

Hi Pauline,

Some lovely photos in your past few posts, I am not going to pick any favourites as they are all good in their own way

Glad to see that you caught up with your Small Tortoiseshells

All the best,

Neil F.

[Pauline]

It's really kind of you to say so Neil but they're not as exciting as the shots you have been getting recently. I'm really enjoying your photos along with quite a few other diaries.

Amidst all the recently emerged butterflies that are being sighted just lately I have encountered lots of other interesting insects. I watched a Golden-ringed dragonfly almost catch a White Admiral and took a photo of this dragonfly which I found very well camouflaged in the grass:

This moth caught my attention and I believe I may have seen it once before. In flight it looks incredibly similar to a Wood White:

Tonight I rescued several of these caterpillars from the centre of a path. I shall need to find out what they are. They are very attractive and the camera certainly lies as they did not have white spots - rather they had shiny, gleaming raised BLACK nodules which I imagine the sunlight bounced off and caused this effect:

Oh, and I did eventually get what I went for which was an open winged shot of a White Admiral:

[Mark Tutton]

Hi Pauline
I think your cats are peacock which I also noted at straits today. Interestingly there were whole webs of caterpillars that looked second or third instar that were all dead - any thoughts anyone?

[Willrow]

Hi Pauline,

Great report (as usual), your dragonfly is an Emperor and your caterpillars are Peacock!

Regards,
Bill

[Wurzel]

Cracking shots of the SWFs and those White Admirals are lush - I still need to get on of those really good closed wing shots

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Vince Massimo]

Hi Pauline,

The fact that your Peacock caterpillars were away from their food plant and that their heads now look to small for their bodies indicates that they are fully grown, have finished feeding and are looking for a place to pupate. If you still have them they will need to be provided with twigs or stems in order to continue their development safely.
See viewtopic.php?f=37&t=6485 for more information.

Tuts - Could your webs of "dead caterpillars" have just been moulted skins?

Vince

[Pauline]

Thank you Mark and Bill. I have never knowingly seen a Peacock larva before so I am pleased that I was able to help them on their way. I actually just moved them off the middle of the path to the relative safety of the verge Vince but thank you for the information. It may well be useful in the future as I think it would be fascinating to rear some butterflies and watch their development but right now I probably have enough critters to care for.

Thank you Wurzel. You should know that I have friends who are fans of yours and read your diary even tho' they are not interested in butterflies - yet!

Today I arrived at the Straits around midday and I had only been at the 'hotspot' for a couple of minutes when Neil arrived on his bike. Just as he dismounted I spotted the first Purple Emperor of the day. He did quite a few circuits of the area coming down lower each time before landing on the of back Neil's trousers. I am willing to bet that Neil has never had his backside photographed by so many folk in such a short space of time

I don't think I have ever noticed quite how blue the antennae are. The PE finally had his fill of whatever was on Neil's trousers and after circling the tower several times decided it preferred the resin to be found there. I continued to get some unusual, albeit distant, shots of the butterfly:

'Under lock and key' is the best slogan I can think of, but if you can do better? ...........

Casting a wonderful shadow.

The butterfly repeatedly took to the air only to return to the upper levels of the watch tower. Undeterred, Neil decided that a mere watch tower was not going to get in the way of him getting a close-up shot:

Unfortunately, the PE was disturbed by the movement of the ladder but obligingly returned to Neil's boot (just about visible on the left one) so he tried his best to descend slowly in an attempt to bring it down to the rest of us:

By now, something of a party atmosphere had developed and a group of photographers were busy in one corner recording a veritable butterfly fest, the likes of which has probably never been seen before . It was difficult to know what to photograph first

At one point there were 6 butterflies of various species on a single leaf but I, personally, was only able to record 5 - 2 SWF, 2 WA and a Comma.

.... and why was all this happening??? Well, here's the clue:

[David M]

Wow. That sequence of events is beyond surreal.

Wherever the Kipper goes, it seems, bizarre things happen (possibly because of what he brings with him!!!)

[Wurzel]

Great report Pauline- where can I pick up some if that Kipper Spray? Great shots if His Nibbs - but spare a thought for those of us stuck at work

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Pauline]

Hi David, Wurzel, yes, it was a terrific couple of hours but I am still looking forwarding to seeing His Majesty on the ground once calm, tranquility and normality have again returned to the Straits

Another photo from yesterday that was accidentally omitted:

[badgerbob]

Hi Pauline. I think Vince will agree with me that your Comma should qualify as an 'O' album ab. Fab picture as well!! Bob.

[Pauline]

With everything that was happening yesterday I didn't even notice that the comma was as near as dammit a circle until I returned home Bob. I shall wait to hear from Vince as to whether he wants me to post it in the gallery but it is very kind of you to suggest it.

Having bemoaned to all and sundry yesterday that I wouldn't be able to get out today to see PE as I was meeting friends for lunch, I then checked and discovered it was a late afternoon event, so early afternoon became free. Perversely, instead of looking for His Majesty, I decided to check up on the WLH. I am so glad I did. I have watched mating pairs in the past but have never been fortunate enough to see the female egg-laying. These are not particularly great shots (they were taken with one hand ) but I think they show well the secretive nature of the butterfly when oviposting. I watched for at least 30 minutes as she repeated the process of laying, resting, fluttering to a new place and then delving around to find a suitable place to lay. I was fascinated. Just the size of her abdomen was amazing. I have no idea how many eggs they lay or over what period this process happens. It would have been tempting to look for an egg and try to take a photo but that would have meant disturbing her. As usual, my time had run out so I just had to leave her to finish the job. A few record shots:

[Pauline]

It is never too much of a chore waiting for a 'target' butterfly to show when one is in lovely surroundings with lots of other butterflies to watch. Such was the case yesterday when I was able to chalk up another 2 firsts for the season - the Essex Skipper and the Gatekeeper.

A mating pair of Marbled White flew over my head before landing on some grass enabling me to get a couple of quick shots before they went on their way.

.... and a very pretty Meadow Brown:

[Wurzel]

Excellent to see the great shots of Gatekeepers and great to know that they are out and about - looks like I can start counting spots and abs again

Have a goodun

Wurzel