essex buzzard

[Wurzel]

Looking forward to the report and shots. Check out the street lamps as I've seen Nightjars feeding around them

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[essexbuzzard]

Coming right up!

However,firstly,in Essex,the new peacocks have emerged,and i've been seeing them in increasing numbers since i saw the first on Sunday.
However, this evening after work,i was enjoying the territorial Hutchinsoni Commas,spread out on low brambles etc,when i came across this very tattered Comma,holding territory as well,flying up at anything that passed,including the other Commas. Could it realy be a very late Comma that overwintered?!

What do you think-i would be interested to get any opinions on this.

[essexbuzzard]

GREECE DAY ONE.

Woke up to glorious blue skies! After breakfast,me and the Naturetrekers checked out the fields etc within walking distance from the hotel. We soon noticed how dusty and tired the vegetation was already,it being only June,and also how prickly everything was!
A Scarce Swallowtail was a nice start to the day. Over the brown meadows,Great Banded Greylings were everywhere,and Sloe and Ilex Hairstreaks were identified on the riverside brambles. Further up,Mallow Skippers were plentiful,and we saw our first Balkan Marbled Whites and Grecian Coppers. By now,the heat was increasing and photography near impossible as everything was speeding. Overhead,a buzzard was circling,we were hoping it was long-legged but turned out to be common buzzard. So we headed off,to have lunch in the village.
Above the cafe,a swallows nest had 4 fledgelings,allmost bursing out of the nest,they were lovely to see.

After enjoying lunch,we drove to the slopes of Chelmos,visible from the village. A couple of leaky goat water troughs had blue butterflies puddling. We got to work on them,eventually identifying them as mostly Zephyr and Silver-studed,with a few Tuequoise and Ripart's Anomalous. A lovely Persian Skipper was also present. Many Large Tortoiseshells were speeding past,alas,none landed. Further on,a grassy slope was home to a colony of tiny Odd-spot Blues,sadly,the wouldn't pose for photo's. We also had our first Greek Clouded Yellows here,and a Nettletree Butterfly was nearby. By now it was late afternoon,so time to head back to the hotel. When we got there,i went back to the area we walked earlier,seeing Eastern Bath Whites and Small Heath of the south Europe and north Africa lyllus type. With thunder rumbling over the mountains,it was time to call it a day.
A great start to the holiday!

[David M]

I think I'm going to like this sequence a lot, Buzzard!

Lovely start to proceedings. I look forward to the next tranches.

[Wurzel]

Wow! Fantastic Need to see more...

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

Much envy indeed... Lovely butterflies.

Dave

[essexbuzzard]

Thanks Guys!

GREECE DAY TWO

Woke up to blue skies again.
Before breakfast,i took a walk to the area we walked yesterday,about a mile from the hotel,on a hill over looking Kalavrita. A warming Grecian Copper and lots of Balkan Marbled Whites were highlights.

Today,we went for a short drive,to explore some woodland edge and rocky hillside habitats. We soon came to promising area where abundant Great-banded Graylings were flying,but we also found the Lattice Brown here,a new one for me!
Further up,we foung Purple,Sloe and Ilex Hairstreaks,and a small Copper of the black,southern form,were feeding on old mans beard blooms. Several Silver-washed Fritillaries were present,too,and both Swallowtail and Scarce Swallowtail were seen,in the by now increasing heat.
So we drove to a shady pic-nic area fo lunch. While enjoying it,several Brimstones and Cleopatras were seen, as well as Large Skippers and a Dark Green Fritillary. A golden-ringed dragonfly was present,too.
Then off for a walk here,in a dry,rocky area. Southern White Admiral,Camberwell Beauty and more Ripart's Anomolous Blues were soon added to today's tally,with Black-veined White also here. Throughout the day,Large Tortoiseshells were speeding past,buy not stopping. A few Painted Lady and Clouded Yellows were easier to see. A Meleagars Blue was nice to find,as was a mantis.
After our walk,we were making our way down the mountain in the minibus when someone shouted "Tortoise"! We hit the brakes,jumped out to find a Marginated Tortoise by the side of the road! They are present in Southern GR,but what a find!
Went for a short walk when we got back to the hotel,but nothing new was found.
On the bird front,Short-toed Eagle and Cirl Buntings were highlights.

[Wurzel]

My envy is going through the roof here - stunning butterflies and cracking shots.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Padfield]

Just clocked onto these before going to bed. Lovely shots of excellent butterflies. The lattice brown is one of those iconic butterflies I really do have to get out and see one day ...

Guy

[essexbuzzard]

Thanks Wurzel. Now you know how i feel every time i read Guy's diary!

You're right Guy,the Lattice Browns were a treat for me to,having never seen one before.

[essexbuzzard]

Everywhere i look at the moment,i am finding Small Tortoiseshell caterpillar nests. I have never seen so many in the 20 years of so i've been looking at butterflies. Some are already large enough to pupate,others have just hatched. Provided parasites don't take a heavy toll,we could be in for a spectacular emergence in late summer. I for one couldn't be happier!

[David M]

Lattice Browns were a treat for me to,having never seen one before.

Lovely butterfly. In fact, it looks better suited to the tropics than temperate old Europe!

[essexbuzzard]

However,all is not quite as rosy as it looks. I was watching one nest this evening,when i took this picture. It is not the best quality in the fading light,but what is happening is clear enough. It's a parasitic stinging wasp,and it was laying its eggs on,or in, the catterpillars. Every few seconds,it would thrust its abdomen foreward,into the tiny caterpillars. This just happened to occur in the five minutes i was watching,if these larval tents had been visited during the day as well, it could take a heavy toll after all.
Thanks David.More GR tomorrow.

[Wurzel]

Fascinating shot Essex It's the flip side of having a good year I suppose in that there are more caterpillars to parasitise so parasites have a good year too Seeing the shot made me think that perhaps there should be an area on the Species Specific pages for known parasites as I'd like to find out a bit more about them as they're an integral part of the butterflies fortunes?

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[essexbuzzard]

What you say is true of course,Wurzel,but i was hoping the parasite numbers would lag behind,like with the Holly Blue,kicking in perhaps next year. This has been a vintage year for Small Torts so far,and i am hoping that will continue for just one more generation.
I'm not ready to let go of Small Torts yet!

GR DAY 3

The day again dawned clear,so another pre-breakfast walk produced the lovely Sage Skipper in the photo,as well as more Balkan Marbled Whites.

Today,we headed further up Chelmos. All the way up,were bee hives in every colour imaginable-they sure like their honey in GR! Although the scenery was excellent at the ski station,it was a little quiet-Clouded Yellows,Glanwille Fritillary,Adonis Blue and the (not very) Silver-washed Fritillary in the picture were highlights. So,after an hour of two,we headed slightly lower,to visit some of the water troughs again. Silver-studded and Zephyr Blues were again plentiful,but we also saw our first Dingy Skipper and Mountain Small Whites,and a Camberwell Beauty breifly landed.
Lunch was taken in the shade, where lots of fly-by Large Torts,and Greek Clouded Yellows,Brimstones, Commas,and another Southern White Admiral.
Then on a bit further,and a search of some rocky grassland produced Scarce Swallowtail and our first White Banded Grayling. Our last stop didn't produce that much,relatively speaking,but the views were superb. Dark Green and Queen of Spain Fritillaries,Black-veined Whites and Swallowtails were seen,as was a Great Sooty Satyr.
Red-backed Shrikes,Corn Buntings and,after dark,calling Scops Owl were among the birds.

[essexbuzzard]

GREECE DAY 4 26 JUNE.

Tody was changeover day,as we leave Chelmos (no Chelmos Blue,sadly),and transfer across to the Parnassos mountain range.
Another blue start(i could get used to this!)and another early walk. Balkan Marbled Whites,a nice Mallow Skipper and two hoopoe together,made this worthwhile,and more red-rump swallows near the hotel.
After breakfast,there was time for another walk before setting off seeing,among other things,another Grecian Copper.

Then on our way,stoping for lunch at Galaxhidi. Even here,butterflies were found,in the hot woods of aleppo pine,with cacti in the understory,our only Freyer's Graylings of the trip. Over the town,more hoopoes and several lesser kestrels were seen. After a very nice lunch,on then to Delphi,arriving late afternoon. We soon noticed it was even drier and hotter here than before,with very few flowers left,but a short walk produced several Swallowtails and Scarce Swallowtails,and a Southern Comma was seen in the town.

Dinner that night was taken in a restuarant with a stupendous view down a deep valley,with swifts and pallid swifts screaming all around.

[essexbuzzard]

Forgot to upload the Freyer's Grayling!

[Padfield]

Great stuff, Buzzard! The two grayling species must have been thrilling to find!

Guy

[Mikhail]

I add my appreciation of your Greek photos, which are of particular interest to me as I was in the Chelmos area a week earlier than you. As no one else has picked it up, I'd like to point out that the copper in your first picture for day 2 is the Lesser Fiery Copper, not the Grecian.

M.

[Wurzel]

That Mallow Skipper is absolutely delish Essex - good job it's called what it is then
The shot the Red Rumped Swallow brings back happy memories of lazing by a pool in Kefalonia while they skimmed over the pool taking flies or water
Have a goodun

Wurzel