Central France into North-East Spain.

[Padfield]

Hi Russ. I agree the clouded yellow is most likely helice. By the notoriously unreliable criterion of wing shape it is not Berger's - but more importantly, it really does look like helice!

The female blue is definitely common and I think the male probably is too - but I'm much less confident. It does appear to have a cell spot and what can be seen of the rest of the spots are in the right places, at least. If someone else has a better idea I'll gladly revise that opinion!

Guy

[LancsRover]

Hi Guy,
Thanks for your expert input, I've seen a lot of Clouded Yellows on this trip, it is difficult for a novice on European b/f's, to tell them apart, hopefully it
will get a little easier with more practice.

Russ

[LancsRover]

Wednesday 2nd October 2013.Sunny mostly with the odd cloud, 25c.

Aiguamolls nature reserve, N/E Spain, north of the river El Fluvia.

This is a cracking nature reserve some 40 minutes cycle ride from the campsite, the main objective today was to obtain some better photo's of the Plain Tiger that I have seen but not been able to photograph for the past week or so on this nature reserve.

I reached the south side of the reserve, where I had seen it twice before at 11.30 am, and immediately I had a quick fly past and then it was gone, I continued further into the reserve until I reached the small sunken meadow where I had seen it land previously. It was now very warm and I had forgot my white hat, so I sheltered under a small tree and waited for another view, nothing was happening so I ventured out on to the path along side the meadow and I spotted it again but by the time I got to it, it took of again. Another 20 minutes went past and I thought I'd lost it, but it came around again and this time I managed to snap two quick photo's(see below). Great!!!, mission accomplished, I got a couple of half decent pics.
of a Plain Tiger(I hope that is what it is?)

Russ

[Chris Jackson]

Excellent find Russ. Now that is one I'd like to get a photo of!!
Let's see what the experts say.
By the way, your second shot of a Striped Grayling was more the average colour I'd expect to see.
CJ

[Pete Eeles]

Plain Tiger(I hope that is what it is?)

Sure is - nothing else it could be!

Cheers,

- Pete

[essexbuzzard]

Congrats,Russ-what a sighting!

Never seen one

[LancsRover]

Thanks CJ, Pete and Essex for your comments.

Thursday, 3rd October 2013, Sunny afternoon 23c.
Last visit to the fields south of the Aquarius campsite, Roses Bay, NE Spain.

Still plenty flying;
Large Skippers, Common Blues(both male & female), Speckled Woods(orange variety), Small Whites(could be Southern Small White, help needed, please ROGER), plenty of Clouded Yellows and scores of 5 Spotted Burnet moths.

On my way, slowly back through France on Saturday(5th), still hoping to see a few B/F's in France, if I'm lucky?

Russ

[Chris Jackson]

Hi Russ,
I see they are all feeding on Dittrichia viscosa - Fleabane - which is pretty typical for the end of the season. Down here in the South it is one of the last flowers around to feed on. Even now (mid October) much of it has gone over although some may resist another week.
Cheers. CJ.

[Roger Gibbons]

I think you can see the forked vein, so your white is rapae not mannii. As often seems the case, these "surefire" identifiers are not quite 100% and I have put some of the issues on my rapae and mannii pages, if you're interested (rather than repeat everything here).

[LancsRover]

Hi Chris,
Thanks for your input, you are right about the flowers(Fleabane?) on my last post in Spain, they are on today's post from NARBONNE, France also, and they are one of the few flowers still around but as you said, they are also coming to an end now.

Hi Roger,
Again thanks for your info. I will check out your website(I didn't notice that you had put it on your earlier reply to me, must have been all that running around in the sun, sorry!) it looks great, and with a lot of info. for any future trips to France/Spain,Thanks again.

Sunday, 6th October 2013.
Narbonne, Southern France.
On a campsite, on the shore of ETANG DE BAGES-SIGEAN, a couple of kms out of Narbonne, a beautiful inland lake on the coast.
It was a very,very windy day, but sunny and 24c temp.
We cycled/walked along the shore of the lake with the wind behind us until we came across a short track that turned away from the shore, here the wind dropped considerably and we found numerous butterflies resting/feeding on Fleabane(?); Clouded Yellow(Helice?), Wall, Large White, Painted Lady(looking a little washed-out), Large Skipper, Hummingbird Hawk moth and tens of dragonflies and damselflies, all sizes.
I have attached a couple of pics. of Clouded Yellows, Walls and a Praying Mantis(male) that was perched on a wooden seat, not moving a muscle, apart from it's head that followed every move I made, scary! I wouldn't like to be insect when this boy was around!

Russ

[Chris Jackson]

I like your Mantis, though I doubt your BFs would want to get too close. Once again, I'm not an expert but I bet your crocea is an helice. I'm seeing plenty down here in the South - either there are lots of them this year, or its just that I've never noticed them before.
By the way, that yellow food plant Dittrichia viscosa, has many names in English - I don't know which is the more common:
False Yellowhead - Sticky Fleabane - Woody Fleabane - Yellow Fleabane.

CJ

[LancsRover]

Monday 7th October 2013 Sunny intervals, 20c.
Millau, Massif Central, France.

Second leg of our journey home, on the toll-free A75, through/over the massif central, beautiful drive.
Stopped at the Millau viaduct aire for about an hour, mainly to take photo's of Norman Foster's fantastic bridge(worth 10 euros to cross), but I was distracted by the amount of butterflies flying around the aire(2,400 feet above sea level), loads of Clouded Yellows, a few Painted Lady's, Common Blues, Whites, Hummingbird Hawkmoth, a very large black bee(European Dark Bee?) and a little Vole(with no tail).
Russ.

[Chris Jackson]

It sounds like you were reluctant to end your journey home!
Chris

[Paul Wetton]

Your bee is the violet carpenter bee xylocopa violacea. A real beauty.

[LancsRover]

Chris, You're right I didn't want to come home, I was enjoying myself too much.

Thanks Paul for your bee ID and a look at your website.

Wednesday 9th October 2013
Nevers, Central France, overcast 12c.

Cycled/walked along the Canal Lateral a la Loire, from Nevers(Loire) to the aqueduct over the Allier river and back some 24km of canal tow/cycle path.
Still plenty flying, despite only being 12c (but no wind); b/f's seen, Small Heath, Large White, Common Blue, numerous Clouded Yellows, as usual,(still not seen one in England yet), Speckled Wood(pale yellow,not orange), Silver Y moth and a large caterpillar.

This is my last post for this trip , thanks to all who have read, advised and commented on it over the last few weeks, I hope you have enjoyed it, I certainly have.

Regards Russ.

[JKT]

I would say the cat is Macrothylagia rubi, but there's a chance for some close relative I'm not familiar with.

[LancsRover]

Thanks JKT for cat. ID.
I hope it isn't too cold up there
Russ

[JKT]

Actually it's surprisingly warm at +8C. That means there's no sign of sun, though.

[Chris Jackson]

Hi Russ, its been a pleasure following your trip.
Any plans for next year yet?
I suggest the Alps for butterflies, although that doesn't always suit all the family.

Hi JKT, +8°C ?? positively warm I imagine for your neck of the woods.
No sign of Rudolph yet then !

Cheers
CJ

[JKT]

At this time of year we might have some snow, so this is not too bad.

Some of the red-nosed ones might be Rudolphs, but reindeer they aint.