False Apollo

[Pauline]

Morning Mike - your post made me chuckle. It never ceases to amaze me the lengths that some of us go to to record/watch/photograph butterflies. I was chatting to Adrian on the phone very late one evening and he admitted he was in Stanstead Forest looking for Orange Tips by moonlight!! Are we all mad???

[False Apollo]

Hi Pauline,
Yes stark raving bonkers and proud of it!!! However I would say that it is people like us who care about the natural world and want to conserve it for the future. The message is getting through to the masses through people like Matthew and his Purple Emperor exploits, which is brilliant for the future of butterflies. I think enthusiasm for butterflies rubs off, but yes I do agree it does look a bit odd, someone clambering around near the beach with a camcorder at midnight!!!`

Mike

[Wurzel]

Great shots Mike I did post before that I think my favourite is the Dartford. I had a similar worn individual at Martin Down earlier I the season, kinda like a Helice in revese I might have to try and make back gown that way soon,any micro habitats on the Poole side?

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[False Apollo]

Hi Wurzel,
The best coastal places near Poole I would say would be along the Purbeck coastline, especially Durlston Country Park near Swanage. I have not heard of any butterflies seen recently though, so really the Bournemouth coastline would be your best bet.
I have recorded an apricot coloured Clouded Yellow some years ago here which was a real beauty. My best find though was a freshly emerged half normal female half helice Clouded Yellow found on 17/11/2000, which was featured in Atropos magazine. I was taking slides then, so I will have to find these out. I was blown away.
If anyone is interested, the photo of the newly emerged female Clouded Yellow with crumpled wings (unfortunately) and a description of how I found it features in Atropos magazine number 12, January 2001.

Today 22/11/13 I saw 3 Clouded Yellows on the undercliffs. They spent a lot of time resting but made the odd dalliance over a short distance before settling down again. I think they consisted of 2 females and one male and they were all close together in one area.

Regards
Mike

[False Apollo]

Another superb day on the south coast. Between 13.00 to 13.40 I walked along the undercliff in bright sunshine after a cold start in the morning. I was very surprised to count 8 Clouded Yellows including two pairs in the air at once. At one point one of these pairs was down in front of me, the female had her wings open with upturned abdomen, the male nearby, which I believe indicates she is not interested. Again they were very active in this weather window. One male away from these pairs did look very fresh and may have only recently emerged.

However the biggest surprise was while I was watching a Clouded Yellow on the ground resting, a nearby male Stonechat dropped down and caught it. I thought, that's it, but while it was attempting to eat the struggling insect, the struggle paid off and it managed to escape. A bit disorientated, it flew across the beach where I lost sight of it.

At the moment it is very difficult to be sure of how many Clouded Yellows are present here as a 2 flew up well away from where the two pairs were and a spot where I have not seen any for a while. So incredibly (sighting wise) numbers have gone up instead of going down and it looks increasingly likely that a December sighting is on the cards.

Regards
Mike

[Wurzel]

Cheers for the info Mike I see that there's gold still on them there...er...cliffs(?) I'd love to get back there and have a look but don't know if I can earn enough brownie points Oh well maybe next year

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[False Apollo]

I managed to find one female Clouded Yellow along the undercliff today around 13.00. She seemed totally intent on egg laying by her behaviour at the top of the slope. I could not get nearer for a better look.
On a different note I was one of the lucky people to get Monty Python tickets for the first date on the 1st July 2014. Incredible in that this show sold out in 43.5 seconds. I will be taking time off, combining Purple Emperors with silly walks.

Nudge nudge, wink wink,
Mike

[David M]

Mike, have you ever known any of these Clouded Yellows to get through a complete winter?

[False Apollo]

Hi David,
No, they cannot survive the winter as adults, but they certainly can as larvae. I have watched a large larva basking in the winter sunshine in the past. It largely depends on the weather if they can make it through or whether the Stonechats get them. It is assumed any Clouded Yellows seen in March/April at this locality have emerged locality. These are thought not to be immigrants as sightings do not (as far as I am aware) coincide with arrivals elsewhere. They seem to leave here soon after being seen though.

Mike

[David M]

Hi David,
No, they cannot survive the winter as adults, but they certainly can as larvae. I have watched a large larva basking in the winter sunshine in the past. It largely depends on the weather if they can make it through or whether the Stonechats get them. It is assumed any Clouded Yellows seen in March/April at this locality have emerged locality. These are thought not to be immigrants as sightings do not (as far as I am aware) coincide with arrivals elsewhere. They seem to leave here soon after being seen though.

Mike

Thanks for that, Mike. So, given a reasonably mild southern English winter, Clouded Yellows CAN survive (at least at the larval stage).

[Mikhail]

Mike, you might like to know that I saw a fresh male briefly in flight east of the Bistro at 1400 yesterday, and also several eggs on Common Bird'sfoot Trefoil. Most of these have yet to assume their orange colouring, indicating that they were laid quite recently.

M.

[False Apollo]

Hi Mikhail,
Nice to know the Clouded Yellows are being well monitored. The area you described is where I have been seeing them mostly. As I have said, it is very difficult to estimate numbers because at this time of the year they fly so infrequently unless you are lucky. I'm quite excited that you have found some eggs which I hope you can keep an eye on. They seem to cram in as much egg laying as is possible in the low temperatures and brief sunshine. I will have to keep an eye out for eggs/larvae. Keep in touch, I may bump into you down there.

Regards
Mike

[False Apollo]

Although today was sunny, it was more difficult to find Clouded Yellows today. I could not find any in the usual place. However trying a different part of the undercliff I was rewarded with 2 up together and very active around 13.30. Again they were in good condition, one was certainly a male, the other probably a female. The Clouded Yellows made the most of dropping down and warming up on bare earth areas of the slopes, making the most of the sunshine. There was also a Red Admiral and Silver Y moth as a supporting cast.
Looks like December Clouded Yellows are on the cards!

Regards
Mike

[Wurzel]

Cracking stuff Mike - I reckon you could definitely be in for some December sightings at this rate, looking forward to more "dashes of yellow" to brighten up the winter months

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[False Apollo]

Anyone who is following my diary will know that I was hoping to see a December Clouded Yellow and today looked like a good bet. I arrived at Southbourne at 12.50 and at 12.55 I was watching a very active male Clouded Yellow zooming around the slopes. What I find remarkable is that the last decent day was 30th November, so it is possible that this male had been dormant for 6 days. This did seem to be the only Clouded Yellow about, but as they can be quite mobile are so active they could be found anywhere along this stretch of coastline. This male looked quite bright so it could conceivably have recently emerged, it is difficult to be certain, but the weather has not really been favourable for any to emerge in the last few days. I wonder how many December sightings there will be, one thing is for sure, numbers are going down and unless the sun is shining any still about will be inactive and difficult to locate.
No wind, no rain, sun out and I'll be back down there!

Regards
Mike

[Pauline]

That's great news Mike and I'm quite envious even tho I saw a butterfly myself today. Mine, I think, was the Red Admiral again but as I was on the phone and cleaning the windows at the same time I only caught a fleeting glimpse.

[David M]

Wow, a Clouded Yellow at any time is something to be treasured, but a December sighting is pure gold! Well done.

[Wurzel]

The Butterfly Conservation e-zine mentioned December Moths but they obviously have nothing on a December Cloudy Is this a case of Christmas come early?

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[False Apollo]

Another sunny December day another successful day to see a Clouded Yellow. Again seen around 13.00 and hurtling all over the slopes of the undercliff. It was almost bucket and spade weather today, sunny with a slight breeze as opposed to yesterday when it was far too windy. The male Clouded Yellow was in the same area as on the 6th December. It did eventually land on the bare ground briefly before continuing to patrol along the slopes.
Having not seen one yesterday, I did snap some other cliff residents. The fox was particularly fascinated by my search for any butterflies on the wing.

Regards
Mike

[Nick Broomer]

Lovely photos Apollo. I have been following your exploits concerning the Clouded Yellows with great interest. Must be wonderful to see them at this time of year, flying in the warmth of the early afternoon sun. Brilliant. Maybe you will reporting the findings of a December Clouded Yellow larva shortly. Now that would be something....

All the best, Nick.