Pauline

[Wurzel]

Glad to see you're still putting the odd butterfly into your posts Pauline - I think we can officially class you as a 'Moth Head' now Those Puss moth cats are quite astounding looking things, cracking shots

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Pauline]

I'm glad you like the shots Wurzel. If you’ve never, ever seen one before you need to add it to your bucket list . They are truly incredible, formidable creatures (they spit formic acid at you when they are upset!! ) .... but you need not worry about my commitment to butterflies. I have seen and photographed 44 species of butterfly this season (so far) and I am just filling in time, waiting for the Wall Browns and Silver studded Skippers to appear. I finished my last post with a Peacock as they are very much on my mind at the moment. Back in June (ages ago), I saw 2 nests of Peacock cats, both of which I believed had been predated. (It was later suggested that they might have just been old moulted skins). However, a third nest appeared healthy and so that it wouldn’t suffer the same fate, I snipped a couple of nettle leaves off the main plant, together with the attached cats, and put them on nettles in a cage at home. This is where it all started:

This time I was determined not to become emotionally attached to them, and apart from the protection of the mesh they were left outside to face the elements and they were not counted or monitored closely, except to ensure they had a good food supply. I took the occasional photo and admired them as they grew. Just for fun some serious effects of 'hand shake' when taken in dull conditions with a slow shutter speed:

I shouldn't laugh - I used to take photos like this This was the size of the cats less than a week ago - fully grown:

..... and then they started to pupate. I have never seen a cat pupate before. Within the space of about 24 hours, almost as one, they hung themselves up in various places. Some chose the nettle leaves but many chose the roof of the cage. Some were suspended in a straight line, others adopted a curved posture like this:

Sadly, the first one I watched had become detached and was lying on the floor of the cage. His skin had split in places and the green casing of the pupa showed through. I gently placed him on a leaf and watched as his little body contracted and convulsed, trying to remove the outer skin. How I wanted to help him . I thought that perhaps he was struggling as he had no contact point to brace himself against – it was so tempting to try somehow to hang him up again but I feared that if I interfered I would only make matters worse. I did not know what was normal as I had never seen this before but when droplets of liquid began to emerge from his body where the skin had split I feared the worst.

Sadly, he didn’t make it but just a couple of minutes later, another cat which was hanging in the cage started his transformation. I was transfixed – it was just like someone had ‘unzipped’ him as in a very short space of time his skin had split open to reveal the pupa and the old skin was shrugged off.

The brilliant green outer casing rapidly faded to either a duller green or a greyish colour, the latter being more numerous and applied solely to those hanging off the roof of the cage. Another panic set in! Had I done something wrong and killed them? A quick look at this site reassured me that there can be 2 different colours but I wonder what this depends on. Temperature (ie the height at which they pupate) or light (those under the leaves stayed green).

Anyway, the upshot is that if I am lucky, in a few weeks I shall have Peacock butterflies adorning every corner of the garden. For now, a few shots of the cats in various stages of pupation, although all but a couple have pupated now.

[Neil Freeman]

Ahh!, memories of last year when I watched a female Peacock lay a batch of eggs on nettle in out back garden. I kept a few final instar larvae in a cage just for the pleasure of watching them pupate and then emerge before releasing them back into the garden. This was the first time that I had done anything like this since I was a nipper back in the 1970s and brought back many fond memories

I also found it fascinating to think that some of the Peacocks in the garden this spring may have been the very same individuals that I had released last year, guess I will never know for sure but I like to think so.

All the best,

Neil.

[Wurzel]

Great report Pauline the changes in the cats is remarkable, I look forward to the end results

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Mark Tutton]

Can't wait to see pictures of your Silver Studded Skippers as species number 45
Kind Regards
Mark

[Pauline]

For various reasons I was not able to do stuff like this when I was a child Neil so I am finding it all fascinating, seeing it for the first time and I am looking forward to releasing the adults. Thank you for your comment.

Thank you too Wurzel. I shall certainly report back on this.

They're actually very rare Mark, but not unlike their more common SPOTTED cousins, except for the beautiful blue on the upper sides of the males

A brief early evening walk around Bramshott Common revealed that there are still a few Silver STUDDED Blues about which surprised me a little as I first recorded them here on 3rd June, this being an early site in Hampshire for SSB's:

The area is still looking lovely and is obviously a lot bigger than I realised as I have recently become aware that there are ponds at this venue which I haven't yet fully explored:

There were lots of butterflies still on the wing but this Large Skipper attracted my attention as he posed on a cloud of yellow flowers:

I have been taking a leaf out of the PE book and have been doing some Sallow searching of my own as it is surprising what can be found - a couple of Shield bugs of some sort on this occasion:

I feel very lucky to have this site so close and it is now always my venue of choice when time is short.

[MikeOxon]

For various reasons I was not able to do stuff like this when I was a child

I found your post on the caterpillars pupating rather inspiring - I must try it myself since, like you, I never did this sort of thing when a child. My parents had no interest in natural history, which is a pity, since I now realise what a fascinating place we lived in, by the dunes on the Lancashire coast.

Mike

[David M]

Some lovely images there, Pauline. I hope you get to see one or two emerge from the pupa.

[badgerbob]

Hi Pauline. Great to see the Puss larvae. Never seen one, but would love to. Had an adult in the trap before though and that is also very impressive!!

[Paul Harfield]

Hi Pauline

Just catching up. Good luck with your Peacocks, they are unbelievably beautiful when newly emerged You are right about Sallow being a particularly rich hunting ground for anything with six legs. Our neighbours once let one grow outside their kitchen window until it became a bit of an eyesore. However, it was always covered in the summer with all sorts of life. There was plenty of greenfly on it accompanied by lots of Ladybird larvae of several different varieties as well as sawfly larvae and Comma larvae seemed to enjoy it.

I note that Silver Spotted Skippers are already out in Sussex. I was thinking of trying my luck for an early one at Oxenbourne this weekend, what are my chances

[Pauline]

Thank you Mike. Do please try it for yourself as it is quite fascinating.

Wouldn't that just be the icing on the cake David. It is a pity so many have chosen the roof of the cage as it makes photography a little awkward but it will be great to release them nevertheless.

Good to hear from you Paul and thank you for your comment. You may be lucky with the SSS as many species are early this year and I think it was 23rd when I saw them last year. That little colony seems to be dwindling though but I had intended to check them out later this week. If I find anything it will be in my diary.

They are really amazing Bob. I wanted to see them again and take some shots in less windy conditions but when I returned about 36 hours later they had all gone, presumably to pupate. The cocoon they make is almost as interesting as the cats as they chew bits of wood and mix it with saliva which then hardens like concrete and it is very well camouflaged indeed. The moth has to use some type of acid I believe to break through the casing - perhaps the formic acid that the pupa uses as a defence mechanism?

On the same branch where I found the Puss larva I found what I think is a Pebbled Prominent larva - another strange looking caterpillar:

Some of the Buff tipped cats were already starting to disperse and as I got close to this one he threatened me by lifting up his back end and presenting me with a fierce looking face:

I had the pleasure of watching a female second brood Holly Blue egg-laying but this was too high up for any photos. The activity was interspersed with rest periods deep in the bramble but I managed a couple of shots for the record:

Back home, the reared Alder cat is doing just fine but I now need to determine the pupal needs as I don't think it will be long before I (hopefully) witness another transformation:

[Pauline]

I was passing Southsea yesterday and on the spur of the moment decided on a quick stop to check the fennel (well, you never know! ). It was good to see that Mark and/or other person(s) have been doing a good job of monitoring it as there were well defined tracks up to and around each clump of fennel and buddleia. This made my visit considerably easier as I was wearing shorts and the long, spiky stems had been flattened. Despite a fairly thorough look I was only able to find one cat - I have no idea what it is but I am pretty sure it wasn't the one I was looking for!

[Pauline]

What exciting times these are - reports of a Yellow legged Tortoiseshell invasion, sightings of large Tortoiseshell, European Swallowtails and a gorgeous rare Painted Lady aberration. I wish I could clone myself and be in 3 places at once but domestic duties have to be done some time and between food shopping and vet visits I could only manage a quick visit to Oxenbourne, prompted by Paul's enquiry about SSS. I am fairly sure they are not out yet Paul (but could well be by the weekend). However, there was a lot of butterfly activity with many fresh (only male) Chalk Hills and lots of fresh Small Skippers, the females of which seemed to be almost totally engaged in egg-laying. I watched a few before taking a few shots and then I carefully examined the blade of grass. I wasn't surprised to find a few eggs so I continued to examine other blades and the next 3 also contained eggs. I had expected these to be firmly fixed to the surface but beware if you decide to look because these little pearls seem to roll about freely and great care should be taken to ensure none are lost:

I also saw a couple of pretty moths but no idea (again!) what they are:

This one looked black and white in flight but had a strange pointed snout:

A lovely fresh Small Copper caught my eye as she searched for a place to deposit her eggs, totally oblivious of my presence. I crouched down to get some shots probably getting covered in ticks again in the process - this is one of the worst sites I know for ticks and biting things so don't forget Jungle formula max strength tho' I have never found it very effective in these situations.

As I left her she was still laying eggs and kept returning to the same small area. I have noted the area of both the Small Copper and Small Skipper eggs and may well return to monitor them

As I left the site I took a couple more shots of things I should know the name of but have forgotten - must be a senior moment

[MikeOxon]

Another fascinating series of photos and, for once, I think I can identify most of the moths!

The very pretty little purple moth is one of the Pyralids: Pyrausta purpuralis Your photo show the wings spread sufficiently to show the inner spot on the hind-wings, which differentiates this species from the similar P. aurata.. The 'football jersey' caterpillar is a Cinnabar moth and your other pair are 6-spot Burnets Zygaena filipendulae. The other will need a 'real' moth expert! It's one of the 'grass moths'.

Since you don't mention it, I assume that your Small Copper does not have the blue spots that you are keen to find.

Mike

[Pauline]

Thank you Mike, both for the compliment and the ID's - I am slowly learning and have ordered a couple more books on the cat/moth subject so hopefully won't need as much help once they arrive. As for the Small Copper, well, I think those with blue spots are just a myth - after all, I've been looking for 3 years now and you'd think I would have seen one by now if they existed so I think some folk are just having a bit of fun with photoshop

I don't much like this hot humid weather and was in desperate need of a bit of a cool breeze which meant either the coast or the hills. I opted for Old Winchester Hill and I was not disappointed. As usual there was quite a breeze but this time it was very welcome. The place was teeming with butterflies, in particular lots of fresh Red Admirals and Small Tortoiseshell at every step:

The nettles were covered in cats of all sizes and I assume they are ST but I am still not too good on my cat ID's:

Smashing views as always:

Lots of Skippers about and the Chalk Hills were just starting to emerge:

I'd like to be able to say that I'm looking forward to my next visit but with so many other stunning sites to see I don't seem to get here quite as often as I might.

[Mike Robinson]

It looks very steep there.
I was at Fackenden Down (Kent) yesterday; it's very, very steep there. But the walk back to the car is thankfully downhill.

[David M]

This is perhaps the most exciting time of year, where the emergence of Nymphalids allows many sites to harbour 20+ different species.

It only lasts two or three weeks so make the most of it!

[Wurzel]

Beautiful Chalk Hill Pauline I'm checking my local site everyday with still no sightings I might have to try somewhere else Your unidentified moth is I think Crambus perlella? Hope this helps?

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Maximus]

Lovely photos in your recent posts Pauline stunning shots of the amazing moth larvae and great shots of the Small Skipper and Small Copper ova you're really 'getting into' early stages

Mike

[Pauline]

It is indeed very steep Mike and what some folk don't know is that at the very bottom of the very steepest bit you can find Small Blue at the right time of the year - but I have never seen anyone down there.

I only managed 15 species this morning David but then I didn't wander very far, staying in the SSS hotspots. I'm confident I could have made it into the twenties if I'd wandered around the site.

Thank you for the ID Wurzel. There are lots of Chalk Hills about now so yes, try another site

Thank you Mike. I can tell you that the early stages are a damn sight easier to photograph and just as interesting as the imago - if you can find them .... and I guessed right about your recent visit, so come on, get some more shots posted, pronto!

My posts are now getting a little out of order but just wanted to report that SSS is now out at Oxenbourne. I had a smashing couple of hours there this morning, apart from being eaten alive by horrible black flies if I so much as stopped to take a photo. I am not exaggerating when I say that within seconds anywhere between 50 -100 landed on my shorts and legs so instead of just standing and watching the action I had to stay on the move.

The egg-laying Skippers and Small Coppers continued egg-laying and were now joined by Chalk Hill Blue and Common Blue also egg-laying - the first time I have seen the females:

Half a dozen DGF skimmed around the site, including 2 pairs (2 of which were worn and 2 fresh). The closest I got to one of these was to find it tucked away (briefly) when the sun momentarily disappeared. It is always difficult to know how fast to move in such situations - too fast and you scare them off but if you're too slow they're off before you get the shot - which is what happened here:

There were some lovely fresh Brimstone which were happy to pose:

but the SSS DID take some finding. I thought I saw one the other day but I wasn't sure. Today I am confident that there were 2 but getting close was another challenge as they were focused on finding females. Let us hope this site has more success than the last couple of years. The first shot:

The butterflies seem intent on really making me work for my shots this year - it has definitely not been easy. Now here's the big ask! I really like this photo - except for that branch. I love the freshness of the butterfly and the way it shimmers in the sun. I might not get better at Oxenbourne. Is there anyone out there with photoshop skills good enough to remove the branch? It would be much appreciated.