CFB

[CFB]

It was mainly cloudy this morning in the woods towards Roquefort-les-Pins, but during a brief appearance of the sun I did manage to see, and photograph, my first Dingy Skipper of the year. In previous years I'd seen them from as early as March. This one, female I assume, looks to be a very fresh specimen, and anything but dingy:

In fact she arrived a foot or so away from a Weaver's Fritillary I was photographing. There were two others in the neighbourhood but this one looked just as fresh as the Dingy Skipper:

There were also a few Small Heaths and Large Skippers, several Marbled Whites and Cleopatras, and a Spotted Fritillary or two.
--
Colin

[CFB]

It's starting to get very hot again, and the number of butterfly species flying in my area is quite small. This morning I went to the Parc de la Brague.

There were several Small Heaths including this bright, fresh specimen:

There weren't many Silver-washed Fritillaries, but there was this magnificent valesina. The iridescence on the body and the wings was quite remarkable:

A male wasn't far away, but they didn't seem very interested in each other :

Marbled Whites are still plentiful. This one is on, I believe, some sort of heather bush:

I also found a leucomelas, in the same place as those shown in previous posts. It's a pity about the piece missing from the wing:

Other species seen include Large Skippers (very many), Southern White Admirals (two or three), Speckled Woods (a couple), Wall Browns (many) and Meadow Browns (several). How do you others manage to keep an exact count of many species seen in a day
--
Colin

[CFB]

Even though it was sunny with very little wind there were few butterflies seen this morning along the Piste du Collet des Espéres.

There was one mutilated Scarce Swallowtail,

one male Clouded Yellow,

several Dingy Skippers,

three or so Weaver's Fritillaries, although perhaps it was the same one seen three or so times,

some Small Heaths, a Red Underwing Skipper, a few Marbled Whites, a few Cleopatras, a few Wall Browns, a few Meadow Browns and two Silver-washed Fritillaries, one of which was a valesina.
--
Colin

[Chris Jackson]

Clouded Yellows are very scarce over my way Colin this year. I saw only one in early Spring, otherwise nothing !!
Chris

[CFB]

I've only seen a handful of Clouded Yellows myself, Chris, certainly fewer than last year. Perhaps it's a bit early, as in October 2013 I saw loads of them. (Yes I know "handful" and "loads" are not very precise, but you know what I mean).

Today started off cloudy and cool, and I thought I was never going to see any butterflies. And then the sun started to shine through the clouds, and I met this impeccable male Wall Brown. Why did this make me think of Elizabeth Taylor?

After seeing a male Berger's Clouded Yellow I saw a solitary Provence Chalkhill Blue. At least I assume it wasn't a regular Chalkhill Blue as I don't think there are any at low altitude in my zone.

There were still one or two Dingy Skippers around. Then I saw two female Silver-washed Fritillaries, one of which was a valesina, just as I had seen yesterday, but not at the same place.

Apart from that I also saw a female Southern Small White, a couple of male Cleopatras, some Marbled Whites and a large Skipper.
--
Colin

[CFB]

This morning was like yesterday morning, cloudy at first, then sunny and warm.

More or less the first butterfly I saw had me baffled . It had an underside like a Wall Brown and it was about the same size as a Wall Brown, but the upperside was not that of a Wall Brown. I only managed two photos before it flew away .

When I got home and consulted my books, I realised that it must be a Large Wall Brown even though it seemed to be the same size as a regular Wall Brown. I thought for a moment that it might be a Northern Wall Brown, but these fly at higher altitudes than where I was, and they have a faint dark postdiscal line on the hindwing upperside. Even so, this is only the third Large Wall Brown that I have seen.

Another unexpected sighting was that of a Glanville Fritillary which looked brand-new. I hadn't seen any, or at least hadn't photographed any, since the end of May.

In addition, I saw a couple of Cleopatras, a few Marbled Whites, some Small Skippers and two or three Silver-washed Fritillaries.
--
Colin

[CFB]

After a few days of seeing hardly any butterflies, I decided to see if the Southern Gatekeepers and Two-tailed Pashas were flying at the Terme Blanc. This is the top of a hill with volcanic origins from where the 360 degree view covers: Nice and the hills inland from Nice; Corsica if it is a very clear day, which it wasn't; Antibes; the Iles de Lérins, a couple of kilometres south of Cannes; the hills above Grasse; and the Alpes on the French-Italian border, with some snow still on the Gélas and the Clapier.

Well there were dozens of Southern Gatekeepers . With each step along the path two or three flew off. They were very difficult to photograph, either because they flew away or because they were at almost ground level between waist-high bushes. In fact there was only one which was helpful, a female, who stayed at arm's length for some time.

However there was only one magnificent Two-tailed Pasha, though in fact all Two-tailed Pashas are magnificent n'est-ce pas? At first it was being chased by what I believe were a couple of Large Wall Browns. After a time my Two-tailed Pasha alighted on a bush and stayed there while I took photo from various angles.

Note the iridescence on the left fore-wing in the last photo.

An interesting cactus which grows in this region is the Prickly Pear (Opuntia ficus-indica):

There were hardly any other butterflies to be seen, just two Spotted Fritillaries and a Common Blue.
--
Colin

[Chris Jackson]

Colin,
I still have plenty of Southern Gatekeepers flying in Vitrolles (at work) and around Marseilles, however I can hardly believe that the 2nd generation 2-tail Pasha is flying already .
I thought that mid August was the earliest for them ! Incroyable !
Well, I must keep my eyes open for that.
Cheers, Chris

PS : I put "Terme Blanc alpes maritimes" in Google maps but couldn't identify your view-point.

[CFB]

Chris,

Try copying
43.644200 7.101774
just like that into Google. This gives the top of the hill even though Terme Blanc is not mentioned on the map. The IGN map 3643 ET names it though.

Whilst waiting for my Tree Grayling, here's what I believe to be a male from last year :

--
Colin

[Chris Jackson]

... Try copying
43.644200 7.101774
just like that into Google ...

That works fine, Colin! Nice view from up there I bet
Your last year's statilinus does look like a male.
I will be out on the plateau of Vitrolles at lunch today looking for a 2nd brood Pasha, but it seems a bit early to me.
Chris

[CFB]

This morning was sunny and a bit cooler as I walked along towards Roche d'Ardy.

The most common butterfly today seemed to be the Large Skippers, but there were probably even more dragonflies.

There were several Glanville Fritillaries, but fewer Spotted Fritillaries, including this one:

I saw two Common Blues, a male and a female. This is the male:

There were several Berger's Clouded Yellows, but only one regular Clouded Yellow:

There are still quite a few Cleopatras, but today they were somewhat elusive. But I managed to take a reasonable photo of this male. It's a pity about the missing bit of wing .

I saw an even more elusive Wood White which hardly ever stopped flying, and didn't stay for very long on the few occasions it did land. There were also a couple of Marbled Whites, and quite a lot of Wall Browns.
--
Colin

[CFB]

After thunder and heavy rain late yesterday afternoon, this morning was cloudless and not too hot. I went to the Parc de la Brague. There are still very few species around, once again the Large Skippers being the most abundant. However the first butterfly I saw was a Southern White Admiral, and I saw one or two more later on. This is the first time that I've noticed the grey spot on each hind-wing, on which there are also traces of red.

Some time later I saw this male Provence Chalkhill Blue. In fact I suppose it could be a regular Chalkhill Blue which flies at about this time, but these are generally further north and at higher altitudes than where I was. Any definite ID would be much appreciated.

There were also several Small Heaths:

Apart from that I saw a Scarce Swallowtail, a few Spotted Fritillaries, one Weaver's Fritillary, many Wall Browns and a Southern Small White. But no Cleopatras or any sort of Clouded Yellows.
--
Colin

[CFB]

After a few days of seeing very few butterflies , this morning on the way to Roche d'Ardy there were surprisingly many.

Amongst the Fritillaries were one male and two female (of which one was valesina) Silver-washed, two or three Spotted, a couple of Heath, one Weaver's and one Knapweed:

There were several Large Skippers, one Dingy Skipper, and my first Silver-spotted Skipper of the year :

Several Small Heaths were seen including this one:

I saw my first two Tree Graylings of the year . This is one of them:

A Clouded Yellow flew past at great speed, so no photo , as did several Berger's Clouded Yellows. But this one let me take a few photos:

Apart from that there was a male Adonis Blue, probably a Common Blue, a couple of Cleopatras and several Wall Browns.
--
Colin

[Chris Jackson]

Congratulations Colin on your first Tree Graylings of the year. For me, this species usually marks the end of my yearly check-list, apart from any vagrants that may pass through later.
I photographed my first 2nd-brood Pasha this lunchtime.
Cheers, Chris

[CFB]

This morning it was quite hot so I walked along the Chemin du Bruguet, which has some trees on each side of the road to give some shade.

The first butterfly seen was a Southern White Admiral followed closely by a Silver-washed Fritillary, form valesina:

and a bit further along, a male Silver-washed Fritillary:

There were a few Spotted Fritillaries, a very tatty Weaver's Fritillary, several Small Heaths, a Grizzled Skipper, several Large Skippers, and this cute Silver-spotted Skipper:

I am still waiting to see my first Purple Hairstreak of the year. It shouldn't be long now.
--
Colin

[Chris Jackson]

When you find your Purple H., Colin, please post a photo of its environment so that I know where to look out for one.
Thanks, Chris

[CFB]

OK Chris, I'll try to remember to do that. Incidentally, in 2011 we had several Purple Hairstreaks in and around the swimming pool. They seemed to try to get low enough over the pool to drink some water, in the same way that swallows do, but occasionally they misjudge things and end up in the pool. I have a photo of one which was rescued by my good wife. After drying out, it flew off. It probably helps that there is a large oak tree in a corner of the garden. Then in 2012 they were again seen in the garden, on hydrangeas I think.

This morning it was very hot once again, so I tried to keep on paths amongst the trees. My first photos were of a delightful Wood White. There must have been something special about the scabious plant, as the Wood White was still there half an hour later when I was going back. At least I think it was the same one as there weren't any anywhere else.

Further on there was a solitary Spotted Fritillary trying to hide in the bracken. It seemed to be in very good condition even though there appears to be only one antenna.

There were several Berger's Clouded Yellows. This one is a female:

She was busy with her scabious when along came a male. And I managed to get a photo of the upper-sides of both:

I was quite surprised to see a couple of male Cleopatras, and I got this back-lit shot:

Also seen were several Large Skippers, several Wall Browns, a Tree Grayling and a Speckled Wood.
--
Colin

[Chris Jackson]

I like the upper-side shot of the Cloudies, Colin, it is one my favourite challenges.
Chris

[David M]

I was quite surprised to see a couple of male Cleopatras, and I got this back-lit shot

Not an image often seen on here, Colin, but nonetheless extremely attractive.

[CFB]

Still very hot, but with a little bit of wind to cool it down a bit.

Today's first picture on my way towards the Pont des Dones was a Tree Grayling. Being a dark-coloured butterfly, not being lit by the sun, on a light-coloured stone lit by the sun, is not very helpful for the photographer

A Glanville Fritillary in excellent condition, on a suitably coloured stone was much more helpful

However the only Adonis Blue seen was not in excellent condition:

Today there were more Berger's Clouded Yellows than any other species. Most of them were males. But there were few females, one being in this photo:

Other species seen included several Large Skippers, one or two Silver-spotted Skippers, one Dingy Skipper, some Small Heaths, Wall Browns and Meadow Browns, Spotted and Silver-washed Fritillaries, and a Scarce Swallowtail.
--
Colin