August 2014

[Wurzel]

Well Adrian I would have thought that if you'd bothered to quote me you might have actually read my post before criticising it. If you had read it then you should've noticed that I didn't once refer to the dogs as bad...

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Tony Moore]

There's no such thing as a bad dog - just a bad dog owner.
Adrian Riley

Absolutely right, but sadly that doesn't stop the bad owner's dogs being a bloody nuisance.

Tony M.

[Philzoid]

Cracking shots Philzoid You're right the uncontrolled dog was a mar on the day and it hasn't done anything to help my girls get over their fear of dogs . It was a shame because there were some really well behaved dogs round that day with responsible owners but my girls were twitchy after that encounter so I kept getting distracted - still I got a few shots too - but it'll probably be August 2015 before I get round to posting them

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Thanks Wurzel. Despite the distractions coming at the peak time (out of the 11 we saw you spotted 9 of them first (including that male ) and so deserved better opportunity). I reckon your shots and report will easily top mine and be well worth waiting for ...whenever it comes

Glad you found the Brown Hairstreaks, Philzoid! I half expected you to appear yesterday when I went to Bookham (and saw no less than four of the little beauties - I was staggered).

I got it into my head that the best time is early to mid august yet now thinking back I had a good session at Bookhams in 2011 at the end of the month

I have every sympathy with you in your dog experience - similar experiences have spoiled many days out for me. My youngest son is very wary of dogs, and rightly so in my view with so many irresponsible and frankly uncaring owners around.

I have had many experiences over the years with dogs and their owners, some very good and some downright bad but my perception is that problems encountered by (aggressive) unleashed dogs in the countryside are getting more frequent. My eldest daughter has learned to keep calm in such intimidating situations but my youngest, though getting better as she gets older, is still wary.

Hi Philzoid!
Awesome pics of the BH's. I have tried in vain to find them around me (Gloucs) but hope that my quest will be rewarded one day.
Flutter on!
CJB

I bet your seasons tally is still up on me (mine is set to top out at 47 (does not include Purple & White-letter Hairstreaks) and the Brostreaks should be around for you for a couple more weeks (said now that I'm in the know ). BTW reading your diary reminded me that I saw a Hummingbird Hawkmoth at Shipton, only briefly mind as it shot by .... nothing like that stunning image of yours . If your phone can freeze these things in mid-air you should try it on Brimstones ... guaranteed to get you acceptable open-wing pictures
Nice open-wing Large Blues too Mine were taken with a coolpix compact some years ago and look positively poor now, by comparison. Also as a moth-er I've never seen Small Eggar (imago or larvae). If you do move onto them there's plenty to keep you busy with around 800 macros and more than twice as many micros

Phil