dilettante

[dilettante]

Thursday 31st July 2014

Having read of Clouded Yellows in nearby Cherry Hinton East Pit, I decided to pop in on the way to work. 8:30am it was sunny and warm, but there wasn't a lot of butterfly activity apart from a few male Common Blues. As I headed back towards the car around 9am, I 'white' with heavy black borders flew past. I dashed after it, and as I got close, a 'traditional' Clouded Yellow flew over. Not to be distracted, I followed the presumed helice for a while, with several other sightings of yellow CYs.



Clouded Yellow helice form, Cherry Hinton, Cambs


Clouded Yellow helice form, Cherry Hinton, Cambs

Unfortunately I was now late for work, so had to dash off but resolved to come back at lunch time.

When I arrived, I saw a chap with a large camera climbing a slope. Aha, I thought, he must be after a Clouded Yellow. But no, it turned out he was taking topless shots of his lady friend. I'm not sure what it says about me that I was disappointed Anyway, feeling slightly conspicuous, I carried on looking for butterlflies, and this time saw only the yellow CYs. I'm not sure how many, but several times I saw two together. I'm guessing from their ceaseless patrolling behaviour that they were males. Eventually when the sun went behind a cloud, one deigned to settle a few times and I moved in for the shot:


Clouded Yellow, Cherry Hinton, Cambs

As well as these, there was a great number of Common Blues - I saw a spiral of 5 together at one point.

[Wurzel]

Stunning stuff I still haven't seen a Helice and those shots are making me dearly wish that I had.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

Lovely, crisp and clear images as always, Dilettante.

What a delight it must be to see such butterflies on UK soil.

[dilettante]

3-9th August 2014

The first week of our holiday in France staying in La Clusaz, near Annecy. As it was a family activity holiday I generally didn't have time to look of butterflies, or have a camera on me, but there were a couple of opportunities.

Corrections of any id's would be greatly appreciated!
These first two were taken at 1600m at Beauregard, overlooking La Clusaz

I wasn't sure what this one is - the closest I could find in my book was Titania's or PBF?

Unidentified Fritillary.

No doubts about this one - a rather worn, almost transparent Black-veined White, seen on a walk down from the Mer de Glace glacier (of which remarkably little remains compared to my first visit there 25 years ago) outside Chamonix.

Black-veined White, Chamonix

This was the highlight of my week butterfly-wise, seeing Apollos. Unfortunately this was the only shot I managed as they rarely settled, and if they did it was on a steep precipitous slope where I couldn't keep up with them.

Apollo

This was in the same spot. Is it a Mountain Clouded Yellow?

Mountain Clouded Yellow?

Also this fritillary, which I'll take a guess at Heath Fritillary?

Heath Fritillary?

[dilettante]

[/b]9th-16th August 2014[/b]

For the second week of our holiday we moved South to the Var region, staying in a holiday home in the hills. Almost as soon as we arrived I saw Purple Hairstreaks in the low oaks around the property, but despite frequent searches all week I rarely saw them within camera range. This was about the only usable shot I got all week:


Purple Hairstreak

The scrubby woodland of the region had plenty of satyridae species. I'm not confident with my identification of these, so any help would be appreciated.Their preference for shade and their alertness didn't make photography easy:


Woodland Grayling


Tree Graylings


Great Banded Grayling


Striped Grayling

Fritillaries also test my identification powers.



Spotted Fritillary?


Spotted Fritillary?


Heath Fritillary?

I think this is a Chalk Hill Blue, but the orange spots confused me:


Chalk Hill Blue?

Silver-wasehd Fritillaries were present in several places we visited, mostly a little past their prime. Halfway up the Sainte Baume I saw this valezina (I think) - a first for me. I couldn't get close but here's a cropped shot:


Silver-wased Fritillary f. valezina

And I think this is a helice Clouded Yellow?


Clouded Yellow f. helice?

These seemed tiny, but are probably just plain ol' Brown Argus?


Brown Argus?

And finally this Silver-spotted Skipper:


silver-spotted Skipper

[dilettante]

18th April 2015

It felt like the butterfly year started properly today, with a visit to Fleam Dyke, Cambs. I had a few target species for the day and ticked them all off eventually!

There were a lot of Peacocks, Small Tortoiseshells and Brimstones around. Apart from a few unidentified whites I didn't see much else on the outward journey along the Anglo-Saxon dyke, but at the point where we were going to turn round I poked about in hedges and turned up a single Holly Blue - first target species - which didn't hang around for photos, and a couple of male Orange Tips - target species #2. Shortly afterwards on the way back I found bush housing a colony of Green Hairstreaks - target #3. I'm not sure how I missed them on the way out as they were quite active. Some of these did pose for a photos:





There was also a couple of Red Admirals



On the way back, just before I got to the car, I spotted the last of my target species - a Speckled Wood flitting through the trees.

[Wurzel]

Fantastic Greenstreak dilettante I hope the pact that I made with The Green One last year is still holding

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

Excellent images, dilettante. Can we expect more from you this year (t'would be most welcome)?

[dilettante]

Thanks chaps. Hairstreaks are infuriating to photograph I find as they constantly rotate when feeding, and always seem to be angled the wrong way or out of reach when resting!

[Goldie M]

Lovely shots of the Hair Streaks Goldie

[dilettante]

It was nice to see Holly Blue, Orange Tip and Brimstone in the garden simultaneously today. Also funny to watch a White of some sort chasing after a bit of white blossom blowing in the wind.

The bluebells are looking good at Gamlingay Wood, with some of these Early Purple orchids amongst them:

[dilettante]

Saturday 16th May 2015

Took a trip to Newmarket to look for Dingies on the Devil's Dyke - it was quite windy, so I wasn't sure I'd have any luck. There were quite a few Brimstones and Orange Tips near the bottom of the dyke, but my first nice surprise was a fresh Brown Argus. The sides of the dyke are very steep, so it's quite a challenge watching your footing and trying to keep an eye on small brown butterflies while holding on to a camera. But I soon found my first Dingy Skipper also, one of several sharing the bank with a few more Brown Arguses.


Brown Argus male


Dingy Skipper female

[kevling]

Love yours shots from Devil's Dyke. That Brown Argus is beautiful.

Regards Kev

[dilettante]

Saturday 30th May 2015

After a freezing cold night's camping near Ivinghoe, we made the short journey to Dunstable Downs parking at the NT visitor centre. The day was brightening up, but it was still pretty cold with a stiff wind, so I wasn't hopeful of butterflies, but I'd come with my family for a walk so we set out along to top of the Down. Shortly after rounding a corner to a more sheltered spot, I saw a lovely bright Common Blue, which raised my hopes of other butterflies being around.


Common Blue male

So keeping my eyes peeled, I soon saw something I hadn't expected for this site - a little colony of Small Blues. All were past their best, but I haven't seen SBs for a few years, so that was a nice surprise. This one had a lucky escape:


Small Blue and spider

A little further on, a patch of low vegetation and flowers produced a Grizzled Skipper and several Dingies


Dingy Skipper

From there it was down the hill and along the Icknield Way at the bottom of the down. A grassy patch turned up another unanticipated sighting - a Small Heath which rested on the path in their usual way


Small Heath

One of several Brimstones seen throughout the day:


Brimstone male

Towards the end of the walk I abandoned my long-suffering family to go looking for Dukes. There are some gullied paths on the down with sheltered sunny banks full of cowslips and other flowers, so I was expecting some good duke activity. There were quite a few Dingy Skipper, and a Grizzled or two


Grizzled Skipper

"Take me to your leader!" - lots of Common Twayblade with its alien-like flowers

Common Twayblade

Eventually I found one sluggish but fairly good-condition Duke of Burgundy who didn't want to come out to be photographed in the open.

Duke of Burgundy

After that it was back to the camper van for lunch, then I went back to the duke site to try again, the weather a little warmer now but still pretty windy and cool. I came across this little chap


Green Hairstreak

and this rather fine Dingy


Dingy Skipper

Eventually I turned up a few more Dukes, but none looking in great shape


Duke of Burgundy


Duke of Burgundy

Considering I hadn't expected to see anything that day, it was pretty good result in the end, and a nice walk with the family and some kite flying made for an excellent day in a beautiful part of the world. It turned very wet and windy in the night and the following day, so we were lucky - unlike the rather miserable cyclists doing the Chiltern 100 ride whom we saw as we made our way home on Sunday morning.

[Willrow]

Some nice images to go with your interesting reports dilettante, I shall visit your PD again

Regards,

Bill

"When in doubt - venture out"

[dilettante]

Thusday 12th June 2015
An after-work visit to Magog Down just outside Cambridge in the gorgeous sunshine. The Down is looking great:




Butterflies were few and far between however. Several Common Blues and Small Heaths, and a Brimstone, but not much else until I got to the top of the hill. There's a small cleared area in the coppice at the top of the hill, and it was here that a good number of Painted Ladies (at least 6, probably more) and a couple of Red Admirals had gathered. Plenty of dogfighting before returning to their favourite basking points. Unfortunately I only had my phone camera, so no photos, but it was a great sight to enjoy.

[dilettante]

Sunday 21st June 2015

A breezy and overcast but warm afternoon, so I went to Therfield Heath, near Royston, Herts. This is normally a good site for Marbled White, but it seems their emergence has not started in earnest yet. I did find one. and another later, both of which were distinctly camera shy and soon lost in the wind:



Instead I spent some time with some Large Skippers, which along with Meadow Browns were fairly numerous. Both were firsts-of-the-year for me:


Large Skipper


Large Skipper


Large Skipper

Although they're becoming more familiar, it's still nice to see Red Kites in this part of the world:

Red Kites

Also a good number of Bee Orchids, which I've never seen at this site before. The hillside is often grazed by sheep, but this year appears less so and consequently more flowery. The orchids were much smaller than othe Bee Orchids I've seen.
I was hoping for Dark Green Fritillaries, but no sign of them. I did add Small Tortoiseshell and Red Admiral to the list.

After that I decided to see if there were better numbers of Marbled Whites at Gamlingay, normally a stronghold, but I didn't see any there. A few Common Blues and Meadown Browns, and in the main wood, a few Speckled Wood:


Speckled Wood

I checked the main ride for Silver-Washed Fritillaries, but still too early for them here I think. Won't be long though I'm sure.

[dilettante]

4th July 2015

My wife is never very keen on the nettles growing in the garden. I always say "but the butterflies like them!", partly as an excuse to avoid gardening. In truth though I'd never seen any evidence to support my assertion until this morning, when I saw a Small Tortoiseshell laying eggs at the back of the garden.



Hopefully they'll develop over the coming days and weeks.

[dilettante]

Saturday 11th July 2015

Another trip to Gamlingay Woods, Cambs, and its neighbouring Sugley Wood. First spot on arrival was a nice fresh Comma


Comma

This was one of many we'd see today - often in twos and threes spiralling around.

We started in Sugley Wood (which is currently ex-arable grassland being managed to allow the neighbouring wood to expand into it). Plenty of bright Gatekeepers, Meadow Browns, Small and Large Skippers, a few Marbled Whites, and Large and Small Whites. I was struck by the pale colouring of this female Large Skipper, but I guess she's just a bit worn:


Large Skipper female

On the edge of the wood we got glimpses of the main attraction - Silver-Washed Fritillaries - but the stayed at the back of the largest bramble bushes out of camera range. However, back in the main wood there were plenty to be seen and they were more obliging. These were the best of the photos I managed:


Silver-Washed Fritillary


Silver-Washed Fritillary


Silver-Washed Fritillary

And for good measure, a Large White, because I rarely bother photographing them.

Large White

[dilettante]

Saturday 18th July 2015
On a visit to my parents' home in Hampshire, we took a trip to Noar Hill. Apart from a few Marbled Whites and of course Gatekeepers, Meadow Browns and Ringlets, there wasn't much of interest butterfly-wise. But the orchids were amazing - thousands of Pyramidals, and some (rather less visually spectacular) Musk Orchids.

I figured it was worth having a look for Brown Hairstreaks, but not surprisingly I didn't see any. It's not a strong site at the best of times as far as I know (I've never seen a Brown Hairstreak ), and with it being very early in the season and recent scrub clearance, it was a long shot at best.

Sunday 19th July 2015
I was expecting grey weather, but the rain passed through early, to be replaced with hot sunny weather and deep blue skies. I figured a combination of warm weather and damp ground would make a trip to Straits Enclosure worth a punt. We walked along the main path, with its recently cleared verges, enjoying the Silver-Washeds and Commas in good numbers, and the odd White Admiral (which didn't settle for photos). At the end of the path, we disturbed an unseen Purple Emperor which proceeded to buzz us a few times and fly off back down the path. I caught a glimpse of it in the distance so we headed back, and once again disturbed it unseen on the ground. This time it circled round and came back, and settled on the ground for an extended viewing. We probably spent at least twenty minutes with it (but I still didn't get a double-purple wing shot!). This was around 10:30-11:00am.





A great experience!