essex buzzard

[Wurzel]

A cracking start Essex but I need more!

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[essexbuzzard]

Several other species were seen here, including lots of Balkan Marbled Whites and a Lesser Fiery Copper,

Here is a black headed bunting, and a view of the scenery,

[essexbuzzard]

After lunch was taken in a nearby gorge, where Southern Comma, Blue-spot Hairstreak and Bergers Clouded Yellow were seen, we went to a streamside, where mud-puddling butterflies, especially blues, had assembled. Here is a Pontic Blue:

Other blues included Common, Adonis, Eastern Mazarine and Amanda's. A Loew's Blue was new for me:

Odd-spot Blues were also present:

Eastern Brown Argus was new too:

Here is Amanda's and Silver-studded Blues:

Other species included Marsh and Queen of Spain Frits, Steppe Grayling and Turkish Fiery Copper. Ant lions were common throughout, marking the end of great first day in Armenia.

[Wurzel]

Brilliant stuff Essex, that's what I was hoping for - Odd-spot Blues certainly live up to their name

Have a goodun
Wurzel

[essexbuzzard]

Aren't they peculiar? I've seen them in Greece, but this is the first time I've managed a picture!

The next day, we headed to the Acharkut beech forest. The road in was too rutted for our minibus, so we transferred to jeeps to get deep into the forest. Again, UKB's own Guy was not far from my thoughts. I know he loves his Cardinals and they were abundant today-every thistle patch had several feeding on it. The sheer size of this fritillary can be seen, when it shares a thistle with a Brimstone;

On the track, we saw Southern White Admiral, Nettletree Butterfly and Silver-washed Fritillary, while this Caucasian Fritillary was new for me;

Several kinds of Grayling were seen. Great Banded were easy to identify, but I'm not sure about the other picture, though Cypress Eastern Grayling and Syrian Rock Grayling were present;

A Large Tort seemed to take an interest in our lunch, but landed only briefly. A Swallowtail didn't land at all! Wood whites were seen along the track, again without stopping. But Sooty Coppers and an Eastern Short-tailed Blue were more obliging;

[essexbuzzard]

This False Small White is new to me, but I've seen Chapmans Blues before, at least that's what I think it is! Another really good day, especially as I saw my first ever black stork!

[bugboy]

You definitely saw an impressive array of species, looking forward to further posts

[Pauline]

Some stunning butterflies posted recently Mark. I have seen Cardinals on Guys diary but never appreciated just how big they are. That's a great shot of one with the Brimstone which gives context to it

[Wurzel]

Fantastic stuff Essex - those Cardinals are huge A cracking array of butterflies and Black Stork - they're brill birds

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[essexbuzzard]

Just returned from our holiday in the beautiful isle of Purbeck. So getting a bit behind on my diary- I am having a competition with Wurzel this year, who takes longest to get up to date!

Back in Armenia,and next day, a pre-breakfast Waldo produced Dark-veined White and a lovely Scotch Argus.

Later, we were off to the Jajur Pass. A hovering buzzard turned out lo be my first ever long-legged buzzard. On the road verge, an Orange Tip was flying. In the open woodland , Cardinals were again common. Other Frits included Caucasian, Nickerl's, Silver-washed, Dark Green, Queen of Spain, Marsh and Glanville. A Mountain Alcon Blue colony was present,and we found a mating pair. A nice Yellow-Banded Skipper was photographed, with Orb Red-underwing Skipper nearby. Heaths included Chestnut and my first ever Caucasian.

[essexbuzzard]

But even these were eclipsed when we went around the corner. For a leaky fountain had produced a marvellous show of mud puddling Gavarnie Blues-we estimated we saw 200 on the day! Other blues amongst them included a few Pontic Blues. We had lunch here, where we could relax and enjoy the scene.

[David M]

Gavarnie Blue!!! What a sighting, Mark. I'm truly envious. Armenia is full of surprises!

[Wurzel]

I was still reeling from the Yellow-banded Skipper and then you go and drop those Blues on us

Have a goodun

Wurzel

ps - I've so far behind that you'll have to go a long way to out-slow me

[essexbuzzard]

Aren't Gavarnie Blues strange things, David? I've seen them in France, and here, a thousand miles away, is another colony!

Thanks Wurzel, though I'm a month behind!

After lunch,we headed up into the hills. Lesser spotted and golden eagle were seen, and lots of Glanville Fritillary and Purple-shot Copper males were on territory along the track. Large and Dingy Skippers were easy to identify, Green Hairstreaks were not, for several kinds occur here. We sent images to a local expert, these were considered to be Sovinsky's Greens.

A Swallowtail flew past, and lots more Gavarnie Blues were found, and a few Eastern Mazarine Blues. Tho only Painted Lady of the trip was also here.

Later, at Gyumri, where we stayed that night, we searched a small waste patch, much to the amusement of the locals, we found several White-letter Hairstreaks.

[Padfield]

Hi Buzzard. You don't work for the Armenian Tourist Office do you? I suspect they're going to get a lot of visitors next year, after people have read these amazing posts!

If you've seen Gavarnie blue in France, then I'm happy to give you an armchair tick, as the population in Armenia is A. dardanus, not pyrenaica. I think this is accepted now as a distinct species - and if I understand Kudrna right (reading between the lines a bit) pyrenaica and glandon are more closely related to each other than to dardanus (he says pyrenaicus is a member of the glandon group but that dardanus is only possibly a member of this group).

Re the green hairstreaks, I think Sovinsky's green hairstreak is Callophrys chalybeitincta. Now it's almost impossible to identify Callophrys from the underside alone - the colour of the upperside and the shape and size of the sex brand are important. But one thing you can see from the underside is the anal lobe on the hindwing. In chalybeitincta this is quite well developed. In the other two Armenian species (danchenkoi and armeniaca) it is much less so. Yours seem to have very little in the way of anal lobe, visible in these pictures, at least. My source is Tuzov - Butterflies of Russia and Adjacent Territories. I'd be interested to know how the diagnosis of chalybeitincta was reached - perhaps by ecological or distributional clues.

Love it!

Guy

[David M]

Wow! More surprises, Mark!

Armenia has definitely been elevated in my list of places to visit.

[essexbuzzard]

Hi Guy, I know next to nothing about the butterflies in this region. At least not those that are not found in central or Western Europe, so thanks for your input, especially the Gavarnie Blues-or not!

The Green Hairstreaks, which again I'm not familiar with, were identified by sending site details, habitat and image shot to an Armenian butterfly specialist, of which there are not many! So mistakes could certainly have been made.

Cheers!

[essexbuzzard]

Next day, we went to mount Aragat, making several stops. Marsh Fritillaries were surprisingly common in this dry stony habitat. Other Fritillaries included Glanville, Knapweed, Caucasian, Cardinal and Dark Green. Here's a Knapweed;

And a Marsh;

This frit I'm not sure about;

Several blues were seen, including good numbers of Blue Argus;

A nearby field was full of cranesbill flowers, and it was no surprise that Geranium Argus were there too;

[Wurzel]

I think Guy's rumbled you Essex - if you don't work for the Armenian Tourist board already then I'd get in touch quick and tap them up for some commission - if it wasn't for work or family commitments I'd be there like a shot

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[essexbuzzard]

Mud puddling is one of the great pleasures of butterflying in Europe and beyond. Our next stop was for a known site. Here we had the dazzling sight of hundreds of butterflies on the edge of a rocky stream. Some groups were dominated by Black Veined Whites:

Other groups were mainly Blues:

Several grizzled Skippers were here,too. I think these are Olive Grizzed Skippers:

A Hungarian Glider stoped by:

Here is Eastern Mazarine Blue, I think:

Here's a scenery shot

Hi Wurzel, yes there is no end to Guy's talents! Perhaps the tourist board can give me another holiday!