www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

You seem to have an inexhaustible supply of great photos Wurzel, I agree with Mike fantastic Cream Spot Tiger shots there. Anyway Keep em coming your helping me to get through the winter

Ditto on the Cream Spot tiger shots, a species I have yet to see.

As other have said, keep 'em coming

Cheers,

Neil.

Cheers Mike It certainly is a cracking species
Cheers Rex (Ni) and Neil for your kind comments There are still a few more posts in the vaults of my hard drive Speaking of which...

Lost Post 3 - Corfe Castle

Way back in the distant summer I took my family back to my homeland, the forever beautiful Dorset, and we camped at our favourite site on the Isle of Purbeck. During our stay I photographed some fantastic moths (another post or two in the bank ), we visited Studland and Lulworth which threw up some cracking butterflies and I was also able to find a small un-mown area which served as my ‘away from home local patch’. Because of the splendid array of species I saw and photographed the shots from the final day fell further and further down the pecking order. Our trip was quickly followed by another one to West Wales and the outlaws at Ffos-y-ffin and so this report then got lost, submerged by my passion for Small Coppers and my obsession for Hedge Browns.
It was only when I started clearing up my hard drive, doing the winter cleaning, that I stumbled over it and memories of the day came flooding back so I thought I better finish the job I started back in August...

Having taken advantage of some free Wi-Fi the day before we saw that the weather was going to be showery and blustery so with the tent still dry from the night before we ate breakfast quickly and were packed and ready to go by 10am. Soon the girls were waving goodbye to the friends they’d made and we bounced down the track and then onto Corfe Castle. The path from the car park at the bottom of the hill winds through a small wood, crosses the river (perfect for paddling) and then ascends up and round to the main gate. On the way up I noted a few whites and a pair of Specklies but I knew that the girls would stop for a paddle on the way back so we continued to the castle.

Once inside we sat down on the grass and ate lunch watching Knight School and sparks flying from the Smithy that had a small forge going and then we made our way to the Keep. The girls love this place; looking in all the nooks and crannies, waving at serfs on the road below, completing the trail; but today it was ‘Witches and Princesses’. I had to feel sorry for my older daughter who kept getting locked in a tower by my younger daughter, and man was she scary! I sat in the shelter form the wind and dozed in the sun as they played until something creamy/tangerine shot by like a brushfire fairytale.
“Possibly a Painted Lady?” I thought which roused me from daze so I had a mooch around. The Lady was long gone but I did find a Red Admiral which looked tired and was crawling into some shelter from the wind amidst the battlements. It looks a bit battered and I couldn’t work out if the damage had been received from surviving day in day out for some time or whether it was new and occurred on its recent journey here? Whatever the reason it was a welcome sight as this year they seemed well down in numbers. With the girls all played out we made our way back down from the Keep and the path, with a Large Skipper frustratingly staying on the wrong side of the fence on the way down. Still once we reached the bridge and the river the girls kicked their shoes off and started some serious paddling. My younger daughter always tries to find the deepest spot slowly wading and testing the depth with her toes until inevitably she ends up with wet knees, thighs and knickers. My older daughter likes to build dams so once they’d started their respective activities I slipped away. Within a few steps I stopped as I was in a lush glade were I was able to watch a pair of Specklies fighting. They’d spiral up together locked in battle until they’d reach a break in the trees and then they’d be lost from sight in the dazzle. A Green Veined White fluttered delicately about looking ethereal amongst the lush greens and was joined briefly by a male Small White. I just loved the colours as it was all so verdant, so unlike the khaki greens of summer when the grasses are just on the turn. I was soon joined by a Specklie, one of the original fighting pair possibly? This one seemed much more settled (or was that just knackered?) so I managed a few quick shots. “Mummy I’ve got wet shorts” rang up the river...the cue to head home!

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Have a fantastic Christmas everyone!

Hi Wurzel,

Must admit, when we were in Dorset we went past Corfe Castle a few times, both in the car and on the Steam Railway, but never got around to stopping off there. There are some lovely view of it as you approach on the train.

One for the next visit

Hope you and the family have a fantastic Christmas,

Neil.

Cheers Neil I hope you and yours had a great one

With the lunch eaten, the wrapping paper cleared away and all the Lego built (and then rebuilt once the girls were in bed ) I was at a loss what to do so back to those Lost Posts...

The Park

My last few ‘Lost Posts’ have covered a few of the reasons for not posting - missing the target , just being more of the same and having other more interesting reports from around the same time. This one represents the ‘too fleeting an observation’ reason for not posting...
During the main part of season I take my camera with me pretty much everywhere. On my trips to and from work it’s hung around the headrest of the passenger seat, at work it’s placed on my desk and when I leave the house it’s tucked away in my MMAAANNNNbag.
On one of my family trips to town we stopped off on the way home so the girls could visit the small park which is nestled between a bend in the river. As I pushed the swing I scanned across the brambles and other assorted foliage that bordered the park amongst the hoverflies and bees a spied a Comma fluttering around amongst the prickles and the flowers. Luckily my daughter wanted to try something else so I was relieved from swing duty and then scissor kicked my way over the low fence. Having located the Comma I was chuffed that it was so nicely poised so I fired off a few shots before it moved on to start nectaring. This meant that the underside was nicely exposed so I could get a glimpse of the bark like surface with the lime dots and chevrons along the margins of the wings.
All too briefly I was called away from my revelry and put back on swing shift but for those few fleeting moments I was away, relaxed and totally absorbed for what had felt like an age. When I got back and checked the shots I realised that I’d been away for 2 minutes at most! Have a goodun

Wurzel

Break Duty

This ‘Lost Post’ was formulated during my break on my duty day back in mid September. I have to walk round the various different zones at work to make sure that the staff are all present and correct and then I have to walk a circuit off the premises and down to the local shop as well as checking out a few notable places where I know the smokers hide. It’s very satisfying to be there just round the corner straining my ears for the rasp of a match or flint, waiting for the first long, slow exhale and then leaping out and demanding they head “Down the corridor for smoking and being off site!”. This really cheers me up and helps me get through the day

On previous outings I have noticed a large patch of Ivy and the weather report suggested that it would be warm and dry with some sun peeping through just before I was due to step out. So I took my camera along hoping for Red Admirals or possibly a Small Tort or late Peacock. However this post encompasses almost all of the reasons for not posting:
• The weather report was totally wrong, not a glimpse of sun, cool and damp, not exactly ideal for butterflies.
• I missed my target species.
• At around the same time I was finding Blues and Coppers at Larkhill and there were a lot of Whites around so it felt like ‘more of the same’
• The views I got were fleeting and brief and of only two species as I had to get back to work.
So when I got home I looked through my photos, selected those for the bin, those to keep and those to do something with. Then the folder went into the archive. It was only when I went back over them recently that I realized that there were a couple of shots that I liked so I dragged them out. I’m looking forward to next year when I think I’ll have to have a closer examination of this area and the neighbouring allotments, once I’ve caught the smokers of course!
Have a goodun

Wurzel

2014 Happy 2014 everyone, here's hoping it brings plenty of butterflies I'm on one for the year so far, good old Bob is still sleeping away
January Have a goodun

Wurzel

Where’s the Grayling?

I’ve found and photographed Graylings over three successive seasons and they have a firm place in my Top 10, partly for their stunning camouflage but mainly for the challenge that they present. I’ve visited the same site for all three years now and as I cross the cricket ground and start the walk down the hill I scan for everything be it Moth, Bee or Butterfly – just in case. I’ve found that Graylings are like Buses in that I can walk across the heath for an hour without seeing anything and then once I’ve found one I know that another couple will follow shortly. It’s almost as if the initial (usually fortuitous) sighting realigns your focus, scales fall from your eyes and then you’re tuned in to observe Graylings. Even then once you’ve found one you daren’t take your eye off it because the slightest glance sideways and they’ve disappeared from view. There have been times when I know exactly where the butterfly is yet it becomes lost from sight. A few stealthy steps forward and it’s still invisible and then it explodes from the precise spot that you’ve been staring at for 10 minutes without actually seeing it. They really are fantastic creatures.

When I first encountered them three seasons ago I put them in a self published book and made reference to playing “Where’s the Grayling?” and this year I put some shots aside in a folder ready for the winter months when I thought it would be good fun and we’d need some cheering up to get through the drear and cold. I got beaten to the punch by Maximus so I’ve left it a good while since his last selection. Hopefully these will keep our observational skills sharp so come next season we’ll be on top form!

Some easy ones to start... Slightly trickier... Harder still Good luck! Have a goodun

Wurzel

Hi Wurzel,

Great last few posts. As for the spot the butterfly photos, got them all inside a minute, apart from the last one. I thought, no way is there a Grayling in that picture, and there is`nt, but there is the slightest edge of a wing tip in there. You naughty boy.

I hope you and your family have an excellent New Year.

All the best, Nick.

Shhhhhhhh you'll give the game away Cheers Nick for your other kind comments the butterflies are harder to find on an iPod touch screen

Have a goodun (New Year that is)

Wurzel

Yes, that last one is a bit of a cheat!!!

You tease, Wurzel. I think any future 'spot the...' competitions will have to include WHOLE butterflies!

Sorry Nick - in my defence it wasn't really cheating, just bending the rules as much as I could
Fair point David from now on I'll keep it kosher

Can you see what I see?

While waiting for Philzoid or someone else to start the Multi-species thread I started looking through my shots to find a few ready. In the process I found a few which are very similar to my “Find the Grayling” series so I thought I’d compile them to give us all something to do during the down season. Each shot has a range of species and a number of butterflies so get your eyes peeled. Oh and I haven’t done any sneaky cropping this time

To get started...
1. Slightly harder...
2. 3. 4. 5. Tricksy...
6. 7. Have a goodun

Wurzel

Sorry Wurzel, I didn't mean to spoil your winter 'Where's the Grayling?' compilation Its interesting that you produced a self published book on this subject, what a great idea Their camouflage is fantastic and I too have followed a Grayling in flight, watched it land, made my way to the spot it landed and have seen nothing Thinking I must have been mistaken, on my first step forward a Grayling explodes into the air, from the very spot i've been looking at for the last five minutes and leaves me cursing They really are beautiful Butterflies Nice compilation by the way

Mike

1. Meadow Brown, Brown Hairstreak and a sneaky female Common Blue.
2. Two Peacocks, a Meadow Brown and (mainly due to it being of similar size to the adjacent Peacock) a Silver Washed Fritillary.
3. Brown Argus, Small White, Small Tort, Peacock.
4. Red Admiral, 2 Small Torties, one airborne Large White, Peacock and....I'll go for a Comma with wings almost shut on the right hand bloom (the cream coloured legs are my main reason for this choice).
5. Tortoiseshell, Peacock, 2 male Meadow Browns and a Hedge Brown.
6. Two Torties, Peacock and a female Meadow Brown at left.
7. Tortoiseshell, Peacock, 2 Meadow Browns foreground right, two probable Small Whites in the background and what appears to be a female Hedge Brown part obscured to the left....oh, and a bumble bee!

I can see a fifth individual on no.3 - left hand side between the Blue/Brown Argus and the Small White. Very fluttery - a Silver-Y moth?

Dave

millerd wrote:I can see a fifth individual on no.3 - left hand side between the Blue/Brown Argus and the Small White. Very fluttery - a Silver-Y moth?

Good call, Dave. That's a nailed-on Silver Y!

Excellent stuff Wurzel

In addition to Davids list there is another Small Tortoiseshell in No5

jackz432r wrote:Excellent stuff Wurzel

In addition to Davids list there is another Small Tortoiseshell in No5

You're right, Jack! Wings shut just right of centre. Well spotted.

Wow, imagine seeing so many species in such small areas!! 2013 was a great year.