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A glorious day, but I didn't get the chance to benefit until after five this afternoon. I had a mind to look locally for roosting Orange Tips, hoping in fact to spot one settling down and having a last bask in the sunshine. Despite a proliferation of garlic mustard this year, I found two butterflies settled on other perches, and another basking as hoped - but rather a long way off. Apart from these, I saw four Holly Blues, but all well above head height, as the lowering sun caused them to move higher and higher in the hedgerow. I also found a few Orange Tip eggs on the solitary cuckoo flower plant growing around here. It's well shaded, but the butterflies find it easily. Dave

Luckily, I was able to take today off work. After the expensive chore of getting a whole new set of tyres (prompted by no less than two punctures in three days), I set off down to Denbies, prompted by Susie's recent report.

I made straight for the steps, and was soon watching several Green Hairstreaks gyrating and sparring around me, frequently perching on the shrubs as well. This sheltered spot, and the flowers alongside the steps, also attracted a variety of other species: Grizzled and Dingy Skippers, Orange Tips and Brimstones. Female Brimstones were laying on the buckthorn plants in amongst the general scrubby vegetation.
After spending quite a while with the Hairstreaks, I set off down to the bottom of the slopes and walked along to the far end and back. Next to where the path leaves the slopes by a gate, I came across another set of Green Hairstreaks. I was not aware of this separate colony before. On the gentle walk back, there were frequent Dingy Skippers, and quite a few Grizzled Skippers as well.
The highlight amongst all these was a mating pair of Dingies. Soon after this, I came across Bugboy coming the other way. He had also been spending time with the Hairstreaks, and had also seen a Small Heath ( ) which I failed to do. Good to see you, Buggy!

Back at the top of the slopes, I found another couple of Hairstreaks wandering along at ground level, stopping here and there to nectar. All in all, a really good trip out.

I returned home the long way round, via Chiddingfold. It was still very warm and sunny when I arrived at around half past three, but butterflies were few and far between. I saw two Speckled Woods, only two Orange Tips, a handful of Peacocks and numerous Brimstones (though not as many as I've seen in previous years). There were no Wood Whites yet, but it can't be long.

Dave

Those Green Hairstreaks deserve a few mrgreens. Particularly the 4th image down.
You had a day of good sightings. Wood Whites can't be far off.

All the best,
Trevor.

Great to see you again. You had better luck with those Grizzlies than I did, far too flighty by the time I was coming across them. There were at least two Small Heaths, possibly three in the end that I could find.... and on the walk back to westhumble I found a Small Copper as well Four season firsts in one day

lovely Hair Streaks Dave, I hope to see them soon Goldie

Thank you for your kind comments everyone. Green Hairstreaks are a splendid butterfly. I showed some work colleagues a few photos today - they were amazed such beautifully-coloured insects existed in the UK.

After work (about half past four) I had a tour of my local patch. Having mentioned to Bugboy yesterday that I wondered whether the Holly Blues were on a downswing in my neck of the woods, in the space of an hour I counted no less than sixteen. Most were patrolling the upper reaches of ivy-festooned trees, no doubt looking for emerging females. One or two were patrolling more widely, and there was one hovering over the path, hoping for a damp patch from which to take minerals. However, none actually came to a standstill, and I was left without a single photograph. Never mind, it was just reassuring to see so many again.

Aside from the Blue Bonanza, there were Small and Green-veined Whites, Brimstones, Orange Tips of both sexes, several Peacocks, a Comma and two or three Speckled Woods. Like Bugboy, I found a mating pair of GVW, in what looks like a similar spot. Amazingly camouflaged in amongst the vegetation, I only spotted them when another butterfly took an interest. Now it does properly feel like spring...

A selection from this afternoon. Dave

Lovely shots Dave we seem to be very short on Green Veined Whites here I've only seen one up to now at HLB I hope things pick up for them, your shot of the mating pair remind me how things used to be there.Goldie

Absolutely cracking OT shots Dave - and there was you saying how you couldn't get close to a male OT this year

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Thanks, Goldie - there's been a small explosion of GVW here over the weekend - hope they appear up north as well.

Thanks, Wurzel - yes, it's all changed now, as soon as I said it. Like me telling Buggy I was worried about the Holly Blues... Now I'm surrounded by them!

Saturday 7th May was a lovely day, partly spent having a picnic at Runnymede and partly watching Harlequins lose appallingly to Exeter at the Stoop in Twickenham. Surprisingly few butterflies by the Thames in the morning, though I did see my first Small Copper of the year fly across, plus a number of Holly Blues. In the afternoon, a Small Tortoiseshell crossed the pitch at half-time, and there were quite a few Holly Blues in the various suburban gardens between the ground and Twickenham station.

Sunday 8th was a much more interesting day.

Dave

Hi Dave, just catching up on your diary, some great reports and photos recently. You certainly seem to be filling your boots

I hear that things are starting to kick off at Ryton now with Grizzled and Dingy Skippers and Green Hairstreaks all being seen over this past weekend.

Cheers,

Neil.

Thanks for the news about Ryton, Neil - I hope to be up there in a week or two. I'll be looking for Small Blues at Southam too, maybe also Bishop's Hill.

Sunday 8th May:

The promised hot and sunny day materialised. I decided to start off at Totternhoe, just in case the Small Blues had made an appearance, but also to see what else was around. Orange Tips greeted me in the car park, but I saw very little as I walked along the bottom of the cliffs to the left towards the old quarry. Finally, I disturbed a lone (very fresh) Green Hairstreak, before finding my usual route had been cut off by sheep (a polite notice requested that their compartment not be entered). I made my way to the old chalk pits, seeing Brimstones, a Peacock or two and further Green Hairsteaks. I spotted a female Brimstone egg-laying: The pits produced several Dingy Skippers too. After joining forces with a chap from Northampton who knew were he was going, we discovered two or three Dukes in a steep gully.

With plenty of time left in the day, I returned to the car and continued a few miles along the Chilterns to Ivinghoe Beacon. The ice cream van was a welcome sight, and suitably refreshed, I set off for the sheltered gully southwest of the hilltop. My first sighting was a Grizzled Skipper, followed shortly by several Dingies. Brimstones were everywhere, and I spotted Green Hairsteaks here too. However, I was hoping for further Dukes - I saw quite a few here last year. I spoke to an NT warden, who said he'd seen one on 5th, but further down towards the cattle grid on the road up to the car park. Before I had even begun to descend further, though, I glimpsed the flash of orange-brown - there was a fresh Duke of Burgundy. I think there were probably two, but I can't be sure. It still appears to be early days here. After another ice cream (it was pretty warm up there), I returned home for a look at my local patch too. I lost count of the Holly Blues today. They were energetic in the heat, and when they stopped they stayed tightly closed. There were also good numbers of white butterflies, including the first Large White I've seen this year, and reassuring numbers of Orange Tips. I caught sight of a Red Admiral in the same spot as the one last week - but not close enough to confirm whether it was the same individual.

Dave

Very nice Green Hairstreaks Dave, and Dukes too. Don't leave the PBF for too long.
They are in perfect condition at the moment.

All the best,
Trevor.

Monday 9th May:

A different sort of day - cloud and a few spots of rain to start with, then it steadily brightened and became very warm again. I had taken the day off, so with the weather uncertain, I decided to stay put and invest more time than usual on my local patch, especially the Holly Blue population.

Things didn't go to that plan at first at all. Everything was just beginning to fly and I disturbed quite a few white butterflies and Orange Tips as I walked along the path. I found quite a few Green-veined Whites today, including a very dark-looking female, and two quite different males.. I spotted the same Large White i'd seen yesterday (a rather tatty male), then shortly afterwards came across another, much fresher, male. Not long after that, an Orange Tip led me to an equally fresh female Large White.. There were a few more Speckled Woods around, and a few Peacocks hanging on in there, but curiously, no Brimstones at all. With all that to distract me, it was a while before I got to concentrate on the Holly Blues. With very hazy (or no) sunshine, but still very warm, they didn't fly so energetically. The males, however, patrolled the hedgerows endlessly, accosting every female the came across - which happened quite often. The females tended to stay in an around the ivy and holly, and I watched several wandering about inside the foliage and laying eggs on holly flowers in quite deep shade. One particular piece of hedgerow containing both plants borders a lakeside field/meadow and was home to dozens of Holly Blues today. (It is also two minutes walk from home ) The females seemed willing to sit open up a bit today, when they weren't in the depths of the bushes, but the males barely stopped. One female was delightfully new: Another was noticeably small: One other opened out almost completely flat, but was oddly coloured and appeared a bit deformed. I managed to capture a couple of examples of the courtship action on display; both males were unsuccessful in the end. The female in the second photo was vibrating her wings rapidly - a sure sign of rejection, something I saw several times today.

This species makes an interesting study - looking at today's females, they seem to have as much black on them as summer brood females do. Or am I imagining it?

Dave

Those open wing Holly Blues shots Dave !!!.
I'll have to visit the old railway soon !.

Few things make me more envious than shots of Holly Blues like those, Dave. Well done.

Lovely Holly Blues Dave, only had flitting glances of them yet. Goldie

Wow, thats a real 'Holly Blue fest'. I'm still struggling to get more than the odd one fly past here and there!

It's all gone Holly Blue Mad over your way Dave! I've only just seen my first and second - so that puts Salisbury about 2 weeks behind, pretty usual timings then

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Thank you all for your comments on the "Holly Blue Fest" as Buggy has called it - pretty accurate. This really was an example of just keeping pretty well in one place and waiting patiently for the butterflies to appear and do their thing. Discovering that the females spent a lot of their time inside the bushes and appeared from time to time to sun themselves (and be accosted by males) helped get the open-wing shots. The males were much more active and rarely settled. As I've mentioned before, this particular area is ideal for them, with both holly and ivy in abundance and plenty of pink-flowered bramble which the second brood are very partial too later in the year.

Sunday has been followed by two days of warm rain, almost continuous until just after five this evening. I could see the clearance approaching and set out round my local patch while there was still drizzle in the air. Almost immediately I spotted a Holly Blue flying in the rain, presumably enticed out by the warmth of the sun through the clouds which despite the latish hour was still quite noticeable. Eventually, the sun did come through properly and within a minute or two the first whites were flying.

A pair of GVW took advantage straight away and disappeared together into the trees. I saw mostly GVW, though there was one pale female Small White. My photo of the upperside turned out as a bright splodge with no subtlety whatsoever.

One GVW male was intent on nectaring, moving quickly from flower to flower for some little while. Finally, with the sun getting lower, I headed for home, seeing another couple of Holly Blues tussling in the air over my neighbour's garden.

Dave

A trip to Bentley Wood today produced this little gem of a butterfly. More from this trip a bit later.

Dave