millerd

[David M]

On the way home along the wooded bank of the River Colne, I encountered six or more Red Admirals in various spots. These were flying in the gloom under the trees and several landed on me after some quite belligerent swooping and circling.

This species seems to have a tendency for night flight like no other. I wonder whether its naturally migratory instincts have, over time, enabled it to tolerate darker conditions than most other butterflies (after all, if you're flying over the sea at dusk the last thing you need is to go blind once night falls).

[Wurzel]

Great constrast between those two shots Dave

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

19th July

Whilst I'm at work, the only real opportunities to see things are after five in the afternoon. Consequently it was another local walk again late on today. However, it's always worth it - within five minutes of home, I found a rather worn Small Tortoiseshell. These are so few and far between these days, this counts as an event. It was also a long way from the others I saw a couple of weeks ago. The rest of the walk produced nothing remarkable: four or five Gatekeepers, a handful of Small Heaths, one female Large Skipper, lots of Meadow Browns... There were four Commas, three of which were engaged together in aerial combat, spiralling way up into the sky before plummeting down to earth, and the obligatory Red Admirals at regular intervals. I also saw a few Whites, one a definite male Large White, the others Green-veined. Purple Hairstreaks dashed around the oaks, and I saw a couple more elsewhere around a different tree some way away. On two separate occasions, I saw an individual set off from the top of an oak tree and make its way across a gap of some 50 metres to settle on an ash instead.

Reviewing the photos, I looked a bit more closely at this mating pair of Meadow Browns. Is that a Common Blue caterpillar lurking on the dead head of the flower they are using to perch on?

Dave

[millerd]

21st July

First up today was a walk down the road for a coffee at the local garden centre. Halfway down, I spotted a Holly Blue in the road, dancing about six inches from the surface before landing on some brightly-coloured foil. Disturbed, it flew up into the roadside shrubbery. As I came back along nearly an hour later, it was back in the road -in exactly the same spot as before.

Dave

[millerd]

21st July (continued)

Denbies beckoned this afternoon - I was in the area anyway, as if I needed an excuse... The weather was possibly ideal in that it was unusually still for this location, the clouds were teasing with the sun, but it was warm and very bright. The hill was alive with Chalkhill Blues. I didn't venture much beyond the gate from Steers Field onto the main slopes, but there were surely hundreds, mostly with wings open to the tempered sunshine. Two little groups were also seen taking minerals from unpleasant sources (more of that on 22nd!). I only spotted two or three females amongst the multitude. As for other species: Marbled Whites were stll plentiful, but looking a bit worn now, sadly. Meadow Browns were everywhere too, and in Steers Field, there were more Skippers than I've seen before (all my photos show Small Skippers, but there may well have been Essex in there too). One or two Small Heaths completed the picture.

Apologies for the plethora of photos - I rather like this butterfly...

Looking over the images, I see only one has the orange spots on the upperside of the hindwing . Not sure what the overall incidence of this is in the population.

Dave

[millerd]

21st July (concluded)

There was time after the excesses of Denbies to visit my local patch at around five. The usual suspects were around: Meadow Browns, Essex Skippers, Small Heaths, Gatekeepers, a few Ringlets, Commas, Red Admirals, Small and GV Whites. I thought the Large Skippers had all disappeared, but I chanced upon a mating pair of fairly worn individuals.

Dave

[Wurzel]

Cracking shots Dave The Chalkhills are lush but I was more intrigued by the Holly Blue- isn't that a Strawberry Cornetto wrapper? I wonder if other species prefer this flavour

Have a goodun
Wurzel

[millerd]

22nd July

Another trip to Denbies where things were a lot more energised than yesterday. The highlight was the astonishing group of over 50 Chalkhill Blues on one piece of dog poo (photo on the July sightings thread). There were several other instances of this, though none so populous. There must be many hundreds of newly emerged Chalkhills out here at the moment, all but a tiny fraction being males. Difficult to estimate, but over a thousand is not out of the question. Nothing else of particular note, though I did see a large pale orange butterfly racing high along the woodland edge at the top of the main slope. Silver-washed, and Dark Green Fritillary were both candidates, as well as Painted Lady, but alas I will never know. The lack of time here means that I seem to have nothing but excremental images... I must try and get there either late or very early this week to see them roost.

A little later, I popped into Dawney's Hill, near Pirbright. There were still quite a few Silver-studded Blues about, (including a very fresh female) and I did spot three Graylings. I tracked one down as it did its masterful disappearing trick, but the camera was fooled by the camouflage and failed to focus on it properly. Also seen here were Meadow Browns, Gatekeepers, one Small Copper, a couple of Small Heath and a Brimstone. A couple of the latter had also been seen while driving along leafy Surrey lanes earlier on.

Dave

[millerd]

25th July

A local outing in the stifling heat of a late Heathrow afternoon and early evening. Nothing unusual - the numbers of Gatekeepers are building at the moment, and there is currently a hiatus in the Small Heath world. Meadow Browns abound and have expanded into previously unoccupied areas; Essex Skippers are doing well.
13 species seen:
Comma - 4 (all together in a major tussle)
Red Admiral - 7
Speckled Wood - 1
Gatekeeper - many
Meadow Brown - many
Small Heath - 5
Large Skipper - 1 (male)
Essex Skipper - many (none scrutinised turned out to be Small Skippers)
Brimstone - 1 (male)
Green-veined White/Small White - 10 (both definitely present)
Holly Blue - 2
Purple Hairstreak - 2

Dave

[millerd]

26th July

After work I went down to Denbies. The journey took 90 minutes instead of 30, which meant that roosting was well underway by the time I was out on the hillside. There are an extraordinary number of Chalkhill Blues out at the moment, as noted before, and to see them congregating in mass roosts is a sight worth seeing. Females are steadily increasing in number now, but are still outnumbered at least ten to one by the males. Also roosting in amongst the Blues were the Marbled Whites and Small Skippers - Meadow Browns appear to have different habits and were mostly lying low in the grass. Other than these, and one or two elderly Small Heaths, no other species were seen.

But who's complaining? Clouds of blue butterflies are not just wild imaginings - they really exist.

A selection of photos, in many cases given unusual and interesting hues by the late evening light (my excuse anyway!)...

Dave

[millerd]

28th July

Today was probably my only opportunity to see Purple Emperors this year (having taken the first week of July off work for this purpose many months in advance ). I chose to go north as the roads to the south were disrupted somewhat by Olympic cyclists, and ended up at Bernwood. After a good deal of walking and neck cricking, I and a number of others were rewarded with the sight of at least two different Emperors circling and swooping to the right of the main ride not far down from the car park. Eventually, one settled for a while high in an oak, and I fear these distance shots will be all I shall have as souvenirs of the 2012 PE season. Also seen were a handful of Silver-washed Fritillaries (mostly females - one settled on my trousers briefly), a couple of White Admirals, lots of Ringlets and Large and Small Skippers, and Marbled Whites straying in from the nearby meadows.

Dave

[millerd]

28th July (continued)

On the way back from Bernwood, I stopped off at Aston Rowant and walked across the slopes of the side north of The M40. It was pretty breezy (as it often is) and the sun was intermittent at best. However, it wasn't long before I saw the first Silver-spotted Skipper settled on a bit of bare path. After a little practice, I got my eye in, and by watching for the patches of bare earth it became relatively easy to spy the little orange dots amongst the chalky lumps. The Chalkhill Blues were also freshly emerged (there were none last weekend), and in my judgment (backed by another "regular" to the site who I bumped into) there are more here than for a number of years. There were a few females amongst the male majority., showing a good deal of variety in markings. I have posted some photos of these separately, as I am curious to know whether any of the variation strays into the realms of aberration.

As the sun emerged after around four, the flowery slopes came alive, and it was clear that there were good numbers of Silver-spotted Skippers out - also mostly males at the present. As well as the two main species, Large and Small Skippers were present, some rather worn Marbled Whites, Meadow Browns, Gatekeepers and Small Heaths, plus singletons of Small Copper and Small Tortoiseshell. The second brood Common Blue and Brown Argus were not yet in evidence.

Aston Rowant is particularly lush with flowers this year, and the bare paths and patches favoured by the Skippers are not so much in evidence as usual. I hope this isn't detrimental to them.

Dave

[Pauline]

I love your SSS pics Dave, especially the first and last - I'll be well pleased if I can get photos like that when they appear near here.

[Wurzel]

Cracking shots of SSS Dave Everything seems to be coming out at once!

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

Thank you both for the kind comments! A very photogenic butterfly with a tendency to pose nicely on scabious flowers, it has an endearing teddy-bear cuteness.

It is interesting that this is probably the most northerly site (or not far off )in the UK for this butterfly, yet it's often out here earlier than further south. And this particular slope is west-facing and often windy, so you wouldn't have thought it ideal for them. I hope it won't be long before they're out elsewhere, Pauline - I look forward to your shots, as I suspect they'll be better than mine!

Dave

[NickMorgan]

Lovely pictures, and so many butterflies that we don't get up here.

[millerd]

30th July

Whistlestop visits today: a spin around a local circuit in the morning showed that the Whites are appearing again - nothing else of note except a Comma which seemed to be of the summer (hibernating) type, not hutchinsoni. I then had to pick up two children at Cherwell Valley services on the M40, so strayed again onto the slopes of Aston Rowant. No change here from a couple of days ago, though there were a few more fresh Small Skippers around. Finally, on the return journey, we stopped at Beaconsfield services. There is a pleasant landscaped area at the back, complete with small lake and surrounded by woodland. There is a line of medium-sized oaks next to the children's play area and sure enough they supported a colony of Purple Hairstreaks. I also spotted a single roosting male Common Blue not far from the water.

Dave

[millerd]

1st August

Some time off work, and a break with family in Yorkshire beckoned. Rather than indulge in the pleasures of the M1, it seemed a good idea to try the A1 for a change and stop off on the way. The Nene Valley Railway proved an excellent diversion for my three boys, and what should be within a few miles of the western terminus at Wansford but the area of woodland known as Bedford Purlieus. This is in the extreme corner of Cambridgeshire (I think!). I eventually found a place to park and enter the woodland, and we rambled along a sunny ride for half an hour or so. Most striking was the number of Silver-washed Fritillaries - three or four were in view most of the time, and we were treated to several courtship flights along the ride, mostly at waist height. The boys found this behaviour fascinating once it had been pointed out and described. We also saw Large, Small and Essex Skippers, Meadow Browns, Gatekeepers and Ringlets, a scattering of Whites and a couple of Brimstones and Commas. However, the highlight had to be a delightful White-Letter Hairstreak nectaring on a thistle under an elm tree. It eventually took off for the tree, where it joined at least two more in dancing around the higher branches. On the way back to the car, we came across a newly emerged Peacock, the first I've seen anywhere of the new brood.

Dave

[millerd]

3rd August

Well, no holiday in the UK in August is complete without a trip to the seaside. Filey was the destination of choice, an unspoilt gem of a resort with miles of sand and today at least, a gentle breeze from the the south. As the boys turned one small patch into a building site, I investigated the slope at the back of the beach. This appeared to be in a state of collapse along its length, being composed largely of highly mobile clay and mud, but was covered in flowers, including large swathes of kidney vetch and knapweed. And there were butterflies: nothing special, but good numbers of Small Skippers, Meadow Browns and Gatekeepers, plus two fairly fresh Common Blues. I only studied a very small area at random, so along the whole length, healthy populations must likely exist. I have no idea whether the Kidney Vetch supports any Small Blues, but I saw no larvae or evidence of there being any.

Dave

[Wurzel]

Dave the White Letter is an absolute beauty

Have a goodun

Wurzel