www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Cheers Dave They were very active when I was there too but in the end it took kneeling down in brambles and waiting for them to egg lay before I got those shots - my knees are still sore now!

Duke Site 05-05-2014

Almost a fortnight ago I was still basking in the afterglow of finding some cracking Pearls and my first Duke of the year at Bentley Wood the day before on a cracking meet up with Philzoid. As I had done all the chores and was up together with work my wife turned to me and suggested that I might like to take a visit out to make the most of the weather. In three seconds I was pulling away and heading to my Duke site!
I was racing the clouds and also the clock and so it wasn’t surprising when I got stuck behind one of my nemesis – the driver that insists on going 11 miles below the speed limit. After much gnashing of teeth, below breath curing and the occasional exasperated “Oh come on” I pulled off the road and onto the tank trails. I headed straight to the path where there had been so many of them last year and found a Dingy and the 3 Dukes – just like that – I’d been on site for about three minutes. By now I’d reached the top of the path and so I made my way over to the Cyprus tree and there was a Greenstreak doing what I think was egg laying? No matter how I tried I couldn’t get onto the other side of it. I would try to approach it from it would turn around pirouetting on the leaf. Still I smiled to myself as it was going to be one of those afternoons where butterflies just landed in your lap. I carried on up to the spongy grass before there was the odd dingy and Grizzlie on the way fluttering off the path but up on the spongy turf proper there seemed to be Dinghies everywhere! Some looked a bit torn or chipped and others seemed quite pale though amongst them were some lovely fresh ones. Also here was another small group of Greenstreaks and a very aged Grizzlie. Slightly further up the hill the same groups of butterflies were also present but something tangerine cream shot by, dipping and ducking as it cut its way through the air across the hillside – a possible Wall Brown? I didn’t count it as it was such a fleeting view but since then I've seen them at another site and this one showed an almost identical flight pattern. The afternoon was rolling on so I made my way back to the starting path to spend some time with the Dukes. I re-found the three from earlier and located a fourth and so settled down to enjoy these delightful little insects. Somehow I managed to tear myself away from watching their antics and had another quick mooch around to see what else was a round here – a few more Dinghies and the odd Grizzlie and my second Small Copper of the year which looked slightly unusual. Something silvery and a similar size to the Dukes shot by, another fleeting glimpse which to me said Brown Argus but I again didn’t count it though I know that they’re found here. All too soon my time was up and I was back in the car heading home but what a cracking couple of trips.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Stunning Duke of Burgundy shot in your Bentley report Wurzel superb Pearls too . When I was there it was difficult to get a closed wing shot as they were not stopping
Lovely Duke, Grizzlie and Dingy photos in your latest post . To get the duke on the Daisy shots, you must have been flat out, great shots

Mike

I've just been catching up with your epic diary Wurzel. I really admire how much you manage to pack in! Not to mention editing all of those photos too. I know what you mean about getting sore knees. I've thought about investing in some knee pads before but I don't want to look like a grown man who's lost his skateboard

Best Wishes

B'saurus

I agree, lovely shots on the daisy!

Cheers Mike the only way to get those Duke shots was to lay down across the path, luckily I was the only person on site
Cheers Rex I've found that I have to take my chances otherwise I wouldn't see anything - but it does take it's toll on my eyes and sleep pattern
Cheers Katrina I was lucky with those shots

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Just catching up on your diary Wurzel. You've taken some great shots in the last couple of posts - the nectaring and ovi-posting Pearls, that gorgeous Dingy but the Duke on the daisy has to be the best photo you have ever taken imo. I love it and wish I had one like that in my collection.

Cheers Pauline I had to suffer for that one

The Devenish 06-05-2014

After a busy day back at work after the holiday I made a quick stop on way home. In fact it’s getting to the time of year now when I’ll try and stop most mornings. They man that I arrive refreshed and alert for work or calm and relaxed once home. This stop-off was at The Devenish and coming out of the woods I saw a Small White fluttering along the tree line but I was after something else. I’d previously met up with the Warden of the site and we’d chatted about whether there were Dinghies here. I’d found Grizzlies, Adonis, Common and Chalkhill Blues as well as Small Coppers and other grassland species so surely there would be Dinghies here too?
So I made my way across the small field and started up the side of the Down and there was my first Devenish Dingy feeding for all it was worth. A brief scout around at the base of hill meant that I found a pair of Grizzlies, another Dingy and I watched as a Brimstone fl along the hilltop. A male Orange-tip teased me for a bit near the car park before flying up and over the tress and then I got back on the wagon and got out of there. I’ll have to keep checking this site as the Adonis should be emerging here soon.


Larkhill 09-05-02014

This was a very brief stop-off on the way home from work. My afternoon stop-offs are usually a lot quicker than the morning ones as I want to get back and see all three of my girls, though I’ve got to get my butterfly fix.
I walked down the eastern path and where the soil was more exposed a Grizzlie was sunning itself on the path. It shot off like a veering bullet but I didn’t mind that I didn’t get a shot as I’ve seen good numbers this year and I was just glad that seeing them here last year wasn’t a fluke or one-off. As I wandered back to the car a small orange butterfly cut across the path and landed amongst the long grass – my first Small Heath of the year. It was more flighty than some I’ve seen and I spooked it once or twice and then left it be. Luckily the last time it landed it caught its fore wing on a blade of grass and so didn’t shut them properly exposing the upper side. Have a goodun

Wurzel

Just catching up on your diary again Wurzel, every time I check it out you seem to have stuck another couple of post up

Some great report and photos, especially the Dukes.

Cheers,

Neil.

Cheers Neil I'm still about a week and a half behind - but maybe if the weather stays grotty for a few days I'll be able to catch up...that's me always looking for the upside

Martin Down 11-05-2014

Having notched up my first Pearls, Dukes and then Small Heath I thought that it was about time that I checked for Small and indeed other, Blues. However the weather was conspiring against me as was the penultimate ceiling. The job got done and cleaned up on Saturday and I even had time to say a quick hello to my sis who had returned from Down Under for a visit. So when on the Sunday I knew we were going out to see my sister and her folks I thought a brief stop-off at Martin Down, Sillens Lane might be manageable.

Unfortunately on the day the cloud kept drifting over, the wind was vicious and the temperatures were kept to barely over those for flight. Still I pressed on hoping that during one of the brighter, warmer and more settled breaks I might find something. I started by walking down the tunnel which has yielded plenty of Small Blues in the past but all that was amongst the shelter today was a Speckled Wood. I couldn’t get a decent view of it down between the grass but I include the photo anyway as it’s something of a rarity so far this year. I then ran on and tried the ‘hotspot’ where this path transects Bokerley. This drew precisely nothing as the wind was forced down into and along the ditch. The small filed on the other side of the Hawthorns however was quite sheltered and here I started seeing butterflies – a Dingy, 2 Grizzlies and a Small Copper as well as a female Brimstone fluttering the scrub and occasionally poking its head above the parapet. I then cut across to the island of scrub in the centre of the down as again I was hoping that the butterflies would congregate here away from the whipping wind. On my entrance a Greenstreak darted out from the Hawthorn but as it rose just higher than the top branches it was immediately ripped away by the wind. I settled in the end for a few shots of a couple of Grizzlies. My final foray was back along the hedge that lines the reserve over by the tunnel. A Green-veined white grimly fluttered low down to the ground and a Small Copper also stayed down. I checked my watch and realised that we would be late so I legged it back to the car and headed over to Sixpenny Handley. After a spot of lunch we took a quick stroll around the village and we were briefly joined by a Small Tort – which I was quite surprised to see as I thought that by now we’d be just seeing larvae. Have a goodun

Wurzel

Lovely shots again Wurzal, I've still to see quite alot of Butterflies they don't seem to want to come out up herel, any way off to Southport and the Dunes tomorrow maybe I'll see some there.Goldie

Cheers Goldie Believe it or not I know how you feel as most things I'm seeing are emerging anything up to a fortnight later than on the eastern side of the country

Another set of Stop-offs...

13-05-2014 The Devenish

I made a very quick stop-off to The Devenish on the way home as I wanted to check up on the Dinghies. This time rather than a sprint through the wood I made my way over the gates and straight onto the Down proper, to the less grazed side. Almost immediately I fell over a Grizzlie and then there was a Dingy. But rather than the usual defensive manoeuvre that they pull (where they veer off and double back on themselves) this one flew up high and landed in a tree. Obviously this felt a bit wrong so it dropped off the branch and then flew to another tree where again it landed high up silhouetted in the afternoon sun. This seemed like a bizarre behaviour and I can’t recall observing it before? I left it to its own devices and headed over style spooking the Red Admiral that is hanging around the site. I made my way up the down but there were no Brown Argus or other Blues about but I did come across another Grizzlie and another Dingy but time was ticking by so I couldn’t hang around here. Time up it was back to car and home.

14-05-2014 Larkhill

I’m a great believer in making hay while the sun shines because with the British weather you can never really be sure when you’ll be able to get out next. So when I awoke to a glorious sunny morning last Wednesday I pulled in at Larkhill and made my way down the Western path. Since the scouring last year the growth has been slow but the wild flowers are starting to creep across from the edges and on the plus side it’s produced a great habitat for Grizzlies. As the path dipped down about 30 metres from the car park I found my first which quickly buzzed off to my right into the long grass. My second was a few steps further on and made a couple of poses before buzzing off to be replaced by my third of the morning which was in much better fettle. Then I started to make my way back and a little ‘flag’ caught my eye flapping amongst the long grass. A gentle approach and there backlit was Grizzlie number 4, possibly my favourite of the day. I managed a few shots before Grizzlie number 5 disturbed it and landed on a nearby grass seed head. And so on to work...

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Lovely glowing Grizzlies Wurzel I really like your 1st & 2nd Dingy photos too, they are quite unusual.

B'saurus

Cheers Rex I think the Dinghy got a bit confused and thought it was a Hairstreak I'll try and get that PM to you tonight

Marshie Site (15-05-2014) Part One

Over the weekend my sister had arrived from Down Under and so I realised that chances to get out butterflying for the month of her visit were going to be few and far between. Add to that the usual stresses of work, the house and the fact that the weather was forecast to stay good to reasonable right up to my holiday, come Tuesday night I was acting like a ‘Grump’. So much so that my wife told me that I should “take an evening and go and see those Marsh thingys!” Well I didn’t need telling twice so I made my plans for Thursday evening to travel down to my Marshie site straight from work.

As I drove down I anxiously watched the sky and was cheered that the Met Office had got it wrong again as instead of the forecast cloud the sky was clear and blue! It wasn’t long before I was pulling into the car park and making my way up the hill through the tunnel of trees to the side of the Down. Once I’d broken through the tree line I scanned the side of the hill and there gliding over the tops of the grasses was a Marsh Fritillary, and then another one and another and over there were two etc etc. They were literally all over the hillside. Every now and again a small moth would fly up or a dark blur which would become a Greenstreak when it landed but the most common butterfly was the Marsh Fritillary. After standing and watching gobsmacked for an age I shook myself and woke from my wonder and started in at getting some shots.
The first problem I found was selecting my target, I didn’t know where to begin! Then approaching head on proved difficult as the lengthening shadows would spook the butterfly which would spook a further three or four so I’d have to walk a few paces to find the next one. They really are stunning butterflies and I settled down to wonder at the variation of their markings. After a while I’d worked my way over to the bowl and so I started looking for other butterflies and there was my first (and still only) Common blue of the year , a male with only one antennae. After a while with this little chap I moved on around with more Marsh Fritillaries everywhere and then a tiny purple butterfly caught my eye – my first Small Blue of the year There were a few Dinghies and the odd Grizzlie around as well as the ubiquitous Marshies. At one point a cloud passed over and the Marshies all dropped down into the grass with wings firmly closed. I took this as my opportunity to try for a few closed wing shots which also proved difficult as there was so much grass in the way but in the end I managed to clear some of it aside from one of my targets.
The sun came out again and all the previously hidden Marshies popped up from nowhere and started flying but there was a slightly larger, more orange butterfly flying along so quickly it was ripping up the side of the hill...

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Fabulous photos Wurzel particularly like the Marsh Fritillaries but also great Dingy and Grizzled Skipper shots

Mike

Cheers Mike It was a great few weeks - if only the weather had lasted a little longer...

Marshie Site (15-05-2014) Part Two

...I somehow managed to follow the butterfly with my eyes as it tore along the side of the hill, lopped upwards and then dropped like a ton weight before banking off to the left. With a final Stukar dive it disappeared from view down the side of the hill. I cautiously worked my way round and down to below where I thought the butterfly had landed and there it was, sitting on a little chalk ledge, my first official Wall of the year. I was doubly chuffed as this find confirmed for me that the UBLO from my Duke site was indeed a Wall. After a few choice shots I carried on round the hillside reaching the end point with a few more Dinghies and the odd Grizzlie amongst the many Marshies. Also here were a couple of Peacocks as well as a couple more Walls including one which seemed much darker than the other couple but unfortunately it didn’t stop long enough for a photo. I then set off back along the narrow tracks that traversed the side of the Down back towards the Bowl stopping every now and again on the way for a quick peek at a Marshie taking nectar or another just basking in the final rays of the evening sun. My second Small Heath dropped in before disappearing up and over the Down and I was almost back at the Bowl when the kept flitting behind a cloud so again I tried for a few closed wing shots and the odd close up. Then I was back at the start of the Down and I was starting to feel saturated by the sheer number of Marshies but still I pressed on as one Marshie after another presented itself before my lens. Eventually I somehow tore myself away from the Down, the sun starting to wane and my shadow stretching almost back to the car park but one final Marshie, possibly my favourite from the whole visit popped up before me, posed almost as if wishing me farewell. As I stumbled back to the car when I shut my eyes I could still see it emblazoned across my eyelids. A stunning butterfly at a stunning site, I am coming back here soon!
Have a goodun

Wurzel

Species count for the day...
SB 1, CB 1, GH 23, MF 60+ (a total underestimation this), SH 1, LW 1, B 1, GS 3, DS 4, WB 4, P 3 and OT 1

Superb photos Wurzel, the second and third Wall shots are stunners I really struggled with these on the IOW great Marsh Fritillary shots too

Mike

Hi Wurzel

Your Marsh Fritillaries look fantastic Wherever this site is it looks like a smashing place, I might have to pay a visit. I also like your unusual Dingy on a branch shot

Cheers Mike It was an early to late evening visit so I think they were starting to settle down which was why I was able to get as close as I did. My normal shots are from about 100m away
Cheers Paul It's a cracking site I hope to get back there this weekend

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Lovely shots Wurzal, it sounds a really good site there Goldie

Catching up on your diary again Wurzel, cracking Marsh Fritillary photos

It looks like I will be missing Marshies this year after seeing them last year for the first time, my plans for this year have me in the wrong place for when these are flying.

Cheers,

Neil.