www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Thanks bugboy,
We only spent approx. 1 hour on the common this afternoon and saw Empress behaviour twice.
I was teaching my Dad a trick or two, here is one of them: I need to "catch up" reading Neil's diary as soon as I make more time,

Kind Regards,

Philly BB

The One Hundred Pound Car Park at Bookham Common
At almost 5:00pm (there wasn't even much sunshine at the time and it was a bit windy). A shared experience with two young girls and mothers who did not know much about the butterfly.
I am very happy having had that experience of this butterfly after 3 seasons at Bookham Common.
It was just the first time I was in the right place at the right time.

Beautiful Emperor photo!

There are many of us (me included) who would be VERY happy with a shot like that. Well done Phil

Hey it's a Purple Emperor on the ground, who cares if parts are out of focus! Still a good picture

Nothing wrong with that image, Phil!

A large butterfly like PE is a difficult photographic subject but you've managed to capture Him with a good proportion of his wings bathed in purple nonetheless.

Thank you guys:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUnshUR ... e=youtu.be

That is my latest Butterfly Selfie on iphone 6
With many thanks to Buckfast Butterflies. I really enjoyed my visit. Very friendly staff.
www.ottersandbutterflies.co.uk

Nice to finally get your PE Phil, determination and patience pay dividends, and that's a fine record photograph

BW's

Bill

"When in doubt - venture out"

Thanks guys for your contributions.
The Purple Emperor experience on the ground was perfect for me. I was returning to my car to leave the Common and the PE was fluttering around a car in the One Hundred Pound Bridge Car Park. Two ladies were standing next to me with two young daughters and I shared the experience with them. I said:
"Look, a Purple Emperor !" The ladies knew very little about the butterfly and when it did finally land on the ground, the two young girls went and stood right next to it.

Here is a record picture of an Emperor at Bookham Common taken one month after my first record.

Butterfly Jewelry and "Artistic Licence"
I was searching yesterday "all over" Lincoln for jewelry that specifically represented British Butterflies for my beautiful fiancé and hopefully finding jewelry not just with "artistic licence" ‪.
‪We all Love UK Butterflies
We visited four jewellers in Lincoln but we found nothing. The closest thing Melissa and I found was priceless silver that might have represented a cabbage white but the saleswoman did not agree with us so it wasn't sold to us. ‪
Lets have this debate with suggestions in jewelers up and down the United Kingdom from "Custume Jewelry" to priceless 18 Carrot Gold with Diamonds.

British Nature Reservers
This "artistic licence" has seaped into the thinking even in the gift stores at British Nature Reserves

We bought a poster yesterday from an English Nature Reserve ‪‬
The "White" Admiral is bigger than The Purple Emperor and Swallowtail, The Large Blue is almost twice the size of the Ringlet. All butterflies look as if they are displaying their forewings apart from the Green Hairstreak.
There was a scarf for sale with butterflies on it (non of which were recognisable), a picture frame (the same) and a variety of different butterfly "key rings", non of which had any UK butterflies on them.
Outside on the information boards, the best butterflies they could "muster up" was a picture of a Gatekeeper and a picture of a Ringlet.
Kind Regards and Best Wishes in trying to change peoples thinking.

Phil,
I could not agree more - most butterfly jewelry and other mass market products are dreadful.
You could always give her a National Trust tea-towel - their butterfly pictures are sometimes vaguely accurate! However as you are not married yet that might send the wrong message!
I have been married for 42 years - giving tea-towels to your loved one can be a bit risky!
Regards and good luck in your hunt, Brian Arnold

This is one of the best realistic items I have found from RSPB: I have moved to Lincoln and am in the process of selling my flat in Surrey.
There are some interesting Nature Reserves in Lincoln where I found items such as this poster: "Whisby Nature Reserve, Lincolnshire. But many of the European Species represented here are not found in the UK, the "White Admiral" is bigger than the Swallowtail, the Ringlet is smaller than the Large Blue and all of the butterflies appear to be showing their forewings apart from the Green Hairstreak !

Have a very Merry Christmas with "artistic licence",

Philip

HI Phil;

Good luck in your new home. I will miss the reports from Bookham Common.

All the best,
Trevor.

I thought that:
"Good Friday really was good for counting butterflies in Lincolnshire. According to my notes on my mobile phone:
6 different species.

Small Tortoiseshell 10
Brimstone 8
Peacock 6
Comma 2
Red Admiral 1
Small White 1

On 17th March, I was involved in the making of a YouTube video and returned to a similar location on Friday. I will update this later after editing my pictures to make them fit the required size.
I will upload some pictures soon but who can give me an idea as to why I recorded a Small White so early on in the Spring?
I followed it for a very long distance in a field just to make sure it wasn't an orange Tip, Green -veined White and that I got a record shot.

"Orange sky at night, mobile phone delight. Blue sky at night, Shepherd hasn't got enough sleep !"

I apologise for being 3 months late. - 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vR5rseoC9kk
The date in my camera properties can be changed. I like cameras with that mobile broadband technology that sets time and date GPS remotely. Micro climatic conditions are also very important for Spring Butterflies. BBC weather of 8 degrees Celsius can be 15 degrees in a sheltered corner.

I saw it and my wife watched in amazement as I followed it half way across a field and almost out of sight just to get a record picture with my zoom lens in Bracebridge Heath, Lincolnshire.
Warm Regards.

Welcome July !
On 30th June last year I photographically recorded my first Purple Emperor Butterfly for that year at Bookham Common.
This year was simply spent with my beautiful Wife in Lincolnshire. We found some feisty Speckled Wood Butterflies and was continuing to use the relatively new slow motion technology on the iPhone. Please take time to view this link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhJ9_0U ... e=youtu.be
The iPhone 6 plus' camera is capable of some amazing insect footage and above is an example of what can be done.

Interesting video Phil - I'll have to have a look at what my iPod can do

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Thanks Wurzel,
I am accumulating quite a number of video clips on my iPhone, some of which show good detail in slow motion when displayed even up to a 50" TV !
The free app I have acquired for my iPhone is called iMovie. To insert a picture in the movie, I processed the clips again through the Microsoft 2011 movie maker which I used in 2014 for Purple Emperor and Hairstreak butterflies "hilltopping". Using the Apple device and app, then saving to PC and then using Microsoft movie maker seems to suit my requirements.
Here is the video link of summer brood Small Tortoiseshell Butterflies filmed locally in Lincolnshire:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bE28wUuvm0

Watching butterflies in detailed slow motion can be awe inspiring, we think. Warm Regards

We are in Surrey for my parents Golden Wedding Anniversary so we couldn't resist a trip back to Bookham Common. This morning started off Sunny with lots of activity on the Common. I was upbeat as I was winning 3:2 with the horse fly swats to bite ratio (I apologise if you are a horse fly lover).
It was really good for me to see the Silver Washed Fritillary and the White Admirals again as Lincolnshire is mostly farmland and does not provide so much habitat for such lovely species.
As the weather turned cooler and cloudy, the butterflies headed for the tree canopies to rest. To be fair, there were not loads of White admirals or Silver Washed Fritillary to be seen so I was very fortunate to be taking a picture of one WA when another flew past but instead of disturbing the first nectaring individual, it landed on the bramble flower next to it. I realised that this was today a scarce opportunity so I am delighted with this picture: "This is my kind of two for one"

Warm regards

Following a good time at Box Hill in Surrey among the Marbled White Butterflies and Dark Green Fritillary, I have had some time to complete a compilation of video clips taken at Hartsholme Park in Lincolnshire and post to youtube. We took advantage of the right microclimatic conditions on 20th April to let the comma butterfly land on us as we stood within its sunlit and sheltered territory.
We were quite excited as the butterfly landed on the charity badge daffodil in Melissa's hair...
(this video was re-edited & posted on youtube again in April 2017. Here is the updated link- a better quality finished product, we think:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v977jrVx1W0 )

We hope you find the above link very entertaining.