www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Today saw my first day out with fellow enthusiast Doug.Neve , for several years we have shared driving
on Butterfly expeditions. We later bumped into B.saurus rex , all hoping for Orange Tips , which failed to
show. In all it was a pretty lousy day for Butterflies , the cool breeze with hot sun was obviously not to
their liking. But Doug did spot this Grass Snake swimming along a ditch. We later saw two OTs on the wing.
Never mind it was a lovely day in the countryside !.

All the best ,
TREVOR.

Great shot of the Grass Snake Trevor - I've just finished reading 'Life in Cold Blood' which has increased my envy of that shot!

Have a goodun

Wurzel

With the Met. office promising a hot day ( 25c at lunchtime ) I set out early to try my luck.
A local Orange Tip site was still not producing any Butterflies , but nearby I found my first
Speckled Wood for this year, followed by four more as the morning wore on.
I later went on to Frog Firle . which is high up on the South Downs, for Holly Blues .This is
a reliable site for this Species and at least six were on the wing but none settled.
As I returned to the car a pair of Large Whites came into view, fortunately my camera was handy
as one White caught the other one in mid air and towed it over some bushes , and out of sight !.
I thought the blurred image was worth including for interest sake.

All in all a lovely morning.
TREVOR.

Lovely shots of the Speckled Wood Trevor and it's good to see Large whites even at a distanceGoldie

Despite the cool wind that continues to plague this Butterfly season , I just had to get out of
the house this morning. Unsurprisingly only one Butterfly was seen , a Speckled Wood , which
made my day as it posed perfectly for the camera.

All the best ,
TREVOR.

Great Specklie Trevor I've still to find my first for 2015

Have a goodun

Wurzel

After a very cool start to the day , the Met. office were forecasting 14c. So I set off in brilliant sunshine
to see what was on offer. My local clump of Cuckoo Flower was quiet so I headed off up to Frog Firle
to look for Holly Blues , but unlike last week the Blackthorn blossom was falling and blowing around in the
wind. Every petal could have been a distant Holly Blue !. With the eye confused it was a pleasant surprise
when a Holly Blue landed close by and posed for a couple of shots, my first this season.
There were also several Speckled Woods patrolling up and down , one of which allowed me a decent shot.
On the way home the car thermometer was reading 20c. so I may go out again later.

I could not resist another trip out this afternoon , and all the regulars were on the wing.
Peacocks sunbathing , Commas seeing off anything that flew near them, Brimstones and best of all
a close view of an Orange Tip that was predictably on the wing and not stopping.
An image I did manage was of a male Brimstone ,which spent it's time testing out the many Dog Violets
in bloom.

All the best,
TREVOR.

Hi Trevor,

Don't blame you going out again on a day like today turned out to be, nice reports and photos.

Cheers,

Neil.

HI All,

Just the one usable image today. I spent several hours at Frog Firle mainly for Holly Blues. Several were seen ,
but only one posed for an underside shot.

Better luck tomorrow!,
TREVOR.

The local patch of Cuckoo Flower finally attracted some Orange Tips this morning. First on the scene came a Female Orange Tip , which I initially took to be a GV.White , but there was no
mistaking that underside when she landed. Photography was very difficult in the strong wind that continues
to plague this Spring season. The Female was closely followed by a Male , but the two never met
while I was there. So here are some ' nearly ' shots from this morning that could have been much better
had it been a calm day !.

All the best,
TREVOR.

I'm sooo pleased that the one's I sent over there reached you safely Trevor Well done for getting good shots in such breezy weather.

I went out for a short while after lunch today , and got my first image of a Green Veined White
this the year. Hoping for a calm day tomorrow !.

Great OT's Trevor - that patch of Cuckoo Flower looks immense

Have a goodun

Wurzel

A bit OT.with an OT.

This morning I went for a walk along a track near Arlington ( of Speedway fame ) not expecting to see
much as a seamist was starting to roll in. I stopped to admire a fresh mass of Bluebells , one of the most
distant flowers had what looked to be a bird dropping on top of it, but closer inspection revealed it to be
a roosting Orange Tip. In this state the Butterfly was in no hurry to fly off , so I made the most of the
opportunity and went a bit OT taking image after image.

Also I found two beautifully marked , fresh Speckled Woods

You can never have too many Orange Tip pictures! I had a similar encounter on wednesday

THE PEARLS ARE OUT !
A day of highs and a low.

This morning i visited a local Pearl Bordered Fritillary site, the weather was cool and sunny with building cloud.
The area i went to has it's own micro climate in the form of a hedge which is in full sun, this is on the side of
a large clearing. A total of about six Pearls were seen, including three in the air together.
Conditions were ideal for photography as the Butterflies go to ground when a cloud obscures the sun,being
very active as soon as it reappears.

Thats the high.

Now the low.

Despite having only recently emerged ( none last Wednesday ) i found a dead Pearl near some Bluebells.
There was some wing damage, some sort of attack possible.
Also seen , a very nice Large White on a Bluebell. TREVOR.

Lovely Photos Trevor of the PBF, it's on my to get list with the Duke for next week all being well Goldie

A return visit to the Pearl Bordered Fritillary site today proved to be a more fruitful day than yesterday.As well as nine to ten PBF's seen i also saw my first Grizzled Skipper of this year, plus a bonus
Micro Moth which i am told is a ' Green Longhorn ', anyway i'm not familiar with this species so i would welcome
the input of any experts out there!. What did impress me about this Moth were the gold markings that shimmered
just like real gold.

All the best,
TREVOR.

Careful Trevor, it's easy to get sucked into the world of moths (and cats)! There are some really spectacular ones. Great Pearl shots by the way.