Pauline

[Maximus]

Bet those took some finding, Pauline great stuff, nice pics.

Mike

[kevling]

Pauline,

Enjoying your diary. Some fantastic photos. I have a soft spot for Orange Tips and love the photos of the freshly emerged examples.

Regards Kev

[Pauline]

I wondered what it would take to get you to comment Andy Well done for spotting what they were.

You wouldn't believe how difficult Mike. Their camouflage is the best I have come across. I thought it'd be easy and I'd just walk along and find them sunbathing on leaf litter. It wasn't and I didn't

Thanks Kev, I appreciate the comment.


Yesterday was another hectic day. The chaos started at 6.50am with a loud bang on the window. Looking outside I saw a Woodpecker has crashed into the glass and was lying completely out for the count. I have had this happen before (also a male) and last time it took 8 hours for him to regain consciousness. Thankfully, this one opened his eyes after 4 hours in the hospital cage by which time the painters had arrived. I managed a few shots just seconds before he flew over a 60' hedge:

Once I'd got the painters organised I decided to shoot off to Noar Hill but as luck would have it I got a huge nail in my tyre and had to go and get that sorted out. Time was getting on and I didn't have much of it left so I dashed off at last to Noar Hill where I bumped into Rob S (nice chatting to you again Rob - don't forget to post that Duke shot). I took the opportunity to check out 'Andy's' Brown Hairstreak egg and it has now hatched although the other one on the same plant is still intact:

My attention was caught by a Brimstone egg-laying, a task which she performed swiftly and efficiently. I was surprised at the number of eggs she laid on one plant in a very short time (about 6) all facing different directions. It made me think about the effect of temperature on gender determination. In tortoises males are produced in cool temperatures and females in warm. Tortoises have a good sense of smell and in the wild they can tell how many males and females are in a particular area. They then lay their eggs in thge appropriate place to redress any imbalance between males and females. I wondered if butterflies are that smart? I know that in some insects it is the female gamete which determines the offspring's sex but I really must do more research into butterflies:

I saw my first few Dingy Skippers of the season but then it was time to come back and check my WA cats. You would'nt believe how much time I spend actually watching these!!

[MikeOxon]

You've been posting loads of fascinating photos recently! Apart from demonstrating your own skills, they are a tribute to the versatility of your FZ-38, ranging from that excellent close-up of the Orange Tip to your Blackcap, which I feel I can hear as I look at the photo I find in-flight shots much more difficult with a 'bridge' than with a 'true' DSLR, so think you did very well with those Whites - difficult subjects even when stationary!

I was interested to read about your Gt-spotted Woodpecker. Because of their tree-drumming behaviour, their brains are well-protected against shocks, so it must have been quite a blow that put it out cold. Perhaps that also explains why, if they are knocked out, they take so long to regain consciousness. I've had Sparrowhawks crash into our windows but they only take a few minutes to 'come round' and then glare at me very fiercely!

You are correct about the butterfly sex-chromosomes being the opposite of mammals. There is a lot that is still not understood about the details but the genes are quite different.

Mike

[Pauline]

Thank you for your kind and thought provoking comments Mike. Like you, I am not keen just to re-iterate last years performance. I am keen to learn as much as I can and branch out into areas that enthuse and inspire me whatever they might be, experience new things and just be amazed at the natural world. I can't take any credit for finding this amazing moth but the shots were taken at Stedham Common during an outing with other butterfly/moth enthusiasts:

[Neil Freeman]

Hi Pauline,

I am really enjoying your latest reports and photos. Some great images, hard to pick out any favourites but I do like that female Emperor Moth

All the best,

Neil.

[trevor]

HI Pauline,
I'll give you 5 out of 10 for finding that Emperor Moth, And another 5 points for the image.
That's 10 out of 10 .

Fantastic !
TREVOR.

[David M]

Wow! Another Emperor moth. Superb find and even better images!

[Pauline]

Thank you so much Neil, Trevor and David - your comments are very much appreciated.

Folk might remember that last year I accidentally stumbled across a couple of trees where many Silver-washed Frits were egg-laying (including a Valensina). Andy was keen to photograph the larva so last year we did a deal. I would take him to this particular area this year if he found me a Puss moth larva. Well, he did so I had to keep my part of the bargain. When I took my photos last week it took me well over an hour to find a cat but Andy is much better at spotting them and bagged his cat in 11.5 mins (not the 10 mins that he claims in his diary ). I took advantage of his find to take a few shots of my own as this is a very attractive cat:

On checking my WA cats today I discovered a male OT had just emerged from a pupa I had thought was no longer viable so I just have to post a few shots:

It was quite breezy today which is my usual excuse for shots that are not all in focus

[Padfield]

Hi Pauline. I think I'm going to have a look for some silver-washed cats tomorrow, as they do look lovely little creatures. Our woods seem to have lots in common! What time of day are you finding them feeding?

Guy

[Wurzel]

Fantastic shots recently Pauline the Emperor Moths are great but I'm most envious of the OTs as I'm finding them really difficult to get onto at the moment
Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Pauline]

Thank you Wurzel and good luck with the OT's.

Morning Guy. I have been to this site 5 times now, mostly between late morning and mid afternoon. A couple of times I didn't find anything so I imagine their activities are temperature/weather dependent, as one might expect. They are still quite tiny (between 3-4mm) so I figured they wouldn't yet have gone very far from their original tree. I therefore concentrated my search on the dog violets that were right at the base of the trees (trying to be very careful of where I was standing) and looked for tiny signs of feeding damage, comparable to that which I am seeing from my WA's. I was alarmed to note that there are dozens (if not hundreds) of quite large spiders running around the leaf litter so I hope the cats are not all predated. On finding feeding damage I would examine the plant very carefully and that is how I found my first cat - wrapped round the base of the plant, very well camouflaged, whilst stretching up to nibble a lower leaf. They certainly are attractive and interesting cats and well worth the time spent searching to see one. I hope you have a great deal of success. Please let us know.

[Goldie M]

Hi! Pauline, just catching up on posts, My eye is a lot better thanks still having to wear an eye patch because the weathers changed, very cold here at present but I'm out and about I had the other done two years ago and now i'm looking back at some of the photos I took and thinking ooch
Hope fully I'll improve a bit now no excuses I should be better when I can get rid of the eye patch
Enjoying your photos once again Pauline,they're lovely Goldie

[Pauline]

Thank you for the compliment Goldie. I am very glad to hear that your eye is improving, but as for the photography, well, there is always an excuse My usual ones are that it was too breezy, the light was no good, I was knocked over by a boisterous dog etc, etc . I'll try not to use all of them at once

My only outings recently have been to the vet and the weather here has been rubbish so I was desperate to get out. I wanted to see the Green Hairstreaks at Rake Bottom but I am now a bit hesitant to go there alone after the incident with Mark's car and the lads who intimidated me. I went anyway and I am glad that I did. There are times when it is so much nicer just to stand and watch, rather than race about with a camera, and this was one of them. I have never, ever, at any site before, seen so many Grizzled and Dingy Skippers. They were everywhere. It was like someone had thrown brown confetti around - with every step several flew up and on each flower head there was at least one taking advantage of the brief sunshine to nectar. There were aerial battles involving all 3 species. I had forgotten how variable in colour the Dingies can be -from almost a beige, thru to a much richer brown.

As for the Green Hairstreaks, well, I was surprised how worn many of them were, although a few seemed in very good condition. I only saw about 12 and did not see any exceptional behaviour (no mating or egg-laying). It was just so cold (I had forgotten how windy that valley gets) that any brief interludes of sunshine were used to warm up and take nectar. They were on anything that was in flower - daisy, dandelion, dog violet, wild strawberry etc. I took a few photos, but only a few - and they were not very good. Perhaps because I was so cold (they were hand held), or perhaps because I was tired (I have been up half the night with a sick fox), or perhaps it was because they were continually moving they way they do, rubbing their wings together and turning around, or perhaps it was just that strong breeze - getting the idea Goldie?

[bugboy]

Well all I can say is I wish my best pictures were as good as your "not very good" ones I particularly like that first Greeny feeding on the wild strawberry

[Goldie M]

I'll second that Buggy, your photo's look great to me Pauline, but I'll take the hints given Goldie

[trevor]

HI Pauline,
Thanks for your reply, normally i like Moths i can see ,like your Emperor Moth the other day.
I could certainly get into Hawk Moths and the like.
Yes the Pearls are beautiful at the moment, fresh and unmarked, mostly if not all males.

Best wishes,
TREVOR.

[trevor]

HI again Pauline,
I've just seen your Green Hairstreak images, I think that the third one down is one of the best i've seen.
The light captures the texture of the wings just right. Hoping to get one like that .

Regards,
TREVOR.

[Pauline]

You are very kind Bugboy. That is also my favourite out of the batch. Today I almost didn't get a shot at all of my 'target' (see below) so I was grateful just for the sighting and long-range shots.

I appreciate your comments and encouragement Goldie - thank you.

Good to hear from you Trevor. I'm looking forward to seeing your GH shots if they're as good as the other shots you're posting .Re moths, I'm mostly with you on liking the 'ones I can see' but as others have commented, some of the tiny ones are quite exquisite (once I've got my magnifying glass out ).

I was thinking that it really is about time the Wood Whites were out at Chiddingfold for the Bank Hol weekend and today I unexpectedly got a chance to pop over there. On arrival I met a lovely couple who were also looking at butterflies. They were telling me that they had recently lost 30 years worth of butterfly slides in a fire at their flat when I saw something small and white fluttering behind them. It was a Wood White. I drew their attention to it but as I adjusted the settings on my camera, a male OT started to pay some unwanted attention and it flew off into the woods I searched and searched but to no avail. In my head I was composing my diary entry 'oh yeah, I saw a WW today and I didn't even get a rubbishy photo' I hung around the area for a while looking for larva on sallow and nettles and honeysuckle when the OT male returned. He disturbed the WW again which I must have walked past about 6 times. I was taking no chances this time. I took the close-up lens of and took all the pics from a distance so they have been heavily cropped. Not the sort of shots I usually take but certainly 'in context'

Can you even see it??

[MikeOxon]

That last shot is well up to standard in my opinion - the others are over-exposed. You should try using the spot meter setting on whites and pale flowers, like primroses, although you then have to be careful not to under-expose I'm not sure if your camera has exposure bracketing but that might be worth trying as well.

Butterflies still seem a bit sparse in my part of the world. Perhaps the very cold nights are holding them back.

Mike