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I pity the fool...that doesn't make the right decision Bugboy Great set of Small Blues and that is also a lovely coloured female Common Blue, a real dark blue Cheers for the heads up on HB think I'll save the petrol this year

Have a goodun

Wurzel

'Plod' is the right word for that hill Dave, but yea, there's usually a fair bit of activity along there
Well, I ain’t no fool, Wurzel . Yea, I think if you want to see a Glanville on UK soil this year, best save your money for the ferry to the Isle, it looks like a very good year down there from what I can gather

29th May, decisions, decisions
My day off this week was somewhat touch and go, very much depending on what forecast you looked at. Most seemed to agree that London and surrounding areas would be rather wet and thundery for most of the day but further south the rain and thunder would clear off early morning (heading north). Some forecasts suggested it would then turn a bit sunny down there whereas others said it would remain solidly cloudy. after a bit of umming and aahhing I plumped for Abbots Wood, hoping for a glimpse at least of a SPBF.

It was certainly gloomy when I arrived but also rather muggy and it felt warm enough for some activity if the sun decided to show itself. I few thunder storms rumbled past but thankfully I escaped a soaking. Sadly, the closest I got to seeing the sun was a vague disc when the cloud very occasionally thinned a bit and it wasn’t enough to wake any Fritillary, oh well .

Despite the gloom there was still plenty around and I spent a good few hours wandering around and finding various inhabitants of the wood, giving me the chance to practice a bit of low light photography. Moths ended up being the main targets and Longhorn Moths were particularly numerous, mostly flying around above head height but the occasional one would settle within reach. (I’m not 100% sure of all these ID's so feel free to let me know any misidentifications.) Another one which looks superficially like a longhorn was also quite common. My favourite find of the day was a ridiculously well posed Peacock Moth. Brown Silver-lines were easily disturbed and quite difficult to approach And this Brown China-mark proved a worthy adversary, a good 10 minutes of stalking to get anything, not helped by its penchant for alighting on the underside of leaves. Tortrix Moths were also common. Speckled Yellows weren’t as numerous as they usually are, but a few braved the gloom, showing that they’re not always very yellow (old and worn) or very speckled. A Common Swift completed the moff fest. On the lakes, Pond Skaters lurked, waiting patiently for dinner to arrive. And a couple of Harlequin Ladybirds enjoying some private time displayed just how variable the species is Close to noon in one of the Fritillary hotspots, I thought my luck might be in when a Black-tailed Skimmer zoomed past since Dragonflies operate at similar temperatures as butterflies, but no, so I had to remain satisfied with her. She sat well though . With no sign of the sun and the forecasts that were predicting some now changing their mind, I decided to leave around 1. I found what I think is a Grey Chi moth larvae along one of the darker paths and just before leaving the site my one and only butterfly of the day, a mint Small Heath. A couple of hours later, arriving back in a rather damp London I discovered that part of the forecast had indeed come to fruition, with several thunderstorms and torrential rain for most of the day by all accounts. Only the one butterfly but overall, I made the right choice in the circumstances .

Right decision, definitely - one more butterfly than I saw all day on a thoroughly wet day... A great moth selection, Buggy.

Dave

Great set of shots Bugboy even if there was only the one butterfly - that's how it goes some days 'Geoff' is a cracking looking little moth

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Hi Bugboy, you might have only had one butterfly but you got a great photo of it A nice selection on moths there too

Cheers,

Neil

Always good when your choice turns out well. Great selections, I really like the Wood Tiger.

Thanks guys , here's a few more moths.


Recent goings on.

I’m just coming to the end of a 7 day stretch at work (it feels a lot longer!)

During last weeks work transect I finally saw my first Large Skipper of the year, no camera so no pictures. That was on Saturday and since the transect week starts on a Sunday this year I did the next weeks one the following day, this time with camera, but all I saw were Speckled Woods, mostly hiding in the shade. Today (4th June) I wangled myself a half day which gave me the chance of an hour on my local patch. There was the promise of breaks in the cloud cover but I must have blinked when that happened because I never saw any blue sky .

Moths were relatively common, quite a few Burnet Companion who seem to really enjoy overcast days, none stopped for a second. This one, according to the books, is quite localised in the southern half of Britain, Sitochroa verticalis and is rather attractive. Flying in amongst the Burnet Campanions was a Straw Dot. Whilst roosting in amongst the Burnet Companions were a couple of Common Blues. The most numerous inhabitant today though (by a very significant margin I would later surmise) was the Holly Blue. Not adults however, but eggs and larvae. On this one medium sized plant I counted 31 eggs (hatched and unhatched). If we say there are 100 hundred such plants (that's a very conservative estimate) then it doesn’t take a genius to work out we are talking four figures here. I may be facing a second brood of biblical Millerd proportions !

Hi Bugboy
Just catching up with your diary. I should know this but what plant are those Holly Blue eggs on?

Great photos of the eggs and larvae, Buggy. Those numbers certainly do add up - and if you add in all the other eggs laid on other plants since the first females appeared at the start of May, I wonder what you would come up with.

I suspect the survival rate can't be all that high, or we really would be knee-deep in shiny blue butterflies. I could live with that...

Dave

That Sitochroa verticalis is a cracking looking moth, lovely colours

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Your eyes have definitely become attuned to these early stages, BB. Amazing how many you can find when you follow your instincts.

Paul Harfield wrote:Hi Bugboy
Just catching up with your diary. I should know this but what plant are those Holly Blue eggs on?

Sorry Paul, I've only just seen your comment, that plant is Goats-rue, a non native legume. It seems to be the main foodplants choice of the spring brood here once the Dogwood has gone over.

Those numbers do indeed add up Dave, and it would seem I have vastly underestimated the amount of Goats-rue here, more about that in a future post.
Thanks Wurzel, I'm glad I put the effort in to get him, he was a right bugger to pin down!
Thanks David, I put it all down to fieldcraft and observing what the butterflies are doing rather than just taking a picture and walking off


5th June, Summer begins

A half day who's promise was to brighten up in the afternoon. I wasn't banking on it though given the previous day, the morning had been a bit on the gloomy side. It's been a week since I've been to Bookham, a long time for me, and arriving around 1.30 the gloomy conditions were still dominating. It didn’t feel particularly warm either though the occasional Speckled Wood would fly by here and there. I checked for various early stages but today I found none of my previous youngsters, just a batch of Peacock who were in the middle of moulting. It is starting to become a little overgrown though, so thorough searching isn't really possible anymore without running the risk of harming what I'm looking for. Whilst looking in the undergrowth I couldn’t help but notice the all the families of Tits (it sounded like hundreds). Blue, Great, Long-tailed and Marsh Tits seemed to be everywhere, and a family of Blues were being particularly obvious and noisy, it’s no wonder most of them end up as Sparrowhawk and Crow food! I noticed a chink of blue sky as I headed for Banks Common which slowly became larger as I walked along. The brightening conditions woke up several more Speckled Wood who were willing to pose as they soaked up the rays. I'm not sure if I'm imagining it but this new wave of emergent’s seem very large, possibly approaching Grayling sized in some cases. I also saw my first Meadow Brown of the year. When I got to the far side of Banks Common, where the best of the action can usually be found, there were a handful of golden winged creatures jostling for my attention. Surprisingly though not a single Copper (And no Blues or Brown Argus either). Today it was all about the Large Skipper... until they got gatecrashed.

Just as I was settling into the chase, they really were full of beans, a larger, paler butterfly soared past and landed on a nearby thistle. The Skippers could wait, they weren't going anywhere after all, whilst I followed the egg laying Lady. You had to be quick, the whole process was over in a matter of seconds, but I managed a few shots I'm happy with. And here's one of the results, another egg to add to my growing list of ticks. She disappeared as fast as she had appeared, so it was back to the Skippers. A walk along the hedge threw up around a dozen fresh males plus one (perhaps two) less fresh Dingies and a few more Meadow Browns. After this I took a wander down one of the rides into the wood, now blessed with an almost cloudless sky! I was hoping for an early hutchinsoni Comma. Apart from Speckled Woods there was little activity here (in a months’ time it will be teaming with Silver-washed Fritillary, White Admiral, Purple Emperor, Purple Hairstreak, Ringlets, Skippers and Meadow Browns etc etc). A Red Admiral played hide and seek, and a single Comma was found. Not a hutchinsoni but a very old female still laying eggs. These offspring, hatching so close to the summer solstice, will most likely become hibernators, bypassing the hutchinsoni stage. Whilst wandering I found a family of Marsh Tits, one fledgling sitting quite low down. I was surprised no Coppers or Blues were around, especially since both were found just a week previously but just as I was approaching the station to head home a couple of male Blues showed themselves… except the one that settled wasn’t a male, I’m beginning to find it very difficult to sex Common Blues without seeing them settled !

Another great report from Bookham, Buggy - you are certainly good at finding Painted Ladies there, along with everything else. Hopefully there will be some home-grown ones a bit later on after the activity you watched.

Dave

Lovely shots of the Painted Lady Bugboy And that final Blue almost leaps out of the screen

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Well done for capturing the ovipositing Painted Lady, BB. With Large Skippers and Meadow Browns now appearing, your post's title 'Summer begins' is wholly accurate!!

Thanks Dave , to be honest I think this one found me!
Cheers Wurzel, with the variety and general 'blueness' of them these days, I find it almost impossible to pass one by without stopping for a snap!
Thanks David, I have my new lens's autofocus to thank for getting many of those shots of that Lady


6th June, Sunny Sussex (part 1)

A change in my work rota means I’m back to having Wednesdays off and the forecast looked promising for a trip into the depths of Sussex, firstly in another attempt to find some Small Pearls and then onto another site if time permitted.

It was rumoured by the weather people that it would start off cool and overcast and start to brighten up mid-morning, which would be perfect for me if that came to fruition. It was indeed a little cool upon arrival at Polegate and it remained so all the way to the Fritillary hotspots. Continuing on from the 'moff fest' from my last visit I found a Light Emerald, which I took to be a White when it floated over my shoulder and into the grass in front of me. They start off a pale green and fade to a greenish tinged white after a few days. At the hotspot, with the cloud cover just starting to thin, I caught site of a Fritillary. It’s worn appearance instantly marking it as an old Pearl. Nevertheless I was buoyed by this, if it was warm enough for them to be active then it should be warm enough for Small Pearls as well. I spent a bit of time with this one though since it did pose rather well in the conditions. Nothing else showed itself here so I wandered to the next hotspot. By now the cloud cover was starting to break, causing the temperature to rise quite noticeably at times. It didn’t take long for my target to show itself, partially hidden to the side of one of the bracken edged paths. It was warm enough to flutter around and alternated between basking and feeding and made for a very amenable target. I stayed with it for about half an hour, not seeing anymore before moving off for a wider search. I noted several Dragonflies here, mostly Broad-bodied Chasers but also one male Emperor and wondered how many Pearls and Small Peals had fallen victim to them. Just as I walked off from the Emperor another Small Pearl swooped past me, heading straight for the jaws of butterfly doom. It settled here and there but never in particularly helpful places and I lost track of it as it flew past where I last saw the Emperor resting… Further on down the track I bumped into a couple of chaps searching for the same thing as I (I think one of them was head honcho of Abbots Wood) and one was located feeding in semi shade on brambles near the path. A bit of patience proved worthwhile and I finally got a few decent shots of it stuffing its face. By now the cloud cover had all but vanished and it was getting rather hot so the choice was either stay as a spectator to orange things darting all over the place or take in another Sussex site… of which there are many to choose from.

It was a slow meandering walk back to Polegate, with the sun out now there was plenty of stuff about, mostly too lively, but a few did sit still long enough for a snap including a brief appearance of a nice blue female Common Blue. Speckled Wood were rather common in sunny glades, a male Broad-bodied chaser had taken over a large puddle and was soaring over it rather proudly over it and where I’d seen the Emerald in the gloomy morning I found a worn Small Copper enjoying the sun. tbc

That looks like a successful outing, Buggy, with your Small Pearls sitting nicely - they do seem to have a liking for the brambles now they are in flower.

Dave

Those shots of the Blue Tits are adorable Buggy. Well done with the Painted Lady and egg too - more great shots

Great series of shots Bugboy especially the Painted Lady, that's quite a lovely Blue has well Goldie