www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Bugger, (if you'll pardon my french), I wish I'd known you were going as there are some areas where there seem to be more aberrants among the population than others and I could have pointed you in the right direction.

From Felix:

"It is perfectly plausible* that the accelerated development of the imago within the pupal skin, caused by the locally elevated temperatures, truncated the pigmentation processes. In effect, the development was accelerated to the degree that the pigmentation process did not complete fully before the imago was at the point of emergence. Similarly there are an awful lot of small specimens of certain species around at present (brown argus for example) simply because the larvae developed at a hugely accelerated rate due to the unseasonable warmth. They have achieved full development but so quickly that the larvae didn't have the opportunity to consume enough food to achieve full size!

*In fact, rather than say "it is perfectly plausible" I would rephrase that as "highly likely"

The deformities do not surprise me - many extreme aberrations are accompanied by asymmetry to some degree or another. Captive breeding/rearing has demonstrated that many extreme aberrations are so weak or malformed that they fail to emerge at all."

Cheers,

- Pete

Susie wrote:Bugger, (if you'll pardon my french), I wish I'd known you were going as there are some areas where there seem to be more aberrants among the population than others and I could have pointed you in the right direction.

It was a last-minute change of plan, Sooz, otherwise I would definitely have contacted you beforehand! The individuals I wanted to see, however, are everywhere. One in five individuals was "different"!

Cheers,

- Pete

On certain areas of the site I would say it was one in two, in other areas a lot less, but as an average you are probably right. I've pm'ed you.

I'm going to go back to the site as soon as possible and do a proper count of all the adonis I can find and an exact tally of how many appear to be normal or otherwise. It's about time I started being a bit more thorough about these things.

Greenham Common Blues

Given the overcast weather, I thought I'd spend my lunch break searching out Dingy Skipper ova on the plentiful Bird's-foot Trefoil. It was like looking for a needly in a haystack and I came up with a grand total of zero! However, I did manage to find 3 Common Blue ova which stuck out like a sore thumb being completely white against a green background. I also found another 4 where the larva had already departed.

Cheers,

- Pete

Wrecclesham

I couldn't resist could I? A couple of hours spent at the Glanville Fritillary introduction near Farnham, where I saw around 50 Glanville Fritillary which were very easy to find. But certainly not the thousands reported elsewhere! Some photos from today below, and great to chat with 5 or 6 other enthusiasts, including our very own Vince Massimo And who should I meet when leaving the site, but the very chap responsible for the introduction - we had a good old natter!

Cheers,

- Pete

I'm soooooo jealous!

It was a nice surprise to bump into you today Pete . I stayed until 3.30 but still did not find any mating pairs. I am posting a few photos on the Wrecclesham Glanville thread.

Cheers,

Vince

Pete Eeles wrote: who should I meet when leaving the site, but the very chap responsible for the introduction - we had a good old natter!

Anything to share with the rest of us, Pete?

Pete:

And who should I meet when leaving the site, but the very chap responsible for the introduction - we had a good old natter!

It is obvious from the enthusiasm shown on ukb for this and other introductions that only a few people have objections to introductions. I don't.

Anyone have any captive-bred Mountain Ringlets that I can release in my local meadow in this hilly part of Cambridgeshire?

Jack

...............and some Chequered Skippers would save me that horrible long drive!

What's with all the insomniacs? (Note the times of some of the postings).

I have found since the age of about 60 I never sleep through the night. My wife is not quite at that age yet, but she is starting to have long spells awake during the night.

Jack

What's with all the insomniacs? (Note the times of some of the postings).

Jack
I can't sleep on after the sky starts to "blue" up.
Especially today - as I am off butterflying!!!

In 10 minutes I shall be off - soft top down, Van Morrison on the CD player, and my camera on the seat beside me.
Three sites to visit, and an excellent pub for lunch.
Life doesn't get much better.
Bye

Jack Harrison wrote:It is obvious from the enthusiasm shown on ukb for this and other introductions that only a few people have objections to introductions. I don't.

Sorry Jack, but that sounds a bit like UK Butterflies supports any unauthorised introduction.

We adopted the BC policy below.

http://www.butterfly-conservation.org/u ... 202010.pdf

Regards Gruditch

Jack Harrison wrote:It is obvious from the enthusiasm shown on ukb for this and other introductions that only a few people have objections to introductions. I don't.

Context is everything. I would endorse well thought-out introductions where a detailed habitat study has been performed, there is sustainable habitat (managed if required) and the ecology of the species in question understood. And, of course, where there is no detrimental impact to the donor population. And where the law isn't being broken. All in all - I think the BC policy, as Gary says, sums it up and is common sense.

I object to others - such as the Marbled Fritillary "introduction" in Finemere Wood.

Cheers,

- Pete

David M wrote:

Pete Eeles wrote: who should I meet when leaving the site, but the very chap responsible for the introduction - we had a good old natter!

Anything to share with the rest of us, Pete?

With regards to the Glanville Frits - nothing that wasn't posted on the other thread. We talked mainly about the crazy year we're having and the likely impact on some species.

Cheers,

- Pete

Hi Pete,
thanks for the Glanville report and the photos - I especially like the third shot on the (Ox-eye?) daisies. A lovely shot that sums up summer weather (though as always all your photos are great). If I wasn't busy going hither and tither (plus I've already seen plenty of Glanvilles in France two weeks ago) I'd be tempted to go myself .
Michael

Pete.

You might want to transfer/start a new thread. I’m sure this has come up many times before.

The Butterfly Conservation Policy about introductions is balanced and I don’t find it particularly controversial.

What however I do see as being controversial is that BC seems to be acting as a self-appointed policeman. I’m sure somewhere in the membership forms there is a let-out that implies that members accept BC policy. But not every butterfly enthusiast is a member of BC so they have no obligation to adhere to any BC code of practice. They should of course conform to the Law of the Land.

I draw a parallel with religion. I am not a member of any religion so I see no requirement to follow the rules laid down by religious bodies. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t some sensible rules but I feel no compulsion to obey; I think for myself and make rational decisions about what is good for me and for the rest of the world. I most certainly don’t automatically “respect” a religious leader just because he/she has a title such as “The Reverend” or “Rabbi”. (Unlike a man I knew many years ago in a remote part of Ireland. He was utterly contemptuous of religion, yet bizarrely would “doff” his hat when he passed a priest in the street). I might well respect a person who happens to be a religious leader because that person is worthy of respect in his/her own right.

Sorry to have digressed. That BC policy commands my respect because it IS sensible but not simply because it has been produced by Butterfly Conservation.

Jack

Purple Doings at Home

With a day spent working at home, I decided to sort out the Purple Emperor larvae that I'm rearing through. One will pupate tomorrow - this is based on my observations from previous years when a larva will move to the underside of a leaf facing toward the stem. It spends 2 days in that position building a silk pad before turning around 180 degrees, facing away from the stem (i.e. toward the leaf tip) and spending another 2 days in that position. It then pupates. Some photos below.
I know some people are also interested in the setup I use for rearing immature stages. This really depends on the species (and the stage to some extent) and I may well write something up on this at some point. But the Emperors are "sleeved" on sallow (if you look closely you can just make one out near the middle!):
And just for comparison, other species can be reared on foodplant in a plant pot (in this case, 2 Silver-washed Fritillary larvae):
In all cases, common sense is to use growing foodplant and natural (outdoor) conditions.

Cheers,

- Pete

Looking forward Pete to some tips about your techniques. For example, do you make your own sleeves or buy them? Lots more questions that can wait.

Jack