www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Thanks Andrew and Neil, I reckon it's pretty obvious which picture will make an appearance on the fav Heath Frit photo thread this year I should have done my research a little better Neil

19th June 1 day, 2 sites…. again.

I'd completely missed the Ditchling Common festivities (sounds like it ended up like an impromptu UKB meetup from the various reports I read), having already made my Black Hairstreak plans hours before the big announcement, but I decided to at least give the site a little recce and perhaps be lucky to find myself a late one. At least I'd find out just how easy it was to reach.

The morning turned out to be a rather cool grey affair, with little action apart from the usual suspects. I did actually see one Hairstreak, but only just long enough to confirm id before a fly decided to shove it out the way! It was a rather battered and worn individual though so you're not really missing anything. I also found my first Small skipper of the year, and a rather lovely hutchinsoni Comma paid me a brief visit. I'd also read recently of a mass emergent of Purple Hairstreaks in a clearing in a nearby wood so I took a wander there. Turns out the wood in question is mostly private property with a public path running through the middle. I didn't find any Hairstreaks but in a small glade I found a handful of White Admiral feeding. One last look around the Common and it was off to site number two of the day..... not quite as close as the previous day, but here's a small clue
as to where I was heading

Great set of shots Bugboy though I', still none the wiser where you're heading

Have a goodun
Wurzel

Essex for my very reliable WLH site Wurzel

19th June, 1 day, 2 sites…. again part 2.

A few hours later I was arriving at Leigh on Sea station with the intention of ticking off Hairstreak number 3 of the year. It was still somewhat overcast but this didn't seem to put them off, in fact there may have been more than last year and that was pretty spectacular.

For around 2 hours I wandered up and down this short stretch of path, long enough to catch the evening sun as the cloud finally broke and long enough to come away with a shedload of images. With so many around collisions were inevitable... This handsome chap was sporting a rather swarthy curve to his fore wing streak There were other butterflies around other than WLH. This site is also very good for Comma and there was some stonking hutchinsoni around, including one with the ‘comma’ joined to create circle. Biggest surprise of the day was a very early Gatekeeper though But even he couldn’t take me away from the Hairstreaks for long, I mean just look at the tails on her... “Phwoah!” I left at gone 6 with the butterflies all still active, I suspect they were still there for another hour. Brilliant end to the day

That certainly is a reliable site Bugboy Cracking set of shots of immaculately turned out Whitters

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Thanks Wurzel, it's like clockwork that site, the entire population just comes down every year

20th June, Bugboys Big Northern Trip 2018, day 1

Well, as most of you will be aware of, the ‘mission’ was to try and photograph every UK species in 5 years. This started 4 years ago when the target total stood at 59. Last year this total increased to 60 since it’s almost certain now that the Large Tortoiseshell is back, just in very low numbers. At the close of play last year my total sat at a tantilising 59 (I’d found a male LT in the spring) plus a Brucy Bonus in the form of a Queen of Spain Fritillary.

All that remained was the Mountain Ringlet, which I came within a whisker of getting last year on the way back from nabbing the Chequered Skipper. Unfortunately we arrived at Irton Fell during a bleak foggy spell and with little time to hang around we couldn’t wait for things to clear up (which it did an hour after we’d left if the weather forecast was to be believed).

This year I’d booked the last two weeks of June off in the hope I could complete the mission but unfortunately my lift had to pull out at the last minute, so I was left scratching my head as to how I could get to any of the sites (to the newbies here, I don’t drive and rely on public transport or helpful friends with cars). At the last minute a friend who had always wanted to go on a road trip to Scotland stepped in and booked a week of work, which meant that last Wednesday I was sat in a car at 6am on the way to Cumbria with a basic skeleton plan for the week. We made excellent time and were up there about 7 hours later.

With Irton Fell pretty much over for the season I’d contacted CallumMac a few days previously for some advice as to where I should head for. The peak known as High Road was his suggestion so with appropriately purchased OS maps in Kendal we made it to the tiny village of Hartsop by 3pm, worked out the route as best we could and started the climb. Surprisingly I found the 2000 feet climb relatively easy, my chauffer for the trip quickly discovered she’s not as fit as she thought she was but still made it. The weather was a bit iffy, a mixture of cloud and sun but as we got closer to the summit the cloud seemed to be increasing and it became worryingly overcast. We wandered for some time up there, me pointing at various grassy spots and wondering if it looked right, but never quite sure if they were too sheltered, too exposed or if that even mattered to these illusive creatures. In over 3 hours the only lepidoptera we saw were some tiny micro moths, but on the way back down, pondering the plan for the next day, I did find something to point my camera at. A fledgling Meadow Pipit who seemed rather confused, not sure whether to sit tight and hope the strange people go away or fly off himself. Despite the lack of butterflies, it was still a very good start to the week-long expedition, the scenery in this part of the world is quite spectacular when not shrouded in gloom, mist and fog.

Stunning scenery, Paul, and a nice Meadow Pipit. People are going to think I give bad advice!

I've got a sneaky suspicion that the next post might feature species number 60, at least I'm hoping it does, fingers crossed...

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Fantastic shots of the Hair Streak Bugboy, love the third shot I hope you got your MR , looking forward to your next post Goldie

Thanks Callum, but yea you need to up your game in the advice dept!
Shush Wurzel, you'll spoil the surprise!
Thanks Goldie

21st June, Bugboys Big Northern Trip 2018, day 2

The whole week was a very last minute plan, and no accommodation was arranged in advance, which meant we had the freedom to choose were to go every day. We did however pack a tent and camping gear and with camping sites being ten to a penny in these parts, plus being out of season, we had no problem finding somewhere to sleep. The first night was spent at a camp site just down the road from Hartsop which meant we could get an early start and make a second attempt at the previous days site.

First though I contacted CallumMac again to see if he could provide some more precise coordinates to aim for. Being in a rather ‘hilly’ part of the world, internet access was somewhat hit and miss, and you had to buy access at the camp site, £1 an hour, so I sent off the message and just hoped Callum was in. Thankfully I didn’t need to buy anymore, Callum replied with some very exact coordinates and the next morning we set off for another climb. Unsurprisingly it seemed a little steeper and my camera felt a little heavier for this second climb and my friend did struggle a bit more, but halfway up I found the first butterfly of the trip. Not exactly what I was after but in the absence of anything else the camera came out the bag! We made it to the top again and took the turn we’d missed the previous day, we’d actually walked straight passed it! The weather was pretty much the same as the previous day, I just hoped the cloud didn’t take over too much. Off course there was also the very real risk I’d missed them at this site as well. We walked (or rather got blown along) from the High Road peak to High Raise without seeing a single butterfly. Walking up towards the eastern slope of High Raise, which provided a little shelter from the harsh westerly ‘breeze’, I was in the process of voicing my fears to my friend that we may have missed the flight period here, when a small dark butterfly fluttered weakly past us. Bingo! Now I had to wait for it to land and get my all important first snap. He did land fairly regularly, I think to take a break from struggling in the wind. It may not be the best image of one, but this picture is what completed my mission . It was obviously nearing the end of the flight period here with perhaps half a dozen seen on the slope, mostly looking a little worn. One male however looked to be in reasonable shape, and not wanting to leave with just grass obscured shots, I took him to a large sheltered rock for his photo shoot. I was very pleased to find him exceptionally well behaved and he posed perfectly for me, what an absolute star ! So yea, I’ve only gone and blooming done it!!!

It's also quite a nice place to eat lunch! Big thanks to Callum, I owe you

Huge congrats Bugboy What's next? Are you going to try for all the moth species?

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Congratulations from me too Buggy - what adventures you've been on. Love those BH shots especially the one on Bindweed

Hooray! Congratulations Bugboy. Next time I will give 6-figure co-ordinates from the off rather than just site names...

The MRs are friendly little things, aren't they! This one on Whingill Head literally flew on to my leg and then as I was photographing him, on up to my hand. No encouragement needed!

Fantastic Bugboy, what an adventure and you've completed your mission Goldie

Congratulations, Paul. I salute you

Vince

Congratulations.
I think this was an excellent idea and am glad that you completed the set.

Well done

Thanks for all the comments . I am so chuffed at getting the whole set. Its certainly been a journey in every sense and I couldn't have done it without the help of this website and it's users so big thank you to everyone who's helped me over the years . I'm not going to hang up my camera though, there's always something new to see out there .

Well done for completing your quest, Bugboy

Congratulations Paul! You did it! I'm so pleased the mission was successful - only sorry you had to wait another year when an hour's wait might have bagged it for you last year. It's been lovely following your diary

Bugboy

Fantastic. So you've done it. I only came on board right at the end but I am glad I did otherwise I would have missed it.

So now what for the future?. Any other missions to tackle? Or is it too soon to ask?

Thanks again guys. Don't worry Janet, we weren't to know at the time
I'm just going to keep getting out there Ernie. I've learnt loads over these past few years and there's so much more to observe

22nd June, Bugboys Big Northern Trip 2018, day 3

So, with the ‘mission’ now complete would the next 5 days become a bit of an anti-climax? Hopefully not!

We decided to cross the border the next day and try for the Scottish race of the Mountain Ringlets, well I might as well finish in style! PhiliB had recommended Ben Lawers as a good and easily accessible site, so that's where we headed. We found a camp site nearby, a 10 minute drive away, set up the tent and then drove up to the main Car Park. Once getting ourselves sorted we wandered off along the footpath that took us to a fenced off section. This area was being protected from over grazing from deer and sheep to allow native flora to flourish and I'm sure is a botanists nirvana if the gumph in the guides is anything to go by. However it certainly didn't look right for the Ringlets. In fact very few butterflies were seen, a couple of unidentified Whites (probably GVW) and a worn SPBF flew by. There were loads of Oak Eggar caterpillars and Golden-ringed Dragonflies around though. My friend found these to be very impressive, which I think is an appropriate response for a newbie to have ! After wandering around for an hour or so we left this area and tried a bit of tentative off roading, following sheep tracks up the slopes but all we found were Small Heath. Hmmmm perhaps we were too early for the Scottish race to be flying. With time getting on, and hunger pangs brewing, we went into town looking for food and a phone signal. Time to pester another contact for more precise site details...