www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Agreed. I'm utterly sick of it now. I'm not demanding a heatwave, just a break from what's been served up for us over the past 4 weeks.

Just studied the forecast for next week and it seems some relief may be on the horizon.

Next Wednesday London was forecast as 18c with sunny intervals and Cardiff 17c.

Just thought this would be a good place to post a picture of a female Apollo I found last summer, who had spent at least three days hanging from a knapweed head in sometimes torrential Pyrenean rain:



The day I took that picture she looked as cold and miserable as a butterfly can look. But the sun came out in the afternoon and she began moving, then flew off, apparently none the worse for her experience.

Guy

Lovely image, Guy, and I do sympathise with that poor butterfly's plight, but imagine if she'd been immobilised for a whole month like many of the Orange Tips over here!!

I am certainly no expert and have alot to learn, but I think we should consider the broader picture and long term impact of all this rain.

I am sure that all this rain will have some effect on the early emergers, but not as bigger impact as our prolonged lack of rain since last autumn.
Lots of unseasonal sun and lack of wet stuff is great for us butterfly watchers. However, I would have thought prolonged lack of rain is likely to have a much more detrimental affect on our butterflies due to drought affecting the availability of certain foodplants later in the season and the following year.

Of course I might be talking a load of rubbish. I am sure the more experienced people on here will correct me if I am way off the mark.

I would be interested to hear a report from west Scotland. It seems every time i watch the forecast on tv, west Scotland is fine and sunny! If only the Chequered Skippers were out now.

I'm pleased to report that I have just come in from doing my transect and I saw 6 orange tips, 2 green-venied whites, 3 small tortoiseshells and 3 peacocks. I didn't see anything for the first three sections and I was starting to think that everything had perished. I doubt any of the orange tips have emerged in the last day or so, and I imagine that they have been hiding away from the rain. We have had the odd sunny spell over the last few days, so maybe they popped out for a quick feed, unnoticed.

David M wrote: but imagine if she'd been immobilised for a whole month like many of the Orange Tips over here!!

I know that the weather has seemed pretty dismal for the past month but around here it has been more like a return to normal after last years unusually dry and sunny April.
We have had some heavy rain and the past couple of days have been almost non stop but previously there had been some sunny spells albeit not always at times when I could take advantage of them.
I have seen a couple of examples this week of the sun breaking through for a short period and lo and behold a butterfly has appeared in my garden .
The Green Veined White that I saw yesterday and described in my diary being one.

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I think that the worse aspect of the current weather is the impact that it has on our ability to get out and see butterflies rather than on the butterflies themselves .
After all any butterfly that has evolved to emerge and fly in the British Spring must have evolved to deal with our erratic weather at this time of year.

Heres hoping,

Neil F.

nfreem wrote:any butterfly that has evolved to emerge and fly in the British Spring must have evolved to deal with our erratic weather at this time of year.

I agree. Let's not forget that butterflies have been around far longer than we have, and have taken things like ice ages in their stride!

Mike

MikeOxon wrote:Let's not forget that butterflies have been around far longer than we have, and have taken things like ice ages in their stride!

I'm sure none survived the Ice Age, Mike (at least not in the UK).

Returning to earlier comments, I accept that sunny intervals can bring forth immediate butterfly activity, but the caveat here is that temperatures must be suitably high. Here in S.Wales, not since Good Friday have temperatures exceeded 12c, and indeed most of the time they've been stuck at 9 or 10.

I believe the Swansea area may get a little sunshine tomorrow afternoon and with temperatures forecast to be 12c, I shall be out and about to see how many butterflies are active.

On this day last year I was on Rodborough Common in Gloucestershire butterflying during pleasant sunny spells and the temperature was generally around 17C, the Duke of Burgundy and Green Hairstreak were on the wing and all was well with my world...today in contrast I've been sorting out my workshop (Oh! joy) and the rain has done a fandango on the roof, mid-afternoon I checked the garden thermometer and it read a measly 7C, but it actually felt considerably less. I want to check out Pearl-bordered Fritillary (the April Fritillary) in April, I'm not at all optimistic though, it's not just the rain it's the general temperatures...but all is not gloom, I got home on Tuesday after a day photographing Dipper in the Brecon Beacons and my wife reported seeing our first garden butterfly of the year, an heroic Green-veined White, this is an unprecedented date, our latest ever first visitor of the year, but better late etc

Bill

Lets all sing along together now...'raindrops keep falling on my head' la la la la la la...........

Pardon me if I excuse myself from the refrain, Willrow.

Apart from anything else, late April in the UK is generally something that is almost unique - mild temperatures, green pasture, late spring/early summer plants bursting forth, colours everywhere..............well, this April has been a write off, and you can never get it back. There hasn't been a single opportune butterflying day for over 3 weeks, and what's worse, it looks as though the next 4 days at least may well be identical.

This spell of weather has been BEYOND atrocious, and even if things even themselves out over the next few weeks, nothing can compensate for an entire month of abject conditions.

To put things in perspective, I ventured out in Abergavenny on 25 Feb and the temperature was 13c with nil cloud and non-existent wind. Since 6th April, we haven't even enjoyed a single day to compete with that. I sincerely hope that we may be compensated for that (and to be fair, we often are) with ideal conditions in the near to middle future. I don't think I could stand another 4 weeks like this.

Hi all,
This post is fair cheering me up with all the moans and groans about the weather. Wheres the drought now...flooding...whats next..pestilence...famine!!! Its not the end of the world just yet guys

Iain.

This is the current Met Office forecast for Heathrow for Monday:

Mon 30 Apr
Day 21°C
E 9 mph
(Not sunny, mind.)

I will believe it when it happens...

Dave

David M wrote: ....well, this April has been a write off, and you can never get it back. There hasn't been a single opportune butterflying day for over 3 weeks, and what's worse, it looks as though the next 4 days at least may well be identical.

This spell of weather has been BEYOND atrocious, and even if things even themselves out over the next few weeks, nothing can compensate for an entire month of abject conditions.

My commiserations David if the weather has been that bad in your neck of the woods .

Here in the midlands we have had some really bad days especially this week, but until yesterday we have also had some decent spells of sun with reasonable temperatures in between.
Both last weekend and the one before I managed to get out and each time I managed to see some butterflies, not in huge numbers I must admit, but enough so that April for me has not been a total washout.

I can still remember the the end of May 2010 when we had planned a garden party for my sons birthday and the weather was similar to that we have had this week...a whole month later.

Tomorrow is looking like a sun and showers day again but Sunday looks like rain all day for me. There seems to be a bit of hope for later next week, fingers crossed.

Neil F.
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The forecast for the last day of the month (Monday) is showing promise! For those of you who can,, dust off your cameras and charge up your batteries!

What a thoroughly miserable weekend Almost unbroken rain all weekend here in Hedge End

Susie wrote:The forecast for the last day of the month (Monday) is showing promise! For those of you who can,, dust off your cameras and charge up your batteries!

Unfortunately I will be at work tomorrow when the sun comes out

Ditto. I shall growl at it through the window...

Dave

Essex is the driest county in Britain. This is my local river today.Howling wind last night too. Officially the wettest drought on record!