Aude 2015

[Chris Jackson]

Charles,
I see the weather forecast for the Aude département in France is not brilliant at the moment, and certainly not the best for butterfly hunting.
The bad weather however has not affected your skills at sniffing out good restaurants with some delicious meals on the menu.
Keep up the good work.
Bon courage
Chris

[Charles Nicol]

Charles,
I see the weather forecast for the Aude département in France is not brilliant at the moment, and certainly not the best for butterfly hunting.
The bad weather however has not affected your skills at sniffing out good restaurants with some delicious meals on the menu.
Keep up the good work.
Bon courage
Chris

Merci bien mon ami

Today i took some friends to the restaurant in Pomas where we enjoyed anchovy salad, veal/chicken... all washed down with Foreign Legion wine

How i wish the weather would improve

[David M]

Bizarre how the weather's suddenly gone so awful when it has been glorious for so long.

Fingers crossed you will see blue skies and warm temperatures within the next few days, Charles.

[Charles Nicol]

Bizarre how the weather's suddenly gone so awful when it has been glorious for so long.

Fingers crossed you will see blue skies and warm temperatures within the next few days, Charles.

it seems to be improving bit by bit...

i walked from Alet to Limoux yesterday ( about 10 km ).

i saw this pretty moth:

do you know what it is ?

https://www.flickr.com/groups/2902510@N22/pool/ for all new pics

[David M]

Well, that's a first, Charles!

Looks like a male Oak Eggar moth, which is an insect that can drive we butterfly enthusiasts to extreme distraction!

Many is the time I've had them bomb past me whilst I've been out searching for butterflies, and for quite a while I didn't know what they were because they never seem to land. To this day I haven't seen one settled but you have got lucky!

[Charles Nicol]

Well, that's a first, Charles!

Looks like a male Oak Eggar moth, which is an insect that can drive we butterfly enthusiasts to extreme distraction!

Many is the time I've had them bomb past me whilst I've been out searching for butterflies, and for quite a while I didn't know what they were because they never seem to land. To this day I haven't seen one settled but you have got lucky!

thanks for the ID David !

me and the Joke Eggars are well acquainted ! they don't fool me no more

the weather is improving... i have added a few more pics on flickr. this morning i was by the river at Preixan & saw a Painted Lady, Great Banded Grayling, SWF but no Emperors.

https://www.flickr.com/groups/2902510@N22/pool/

[Charles Nicol]

a beautiful day...not too hot; ideal for butterfly walk. bus to Preixan then walk across vineyards to NW of village. plenty of small fritillaries around. nice pics of Scarce Swallowtail with berries. also a Wall... it was larger than usual and kept its wings open:

shoe malfunction will require purchase of glue in town.

lunch at Relais de Preixan... very pleasant terrace overlooking the River Aude

[Charles Nicol]

today fine and hot. bus to Preixan, then wade across the river to the Poplar Woods. Two LPE ( I did not stay very long ).

will maybe go gain tomorrow.

[David M]

Am I mistaken or is your species range a little less broad than last year, Charles?

I wonder whether the prolonged heatwave actually had a detrimental effect on late season species in Aude?

[Charles Nicol]

Am I mistaken or is your species range a little less broad than last year, Charles?

I wonder whether the prolonged heatwave actually had a detrimental effect on late season species in Aude?

i have not seen any Purple Emperors this year... pretty much all the others noted. Yesterday i went on the hill wlak at Pomas and saw some splendid lekking with TTPs and regular Swallowtails.

new pics at https://www.flickr.com/groups/2902510@N22/pool/

[Charles Nicol]

back to Preixan on 0845 bus... fine and sunny 32°. up the long steep hill path. soon spotted TTP activity. at the first lekking spot i took lots of pics ( https://www.flickr.com/groups/2902510@N22/pool/ ) of friendly TTP. also saw several machaon swallowtails and a scarce swallowtail. on the descent i saw a White Admiral ( pics ). several Great Banded Graylings along the path too.
the next few days are looking good... will see what turns up

[Charles Nicol]

one more week to go. the weather is set fair until Monday ( St Aristide ). then it is rainy until i leave... so butterflies will be Friday, Saturday, Sunday.

yesterday was sunny, hot but with a strong wind. today overcast, warm & less windy. it was so windy yesterday that the magician in the Cité had to abandon his attempt to balance glass balls on his head. normally he manages to stack 5 on his bald bonce...

today i went to see the Jousting at the Cité. someone kindly gave me a spare ticket. it was wonderful knockabout fun combined with thrilling horsemanship... highly recommended. there were several chickens wandering around the benches... i gave one a nice squashy fig which it gobbled up.

[Charles Nicol]

in fact the weather is not bad today... the storms are due tonight & the next few days... ie the rest of my hols

as i was lacing up my walking boots this morning i was admiring a Humming Bird Hawkmoth feeding on the plant pot a few feet away. suddenly a large butterfly emerged from the flowers and flew off into a tree. it was probably a Lesser Purple Emperor...

yesterday i was pleased to find a Queen of Spain fritillary... the only one this year. pics on flickr...

paid last visit to the restaurant in Limoux just now... very nice duck main dish. pudding was a sensational pear in chocolate sauce + whipped cream; the stuff of dreams

[LancsRover]

Great pics of T/T Pasha Charles, what aftershave do you use
Just arrived in France myself, still trying to get 1 decent pic of Pasha, fingers crossed for this year

Cheers Russ.

[David M]

Seems like only yesterday when you started out, Charles.

Safe journey back home.

[Charles Nicol]

Seems like only yesterday when you started out, Charles.

Safe journey back home.

Thanks for your good wishes David. It has certainly gone quickly. Tomorrow is looking good for a butterfly walk ( 24° with some cloud ) ...the river is rising due to heavy rain so maybe i'll pass on the wading

probably have lunch at Pomas and then the long walk through the vineyards to Couffoulens to pick up the train.

Great pics of T/T Pasha Charles, what aftershave do you use
Just arrived in France myself, still trying to get 1 decent pic of Pasha, fingers crossed for this year

just rub yourself all over with ripe figs Russ

Good Luck !!

[Charles Nicol]

hols now over

hope you enjoyed the flickr pics

i managed to lose nearly 2 stone in 6 weeks

now where did i put that corkscrew ??

[David M]

i managed to lose nearly 2 stone in 6 weeks

LOL!

So that's why you go!

[Charles Nicol]

i managed to lose nearly 2 stone in 6 weeks

LOL!

So that's why you go!

every year i manage to slim down by eating in restaurants and walking for miles through the French countryside

the real challenge is to stay at the new weight now i am back here

[David M]

the real challenge is to stay at the new weight now i am back here

Indeed, Charles. Sadly, we don't have the same temperatures which lend themselves to walking long distances and seeing the pounds fall off!