www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

It must have been awful to come across such a sight! Goldie

That must be the best spot for Wall Browns in the country Bob Pity about the path victims

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Thanks Goldie and Wurzel. It is a particularly good spot for Wall Brown. Possibly also for their parasites as both my pupa have succumbed to these!! Very frustrating, but that is nature.
On another note I was surveying private woodland for BC this week when I came across a Grizzled Skipper ab. intermedia. This woodland can sometimes throw up a taras but this time I had to make do with half a taras!!
http://bobsbutterflies.blogspot.co.uk

I'd settle for half a Taras Bob. Great shots

I'd settle if I saw one Grizzled Skipper Goldie

At last I thought I would post some of my Long-tailed Blue images. I have been doing most of my hunting with James (B. Rex) and Mark Colvin and a few hunts with Neil. As most of the sightings were further West this year than our local site of Tide Mills my total for the year was a minimum of 10. Many hours were put in by all of us although a back problem meant I missed quite a bit of it so the others certainly put in a lot more than I did. I was fortunate that I managed to get to many of the sightings by my colleagues over the season.
Many more at http://bobsbutterflies.blogspot.co.uk

Nice images, Bob. Good to see that quite a few of you managed to get an audience with this insect.

Hi Bob, it's been fantastic chasing Long-tailed Blues with you over the past couple of months. The highlight for me has to be when you and Neil managed to join Mark and I 'just in the nick of time' to see the mating pair.
We've had quite a few brilliant days this season, I hope next year is also full of unexpected surprises.

Lovely photos as ever.

Catch you later

James

Great stuff Bob. I will almost certainly bump into you again next year if there's a sniff of LTB's in the air!

It is so mild out there, and all this mention of bad news lately for the Wall Brown. To stop myself getting too depressed about it all I thought I would head up to my area of Downland to see if I could find any Wall Brown larva!! I have never seen them in December before, although I probably haven't looked too hard before until mid January in the past. As it happens I found 3, one halfway down the slope and 2 together in a tussock near the bottom of the slope. These were both a little larger, which was not surprising as it is more sheltered from the wind down there. What was perhaps even more surprising was the other small creatures found. 7 Moth larvae, baby Froghoppers, several Spiders, a Fly and an Agonopterix pallorella, a micro moth that I have found in the Spring here. This moth does hibernate so not necessarily that surprising, although it was sitting up in the grass so was active.
I now have to decide if this is the start of my butterfly year or the end of it!!
Any suggestions for the moth larvae greatfully received.

HI Bob,

Well done finding the Wall Brown larvae. I will be up on Windover Hill for the first brood
( next week do you think ). Seriously, I hope this very mild weather, so far, won't be
to the detriment of next year's Butterflies.

Stunning LTB. shots by the way.

All the best,
Trevor.




.

Thanks Trevor.

Hard to believe how mild it is out there. Lets hope we still get a proper winter to kill off the nasty things out there!! The Wall larva I found were certainly a little larger than those I found on January 6th. If they survive and the winter keeps mild it is anyones guess as to when they will become adults. 2014 produced the only March record for Sussex so it is possible for an equally early one!!

If anyone can find an early stage Wall Brown, then it's you, Bob! I imagine that the mild conditions are allowing these critters to remain active far longer than is the norm. One wonders what effect a sudden cold snap will have on them.

Hi David. Thanks for your comments. I have found early stages in January before a really cold spell and it seems they are able to go deep into the base of the tussocks to protect against the cold. In the past as soon as a milder spell comes back they are visible again pretty quickly. I've even seen them following a frosty night around lunchtime if the day temperature is warm enough!! The beauty of following them in the wild is that until they are ready to pupate they generally stay in or around the same tussocks. It's just that first initial find that can be difficult as well as having the patience of course to look in the first place.

I relocated 2 of the Wall Brown larva yesterday and they had both grown a bit since the 18th December. Both seemed to be healthy and resting a couple of inches above ground on a grass stem.

With a very cold night last night I was curious to see if the Wall Brown larva were active in the sunshine!! I was amazed how cold it was in the carpark but as soon as I hit the bank where I find the larva the temperature change was very noticeable with it being in strong sunshine and also being protected from the strong wind. I didn't look too hard, just in the two spots where I had found the larva in December. I found one in each spot as well as a moth larva in the first spot. Both Wall larva were inactive although around 2 inches above ground laying along a blade of grass. The first one still had some dew drops on it. The second spot is at the base of the hill so was a little warmer and this one had slept all night on a blade that it looks as though it had half eaten yesterday with the eating pattern on the grass very evident.

Yesterday myself and Downland Boy had 2 butterflies on Ashdown Forest. A Red Admiral was the first of the year for both of us. The 2nd butterfly flew high over our heads and kept on going which made a positive id impossible. The quick flash of colour made me think it was probably a Peacock, but I cannot claim it as such.
More on http://bobsbutterflies.blogspot.co.uk

HI Bob,
Let's hope those Wall Brown larva can find a nice cosy spot over the next few nights,
although I suspect they are quite hardy.
Well done with that Red Admiral !. I've only seen one Butterfly since Nov.2nd.

Looking forward to the new season,
Trevor.

I hope those butterflies are tucked up again now Bob as things have finally taken a turn for the cooler.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Hi! Bob you've certainly got your first Butterfly sightings in for 2016 lets hope they've found some where to shelter, we had heavy snow here Saturday Goldie

Just a brief note that yesterday, even following the coldest night of the winter, and with heavy frost and frozen ground, I still found the 2 Wall Brown larva that I'm monitoring. Both were in grassy tussocks about 1 inch above ground. They were both still but certainly alive and well.