www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Neil: Lady Muck loved going out in this.

Can't quite make it out but is that a camera or bins in young lady's hands? If not WHY NOT! Never too young.

Jack

That's a great shot of the RA on the blackberry - very autumnal

Hi B. Rex,

Good to see you back again with some great reports and photos

Interesting comments from yourself and Neil H on the roosting Wall Browns. Back in early September, at Osmington in Dorset, I watched a female settle down to roost in the same manner as you describe the males that you saw, there is a photo of her on page 59 of my diary.

Cheers,

Neil.

Wurzel wrote:Fantastic shots Rex and great to see you back on the forums Have you invested in a Mountain Buggy or some form of rucsac/sling yet ready for next season?

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Hello Wurzel thanks very much, it's very nice to be back. We're going to get something for rougher terrain in time for the spring when we'll be going out a lot more often. Some of the places that I frequent in search of butterflies aren't even safe for me! I'm looking forward to taking her out to the more "family friendly" places though.

P.S your diary is so epic I'm still catching up on your adventures - brilliant reports and photos as usual.

Neil Hulme wrote:Hi B. rex,
You can't go wrong with one of these! 45 degree slopes no problem, but don't tell Claire! Lady Muck loved going out in this.
BWs, Neil

UKB Mia on butterfly safari.jpg

Hi Neil, I will email you later on about the make and model if that's OK. I'm afraid Claire already knows about me clinging onto 45 degree slopes.
That is such a great photo of you with your little'un

Jack Harrison wrote:

Neil: Lady Muck loved going out in this.

Can't quite make it out but is that a camera or bins in young lady's hands? If not WHY NOT! Never too young.

Jack

I suspect she was having too much fun driving her daddy around Jack

Pauline wrote:That's a great shot of the RA on the blackberry - very autumnal

Thanks Pauline it was so warm here yesterday that most of the Red Admirals I saw were doing their best impression of a Wall Brown - as in unapproachable. Thankfully the Blackberrys were so sweet that this RA didn't care about me getting in close for a photo or two.

nfreem wrote:Hi B. Rex,

Good to see you back again with some great reports and photos

Interesting comments from yourself and Neil H on the roosting Wall Browns. Back in early September, at Osmington in Dorset, I watched a female settle down to roost in the same manner as you describe the males that you saw, there is a photo of her on page 59 of my diary.

Cheers,

Neil.

Hello Neil, I just had a look at your roosting female - it's a lovely photo I love the under wing camouflage - I think it's possibly even more difficult to get a great shot of a wall's underside. Thank you very much for the kind words and the warm welcome.

My best wishes to you all

B'saurus

Love the Wall shots Rex ,I took a photo earlier in the year of a Wall in front of a Rabbit hole from which it had just emerged

Congrats on the birth of your daughter hope to see some photo's soon Goldie

Goldie M wrote:Love the Wall shots Rex ,I took a photo earlier in the year of a Wall in front of a Rabbit hole from which it had just emerged

Congrats on the birth of your daughter hope to see some photo's soon Goldie

Thank you Goldie I've got a lot of catching up to do reading everyone's diaries of course I'm busier than ever now our little one is here. I'm going to try and find your Wall near the rabbit hole photo though. Every decent Wall Brown photo is precious - they are such a tricky subject but their beauty makes all of the frustration more than worthwhile.

Thank you for the congrats

Best wishes

B'saurus

Hi!, B saurus, you won't find my photo in the postings . I didn't include it because of Grass that was in the way , but I'll post one on here for you if that's not to intrusive; you can see the hole it came out of in the back ground also the grass UGH! not so good. Goldie

Thank you for showing me Goldie, I've never seen a Wall emerge from a rabbit hole! Wall Browns have a real knack for positioning themselves behind a bit of grass or a twig. It's yet another thing they do to frustrate our attempts at getting a good photo.

ATB

B'saurus

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

Well it's that time of year again so I thought I'd put on a silly hat and celebrate with a few of my personal highlights from the 2014 Butterfly season. This year started out very well thanks to the 'unusually warm' early spring. I tried to make the most of it because I knew that by the end of the June Gap I would be welcoming my baby daughter into the world

Small Tortoiseshells are almost always the first butterflies I see every spring and it was heartening to see that the fantastic numbers from 2013 had carried over into this year. My next highlight has to be the return of the Orange Tips, always a very welcome sight. They started very early in this part of the world and although numbers were not as high as recent years they still seemed to do well in a few local spots. After the Orange Tips arrive I know it won't be long before I see my first Green Hairstreaks of the year, again they started unusually early, in fact this year was the earliest I've ever known for GHS's. Despite some reports saying that Grizzled Skippers were having a poor year I am very happy to say that in my part of Sussex (at least) they were reasonably plentiful. that meant I had ample opportunity to get a few decent shots. Without doubt my favourite butterflying trip of this year was my expedition to Heyshott in search of the Duke and Duchess. Not only did I see very good numbers but I also met a few familiar faces as well as making a few new friends, it really was a day to remember. Another highlight came in the form of the Small Heath, with good numbers on the wing I unexpectedly found that I had more chances to get a photo of a butterfly that can be almost as difficult as Wall Browns to photograph. This year I actually got a few half decent photos, most years I don't manage any! Last but by no means least - just before the joyous arrival of our baby I managed to spend some time in the company of Badgerbob in search of some White letter Hairstreaks. Bob very kindly showed me a few of his favourite spots but I think we were a little early as we didn't manage to find any. Luckily I managed to locate some later on and get some photos of this fabulous little butterfly. And that's about it, my season came to an abrupt end but for the best possible reason. Of course I can't wait to take my little girl butterflying with me in a few years time

Once again I would like to wish everyone on UKB a very happy Christmas and a wonderful "butterfly filled" 2015. I hope to see some of you out there next year.

Xmas best wishes

B'saurus

Some seriously good images there, B'Rex.

Hope to see more of you in 2015! All the best.

HI B.Rex,

Lovely selection, almost Hulme quality!!.Also, I like your timing , posting them on the shortest day,with that behind
us we are now on our way to next season.
Hope to catch up with you in 2015.
Wishing your new family a happy Christmas

TREVOR.

B'Saurus,

The latest offerings in your PD have me green with envy. Firstly the photos of the Dukes. I've missed out on these for the last two years and have vowed to make 2015 the year I finally see my first examples. Secondly the small heath is the one butterfly I just cannot get close enough to photograph. Your macro image is simply stunning.

Merry Christmas

Regards Kev

David M wrote:Some seriously good images there, B'Rex.

Hope to see more of you in 2015! All the best.

Likewise David, I'm glad you liked the photos, my season was cut a bit short but it was fantastic while it lasted. Have a great 2015

Merry Christmas

B'saurus

trevor wrote:HI B.Rex,

Lovely selection, almost Hulme quality!!.Also, I like your timing , posting them on the shortest day,with that behind
us we are now on our way to next season.
Hope to catch up with you in 2015.
Wishing your new family a happy Christmas

TREVOR.

Thank you kindly Trevor Yes indeed we'll soon be out chasing Orange Tips and PBF's once more, I can't wait!
I'm absolutely certain I'll see you out there somewhere next year, We always manage to catch up at one of the usual spots.

Have a great Christmas - see you next year.

Best Yuletide Wishes

B'saurus

kevling wrote:B'Saurus,

The latest offerings in your PD have me green with envy. Firstly the photos of the Dukes. I've missed out on these for the last two years and have vowed to make 2015 the year I finally see my first examples. Secondly the small heath is the one butterfly I just cannot get close enough to photograph. Your macro image is simply stunning.

Merry Christmas

Regards Kev

Very kind of you to say that Kev, There's still quite a few species I've yet to see. Like you I hope to find a few of them in 2015. Small Heath are very slippery customers, like the Wall they are highly sensitive to movement. Photographing those two species can have you tearing your hair out! I used a 100mm lens on my APSC DSLR for both the small Heath and Wall Brown photos, unfortunately for me you have to get pretty damn close - I suppose I'm just a glutton for punishment.

Merry Christmas to you, and the best of luck on your mission to see some Dukes next year. I hope to make a trip for the Dukes myself.

ATB

B'saurus

Fantastic to see you back on the forums with such cracking shots Rex

Have a fabtastic Chrimble and New Year!

Wurzel

Wurzel wrote:Fantastic to see you back on the forums with such cracking shots Rex

Have a fabtastic Chrimble and New Year!

Wurzel

Cheers Wurzel I hope you and the family have a wonderful Christmas. Not to mention a cracking 2015.
I've had a very eventful year I'll send you a PM after Xmas after all it's been a while.

All the best

B'saurus

Good to see you posting again B'saurus and looking forward to see how you get on next year.

Hope you have a great Christmas and a New Year,

Cheers,

Neil.

Neil Freeman wrote:Good to see you posting again B'saurus and looking forward to see how you get on next year.

Hope you have a great Christmas and a New Year,

Cheers,

Neil.

Sorry I missed your post Neil, I knocked off early for Christmas - I hope you had a great one, oh and a very happy new year to you too. If I do half as well as you did last year I shall be VERY happy indeed.

All the best

B'saurus

My season began this weekend, I saw at least 7 Brimstone on Saturday and one Small Tortoiseshell this morning.
B'saurus