www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Great set of shots Trevor WRT the Silver Washed' dalliance with the Comma perhaps a female had been on that leaf previously? Or possibly that was the Silver Washed' preferred perch? Fingers crossed for your Wiltshire stay

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

Cheers Wurzel. The constant stiff breeze is making life difficult.
I went over to Tilshead on Friday morning, and although there were many Marbled Whites
to choose from most were perched on swaying grass stems or were being blown around in the wind.
An exception was a Red Admiral basking on something more wind resistant.

Stay well,
Trevor.

Tell me about it Trevor I'm finding that I have to wait for the breeze to cease for a moment before trying to cram in as many shots as possible before it picks up again and generally when the wind stops the butterfly flies Oh well keeps you on your toes Things look to be improving by the end of the week and next week looks good - but I'm due in four days then, typical

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

Keep at it, Trevor. The weather will come round eventually.

trevor wrote: ↑Sat Jul 04, 2020 5:55 pm ... The constant stiff breeze is making life difficult....

Isn't it just between being whisked away in the wind or bobbing about when they are settled it is certainly challenging getting any photos lately.

Cheers,

Neil.

During a brief bright spell this afternoon I went in search of some Gatekeepers.
Unsurprisingly all that I found were very fresh, and all were males.
It was a shame to see some of the ' Summer spectaculars ', which not long ago,
were fresh, now looking tired and worn, But that is when the Gatekeeper appears,
immediately after the peak of the butterfly year.

Keep safe and well,
Trevor.

PS. Many thanks Wurzel, David and Neil for your previous comments.

Lovely shots of my second or third favourite butterfly Trevor Your second one is an ab.excessa

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

Thanks for that Wurzel. I must admit I hadn't noticed the extra eyespot .
But when I looked up ' ab excessa ' your images of this variant were found!.

Keep well,
Trevor.

2020 Was the second worse year for me with the Purple Emperor.
The worse year was 2012 when it rained on each visit and I saw none at all.

However I had a reminder of better times this morning when looking at some old images.
The shot below was taken at Chiddingfold Forest, at the triangle on 4/7/2016 at 11.20.

Here's to 2021!.
Trevor.

That's about as Purple as you can get, Trevor! You haven't done too badly since then, with the odd ab I seem to recall... However, you were really unlucky this year, and the butterflies could certainly have been more cooperative. Hearing reports of them appearing after you'd left for the day didn't help I'm sure! Here's to a better show in 2021.

I'm hoping your part of the world will conjure some late summer Sussex specialities to give the rest of the season a "kick".

Cheers,

Dave

Cheers Dave. The Purple Emperors had quite a bit to cope with this year,
heat, rain and strong winds. It was not a normal year for them.

This afternoon I made a rare Summer visit to the old railway in Hailsham.
Foremost among species present were Green Veined Whites and Holly Blues,
though none of the latter came within camera range.
Even the Commas were staying high up, requiring a little zoom.
Battling Specklies were in the minority on this visit, and again were to be found higher up.

Stay safe and well all,
Trevor.

Don't worry Trevor 2021 will be much better - it'll be year 3 of my three year cycle so there will be plenty about and I should get some shots of grounded Emperors Lovely set of shots - especially like the wing tip markings on the Green-veined White - it looks like the ink ran slightly

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

2021 it is then Wurzel! .

Early this morning I went over to Abbots Wood for Purple Hairstreaks.
There was a lot of high up action in one of the most popular Oaks, and eventually
three came down low, all males with some damage. Talking of damage it was sad
to see badly worn White Admirals and Silver Washed Fritillaries well past their prime,
although just one female SWF was seen with only minor wing damage.
Many Commas and Peacocks were making the most of the dwindling bramble blossom.
As the Sun warmed the butterflies became too active, so it was time to head home for breakfast.

Stay well,
Trevor.

I had some incredible luck this morning while searching for uncooperative Purple Hairstreaks.
Among the many tattered Meadow Browns seen, this very fresh female landed on a bracken frond
literally beside me. The twin eye spots struck me straight away as odd.

I asked the question and my specimen is ab. biocellata, many thanks to Clive Pratt for his kind assistance.
As it was early am the only other butterflies around of any note were fresh Gatekeepers.

Stay safe and well,
Trevor.

I've wondered about the doubled eyed Meadow Browns Trevor - so cheers for posting that info cracking shot as well

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

That is indeed a lovely female Meadow Brown, Trevor. Lots of interesting stuff you've seen lately; I guess we're approaching the peak period in terms of sheer numbers right now.

I set out this morning to try and locate some female Gatekeepers.
Two were seen among the building male population, but only one
was near enough for a shot.
Something else I've noticed recently is the number of fresh
Meadow Browns flying with old well worn specimens.

Stay well,
Trevor.

trevor wrote: ↑Mon Jul 13, 2020 9:16 pm ...Something else I've noticed recently is the number of fresh
Meadow Browns flying with old well worn specimens...

I have noticed before that they seem to come in 'waves' as part of one long protracted emergence.

Cheers,

Neil.

Cheers Neil, you are almost certainly right about that.
I saw some more fresh Meadow Browns this morning, and again all females.
Also the later arrivals seem to be more willing to bask with wings open.

Stay safe and well,
Trevor.

I went for a walk around Rowland Wood this morning.
Gatekeepers seemed to be the species of the moment, followed by worn Ringlets.
Some more fresh Meadow Browns, and quite fresh Small Skippers had concentrated
in one small area, to be safe I will them ' Smessex ' Skippers.

The treat of the day was a close encounter with a huge Large White. Not only was
it very fresh, but was not at all bothered by my presence.

No exotics were found, but I came home happy.

Keep well all,
Trevor.