www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Autumn has arrived in Swiwtzerland. Even the sunny days seem cool and the butterfly mix has noticeably shifted since the heady days of the beginning of August.

Since I got home from ten days in England I've been almost too busy to get out and have been grateful for cloudy days when the temptation hasn't been there! I did get down to the Valley once, on 2nd September, to look for brown hairstreaks again (unsuccessfully). It was quiet, but there were butterflies going about their business quite purposefully.

This is a female Provençal short-tailed blue busily laying eggs for next spring's flight:



Unlike female short-tailed blues, these are all brown above:



Adonis blues were still fresh and new:



But most other blues were coming to the end.

Silver-washed fritillaries are still common, if very worn, and Queens of Spain are in evidence. In addition to these, a few spotted fritillaries and violet fritillaries were all that was left of that group.

Here is a very delicately marked green-veined white:



The very weakly marked underside is typical of late broods.

Tree graylings are now extremely common. In recent years they have been on the wing into November but I feel this year is closing down more quickly, just as it booted up earlier than most years.



The day after this valley trip I was caught by a heavy rainstorm while returning home with a backpack full of Greene King IPA bottles. Zooming round a bend coming down the hill into Huémoz the bike lost purchase on the road and I spun off, hitting the tarmac with enough force to dislocate my shoulder and generally mess me up! I put the shoulder back (a recurrent injury from my youth, playing inside centre) and got home but the damage was done and if you see me from the right hand side my body looks like something out of Avatar.

If I don't post much in the near future, or respond to others' posts, it is because this little accident has got me rather behind again on all my work!!

Guy

PS - The IPA was completely unharmed by the incident. I never visit doctors or take medicines, so this has played a very important role in restoring my health.

Guy
I wish you a speedy recovery.

I also resist visiting doctors (although five of my very best friends are doctors or surgeons) as I think it is a little like taking a car in for an M.O.T.
It was fine before you took it in - and then they find enough wrong to scrap it!

If you are into alternative medicine, then Arnica will ease your bruising. Tea Tree will stop infectioons and Lavender will help you sleep.
But I am sure you know all this anyway.

Chin (and bottle bottoms) up.

Nice photos and commentary, Guy - but very sorry to hear of your bad fortune and hope you're back on form real soon. The thought of you being unable to lift a pint is really quite unimaginable

This might cheer you up - we have some new neighbours and, yesterday, one of their two youngsters came up to me, very excitedly, to show me a large caterpillar crawling on their wall (we live in a close, and everyone is used to my "eccentric" behaviour with regard to anything wildlife-related, which I consider perfectly normal I have to say). Anyway, the Lime Hawk-moth larva they showed me was clearly heading off to pupate, having wandered off their Silver Birch (or ours), and so we "boxed it up" with a good amount of tissue paper since I really want them to see the transformation to adult moth. I showed them the critter this evening and the kids were amazed at the change in colour since the larva is now a deep purple. And next spring they shall see a very beautiful Lime Hawk-moth before we release it. And thus, two new naturalists shall be born Seriously - we know such apparently-insignificant events have one hell of an influence on small children and that has made my day; I think I was more pleased than they were!

Take care. Cheers,

- Pete

padfield wrote: PS - The IPA was completely unharmed by the incident. I never visit doctors or take medicines, so this has played a very important role in restoring my health.

LOL!

Guy, I'm sure your chances of reaching 100 are way in excess of most of ours.

Hope you're back on the road (literally) to recovery very soon.

Speedy recovery, Guy!

David M writes:
Guy, I'm sure your chances of reaching 100 are way in excess of most of ours.

He will always reach 100 species a year.....

And as our species fade at the season's end, I look forward to an extended season from your reports and pictures....

...surprising that given the option of broken bones, or broken bottles or camera, the bones win every time...

Have fun and keep taking the "medicine"!
N

Hi Guy,
Ouch! I hope you make a speedy and full recovery. Looks like the stabilisers are going back on that bike!
Best Wishes, Neil

Hi Guy,
it's always great to see your posts and some wonderful photographs (with a bit of sunshine) are still a big bonus for us over here in the murk
I hope you recover quickly from your injury . Best wishes,
Michael

p.s. While folks are talking of their favourite photos of the year on the other thread, your pictures of the Poplar Admiral from earlier in the year will always stick in my mind

Hi G

Just to add to the comments of everyone else, Helen and myself wish you a speedy recovery also and hope you're not in too much pain.

I'm glad to hear that the IPA was unharmed and helped in the recovery process.

Seriously mate get well soon and get back into the mountains as everyone looks forward to your diary posts.

All the best (sober this time).

...I just found this clip which may give you some idea of what it is like when Guy goes cycling in Switzerland....

http://paul.kedrosky.com/archives/2011/ ... s+Greed%29

(I'd turn the commentary down; the commentator gets rather excited at a Brit winning something...)

Thank you all for your kind wishes - they are much appreciated! My injury is healing very rapidly, the unbroken expanses of reddish blue (now turning deep yellow towards the edges) are impressing the kids almost as much as my iPad 2 and one of the local shopkeepers gave me all her remaining stock of tofu free of charge when I mentioned I was vegan and needed extra protein right now to mend the ligaments.

I know some of our local off-road mountain bikers and they are among the nicest youths you could hope to meet. Some of the woodland descents they do, like those in Nick's video (brilliant video, Nick! ), are simply terrifying and I wouldn't even consider walking a bike down the worst of them - and yet they build ramps and put obstacles across to make it more difficult. For those watching that video in horror, you should know they also wear Ninja Turtle-style back braces and substantial shoulder and knee braces too - so serious injuries are much rarer than you might think.

Guy

Good to hear you're on the mend and folks are helping out. You'll soon be back in the saddle.

Blimey Guy - perhaps you over loaded the rucksack?

Wishing you a speedy recovery to full Lep movements soon.

Best wishes,

Lee

Sincere get well soon wishes from me too, Guy.

If you want to get down a mountain quickly then try this. Quite simply awesome. http://youtu.be/TWfph3iNC-k

I've just watched both those videos -

Yes - spectacular! Thanks for posting that second one, Susie. I didn't even believe it was real on first viewing.

Guy

Susie wrote:Sincere get well soon wishes from me too, Guy.

If you want to get down a mountain quickly then try this. Quite simply awesome. http://youtu.be/TWfph3iNC-k

Awesome is an often over-used word - but not in this case....

I'm glad you enjoyed it. I would love to do that, but I would probably only do it once.

Guy,
Sorry to year about your accident. At least bodies repair - beer bottles don't!! Hope you are back up and running soon. We need some European butterfly news to keep us going. Here is some cycling inspiration for you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj6ho1-G6tw

padfield wrote:
I know some of our local off-road mountain bikers and they are among the nicest youths you could hope to meet.
Guy

I watched a race from 2000m on one side of Evolene down to the river and back to 2000m before the home run down again to the village.
My old bowler's knees and smoker's lungs could only marvel at the sheer speed and craziness of the event and the enthusiasm and fitness of the competitors.
I witnessed a down-hill tandem that was being carried by one of the riders, whilst the other carried a front wheel that was bent double by some impact ,as they ran to the tele-ciege to get back and fix it so they could finish the course! I can not imagine trying to do some of those paths on a tandem ......

Hi Guy,

I have been away, so have only just read the news of your spill. Glad to hear that you are on the mend.

Best Wishes,
Vince