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No Dukes Yet

The Duke of Burgundy has emerged very early in Kent, Gloucestershire and Hampshire, but a search of Rewell Wood failed to turn up a Sussex first-of-the-year this morning (12th April). There were plenty of Orange Tips on patrol, a few very fresh Speckled Woods, a Holly Blue and this Green-veined White.

Adonis Cat

Yesterday (14th April) I spent the morning planting out Primula 'plugs' in woodland on the Norfolk Estate, in the hope of encouraging the spread of Duke of Burgundy. Martin Kalaher (who kindly supplied the plants) and Simon Mockford's South Downs National Park 'Friday Club' volunteers helped get them in the ground.... and just in time, as I'm expecting the first adults to emerge in Sussex next week. We were accompanied by plenty of Orange Tips and a few freshly emerged Green-veined Whites.
I then moved on to Mill Hill where I met Mark Bunch on his annual Sussex Skipper visit from Essex. While enjoying the Grizzled and Dingy Skippers (Mark also saw a Green Hairstreak) I noticed a full-grown Adonis Blue caterpillar out for an early evening stroll. With no interest in feeding it won't be long now before it pupates.

Sussex PBFs Out

The first 2011 Sussex Pearl-bordered Fritillaries emerged yesterday (17th April), with numbers increasing to 7 during my return visit to Rewell Wood today. Entering from the south (A27) always gives me a feeling of optimism, as the local woodsman's onsite saw-mill gives a clear indication that this is a 'working wood'.
It wasn't long before the male PBFs warmed up and became very difficult to approach. They occasionally put down briefly to nectar on bugle or dandelion, but mate-finding was their main priority.
With plenty of time to return for the PBFs I spent most of the day in another area, observing Speckled Wood behaviour. There had been a large scale emergence during the previous 48 hours and more than 20 males were constantly in dispute over the best perches along one short section of track.
As I reluctantly left the woods after one of those wonderful days when time just melts away, I noticed the largest swarm of the moth Adela reaumurella (see 'Denbies Hillside, 10th April) that I've ever seen. Approximately 150 were 'dancing' above one tree, and another 100 over the next.

Wow! Looking good Neil.

Those moths are amazing aren't they, I've seen a few over the last couple of weeks. You can really see their extremely long antennae glistening in the sun in your photo.

Cheers

Lee

Hi Lee,
I find their 'dancing' strangely erotic
Neil

Sussex Dukes Out

I had a nice surprise during a late afternoon visit to the beautiful Heyshott Escarpment today (19th April). This usually 'late' site produced my first Duke of Burgundy (2) of the year, beating a couple of locations where I would have expected one or two to have shown by now. I think this is probably a function of the currently very strong population here, as large, healthy colonies tend to throw out earlier specimens. A few very fresh Grizzled and Dingy Skippers were also on the wing.

Great photos, Neil, and great news.

Heyshott Escarpment And Rewell Wood

The lovely weather is really beginning to accelerate the emergence of spring butterflies. On Wednesday (20th April) I visited Heyshott Escarpment with Hannah and my brother's family from Antwerp. Duke of Burgundy numbers had risen to 7, including this plump female which we watched laying eggs.
Steve Morgan rang me today (21st April) to let me know that he had seen a dozen up there, and I suspect there will be many more by the weekend. Plenty of Grizzled and Dingy Skippers, a few Green Hairstreaks, and stacks of ovipositing Brimstones are also on the slopes.

This afternoon I visited Rewell Wood, where numbers of Pearl-bordered Fritillary are building fast. I also visited the area where we've been doing a lot of habitat management for Duke of Burgundy in the last couple of years. In addition to the Dukes I was encouraged to see Grizzled and Dingy Skippers and a couple of Green Hairstreaks here. Two of these species are new arrivals on the site.

New PBF Colony

I spent a very pleasant day (22 April) trying to count almost uncountable Pearl-bordered Fritillaries. But over-shadowing the impressive tally of 125 (almost all males) was the discovery, credited to Paul Day, of a new colony in Houghton Forest near Arundel. A sizeable clear-fell opened up a couple of years back was obviously visited by a wandering female PBF last spring; she must have threaded her way through glades and rides over a distance of at least 2 Kms. Grizzled Skipper and Small Copper have also set up home here. Earlier in the day I also had an encouraging count of 13 Duke of Burgundy on a small woodland site. This included an amorous couple that retired to a turkey oak for some quality time.

Strange But True - The Black Orange Tip!

Bred through from caterpillars collected by BC Sussex member Dave Harris (photographed by Steven Teale), here is a weird and wonderful melanistic Orange Tip.

That's incredible! I've never seen anything like that before! Any more pics available? And thx for sharing this!

Cheers,

- Pete

Hi Pete,
I have no knowledge of anything similar! Here is the other image I was sent, taken just prior to release.... and a very uncertain future!
Neil

I have seen this form illustrated somewhere. It might just have been in T.G. Howarth's South's British Butterflies but I haven't got that book here so I can't check.

Fascinating to see one in real life.

Guy

First Common Blue And Small Heath

I managed to cram a lot of butterflies into today (23rd April). I started early at Rewell Wood and watched the Pearl-bordered Fritillaries wake up as the first rays of sunshine penetrated the sweet chestnut coppice. Speckled Yellow moths were next on the wing, followed by a few woodland Grizzled Skippers.
Then it was off to Mill Hill to lead my first BC walk of the year. There was no need to descend the steep slope here as I normally do; there were plenty of butterflies, including all of our target species, in the scrubby glades to the north of the upper car park. I've never seen so many Green Hairstreaks here. Other species included Grizzled Skipper, Dingy Skipper, Holly Blue, Orange Tip, Speckled Wood, Red Admiral, Brimstone, Large and Small White.

As Susie had come along for the morning walk, I thought I'd show her Kithurst Hill in the afternoon. A male Duke of Burgundy posed nicely for us and I later found a female laying eggs in a hollow that I cleared of scrub a couple of years back - very satisfying. Amongst the other species seen were my first Common Blue and Small Heath of the year, and a handful of Green Hairstreaks including a female ovipositing on dogwood.

Cracking photos, Neil, just goes to show that it's not the camera but the person behind it that makes a good picture!

Thanks again for a smashing day.

Bank Holiday Butterflies

Sunday and Monday (24th & 25th April) were both great days to be out and about. On Sunday I met up with UKBer Lee and a couple of BC Sussex friends, for a whirlwind tour of some of the county's finest scenery and loveliest butterflies. Orange Tips and Green-veined Whites patrolled every verge of the country lanes between Rewell Wood and Heyshott Down, but at either end our target was Duke of Burgundy and/or Pearl-bordered Fritillary .... and we saw a lot of them . As evening approached Lee spotted a mating pair of PBFs, which finished off a great day out very nicely.
On Monday I surveyed a Duke of Burgundy site in the morning, then headed for the peace and tranquility of Harting Down. There's a small colony of Dukes here that never gets visited, not least because it's on a 40 degree slope, but the view across the West Sussex/Hampshire border from this sheltered coombe is well worth the climb. Even as the afternoon sun began to lose its strength and I started the steep descent, I was still finding Green Hairstreaks on almost every patch of scrub I passed. I don't remember a better bank holiday for butterflies.

Ab. taras

Yesterday (26th April) I performed an ongoing survey of private woodland in East Sussex, where it is hoped that Pearl-bordered Fritillary can be re-introduced when the time is right. I remember an interesting presentation given by Andy Barker (BC Hants & IOW) in which he demonstrated the use of Grizzled Skipper as an 'indicator species', signalling the suitability (or otherwise) of woodland habitat for PBF. Good PBF woods invariably hold good numbers of Grizzled Skipper. I counted 46, so I don't think it will be long before this project progresses further. In one area of the wood an isolated colony of skippers contains some nice aberrant forms and out of 18 counted I saw 3 ab. taras (below) and 2 ab. intermedia.

What a magnificent individual. And wonderful pictures, Kipper. I don't like to fill up your diary by commenting on all your fantastic photos but that taras is special!

Guy

Neil said:

.....demonstrated the use of Grizzled Skipper as an 'indicator species', signalling the suitability (or otherwise) of woodland habitat for PBF

Well in my excellent experience with PBFs galore in Haugh Wood today 27th April, I didn't see a single Grizzlie although there was plenty of wild strawberry plants.

Jack

Thanks Guy - I know you have your own area out there for taras and intermedia .... and they're always a real treat to see. Usually when I watch an amorous male trying to break up a pair 'in cop' I think "sling yer hook", but when I watched this handsome fellow trying to usurp a standard livery male I was thinking "get in there". Of course the latter could have been carrying the gene as well and I'm confident of seeing these forms annually here.
Neil