www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Photo's from Denge wood as promised...

Beautiful sheen on the Green Hairstreak!

Thanks Katrina! And congrats on the Norfolk Swallowtail,a great sighting!

Near my home is a verge which is normally shredded to the ground at this time of year. So a couple of weeks ago i checked the garlic mustard plants there for Orangetip eggs. Sure enough,i found and rescued about 40. I then potted some hairy bittercress plants,a common weed in gardens. OT caterpillars will happily eat this,and these small weeds are so much easier to deal with than mustard,which grows 4 feet tall!
The first picture shows a cat the first day after hatching. I had to crop this,as i don't have the technology for photographing really small stuff. The second cat is about a week old.

FRIDAY 16 MAY

This day was not about looking for anything in particular,it was about enjoying weather, the sights,scents and sounds (including nightingales)of spring,my favorite time of year, one last time,before we loose the freshness,and head on into early summer.Stayed in Essex today,visiting several countryside sites,and tried to soak it all up. The hawthorn,the horse chestnut,the buttercups-these and many others combined to make a glorious setting.

Butterflies were not ignored,of course,and included Orangetip,Small Copper,Green Hairstreak,Common and Holly Blues and Speckled wood,while dragonflies were Hairy Hawker,4 Spot Chaser Dragons,and Common Blue,Azure Blue and Large Red Damselflies.

The Hairy Dragonfly and Crab Spider are magnificent photos Essex Buzzard

Thanks Wiliam. Quite impressed with your stuff,too...

DENBIES HILLSIDE

On Wednesday,we headed out to a familiar site of mine and others on UKB, Denbies hillside in Surrey. Weather was reasonable,if rather cloudy. The butterflies certainly didn't let us down,with about 20 male Adonis blues and several females. About 10 Dingy Skippers also enjoyed,while Grizzled Skippers,Brimstones,Green Hairstreaks,Brown Argus,Common Blues,Speckled Woods and Small Heaths were all about in low numbers. Nothing like the sheer abundance of butterflies here in high to late summer,but a good showing in terms of spring species. Also Burnet Companion and Mother Shipton-two day flying moths to confuse the unwary!

Poor showing of horseshoe vetch flowers here this year. In good years,it is so abundant it can turn the turf yellow. This year,though,just a thin scattering of blooms.

Lovely image of the Mother Shipton, EB.

The name is SO apt.

Great reports and cracking shots Essex - especially the Mother Shipton

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Great stuff Essex B in rescuing the Orange-tip eggs, however you'll have your work cut out now with 40 of them Lovely photos of Essex in late spring and great shots from Denbies

Thanks for your comments,everyone. I was pleased with the mother shipton,as they usurally seem to land in grass etc,where a clear picture is impossible. Saw several on the day,this one was showing off!

Orangetip cats eat each other in the early stages,so i had to keep them on seperate plants in my cage. Now,though,they are quite well grown,and seem happy to feed side-by-side. They are doing well,no problems so far.

Hi Essex Buzzard,
Our personal observation of Orange-tip larvae is that they appear not to eat each other in early stages, or in later stages, but seem to co-exist quite happily without problem. We have 20 and they are now begining to pupate together, I will post some photos shortly.

Hi Maxims,i have to say i have never seen it my self,but i read or heard somewhere that they can be cannibalistic, so i didn't want to take any chances! The hardest part,i think,will be keeping the chrysalis's untill next April,such a long way away...

Hi Essex Buzzard, I understand why you don't want to take any chances, having gone to the trouble of rescuing them! It is a long wait until the adults emerge next April, but it's well worth it

EAST KENT

Hi everyone,welcome to early summer. Where i live at least,it's been a good spring,with better than average weather-and after some rotten springs in recent years,it was badly needed!

Not much good weather around last week,but on Thursday,i struck lucky. East Kent seemed the only place where the sun would break through,so i headed in that direction.

First to Lydden Temple Ewell Downs,where Adonis and Common Blues have emerged. Brown argus were also present,and still a few Small Tortoiseshells,perhaps surprisingly. Lots of fragrant orchids were seen,and a good colony of bee orchids,too. Other butterflies included Small Heath and Small White.

Then onto Kingsdown Leas. This is the site that breifly became famous last year,as visitors from all over the country poured in to see the Long-tailed Blues. There are none there now,but good colony of Small Blues exists on these cliff tops. Another Adonis was seen,and a Wall,amongst others. Never visited this Small Blue colony before,but it is a nice find.

Late afternoon by now,so a quick stop at Western Heights Dover,to check another Small Blue colony. A very small site,scarcely more than a couple of road verges,but Small Blues again present,as were lots f common spotted orchids.

Then an evening visit to Park Gate Down,where the very rare monkey orchid is found,as well as many other orchids! A couple of hours were well spent,then time to go home. A busy day,but a cracker!

As well as the butterfly images your orchid shots are delightful also essexbuzzard!!!

Bill

"When in doubt...venture out"

A very busy day Essex - you crammed it all in Great shots my favourite is the first Small Blue with the oily sheen apparent on the fore wings

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Thanks for your feedback,everyone!

Just back from a short break to west Cornwall,staying near Penzance,about 7 miles from lands end. However,while i was away,most of the Orangetip caterpillars i have been rearing have pupated,just a couple of small ones left. I will take a photo and post it here.

Back to Cornwall. Monday 2 June.We crossed the border and arived at Launceston to pouring rain. However,after a pasty it started to look a little brighter,so we took our chance and headed down to Greenscombe Woods,part of the Duchy of Cornwall esate. Here is a colony of the rare Heath Fritillary and this Cornish population is the first to emerge each year. However,with heavy skies and rain threatening again,we did wonder if we had done the right thing. But a few small blue patches arrived and with the sunshine,a few early Heath Fritillaries indeed appered. They were fresh as a daisy,and emergence was only just starting. Although low in number at this early stage,they were a delight to see.Brimstone and Speckled Wood also seen. I'm glad we went,as this is about a two hour drive from Penzance,and we didn't get the chance to go back.

The individual in your final image is positively gleaming. I think I may well have to take the plunge and go and see this species next weekend (even though I almost get sick of the sight of them when I'm on my summer hols on the continent).