Pauline

[David M]

...Sods Law! The day after I closed my diary was the day that the Brown Hairstreaks showed themselves at Noar Hill (13 August)...

They had to turn up sooner or later, Pauline....

At least you got to see a few. They've been reluctant to show themselves in many parts and I have only seen 4 myself, sadly.

[Pauline]

That's really kind of you to say so Chris, but blimey, 'chorion'???? I had to look that up On the off-chance there just might be someone else reading this, who like me hadn't heard the term before, here's the definition I found:

'In reptiles, birds, and monotremes, the chorion is one of the four extraembryonic membranes that make up the amniotic egg that provide for the nutrients and protection needed for the embryo's survival. It is located inside the albumin, which is the white of the egg. It encloses the embryo and the rest of the embryonic system. The chorion is also present in insects. During growth and development of the embryo, there is an increased need for oxygen. To compensate for this, the chorion and the allantois fuse together to form the chorioallantoic membrane. Together these form a double membrane, which functions to remove carbon dioxide and to replenish oxygen through the porous shell. At the time of hatching, the fetus becomes detached from the chorion as it emerges from the shell. '

I'm not going to forget that in a hurry - oh, and the answer is no, it didn't


Hi David - strange isn't it. Not sure that it's connected but I've seen more spiders this season than I can recall seeing. Perhaps other predators are having a good year too? I've only seen 6, possibly 7.


25 August

Thought it was about time I checked on those Glanville webs. The hole in the hibernation web had been sealed up and it looked like the whole structure had been reinforced. I remember thinking that it must be quite hot inside there in the record-breaking temperatures. The active web from my last visit had been discarded and close by were 2 smaller active webs with seemingly smaller numbers of larva inside – perhaps this again was temperature related. Also in the vicinity was yet another web which had clearly been used as it contained what appeared to be many tiny shed skins?

[Pauline]

26 August

I realised that I had neither seen nor photographed a female SSS this season – my favourite Skipper – so off I set to Oxenbourne before the heat became unbearable (on this August Bank Holiday) when temperatures were set to break all previous records!). I only recorded a definite 5 individuals (3 males and 2 females) and as expected they all looked worn in varying degrees. Thankfully, both females were seen egg-laying so I really hope the promised management of the site takes place this Autumn as scheduled as these butterflies are hanging on by a thread here.

I was quite pleased with this shot. I have taken shots of them egg-laying before and subsequent shots of the eggs but I don’t think I have managed before to capture the moment the egg is actually being laid.

The numbers of other species had dropped since my last visit but the Chalkhills were still going strong. This worn male probably couldn’t believe his luck at finding this beautiful fresh female:

[Wurzel]

Great shot of the egg laying SSS Pauline - you can see that's she's really stretching her abdomen out I reckon that Chalkhill was the talk of the Down

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

...You might recall that earlier on in my diary I threw out a request along the lines of ‘if anyone knows anyone who has a friend that has LTB eggs in their garden please ask them to get in touch’. Well, a friend of a friend actually did find LTB eggs in his garden and generously allowed me to rear one. Yesterday, 23 August I saw the egg hatch...

Excellent, Pauline. You mustn't go into 'hibernation' without letting us see how things develop though!

[Pauline]

Thank you David. What can I say? You'll just have to wait and see

[Pauline]

I was also fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to rear some Clouded Yellow and although it is early days I have already learned so much. A few early shots:

27 August

The largest of the Clouded Yellow larva has now pupated and I was lucky enough to catch him in the act. It was quite amazing to watch as he wriggled and gyrated out of his old skin and into a new form, not stopping until he had completely thrown the old one off.

[Pauline]

9 September

Jumping forward again a couple of weeks found me watching this same pupa as it appeared 'coloured up' and ready to emerge.

I had always thought that once a pupa started to ‘colour up’ then emergence was fairly imminent. I now know better - at least where Clouded Yellow are concerned. Today I am still recovering from a 3 day vigil of a Clouded Yellow pupa which 4 days ago I was convinced would emerge ‘in a couple of hours’!!!!!! If you’re not interested in pupa I suggest you move on now as I’m going to relive the whole boring, frustrating saga through photos of the pupa.

Day 1 Photos To relieve the sheer boredom - I experimented with different angles and background colours and practised constructing a variety of makeshift wind breaks from rubbish in the garage because of the strong breeze! It is amazing what you can achieve with some bamboo canes and bubble wrap! I pulled out some unused carpet under felt and found a Buff-tip larva attempting to pupate in there so I moved him into what is hopefully more appropriate accommodation.

Day 2 Photos – losing the will to live now. Having assured myself that it was indeed still alive and having invested so much time there really wasn’t any choice other than to carry on. Keeping fingers crossed at this point that it doesn’t emerge over night! Slightly distracted from time to time by repeated visits from a couple of Hummingbird hawk moths. After I’d taken this shot I realised that the dial had been moved to Shutter Priority.

Day 3 Photos – had to draft in help with the other critters. Another distraction was a couple of my doves which shouldn’t have been out but were making the most of one of the bird baths. A large Comma which actually glowed and a brand new Red Admiral were making the most of the nectar on offer but I didn’t dare stray too far to record their antics. In the end it was a short, sharp shower that stirred the pupa into action. Perhaps I should have gotten the hosepipe out a couple of days earlier!

Emergence!!!!!!!! Rather than feeling elated and excited as I usually do at this point I just felt drained, absolutely exhausted despite having done very little for days. Would I do it again???? Watch this space

Bearing in mind that these shots have taken 3 days of my life a few more images than usual:

[essexbuzzard]

Lovely sequence, Pauline. I have reared CY myself a few times. They are not too difficult, but slower than some, indeed I have too take them into a greenhouse in the end, too speed up the process. They emerged late October, having been collected as eggs in August.

[trevor]

Great Clouded Yellow sequence, Pauline.
Great to catch up with you yesterday, they had slightly better luck today.

Best wishes,
Trevor.

[millerd]

That's a great series of images, Pauline - you have astonishing patience, but my goodness the results are worth it.

Cheers,

Dave

[Wurzel]

That is a cracking sequence Pauline - and the colours of the fresh Cloudy - stunning I'm glad that you 'stayed up'past your bedtime' this year

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Pauline]

Thank you Mark. As a learning experience there is nothing like doing it yourself, is there?

Cheers Trevor - appreciated. Good to see both you and Katrina again and as I went with few expectations I wasn't too disappointed.

Hi Dave - as you get to know me better you'll realise I really don't have the patience you credit me with but I am so pleased that you like the end result

Cheers Wurzel - quite a bit more to come yet Here's a clue to the next post. I totally agree with Tony's comment about Red Admirals:

[Tony Moore]

The C Y waiting was worth it - terrific images ( I once stayed up all night waiting for a Dingy Skip egg to hatch - and who says that butterfliers are off their collective heads?)
With the Red Admiral, even the underside is amazing - that flash of metallic blue...
Bring it on...

Tony M.

[Jack Harrison]

What can I say Pauline? Superb sequences photographed to perfection.

Jack

[Neil Freeman]

Great to see you still posting Pauline and an amazing sequence of the Clouded Yellow.

That Red Admiral is a cracker of a photo, lovely stuff

Cheers,

Neil.

[David M]

Even by your standards that Clouded Yellow sequence is quite exceptional, Pauline.

Be wary of raising the bar too high for fear that expectations will rise commensurately!

The pair of doves inserted mid-stream only adds to the effect.

9.9/10 (only because perfection can never be achieved).

[Pauline]

Thank you so much Tony.

who says that butterfliers are off their collective heads?

- I prefer to call it dedication or determination or any other flattering term that comes to mind but it probably is just sheer lunacy Seriously, it's good to know that others have shared the pain

Cheers Jack - that's really kind of you to say so - sometimes it just all comes together as planned

Hi Neil - yes, my return is only temporary and strictly a one-off . D'you know, when some (non-butterfly) friends saw that shot of the RA they didn't even recognise it as such as they had never really looked at the underside and so were quite amazed when I told them what it was. I had almost forgotten myself just how gorgeous the colours were even tho' I reared them in 2014 - a shot from before:

That's very kind of you David. I do strive to do the best I can but more consistency is needed. Having said that, I was quite pleased with the SSS caught laying her egg


30 August

For what seems like weeks now I have been checking my little patch of nettles a couple of times each week for possible eggs or larva but all I have found (since finding that little Comma cat which I thought was a RA) is lots and lots of spiders and some feeding damage which I attributed to slugs – until this morning. The nettle patch is expanding rapidly and on noticing some frass I lifted up one of the larger stems which revealed this little tent. By now I had seen both Red Admiral and Painted Lady hanging around this area so I was quite excited as I carefully investigated not knowing what type of larva I would find within.

Distant shot of PL in garden:

I was even more surprised to discover there was no larva – just this pupa which I am pretty sure IS a Red Admiral.

[Pauline]

Jumping forward again to 10 September I watched as a gorgeous Red Admiral emerged from this same pupa:

[Goldie M]

Hi! Pauline, fantastic sequences, I'm really glad you decided to keep posting for a while Love the Doves having bathing
I thought you'd like to Know I've finally got my Gate fitted, so that should keep the creeps out Goldie