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Nice to know there are still decent numbers of Torties round your way, Trevor. The Painted Ladies and Red Admirals are a welcome sight too, and a Wall Brown is always a nice addition.

Hopefully you'll get more sunshine over the next few days. It's tricky looking for Brown Hairstreaks in cloudy conditions.

Thanks Wurzel. If The Creeping Thistle at Steyning is allowed to flourish we could see some males down.
At the moment I would still prefer to drive the 120 miles to Shipton B.

Small Tortoiseshells seem to be having a better year in the South, Daviid. I've even had several garden visits.

Stay well both,
Trevor.

Although it was very windy and cloudy this morning, I thought the conditions were just acceptable
enough to look for some Adonis Blues. With a few sunny breaks in the cloud it was a case of searching
for closed wing Adonis then waiting by each one for the Sun. Sure enough, although it was slow going,
each one opened up almost instantly as the Sun warmed them up.
Every one was fresh and vibrant, and every so often gave a flash of dazzling blue.
I was also pleased to find a fresh ' blue ' female Common Blue, and a Red Admiral.

Trevor.

Your female Wall Brown from SB was a real stunner, Trevor and those amazing BH Also you've captured the 'blue sheen' on those Adonis Blues, perfectly

Those Adonis are mighty fine Trevor - almost blinding at times Interesting to see some have the row of spots on the hind wing Looking forward to some more of those if you're able to

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

Many thanks, Mike and Wurzel. Those Adonis Blues were mighty fine, and worth the wait
for them to open up. As for that ' electric blue ' sheen, our cameras never seem to be able
to capture what the eye sees, never as brilliant.
Co-incidentally Mike I found another fine but distant and high up female Wall today.

Another lucky shot was of a female Small White giving a male the Heave Ho.
Amazingly she carried on nectaring whilst doing so!.

Trevor,
What lovely images of those Adonis Blues. Perseverance paying off for sure. Reminds me of the technique used for Orange Tips too. Great looking female.

Kind Regards
Kev

That shot of the Small White is brilliantly caught Trevor

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

Good to hear from you Kev, glad you enjoyed the Adonis Blues.

No skill involved Wurzel, a complete fluke, but it captured the moment.

I had three good reasons for a stop off on my way home late this afternoon.
1, I fancied some more Adonis Blues. 2, I was literally passing Anchor Bottom,
3, If I had not stopped I would have caught the football crowd leaving the Amex stadium.

Even at 5.15 the Adonis Blues were already starting to roost, with many closed up on grass stems.
I was lucky to find five still displaying their beautiful shade of dazzling blue. I did however miss
a very fresh female, and only glimpsed her velvety, dark chocolate wings.

Trevor.

Good to see the Adonis Blues are giving a fine shot down at Anchor Bottom, Trevor!

What wonderful creatures they are. As you say, pictures never quite do them justice.

"No skill involved Wurzel, a complete fluke, but it captured the moment." the best shots often are

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

Lovely Adonis presentation, Trevor.

Going in either cloudy conditions or after 5 in the afternoon was clearly inspired thinking.

Some lovely Adonis there, Trevor. The colour really does come out better when it's cloudy with a bit of brightness and just enough warmth to entice them to open their wings. Luckily, there's been a fair bit of cloudy weather lately...

Cheers,

Dave

Many thanks Mark, Wurzel, David & Dave. I hope you all enjoy today's bonanza,
that's the only word I could think of to describe the shear variety of fresh specimens I saw this morning.

Starting with the Whites at Horseshoe Plantation, East Sussex.

We are all possibly guilty of passing by the Whites, as they are common, very skittish,
and rarely bask with wings wide open.
This morning however they demanded attention, as they were invariably fresh,
and settled perfectly for open wing shots. Three species were present, Small, Large and Green Veined.
And there was the bonus of a mating pair

Some of the other species seen this morning.
A male Speckled Wood and a beautiful, very fresh, female Specklie.
Meadow Browns were plentiful and included among them were some fresh ones.
I managed a shot of a fairly fresh female. To add to the variety a particularly large
and brightly marked Painted Lady flew in searching for nectar.

And now we come to the Blues. Most were fresh or at least in good condition.

A few Chalkhill Blues were hanging on, but alongside half a dozen tatty males
on the wing was a fairly fresh specimen, this butterfly was very lively, and helped to keep me fit!.
Again Common Blues were largely worn except for a few fresh females, and one very nice male.

The reason for my visit was for more Adonis Blues, and many were found. Those that had been
around for a few days were starting to lose their fringe hair, there were however many fresh ones.
My hoped for female Adonis was in the company of a male, but no ' moves ' were made, and she
escaped without a solo shot.

I think today was my most 'species rich' day of this season, all the more special considering the time of year.

Stay safe and well all,
Trevor.

Definitely good to still have some variety at this time of year

Lovely Adonis, Trevor, but a particularly full day all round. You must have had a lot more sunshine in Sussex than I did near Heathrow (it wouldn't be difficult, as there was none at all round my way today... ). I will have to head southwards later this week I think.

Cheers,

Dave

Thanks Katrina & Dave. Yes there is still variety to be found for a few weeks yet.

I found a rather vibrant, fresh, Small Tortoiseshell this afternoon, a species that's
had a much better year than for many years past around here. So much so that it
is not so much of a surprise to see one, or even several together.

Long may it continue!.
Trevor.

Brilliant sequence of posts recently Trevor You're right about the Whites it's something I'm guilty of after getting the 'first of the year' Great set of Specklies and Blues as well and that Small Tort is very swarthy

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel