www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

for that HBF, I've yet to see the fairer sex of that species! Like you I've always had better success with them on that lower meadow and that's where I managed the only male amongst the hoards of DGF that were out a few weeks ago.

A few mrgreens coming up Neil, for that female High Brown and the Scotch Argus .
Living well North of London has it's compensations, it's quite a hike from here.

Enjoyable report and cracking shots,
Trevor.

Thanks Goldie. I'm glad my reports have brought back some good memories for you

Thanks Paul. My previous early August visits to Arnside have nearly always turned up a late HBF ot two, I have never yet visited earlier in July for these, my other visits to this area being in early June.

Thanks Trevor. Yes, living here in the midlands means I am halfway there compared to you guys living down south. Still too far for a day trip though which his why we stay up there for a few days to make the most of it.

Tuesday 2nd August.

The forecast turned out to be accurate and overnight we had some heavy rain but by the time we got up and went down for breakfast on Tuesday morning this had turned into showers and drizzle.

Our hosts had mentioned that they had been having an unusual pale woodpecker coming to the feeders in their garden and suggested that we should look out for it, especially as our room overlooked the part of the garden where the feeders are. I had already seen a normal juvenile Great Spotted Woodpecker on the feeders a couple of times and our hosts said that this one and the pale one usually took it in turns on the peanuts.
After breakfast we went back up to our room to get ready to go out and looking out of the window I saw the pale woodpecker, a juvenile but very different to any that I had seen before with the normal black markings replaced by a pale brown making for an attractive colour combination.
During the next few days this pale woodpecker would return a number of times along with the normal juvenile and also a mature male, all taking turns on the feeders.
With the day looking set to remain dull and cloudy with intermittent rain showers we decided to go round to RSPB Leighton Moss where we could easily hide from the rain in the …err! hides.

In the end, we spent most of the day here wandering around the various paths and sitting in the hides. There were loads of duck about, a lot of which looked like female Mallards to me but I was assured they also included Gadwall, Shoveler and Pochard.

We also saw a couple of Little Grebes and Great Crested Grebes lots of Redshank, a couple each of Cormorants and Herons and half a dozen Swans.
We were told that there were also a couple of Marsh Harriers and Bitterns still about although most of this year’s broods had fledged and dispersed and the wind and rain today would keep those still around sheltering in the reedbeds.

On the feeders by the visitor centre there were Greenfinches, Goldfinches and Chaffinches along with Blue tits and Great tits. I also spotted a Marsh tit on these feeders and did wonder if it might have been a Willow tit but was told that they only get Marsh tits here which makes identification of this tricky pair that much easier.
A wet and windy morning turned into a dry but dull and windy afternoon but we still saw lots of interest and the forecast for the next day was looking better.

To be continued…

Neil.

More brilliant images Neil - those Scotch Argus and HBFs, specking of which the final shot is an absolute corker -it fairly pings out of the screen Interesting to see the partial leucistic Woodpecker

Have a goodun

Wurzel

'Leucistic'...That was the word I was looking for. Thanks Wurzel

Wednesday 3rd August.

Wednesday morning dawned with a grey overcast and was quite breezy although it was forecast to brighten up a bit in the afternoon. We decided to have a drive round to Grange-over-Sands on the other side of the estuary, somewhere that we had never actually visited before despite coming up to this area numerous times in the past. This is an attractive little town with a long promenade overlooking the estuary with views back towards Arnside and Silverdale and out over Morecambe Bay. I noticed numerous buddleias and other flowers in the gardens along the promenade that on a brighter morning would probably have attracted the usual butterfly visitors to them but it was still too cool and dull while we were there. After having a wander around here for while we had a coffee and then headed back to Arnside.

In the afternoon it did indeed brighten up a bit with occasional breaks in the cloud allowing the sun to come out. Jane said she wanted to chill out back at the B&B for a bit and so after dropping her off I drove back up to Arnside Knott.

As I said in my earlier report, I wanted to check out the area by the trig point where a Brown Hairstreak had been spotted by a couple of people on Monday, so that was where I headed to first. There are a number of side paths in this area connecting some clearings with large stands of Hemp Agrimony and this was where I was told to look. The first butterflies I saw were the usual Gatekeepers and Meadow Browns along with a handful of Speckled Wood and a couple each of Peacocks and Holly Blues. I also spotted a large female Red Admiral which I believe is the same individual that I saw up here on Monday.
I was slowly wandering along one of the side paths, scanning the flower heads of the Hemp Agrimony, when my eye fell on an orangy-brown triangular shape in the shadow under one of these flower heads - a male Brown Hairstreak. I was lucky to spot it in this position as I could so easily have just walked past it. I managed to get a couple of shots from each side although the light was poor in the shadow and I was just contemplating if I could get a better position when a strong gust of wind sent it up and it was whisked away into the canopy. I hung around for while in case it came back but that was the last I saw of it.
According to people I had spoken to, a couple of Brown Hairstreaks had also been reported from here last year and there is some debate about their origin. Some years ago, around 2010/2011 if my memory serves me right, there was an unauthorised release at Gait Barrows which is only a few miles away from Arnside as the crow (or Brown Hairstreak) flies and they have been seen there most years since. The question is whether these on Arnside Knott have made their way from there or whether there has been a further unauthorised release ?

I then carried on wandering around the paths and clearings in this area and spotted a large orange butterfly which was taking short flights between clumps of grass and nearby flowers and which turned out to be a female Dark Green Fritillary. I watched as she shuffled about deep in the vegetation and appeared to be egg laying but she was so obscured by the grass and various stems and leaves that I couldn’t get a good enough view to be sure. Every now and then she would come out and feed or bask for a short while before carrying on again

In the end I reckon I saw four different female DGFs around this area, a couple of which, whilst fairly worn around the fringes still retained some good colour. The others were much more worn and faded as would be expected at this time of year.
I also saw another HBF, a faded male this time, but it was off into the distance just as I clicked the shutter and all I got was a blurred orange blob at the edge of the frame.

I then slowly started making my way back down to the lower slopes and saw a couple more DGFs but these were even more tatty than those I had already seen.
Speaking of worn and faded butterflies, I came across this Painted Lady and just had to take a couple of shots. It is all well and good taking photos of nice fresh butterflies but sometimes it is nice to capture something that tells a story and this one certainly looks like it had lived a life and was still going strong.
With this being my last afternoon in this area and not knowing when I will be up here again, I then went looking for a few more Scotch Argus, after all they were my number one target for this trip with everything else being a bonus.
During our few days up here I had seen twenty two species of butterfly, a good tally for this part of the world at this time of year. Some of these were in large numbers (Meadow, Browns, Gatekeepers) and some were single individuals and surprises at that (WLH, Brown Hairstreak).
The weather had been reasonable, warm rather than hot and quite cloudy a lot of the time with a strengthening wind for the last couple of days. We had some heavy rain on Monday night and lighter rain into Tuesday morning and indeed it was obvious by the vegetation, which was much greener than back home, that there had been a lot more rain up there. Indeed, one chap I spoke to at Arnside was quite vociferous about the media reporting of the heatwave “heatwave, what bl**dy heatwave” he said in a broad Lancashire accent, “we’ve had a couple of hot days and lots of bl**dy cloud and wind up here”. He was not the only person to say that their summer had been generally poor, another one in a run of poor summers apparently, mostly down to lots of cloud and persistent wind.
I suppose we all think that what we are getting is the same everywhere and there is no denying that back in the midlands we are suffering from a lack of rain and this is even worse down south, but it was actually quite refreshing to feel some rain and see how green the landscape was up there.

All in all, a cracking few days in one of my favourite parts of the country.

Bye for now,

Neil.

Hi! Neil, I don't miss the weather up there but I do miss the hill's and the scenery , having said that, I've got a pear tree in the garden here full of Pears Can't have it all!!!! Goldie

Nice shots of the Scotch Argus Neil - don't think I've seen one with wings closed before. Interesting to see that Woodpecker too. Sounds like you had a great time .

Hi Neil. A few are in order for those Scotch Argus, it’s been a few years since I saw one of those. I like Arnside, but it’s quite a trek from down here . A short break up there next year might be on the cards!

Hi Goldie. I know what you mean, mind you without that weather, it wouldn't look so green. That pear tree sounds good, leave a few pears rotting on the ground and see what they attract, Red Admirals especially like a bit of over-ripe fruit.

Thanks Pauline. Yes, it was a great few days. There is an underside shot of a male on the previous page and I am sure I have posted undersides of both sexes in the past.

Hi Mark. Yes well worth a few days in the area. We had 4 nights in a B&B and even then I could have stayed longer. Out of interest, I compared distances and it would take me as long to get to Essex as it does get to Arnside, approx 3 hours.

Tuesday 9th August

Since returning home last week, it has been back to the usual stuff around here. Lots of both Small Whites and Green-veined Whites are passing though the garden with some Large Whites occasionally joining them. Speckled Woods and Gatekeepers are in the garden every day with the Gatekeepers especially looking worn and faded now and Holly Blues are turning up most days. Needless to say, everything is highly mobile in the increasing temperatures with whites seen flying from the minute I get up, usually around 7.00am, and still on the go up until 7.00pm in the evening.

A morning visit on Tuesday to my mom saw me take my usual quick circuit around her local park during which I saw lots of Green-veined Whites plus a few Small Whites and a single Large White. Around a dozen Gatekeepers were all looking well past their best and a faded female Common Blue was seen along the re-wilded stream banks. This female was interesting in that she was a fully brown version with most around here these days being half and half. She was very lively in the sun and I only managed a couple of shots with her wings half open.
Late in the afternoon I popped down to Wagon Lane to see what was about. I figured that the afternoon heat would make everything too flighty for photos but as I was more intested in getting an idea of numbers anyway, this didn't bother me.
I was particularly chuffed to find a single Small Copper and a couple of Common Blues, I think I have mentioned before that both of these species only hang on here in small numbers so I am always plesed to confirm their continuing presence. As it happened a couple of fluffy summer clouds, the only clouds seen all day, drifted over the sun while I was there giving me the opportunity of a few shots.
Once again, lots of whites were seen, mostly Green-veined here with a few Small and a couple of Large Whites spotted. A dozen Gatekeepers were seen, all looking well knackered now, and Meadow Browns appeared to be finished at this spot as I didn't find a single one. Likewise, no skippers were seen here today.

With temperatures set to rise to uncomfortable levels once again, I will probably be hiding in the shade for the next few days, I have got a few things around the house to catch up on anyway

Bye for now,

Neil.

Seeing those Scotch Argus reminds me it's been a few years since I've seen them so I might wait til the start of August before visiting next year. Does mean I'll miss out of Large Heath and NBA both of which were flying in good numbers 6 weeks ago, still swings and roundabouts. Thinking about it I could try for artexerxes and spend a few days wandering around the east coast instead... decisions, decision

Yes, there is always a trade off when deciding where to go (and when). I always try to organise our trips so that I get a maximum benefit out of them, sometimes this works well, somtimes not so much, always depending on how the season develops. When I went up there in June 2019 I managed to see Mountain Ringlet, Large Heath, NBA salmacis and SPBF all in one day.
Of course this was too early for HBF, although I did see an early DGF at Arnside when we stopped over for a couple of days on our way back from Scotland in June 2016. On this occasion I also managed to see NBA and SPBF at Arnside plus Large Heath at Meathop Moss and also Mountain Ringlet by diverting via Irton Fell on the way back.
Both of these occasions were obviously much too early for Scotch Argus though.

I have still not seen artaxerxes myself, another one to think about for next year maybe. Like you say, decisions, decisions.

Cheers,

Neil.

More cracking Scotch Argus Neil I heartily concur with the Lancastrian weather commentator ( ) as it reflects the London-centric media - the South West is constantly lumped in with the South East even though we often experience totally different conditions I'll put my soap box away now .

Have a goodun

Wurzel

So pleased to see you had a great trip up north, Neil. Fresh Scotch Argus are a real delight, as is a High Brown in such good condition at that time of year. The females round my way also seem to avoid a great deal of wear (I guess they are not clashing with one another as the males do).

Fabulous bonus with the Hairstreaks too, particularly a White Letter on the cusp of August!

Cheers Wurzel. Even up north there is quite a diference between the north-east and the north-west with the latter always seeing much more rainfall, a consequence of weather fronts off the Atlantic hitting the mountains of the Lake District I believe.

Thanks David. Yes, it was a great trip and I was well chuffed with the selection of species that I saw.

Eyed Hawk Moth update.

Just prior to going up north, my Eyed Hawk Moth larvae were reaching full size and I was getting a bit concerned that they may start pupating whilst we were away. I had lost a few larvae in the early days and also released a few onto the sallow bushes down at Wagon Lane as they grew, but was still left with 30 larvae which I was keeping in a large plastic 48 litre 'Really Useful Box'.
This species usually burrows a couple of inches into the ground to pupate so, during the last clean out before going away, I filled the bottom 4 inches of the container with a mix of peat free compost and sifted garden soil and arranged for my son Chris to pop in and change the foodplant.
On our arrival back home on 4th august, I checked the container and found no sign of any larvae although I could see a few holes where it looked like at least some of them had burrowed into the compost /soil mix.
I removed the remains of the foodplant and left them undisturbed until yesterday (Saturday 13th Aug.) when I carefully sifted through the soil mix and found 30 large shiny black pupae, so all 30 larvae had successfully pupated.
These will now go into the bottom of the fridge until next spring.

Bye for now,

Neil.

Well done Neil - great shots. Looking forward to the final installment on this in due course

Thanks Pauline. All being well they should emerge sometime next May/June.

Cheers,

Neil.

That's a fantastic haul of pupa Neil I think you're gonna need a bigger fridge

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Cheers Wurzel. Fortunatly we have got chest freezer and seperate full sized fridge so plenty of room in the bottom of it

Garden Moths update.

The first few nights of July brought some mild nights with varying cloud cover during which we had a few showers of rain, after which it changed to a run of clear nights which nevertheless remained warm overnight after some very warm days.
I ran the moth trap on the nights of July 1st, 6th, 11th, 17th, 19th, 25th, 28th with results varying from 121 moths of 29 species on the night of 1st to 377 of 70 on the 18th. Most of these were the usual suspects for the time of year with a few common species pushing the numbers up.

On the night of 2nd July I had my first Engrailed for the garden, a locally common species that is widely distributed over most of the UK.
The same night also produced a Light Arches, a supposedly common and widespread moth but only the third one I have seen here in contrast to it's close relative, Dark Arches, of which I regularly get a dozen or more in the trap at this time of year
The best moth on the night of 6th was a nice fresh summer generation Early Thorn, quite possibly a descendant of those I had reared and released in the spring (I like to think so anyway).
I usually get a few Swallow-tailed Moths but they were missing last year so I was pleased to have three on the night of 17th plus another couple on the 19th.
Also on the night of 17th was a Buff Arches, another species that was missing here last year.
On sunny summer days I often see male Vapourer Moths flying around here and every year one or two will turn up in the moth trap.
Dun-bar is a common species here with half a dozen or so turning up regularly. They can be quite variable with the one below being a nice well marked example.
There is no doubting this next one is an attractive species although I might feel different about it if I had any box plants. The Box-tree Moth is an invasive non-native species, originally from Asia, that has rapidly spread across Europe and was probably brought into the UK on imported box plants. They reached Warwickshire a couple of years back so it was only a matter of time before one turned up in my garden. This species is actually classed a micro due to to the family to which it belongs but being the size of a Speckled Wood makes a nonsense of this arbitrary distinction.
When I first started trapping here, I would get a few Iron Prominents each year but I have not seen one for the past couple of years. I was pleased therefore to see one the night of 28th.
Going into August, I didn’t run the trap for the first couple of weeks due to being away for most of the first week and then a run of clear nights with a bright full moon put me off as my actinic trap doesn’t perform well in these conditions. also, I was feeling a bit drained with the hot weather and I simply couldn’t be bothered to get up early to the trap to beat the birds.
A bit of overnight cloud forecast for the night of the 14th August tempted me to put it out and I was rewarded with 282 moths of 53 species. These included another NFG in the shape of a Black Arches, a widespread and common species in southern Britain and one that is increasing its range in recent years and is now apparently classed as locally common in Warwickshire.
Yellow Shell is a species that I often see around here during the daytime with a few turning up every year in the moth trap. They only have one generation but are on the wing through most of the summer (much like Meadow Browns) with later examples often being more strongly marked than those I see earlier in the year.
A species with two clearly defined generations is Willow Beauty and I had half a dozen of these on 14th. These 2nd gen are often noticeably smaller than those earlier in the year.
Since then, the past few night have either been wet or windy, or both, with a some good persistant rain through Tuesday night (16th) and into Wednesday morning. After a dull and drizzly start yesterday morning, it tried to brighen up a bit but became overcast again in the afternoon although, as has so often been the case, it became clear overnight. Today (Friday 19th) has been better with some nice sunny periods but the next couple of nights look to be clear so I will probably wait until next week before the trap goes out again now.

Bye for now,

Neil.

Cracking set of Moffs Neil That Buff Arches gets me every time, the way the grey on the fore and hind wings blends into one giving it the impression that the tip of the fore wing has been folded over Good to actually see an image of a Vapourer as well rather than it being a distraction when looking for Brostreaks!

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Cheers Wurzel. The Buff Arches is a great example of markings breaking up an outline for camouflage. The Vapourer is the best Brown Hairstreak impersonator out there, I am convinced many high up sightings are actually of these.

Cheers,

Neil.