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Tuesday 24.2.2015. Sunny but 30mph wind and gusts to 50+

I went on the rally hill walk, a ridge walk in the mountains, but we turned around just before the summit(ridge) due to the extremely strong wind lifting people off their feet, a good decision. Beauiful limestone country, Spain really is a land of contrasts.
I did see flashes of small brown butterflies in the more sheltered parts of the walk but nothing was stopping, so no chance of any positive ID
On the way down in the valley bottom, I saw a line of Processionary moth caterpillars about a metre long, moving across the dry path, they were joined together like a long thin snake(that's what I thought it was first look) I didn't know they did that, I just thought they followed each other in a single line, hence the name??
I've also enclosed a pic of a fox which I saw in the scrub next to the camp site, we stared at each other for about 30 seconds, giving me time to take 4 quick snaps from my pocket camera, and then it was off, magic
Russ

Thursday, 26.2.2015. 20c. very windy but sunny.

A quick visit to the scrub, 400 metres south of the camp site, windy 40mh gusts but one or two sheltered spots produced a Mallow Skipper(I think) and 5+ Walls, 1 Speckled Wood and a couple of Whites(?) that didn't hang around, flying too high off the ground and drifting on the strong wind.
I saw at least 1 maybe 2 mating couples of Walls, it could have been the same couple I saw again(?)
So things are looking up, after the days and days of very strong winds. The temperature is set to rise for a few days from Saturday on wards and the wind is suppose to decrease too, lets hope so.
Attached is a beautiful flower that has just come out, any idea's on ID?

Russ

Hi Russ,
I know that flower well, I expect to see it here in the South of France in March each year, but only for a very short period, it is Muscari neglectum (from the Liliaceae family (to be confirmed)) otherwise called Grape Hyacinth.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muscari_neglectum

Keep your eyes open because one month later (April, here in the South of France), you should be able to see its cousin, Muscari comosum (Tassel hyacinth)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leopoldia_comosa

In your post on Tuesday, during your windy walk, you saw some yellow 'gorse', if it is the same prickly bush as around my way, it may be Genista scorpius.

http://www.botaniste-en-herbe.net/liste ... ineux.html

Cheers, Chris

Hi Russ,
Hope things will be warming up soon in Spain.
I'm looking forward to seeing some early species from your end.
Tomorrow in the South of France the temperature should be jumping up suddenly from 13 to 19°C - Wow - this will no doubt bring some species out of winter. Keep an eye on my page when you can.
Cheers, Chris

Hi Chris, Thanks for the info. on the flowers and yes I do keep an eye on your reports to compare what could be flying.
Cheers Russ.

Sunday 1/3/2015. pm, 20c light winds.
We went for a ride to the dry river bed(behind the old lighthouse) north of Alcossebre, but there was nothing flying at all, so we tried the scrub land off the track higher up the hillside, where we had seen plenty of b/f's last year(be it 14 days later in the year), This only turned up more Walls,Whites and a Mallow Skipper (in the exact place as last year), which allowed me to take a couple of macro shots.
Further up the track I saw 2 lovely Iris?/orchid? flowers, can someone enlighten me please(Chris?)see pics. below, whilst I was taken these pics. I saw a very small blue, poss. a Panoptes Blue but no positive ID or pic
Russ.

Internet break, photo's from last report;

Hi Russ,
A nice selection of photos.
Your Iris may be Iris germanica, I really am no expert, but just try to take an interest in what is in my back yard.
However, I would agree that 14 days' difference compared with last year could make a lot of difference to butterfly sightings.
Cheers, Chris

Hi Chris, forgot to say, the Iris(?) was less than 12 inches high, if that makes a difference?
I must buy a book on European wild flowers soon
Russ

Monday 2/3/2015, Scrub, south of camp site, 11am 21c no wind.

50 minutes walk through rough scrub produced 8+ Walls, 5+ Whites, a couple of Speckled Woods and to my surprise(13 days earlier than last year) a brand new Swallowtail which I managed a quick snap from distance.
Short report due to internet probs.
Russ

For your interest the grasshopper appears to be the Migratory Locust Locusta migratoria. I've looked in the Wildflowers of the Mediterranean for your iris . The nearest I can find is Iris albicans, an introduction from Arabia. the only snag is that the book says it flowers in May and June.

M.

Thanks Mikhail for info. the locust are all over the local scrub land and they give you a freight when you "kick them up" jumping a couple of metres in the air and travelling some 10 metres or more in distance.
The IRIS is interesting, I went on the internet and it said that albicans or cemetery iris are white?? are they blue as well?
Russ

What is wrong with Iris chamaeiris for the iris? That is found all over the Mediterranean region and flowers in early spring.

Guy

I think you are right Guy, I've had a look on the internet and it seams very similar to the flower I saw/photographed.
Russ

I'm sure you're right, Guy. My book calls it Iris lutescens and only shows the yellow form.
Russ, Iris albicans, although usually white, can be blue also.

M.

Thanks Mikhail for coming back.
Russ

Hi All,
I was going to suggest Iris lutescens, however Guy's Iris chamaeiris looks like a good candidate.
As well, its designation in French is Iris des garrigues, which means 'scrub' - quite appropriate .
There are hundreds of varieties of Iris to choose from .
I need a more comprehensive book on mediterranean flora myself, and will now have to reconsider the IDs of my own Iris photos.

By the way Russ, nice clear shot of the Swallowtail. I also am expecting to see a Swallowtail this week (based on my 2014 and 2013 records), but with temperatures still only around 13°C and chill winds most days, I'll be lucky.
Chris

Good luck Chris with the Swallowtails.

Tuesday 3/3/2015.
Hill ridge walk with 15 members of our camp rally on limestone and lightly wooded with conifers. The weather was overcast in the morning and we had a light rain shower during our lunch break but we had nice warm sunshine in the afternoon, around 20c, as we walked along the ridge and on our decent.

B/f's seen but no photo's obtained due to pace of our walk;
Swallowtail 5+
Walls 15+
Bath Whites 5+
Humming-bird Hawk-moth 1
and maybe 2 Cleopatra(female) or Brimstone(?) too fast and too far away to confirm.

Russ.

Thursday 5/3/2015.
Short late afternoon walk around the scrub south of our camp site, produced the usual Walls, a fly past by a Swallowtail and just 1 Geranium Bronze, sorry about poor photo, it was up high and jumping around.
Still no Green Hairstreaks.
Russ

Saturday 7/3/2015. 20c+. little wind.

We cycled up the hillside behind the old lighthouse,north of Alcossebre.(same journey as last Sunday 1/3/2015),
there were a lot more Iris's in flower than last weekend, and different shades of purple(see below).

Last week I thought I'd seen a Panoptes Blue but I wasn't sure, so I checked out the same area again and I found 2 or 3 flying close to the ground and I did manage to get some photo's this time, they are a beautiful little butterfly and looked brand new.

I found these Panoptes Blue a full week earlier this year than last, although in a different area of Alcossebre, so maybe the season has caught up after the colder winter(?)

Other b/'s seen;
Swallowtail,
Mallow Skipper
Wall and Lang's STB

Russ

Internet upload problems, here are the photo's from the last report;

Russ