millerd

[trevor]

Good to hear from you Dave. That Brimstone has broken the silence from you!.
The annoying cold breeze has accompanied brilliant sunshine in recent days
rendering trips out useless, apart from some much needed exercise.

Still, early days yet.
Trevor.

[Wurzel]

Great to see you back Dave, and a lovely way to make an entrance even though I think the Brimstone could have had a bit of a wash and brush up for the occasion

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

Cheers, both. After that Brimstone, the weather became somewhat frustrating for a while, with a lot of stubborn cloud meaning that even if it was reasonably warm nothing would be tempted to appear.

Into the second week of March, there was an improvement, with Wednesday 9th bringing sunshine as well as reasonable temperatures. Out locally I managed to find a couple of Peacocks (I initially thought I'd seen the same one twice, but the photos indicate otherwise).

In between I came across a Brimstone in excellent condition, certainly compared to the one from 26th February. It looked as fresh as the day it emerged - possibly as early as back in July last year. I managed a few close shots, including a lucky one when it took to the air.

The following day, Thursday 10th, was even warmer and sunnier (far better than the forecast for once), reaching nearly 17 degrees down the road in Chertsey and with nearby Heathrow being the sunniest place in the UK. It therefore came as no surprise to see a dozen butterflies on my local walk. As well as three Brimstones and a Peacock, there were two more species today in the form of one welcome Small Tortoiseshell...

...plus no fewer than seven Commas. The latter numbers came as less of a surprise when I remembered just how many there had been around in late summer/early autumn.

Things are moving!

Dave

[Wurzel]

They're not just moving over your way Dave but fair motoring away! I'm still on single figures for some species although the Small Torts are putting on a good show Hopefully the promised good weather for the weekend will materialise

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

Small Tortoiseshells are a bit few and far between round here, Wurzel, though fingers crossed the weekend sunshine we are promised will get a few sheds and garages open as the mowers come out - and the local Torties will be roused by all the activity and the influx of sun.

I had to wait until Monday 14th March for more warm sunshine locally, and sure enough it brought forth three more Commas and another Brimstone. This one was another pristine example, and posed nicely when the sun dimmed a bit behind some high cloud.

I was able to get pretty close.

The Commas were none too shabby either.

This one found something worth sipping on the ivy leaves.

Dave

[Wurzel]

Brilliant Brimstone shots Dave, cracking close-up and that's a difficult shot to get at this time of year Good to see that these Brimstones take a little more pride in their appearance than the first

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

Cheers, Wurzel - yes, all subsequent Brimstones have rather shown that first one up!

Tuesday 15th March was a warmer day, though the sunshine was often distinctly hazy. The count locally was higher, with eight Brimstones, four Commas and three Peacocks. Days when brilliant sunshine is not continuous, or is hazed by cloud, do mean Brimstones stop from time to time (great conditions for Orange Tips too - which won't be long now I reckon). This one did, another nice individual too.

The Commas are always obliging...

...and are outnumbering Peacocks quite markedly so far. This fresh-looking one of the latter was found close where the last sighting of 2021 had been, back on 16th November.

No GPS needed for this one...

Dave

[Neil Freeman]

A nice selection so far Dave. You certainly see a lot more Brimstones than I do around my patch .

Cheers,

Neil.

[millerd]

Cheers, Neil. It always surprises me that I see so many Brimstones round here in Spring, as I see hardly any in summer before they go into hibernation. In 2021, I saw a few stragglers in the first week of June, left over from the previous winter, then one in September and one in October. They must emerge and hibernate immediately.

After a very wet and soggy day (including Saharan sand in the rain) on Wednesday, sunshine resumed on Thursday 17th March. Temperatures reached about 14 degrees, and I counted 14 butterflies of five species on my local patch. The first of these was a Small White, the first non-adult hibernator of the year. Though an early sighting, it was still second to the one I saw here on 25th February 2019.

The remainder comprised seven Commas, three Peacocks, two Brimstones and a Small Tortoiseshell. As ever, the Commas provided the best poses.

Dave

[Wurzel]

Great Small White shot Dave - another tricky one at the start of the season - I saw one the other day but it was off like a rocket before I even had a chance to lift my camera up

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

Cheers, Wurzel - after that refuelling stop, that Small White was up and away downwind and over the nearest hedge. They don't hang about.

Dave

[millerd]

Friday 18th March was more of the same spring sunshine, and warmer too - up to 16 degrees locally. The butterfly tally for the day was unsurprisingly higher:

Brimstone 10 (including a female investigating a bit of hedgerow where buckthorn grows, though the buds haven't opened at all as yet)
Comma 6
Peacock 5
Red Admiral 2

The highlight for me was finding three butterflies - all different - feeding up on a pussy willow. They always make an attractive subject like this, but to see three of them in the same tree at once was particularly rewarding.

Despite the number of Brimstones today, none settled because of the strong sunshine, but the Commas played ball as always.

There were a few spiralling pairs of tussling males.

The second Red Admiral was found later on, in a spot frequented by the species much later in the season. They definitely gravitate to the same bits of habitat year after year.

Dave

[trevor]

That was a great day Dave, love the first Comma image.
Looking forward to next week, it could be epic.
Hopefully the first non hibernators will appear as it warms up.

Chores on hold, camera ready!,
Trevor.

[millerd]

Cheers, Trevor!

Chores on hold, camera ready!,
Trevor.

Of course the traditional reply to your post has to be: "What chores?"

(To which the answer traditionally comes swiftly back: "Thank you very much, mine's a pint...")

Dave

[Wurzel]

Lovely Comma shots Dave But I have to save the for the Red Admirals which I really struggle to get shots of this early in the season and often have to wait until the summer. Things are moving on nicely now

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

Cheers, Wurzel. I've been happy to see the Red Admirals too, as they don't often make it all the way through the winter here. Last year the first sighting locally was in June, and that was an immigrant accompanying the modest 2021 influx of Painted Ladies.

Another Red Admiral kicked off Saturday 19th March: I had decided to wander down to Staines Moor, but before I was more than a few metres along the path, a butterfly appeared at my feet, skipping along the newly sprouting nettles. This turned out to be a female Red Admiral, apparently laying eggs.

the abdomen is curved down to the leaf

I didn't find anything down on the Moor itself today, so I returned to my local patch where it was the turn of Commas to dominate sightings. I counted eleven, the highest yet this year, plus four Brimstones and a Peacock.

This Brimstone was another fresh-looking example...

...and the Commas made a fine selection.

wider pale borders

The third one down had noticeably wide pale borders and reminded me of one with this characteristic I had seen back in the autumn. All I need to do is go though all those Comma shots from September and October to see if I can match them up...

As things seem to be getting properly underway now, the relatively few Peacocks seen so far is a bit of a worry. I would be expecting close to double figures by now. We shall see...

Dave

[millerd]

Though Sunday 20th March continued very sunny, the temperature was much lower and a chilly breeze blew. The butterflies on my local patch elected to take the day off - with one exception. Along a sheltered bit of path, one often frequented by the species in summer and autumn, was a rather worn Red Admiral.

The only butterfly seen all day, but still a welcome sight.

Dave

[millerd]

Monday 21st March was much warmer again despite the sunshine being hazier - the high was 17 degrees or so today. During my local walk I saw all of the six species that have appeared here so far this year:

Brimstone 7
Comma 6
Small White 1
Peacock 1
Small Tortoiseshell 1
Red Admiral 1

One of the Brimstones was a female, and very soon after she had flown from this perch, a male appeared and thoroughly investigated the area.

The willows were again proving attractive to the butterflies...

...and it was good to once again find a Small Tortoiseshell.

I also had another stroll down to Staines Moor, where this time I found a single butterfly - a very fresh-looking Small Tortoiseshell in a spot where I have seen them several times in the past.

Dave

[Wurzel]

Lovely set of shots and sightings Dave I was wondering where the Peacocks were as they've been very thin on the ground so far this year but I saw a couple on my lunchtime walk today so perhaps they had a bit of a lie-in?

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

Thank you, Wurzel. No sooner than I had expressed concern about Peacock numbers than they suddenly appear in droves...

Tuesday 22nd March was again very sunny and very warm (10+ hours of sunshine and 20 degrees at Heathrow today). I counted 39 butterflies on my local patch, and 16 of these were Peacocks: they must have all been waiting for the right kind of day.

There were also 11 Commas...

...six Brimstones, four Small Whites and a Red Admiral.

The highlight of the day came along a fruitful bit of path where I had already seen several Commas and Peacocks sparring, plus a couple Brimstones. Another butterfly attracted attention from all of these - and then me as well: it was a male Orange Tip, the first for me this year and real sign of spring's arrival (if one were needed! ). Without any obvious sources of nectar, and suffering the unwanted attentions of various other butterflies, it barely paused in its gentle flight back and forth along the path. This meant my only shots were of the blurry in-flight variety...

...or snatched from a distance during one rare stop for breath.

Dave