www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Cheers Goldie Hopefully I'll be onto a 2022 OT soon!

Five Rivers 16-10-2021

It was a pleasant Saturday afternoon and the long list of jobs was finally done so I took some time and wandered over to Five Rivers to see what I could see. There were several different routes that I could have taken but as I was in no rush to get there I took the longer route past the Sorting Office and down through the housing estate that runs parallel to the train tracks. The big fences shielding the local residents from the noise and mess of the railways were covered in Ivy, huge Buddleias hang over the very tops of the panels like frosting running down the side of a cupcake and other plenty of other vegetation takes advantage of the support offered by the erect structures. However I didn’t have to start craning my neck skywards to find my first butterfly as I spotted a White as I turned the corner past the Sorting Office. I crossed the road carefully and discovered it to be a Small White enjoying the last throes of the Ivy before winter hits. After a few shots (none of which were up to much) it nipped off and over into the railway side disappearing from view.

I carried on my wandering and not before too long I spotted a Red Admiral high up in the vegetation and a few steps away there was a second. The first despite being slightly lower down was harder to get anything of as it insisted on feeding on little outcrops of Ivy which meant it was always at very jaunty angles. The Ivy itself hummed as it is alive with Ivy bees. Then there’s a third flying overhead and a Small White which as probably the same as the first one. I was by now feeling pleased that I’d decided to get out so it came as no surprise that things then went quiet until I was actually walking along the river path at Five Rivers. In the shade is was noticeably cooler, the leaves were taking on the colours from the red part of the colour wheel and there was a slight haze which clawed at my nostrils; the sweet yet caustic smell of bonfires from the neighbouring allotments which border the reserve on three sides. I was literally just wondering if the ‘usual spot would hold a Red Admiral when I spotted one gliding purposefully in the sky filled gap between the trees. The sun caught the red epaulets as it quartered its airspace and then as the sun went in he landed and closed up shop leaving me marvelling at the way he could change from vibrant showman to camouflaged dead leaf with a simple flick of the wings. At Comma Corner there is no Comma but instead there was a basking Red Admiral unfortunately really far back on the Brambles and so I carried on up the gentle slope checking out the Banks from above. At the Middle Upper bank a Small White flies up and sits up hit right above the Buddleia so there was not a chance in hell of getting any shots. I was left grounded and wondering whether I should invest in a telescopic stepladder for future eventualities such as this? In a sunny spell a Dragonfly goes over but time was short so I started back so that I could spend a little more time with the Riverside Red Admiral. The sun had started to peep through the cloud and so now the Admiral reverted back to aeronautical artiste and the red epaulets once more blazed across my retina. There was a definite feeling of winding down and packing up at the close of the season, so much so that I almost packed my camera way into the bag for the return trip. Luckily laziness took over and so on the home stretch it was still to hand when I spotted a female Red Admiral resting at just below head height and sitting half in sun and half in shade. As I finished off the walk home I was left wondering if she was one of the three from earlier? Acrid bonfire smoke
An ember over nettles?
No Red Admiral

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Ah, autumn - when Red Admirals come into their own. That and the bonfire smells epitomise the season... And the Red Admirals then are bright and new and well-behaved (like yours), somewhat of a contrast to those at the current time of year if any are still around.

Cheers,

Dave

Cheers Dave Red Admirals can be a right pain during the spring season - it feels like it should be the other way round as they're old and tired by now so they should be slowing down

Five Rivers 20-10-2021

Despite it being a Wednesday I wasn’t at work and I fancied a walk however the girls were both at school and so as I’d need to pick them up I drove over to Five Rivers. I don’t normally have much luck when doing the ‘pick up’ so my expectations were slightly lower than usual, plus the season was definitely on the wind down…

Once I’d abandoned the car I cut across the grass and started winding my way along the Riverside path. All seemed mellow and fruitful in the slightly orange autumnal sun but my mind was stopped from wandering where it would go as I passed the usual spot where the Red Admirals like to play and drew level with the bench. Just behind in the small grassy clearing a Red Admiral was sitting in prime sunbathing position. I took a few shots and made a mental note of the clip in the wing which I could use to ID it should any other Admirals be in the neighbourhood. Sitting just to the right of the Admiral was an aged Common Darter. At least I think it was a Common, it was difficult to tell as the usual red colour had worn away and it looked like a car stripped of its paintwork. I returned my attentions to ‘Clippy’ which had a penchant for sitting on the dead stem of a Hogweed. I kept on following the route which has ingrained itself into my psyche and so left the path, cut across the grass and through the Glades emerging by the slight rise up to Comma Corner. On the way another Red Admiral flew in the Glades but didn’t stop. Once at Comma Corner I checked the bank that ran parallel to the footy pitch and spotted an Admiral on the other side of a crop of old creeping thistles. I used these as a screen so mask my approach and then peering at the screen from afar inched and twisted and teased my lens through to get a few shots. After this I investigated Comma Corner proper and located a fourth Admiral near the end of the massive Bramble bush that skirted the copse. This one also had a distinguishable feature – it was missing half and of one of its antennae. Pleased with this haul I hauled myself back stopping with ‘Clippy’ on the way as it was still in the prime position. In between the kerfuffle of loading the girls in, finding out about their day (getting the ‘T’ I think it’s called) and successfully avoiding the cars of the other parents which were careening, reversing and manoeuvring all over the place I mused as to whether any of the Admirals would navigate their way through the deluge we were promised the following day?
Five Rivers school run
Admirals seek safe harbour
Before the storm hits.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

The Devenish and on…21-10-2021

As I strode up the path to the little Paddock for some reason I felt a TV series introduction starting in my head; “Previously on The World of Wurzel…” and then I ran through the minutiae of the last couple of days of weather followed by some suitably heavy late 80’s Metal, a cross between Maiden and Metallica without even the tiniest touch of ‘Hair Rock’. The reason for this was that the weather had been atrocious with one report claiming it had been biblical without even a smidgen of hyperbole. The closing statement of the intro rang out the question that had been praying on my mind during the drive to the site; “Would anything have survived the deluge?” Once in the small Paddock I scanned the Ivy and started trying to answer this. After squinting and straining my eyes for about 5 minutes things weren’t looking hopeful so I swung my legs over the temporary gate and worked along the foot of Middle Down once again scanning each and every stand of Ivy and yet again I drew a blank. Things weren’t looking hopeful though I’d have been alright if I was into Dipterans as they were everywhere.

Slightly disconsolately I made it into the Orchid Meadow and walked just on from the gate. As I was trying to work out whether to walk to the end of not a dragonfly flashed by. I stood mesmerised swaying slightly echoing its movements as it scythed this way and that across the small field. Occasionally it would put the pedal to the metal and shoot up almost vertically whilst as over times it would fall in a slow zig zag pattern like a falling leaf. As it moved further from view it caught the sun through some breaks in the trees and they shone out like burnished brass in the autumnal sun. I broke free from its hypnotic effect and started watching even more intently. As it flew occasionally it would slow down and circle a small tussock or outgrowth and finally if found one of liked and landed. Sneaking in, I managed a few shots before it was off again, this time flying to the far end of Orchid Meadow. As I watched it again started making slower circular passes and so again I leant in for some shots. The best was yet to come for at the very end it chose to land on one of the wires of the fencing and so I was able to get so nice shots of it holding on vertically with its body all in one plane followed by some real close-ups. As I was working out what to go for next shot wise I spotted a smaller Dragonfly on the fence post so turning my camera to my right hand side I clicked away at it, a Common Darter grey with age. After this I left them in peace and made my way back across the Meadow, down through Tree Tunnel emerging back where I’d started in the small Paddock. Once again I stood back and the Ivy in minute detail but once again I drew a blank butterfly wise. I was left hoping that the fact that it was only 12 or so degrees was the reason why there were no butterflies around and not that they’d been washed away during the storm and as I made to move on another Dragonfly buzzed me, flying so close to my head I could the clatter of all four of its wings. It landed up quite high and partially shielded by some outlying twigs so holding my camera in one hand I gently pulled the branches down with the other and then clicked away one-handed. On the way home I didn’t feel the usual sense of triumph what with lacking a butterfly so I called in at Five Rivers to try and get my fix, but also to see how the butterflies had fared here after the wash-out. Coming later in the afternoon was perhaps not the best idea as despite the temperature being at the max the shadows were longer and clawed their way into the vegetation scaring the heat away in the process. The usual spot was empty I can’t help wondering if the already damaged Red Admiral that had held territory here hadn’t made it? I pressed on and at the edge of the Glades I was buzzed by a fresher looking Red Admiral. It went down onto the deck a couple of times but was very jittery and eventually took to the air and alighted a way up a tree from whence it stared down imperiously. A carried on through the Glades and then out and up to Comma Corner where I checked all of the previously beloved basking spots but all were empty and the shadows were even starting to rake their way across the ground and bushes here. On my return through the Glades a/another Red Admiral again buzzed me and flew high up in the trees and into the sun, an unsporting move if ever there was one and I lost it in the glare as I wasn’t quick enough with my sunnies. I reckon it had flown round in a circle as there it was (or the first and different one?) waiting for me in a tussock. After this I made for home for real and once there I placed my camera down on the side for possibly the final time this season… What rode out the storm?
They think it is all over
It is now…maybe…

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Mottisfont 24-10-2021

The Outlaws had descended on us for their annual pilgrimage and so after meals and coffees we were now taking the country walks. Luckily for me the chosen venue was Mottisfont with its microhabitats in the Rose and Walled Gardens, good supplies of Ivy along the riverside walk and a possibility of a White or two along the strip of Lavender on the Lawn. Unluckily for me the Autumnal weather had arrived and the forecast was for grey skies and not even a sniff of sun. I took my camera just in case though as at this time of years even a few minutes break in the cloud could be enough to bring out any butterflies that are either stocking up prior to hibernation or the big trip home, or eking out their final days.

With this in mind once we set off I kept my eyes peeled whenever I passed a likely looking spot whilst I chatted away to whichever Outlaw was closest. Right the way along the chalk stream, up though the hillside gardens and up the drive to the Walled Gardens we wandered without a sniff of a butterfly. Hardly surprising really as the cloud stubbornly refused to shift. Once inside the Walled Garden there wasn’t a change in the weather but I did see my first lepidoptoral traces. The walls of the gents were bedecked with empty chrysalises. Whether these were leftovers from the final brood of the year or awaiting next season I couldn’t tell as I didn’t find any complete ones. All the ones that I saw had gaping holes in them with fluff and gunk around them. After this gruesome sighting we carried on round the gardens, out and down the hill and then across and around the meadows before ending up in the middle part of the site sitting under the Chestnut trees. We were just about to embark on our lunch when it happened. The sun and the clouds had been struggling in their ongoing battle and the cloud suffered a moment of weakness relinquishing its hold on the sun. I started scanning about almost as soon as the first ray hit me and within 30 seconds I’d spotted a Specklie. It was playing in the dappled sunlight seeking somewhere to bask and a large orange leaf seemed to be the ideal spot. It was great for me also for if it had landed anywhere else I would probably have missed it. A few shots in the bag and it flew off up into the canopy sufficiently charged for a further foray so I returned to the picnic blanket for my lunch. A minute or so later and the cloud recovered its grip on the sun and it once again disappeared and that was that for the butterflies. There were some nice bits and bobs which I managed to fit in and around the various conversations; some Turkey Tail fungus, spotting a Grayling in the river, its fan like, pinky-purple dorsal fin showing nicely and also what looked to be some Hornets in cop. Alas there weren’t any more butterflies and the autumnal feel once more stifled with the clinging leaden sky pushing down oppressively… Two minutes of sun
Was all we got for the day
Didn’t need more though!
Have a goodun

Wurzel

Nice to contrast that late season Specklie with the ones we are currently seeing, Wurzel. They really do look different, even taking wear into account.

Cheers,

Dave

Cheers Dave I often think they that they seem a little darker in the Spring, more contrasting Could just be me though...

Dyrham Park 25-10-2021

So with the sun ding a passable impression of shining we were off to just beyond Bath to take in the scenery and grandeur of Dyrham Park. We were going to be meeting up with another group of Outlaws and knowing this set the butterfly sightings would undoubtedly be interspersed with plenty of chuckles, some excellent literary/TV suggestions and also sorting out the education system. As we set of to take in the first of the vistas the air was quite cool and there was a definite need for a jumper and latterly, as we completed the descent towards the stately pile, also a rain coat. Fortunately the rain hit Justin time for lunch and so we sat in the Orangery and had raided our victuals.

Repast complete we all set off once again this time through the formal garden and the small orchard and into the smaller garden with its mini lake. I kept my eyes peeled as I chatted as this proved to be a good spot on my previous visit. This time instead of Specklies, Small Torts and Whites the only flying things were the Dragonflies and they skimmed he tops of algae across the pond in search of their lunch. While the others chatted I quietened myself, knelt down at the edge of the pond and scanned across. When I spotted a Dragonfly I tried to lock onto it and watching them in this way was quite precarious; become too engrossed and the too and froing could see a dizzy you ending up in the drink. It was good fun but didn’t get anything to take away except memories so I left them to it and mentally steadying myself set off to re-join the others. That’s when I noticed several Darters that had settled down on the vegetation behind me. Whether the slight drop in the temperature from a passing cloud had grounded them or they were just having a breather I couldn’t tell but I didn’t mind as I clicked away. One air had a much more obvious reason for sitting about; they were locked together in cop; this has to be the weirdest sexual position in the natural world. Looking up chuffed I realised the others had started off and were already at the end of the turfed section so I walked quickly to catch them up. Once I did I re-joined the conversation and we strolled around the winding paths before emerging once more in the large formal garden. We then ambled along the hedge and entered the bedding garden with its three long rectangular strips of flowers. The choice of path was easy for me as at the corner of the first strip a Small Tort sat allowing the light to stream through its windows a la Stained Glass. It was a cracking sight to see and I almost forgot to try for some shots…almost . I then carried on down this strip of flowers and when I was about half way along something went up and flew on ahead of me. I stalked in closer to the spot that it had landed at and here was a Red Admiral. I flitted about a bit but never strayed too far away and had a definite liking for the purple flowers and when it took nectar from here it opened up fully. As I strode off to catch up with the others again I spotted a Small White in the distance but I needed to move on fast so it escaped my lens. When I did catch up with the others the woods were quite shady, the parkland was too open and exposed and I didn’t see any more butterflies. I didn’t mind though what with it being late into October that’s to be expected and there were plenty of chuckles, some excellent literary/TV suggestions and also a sorting out the education system plus excellent company, delicious coffee and a discussion of the comparative merits of certain beers and ales. A great day all told! Wide Parkland vistas
But bereft of butterflies
Gardens hold the goods
Have a goodun

Wurzel

The purple flowers are verbena bonariensis, a great late season nectar source that seems to go on flowering till Christmas given half a chance (and no frost!). Nymphalids can't resist it, as you found out, and it's often planted in formal gardens to provide colour late in the year.

Cheers,

Dave

Love the way you have captured the red on that Red Admiral.
Unless everything is right it comes out orange. Great stuff!.

Trevor.

PS. Have a word with the Wilts weather gods, I want OT's over Easter!.

Cheers Dave Thanks for the ID - these country estates and National Trust like properties are a god send during the opening and closing of the season due to the planting regime
Cheers Trevor It tilted at just the right time. I had a word with the deities and then checked the BBC weather app - looks like sunny intervals and temps up to 15 so fingers crossed you should be on to some OTs - I got my first today and it had only just gotten to 10 degrees

A Walk to Five Rivers 30-10-2021

With Halloween fast approaching I took a walk to Five Rivers to see if there were any spooky treats or decorations up in readiness. It meant taking the back route; up past the Sorting Office, through the housing estate by the rail tracks and on along the river, so I kept my eyes peeled for anything hanging about on the strands of Ivy that cling to the tall fencing/baffles. As I rounded the corner just near the Sorting Office a Small White caught my eye in the same place it had been previously. This time it sat a little closer but I still had to stretch my arms out fully to get anything of it. It shone out brightly like freshly cleaned bone in the weak autumnal sun and threatened to bleach out but I kept the shot anyway as more of a record and secretly I hoped to better it on a later visit (this would prove to be the final sighting alas). The walk through the housing estate didn’t turn up anything – neither pumpkins nor butterflies and so I debated whether to keep on along the river or cut my losses and disconsolately head home. Flipping a mental coin it came up heads and so I carried on under the first and then the second bridge before emerging somewhat blearily out on the path behind Waitrose. I was just recalling that the Bramble bushes on the river bank had held Admirals before when I spotted one. I must have connected with it telepathically and as it sat sunbathing! I marvelled at the glorious colours which would have met the colour palette of Count Dracula very nicely; evening dress of black and white with a red silk lined cloak. Just up from this individual another was resting on a different Bramble and soaking up some final rays before heading off and looking for a cosy nook or cranny to sleep soundly like the undead. This one was slightly more aristocratic and aloof than the other and it stared down almost smugly from above. I snaked my foot in and around and through various clawing bramble snares and managed to get close enough so that I could capture a few images and wipe the smug look of the Admirals face. Annoyed it promptly took off, did a circuit out across the river and back and landed in a much more accessible position from whence it looked askance at me with an attitude of; “well let’s see you get out of that and get and more photos!” Somehow I did but I think it cost me a set off laces, various scratches and my right knee will never be the same again. However I was free from the ever tightening grip of the Bramble and so I got some shots before the Admiral realised that I was free! Leaving the Admiral to nurse its pride I decided to fore-go Five Rivers and see what else was hanging around near Waitrose. To this end I started to retrace my steps and I hadn’t taken many when I spotted another Admiral, the chip in the hind wing indicated that it was a third and different individual. It was slightly more reticent than the first yet much less arrogant than the second and as I watched it settled only a couple of feet from the ground the sun was swallowed by a passing cloud. This meant that the, at times almost chocolate brown colour, shifted to a deep and dark midnight black that showed up the red very nicely and was most suitable for a creature of the night although this may have been more of a Count von Count than old Vlad himself. Chuckling and reminiscing inwardly about the wonders of Sesame Street I followed the narrow, curving path from the river side though to the Waitrose car park and then stepped over to the little patch of grass. In the corner a fourth Red Admiral was hanging about – looking to all intents and purposes like it was too tired to take the leap over the Bramble hedge and to the Riverside path behind. Exhausted it plopped down and tried to absorb some solar power. Whilst it recharged its batteries I stepped closer and my hyperbole seemed warranted as it was indeed a tried looking individual. The ground colour near the body was fading to brown, the black tips were fading to grey and one wing had lost its scales in a chunk. It looked more Zombie-like than Vampish and so I left it in peace to lurch from one sunbathing spot to another and made for home. A Skeletal White
And midnight black with blood red
No Trick just a Treat!
Have a goodun

Wurzel

Mottisfont 20-12-2021

I’d reckoned that my pre-Halloween trip would be the final proper trip but I kept my camera with me all though November just in case. So the certain Law was in effect when I saw a Red Admiral on the 22nd November whilst in town and my camera was at home charging up. After that briefest of sighting and as we’d moved into a colder and wetter December I packed my camera away for its winter sleep.

We took several walks during the month and each time I felt slightly exposed and slightly on edge as my camera was still safely snuggled up under the bed awaiting the spring but luckily no further butterflies showed themselves and the slight anxiety of missing a shot waned which each passing and butterfly free trip. Once work was completed and the Christmas holidays had finally begun we took a family trip to Mottisfont so that we could see the Christmas decorations and lights. After marvelling at the giant baubles (some as big as a football) we were out in the chilly winter air and this year the cellarium was open. Inside was a mock-up if Father Christmas workshop and Reindeer stable lit by changing LEDs (which I supposed were to resemble the Northern lights illuminating the North Pole). I’d often wondered if this would be a suitable place for hibernating butterflies but each time previously that I’d checked there were none...

Of course on those previous winter visits I’d carried my camera but now that my camera was hibernating at home, here and now there were hibernating butterflies. I spotted two immediately – one apiece of Small Tort and Peacock. Both were clinging the rock antennae, held aloft and in line with the costa of their clamped shut wings. Having spotted these two I looked a bit more closely and hiding away in the corner behind one of the light brackets I found a second Peacock. Now that I’d found them I felt an urge to get some photos so I pulled my newly acquired third iPhone out from my pocket. Unfortunately it had lost most of its charge in the cold and so refused to use the flash meaning that the Small Tort came out very blue and fuzzy looking. Luckily K leant me her phone and so I was able to get a couple of better images of the most obvious Peacock. That meant my 2021 Butterfly Season came to a close with an early Christmas present and with butterflies seen in each month of the year.
Christmas came early
With Peacocks and a Small Tort
So ended my year.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

A great way to end the season, mine ended in mid November.
When I was at work there was an outside electrical room where Small Torts
could be seen hibernating on the ceiling. I could get a Dec Jan and Feb fix.

Looking forward to your 2022 reports.

Stay well,
Trevor.

,

And they’re off! 2022

Middle Street 25-02-2022

L had arranged a meet up with a friend in a nearby town and so we set off on the drive in pleasantly warm weather. It felt great to not need a coat and drive under skies of blue for a change and shortly it got even better. As we were negotiating the right turn at the lights saw my first butterfly of the year – a weakly fluttering Red Admiral on the other side of the crossroads…Having returned home we awaited the boiler bloke to arrive and once he’d been and fixed what needed to be fixed I set off to Middle Street. Normally I’d have walked over but as I’d need to head back and pick L up I took the car and treated my trip as a slight detour. What had been a peasant morning swiftly turned into a blooming nightmare. In the few hours since I’d last driven through the town They’d set up some temporary traffic lights which weren’t in sync with the permanent sets. This meant that I lost 20 minutes of my butterflying trying to actually get out of the snarled city.

Hence when I did arrive I was in a bit of a rush and I was also racing against the cloud. So I set off diagonally across the football pitch and down and round from the wood pile directly to the hotspot and then back along the near side of the pond where I spotted some frog spawn but the cloud covered the sun and we reverted to winter. I tramped down into Dip 1 and as I touched down at the bottom of the Dip the sun re-emerged but there was still nothing to see so and so I cut up and along the bank path. Then U was treated to the sight that every butterflier longs for after winter – a Small Tort! It was in Dip 2 what it was doing there I have no idea as the Small Torts rarely visit this Dip? It flew up and over to the other side of the bank path stopping occasionally and then the thin cloud grew thicker and engulfed the sun. The butterfly went down and crawled into a cave of dried grass and promptly disappeared entirely. While I waited for the sun to reappear I strolled to the end of the reserve and back and got a few ‘habitat’ shots. I intended to get plenty more but I got waylaid in Dip 3 as there was the Small Tort again. Looking through the shots later I noticed different damages so I was onto a second individual. Ace! After such a successful detour I drove on and picked little L up from her friends in Downton. As I excitedly told her about my Small Torts she took great delight in showing me her photos of a Peacock that she’d found whilst they were out long boarding. Apparently she’d spotted it, ran back into the house to grab her phone and it was still there when she came back. She lorded it over me for the next few visits until I finally saw my first Peacock! So the season had started, not in earnest quite we were still in the fitful, shuddering phase when a few days activity could peter out and we’d endure another week without butterflies but at least there was light at the end of the tunnel and it was spring sunshine!
L bags a Peacock
And with my brace of Small Torts
And so it begins!
Have a goodun

Wurzel

A great way to start things off, Wurzel, and a definite to your daughter for the Peacock - I've never seen one take an interest on crocuses before.

Dave

Your spring has sprung!. Great Small Torts, and that last image of Peacock on crocus is a gem.

Keep up the good work,
Trevor.

I have to agree with Trevor about that Peacock shot - lovely. You may have won the first lap Wurzel but I reckon I'll be bang up to date before you

Hi! Wurzel, I've been up to woods twice now looking for Peacocks and not a sign in Blean Woods, mind you they've cut all the bushes and tree's along the path's so that's why I think , every thing looks so barren at present, it was great to see your lovely shot of one, I suppose the chopping is to encourage the Heath Fritillary to extend, can't wait to see them Goldie

Cheers Dave She pulled a blinder with that one
Cheers Trevor The Small Torts have put on a great showing over this way It took me a while to catch up with L's Peacock
Cheers Pauline I reaeckon you might overtake me quite soon Pauline - I've still got a week of holiday but then the W word will eat up most of my time
Cheers Goldie I reckon you're right about the chopping being for the Heath Frit - the Cow Wheat likes the newly cleared areasso hopefully there'll be plenty of Heath Frits in a while

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Middle Street 06-03-2021

After a hectic week weather checking at work it was typical that the weather forecast for the weekend was not exactly crash hot. In the end I strolled over to Middle Street and as reached the wooden bridge the cloud raced me so I arrived in dull, cold weather and I was glad for my coat and ruing not wearing my gloves!

As I wandered the reserve I kept turning my head skywards in the hope that the cloud would break and I was slightly cheered when I spotted a couple of likely looking thinner patches which seemed whiter and less grey. I strolled along the top of the bank scanning this way and that as I awaited the brief return of the sun. About half way along the bank path the sun popped out and so too did a Small Tort. I followed its frenetic flight and when it alighted I stalked in and grabbed a view shots before it was off but I managed to keep a pace with it and pounced when it rested a second time. After the third time I left it sitting on the bank and carried on back the way I’d come and there on the next little path down the side of the bank was a second Small Tort – this one had even larger yellow/orange patches on the hind wing where the fore wings overlapped and I made a mental note to allow me to make an accurate count later. I headed back for the first Small Tort and there slightly further back was a third – this had no patches on the hind wing and a hook shaped marking on the right fore wing. Chuffed with my haul of three Small Torts but starting to feel the chill I strolled to the end and back to get the blood pumping in order to warm up slightly. As I walked on the return leg I stopped at each small track way up the side of the Bank and scanned across. On one I scanned really carefully because I knew there was a butterfly there somewhere (I used the small pile of dog shit left by the dog owners that treat this local nature reserve as a canine convenience as a marker earlier) but there was no butterfly there now. Or so it seemed for as I watched the sun peeked out and there was a flash of orange. Where there was no butterfly now there was. It closed up again as the sun retired after its fleeting visit and so I climbed round to the side and got some shots of the underwing. Next I was able to relocate another Small Tort in another one of the brief (but welcome) sunny spells. It was Small Tort number 3 from earlier who I’d christened ‘Hooky’ but in the few moments since I’d previously encountered him he’d somehow managed to gain a tear in the wing. Onwards I went checking the Dips and the Hotspot to no avail. I wandered slowly scanning from side to side again and then as the sun momentarily crept out from behind the cloud my gaze would become more intense as I sought out flashes or orange or red. My wanderings took me back around and along the Bank path and I kept going all the way to the end or a second time – near the end of the reserve a Small Tort went up but almost immediately disappeared from view in the thick vegetation that had escaped the winter tidy up and so I carried on right to the end. On the way back the butterfly reappeared and as it had a chunk missing from the right hind wing I knew that it was Small Tort number 4. On my final pass along the back path the sun shone more solidly and I was able to feel the warmth on my face accompanied by the sub-song/warm-up of a Blackcap. I was witness to the same Small Torts some of which were getting a bit feisty and flying upwards in small spars cajoled on by the rising sap and the minutely lengthening day so it seemed. On the walk back home I stopped on the wooden bridge, a piping call alerting me to a Kingfisher. It flew and moved to a prime position on the other side of the river so I ran over the bridge and round. It was there sitting perfectly positioned and framed by a hole in the hedge so close I could almost reach out and try and coax it onto my finger. As I raised my camera for what would be a cracking shot a passing cyclist rang her bell and the bird was gone! Grrrrr!

Middle Street return
Small Torts play in the weak sun
Has Spring at last sprung?

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Five Rivers and on… 13-03-2022

Just as I thought things might get started again the weather became more seasonal – as in it reverted back to winter. Still a break over the weekend gave me the opportunity to get out and check up on my charges the Small Torts. I nipped to Five Rivers first but despite steadily covering almost every square inch of the site and paying particular attention to those areas normally so good for butterflies I drew a massive blank. What I did find was an absence of Bramble at key points most notably at Comma Corner. All the shelter and nectar sources had been stripped and flayed back leaving a prickly carpet of orangey brown. The fact that the weather had reverted to more cloudy than sunny hadn’t helped and I left with only the clatter of a Cetti’s as some consolation.

Upon my return to home surprise, surprise, the weather improved and the sun became less fleeting in its duration so I took a punt and walked over to Middle Street. The walk over didn’t produce anything and so I found myself walking along the track at the side of the reserve sooner than expected. The patch of blue and with it the sun was still a little way off but there was a definite brightening and the temperature was starting to rise so I pressed on to check out all the little sheltered spots. The little scallop by the fence held nothing and there weren’t any butterflies in the sheltered little bays along the bank either. I worked along the Bank track and scanned down into Dip 1 but nothing caught my eye. It’s possible that there were butterflies there but they’d be sitting out the cool cloudy spell in their little ‘tents/caves’ of grass. Slightly disconsolately I moved onto Dip 2 not expecting much and there was the orange diamond that I love to see – a Small Tort. As I watched it went up as if to leave but the breeze caught it and buffeted it about so it remained in Dip 2. After this I moved onto Dip 3 and then onto the end spot. Again I was wondering where the butterflies were when I felt warmth on my cheek – the sun was returning and so I scanned more eagerly. There was a second Small Tort and it looked fresher than the first. I couldn’t confirm this however as the breeze picked up the butterfly and carried it away across the field. I watched it from afar as it fought against the wind eventually gliding lower until it escaped the clutches of the wind. It then pottered about from yellow flower to yellow flower and I wondered about trying to approach it for a few shots but decided not too as it was only at each flower for a few seconds – in fact just short of the time needed to frame and focus so I wished it well and completed my circuit of the reserve, I was treated aurally with Blackcap, Cetti’s Warbler and Reed Bunting as well as my first Sedge Warbler but there were no more butterflies. Hopefully things will actually start and we won’t have one of those fitful and frustrating springs.
Warblers warble on
And the sun plays hide and seek
Small Torts brave the breeze

Have a goodun

Wurzel