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Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Tue Aug 29, 2017 7:34 pm
by Butterflysaurus rex
Goldie M wrote:Lovely Adonis James, your Dragon fly looks quite evil, cracking shot though
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
Goldie
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
Thank you Goldie,
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
I think most day flying insects would agree with you, but I love dragonflies, in fact I like most wildlife except for mosquitoes and ticks. I wish the Dragonflies would eat most of those!
BWs
James
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Wed Aug 30, 2017 11:36 am
by Wurzel
Fantastic set of shots Rex, especially the glowing Adonis, they pop out of the screen
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
I think I'm looking forward to your QoS shot...at least I think so
Have a goodun
Wurzel
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Wed Aug 30, 2017 5:34 pm
by David M
First class effort, James. That first open winged Adonis is a real beauty with its array of hindwing submarginal spots.
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Wed Aug 30, 2017 7:05 pm
by Neil Freeman
Butterflysaurus rex wrote:
...I spent the morning on my local patch with the intention of seeing my first 2nd brood Adonis...
James
Oh! to have Adonis Blues on my local patch
Beautiful photos James
Cheers,
Neil.
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Wed Aug 30, 2017 7:50 pm
by bugboy
Magnificent Adonis James
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 4:40 pm
by Butterflysaurus rex
Wurzel wrote:Fantastic set of shots Rex, especially the glowing Adonis, they pop out of the screen
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
I think I'm looking forward to your QoS shot...at least I think so
Have a goodun
Wurzel
Many thanks Wurzel, Well it was practically on my doorstep, be rude not too - seeing as they came all this way.
David M wrote:First class effort, James. That first open winged Adonis is a real beauty with its array of hindwing submarginal spots.
Most kind of you David, I was lucky that the Adonis opened his wings and stayed there just long enough to get a shot. It was getting quite hot by that point and the other Adonis were extremely hyperactive!
Neil Freeman wrote:Butterflysaurus rex wrote:
...I spent the morning on my local patch with the intention of seeing my first 2nd brood Adonis...
James
Oh! to have Adonis Blues on my local patch
Beautiful photos James
Cheers,
Neil.
Living here on the south downs definitely has some advantages Neil, There are still a lot of 'UK' butterflies I need to travel quite some distance to see. I am lucky to live in one of the best counties for butterflies. And sometimes we are lucky enough to get a few visitors from across the sea, when they do it can get even more exciting.
bugboy wrote:Magnificent Adonis James
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
Very kind of you Paul, I really enjoyed spending some time with these gorgeous blues.
From odd to amazing!
On the 26th of August I joined Badgerbob to see if we could locate some Wartbiter crickets, although there were probably hundreds of them about they were highly elusive. We soon decided to split up so we could cover more ground when I came across a unusual looking female Adonis. I called to Bob 'who was now some distance away' that I'd found an 'interesting' ab. As he made his way over I tried to keep track of her as she flitted about feeding predominantly on Vetch.
At first look her left underside definitely resembled ab Krodeli, Bob and I had seen male (Krodeli) Adonis before and we knew they usually came with one damaged wing. Again this was the case here - but strangely the damaged side looked quite different, her right hand hind wing had a patch of bright blue scales on top, and the underside looks quite different to the opposite (Krodeli) side.
Personally I have never come across such an asymmetrical butterfly before!
Then on the 27th of August I received the amazing news (thanks Neil) that some Queen of Spain Fritillaries had been found by Dave Harris whilst on his transect! So the next morning I went over to see if I could re-locate them. When I arrived I was very surprised to see that I was completely on my own!! It was a while before I saw another enthusiast approaching, he turned up at just at the right time because I was about to spot my first (male) QOS of the day. To my bewilderment my new companion took a couple of record shots and left - so I found myself alone once again! I then spent the next hour or so chasing the QOS Fritillary around as it nectered on dandelion. It was so active that it difficult to get a decent shot, but as the heat of the day increased it settled into 'territorial mode' sticking mainly to one small area. It was then I saw the second male QOS enter the scene, he was quickly driven off and I was a delighted to witness sparring QOS Fritillaries spiralling high into the sky.
The first male QOS holding his territory.
The second male.
Then finally just as I was beginning to wonder if I'd see anyone else?! Lots of familiar faces started to arrive and things soon got very busy. As others enjoyed taking photos of the star attraction my eye was drawn to a couple of very shiny and new Small Coppers. By now I was so hungry I thought it was probably sensible to head for home.
What a terrific day!
Thanks for looking
James
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 5:04 pm
by bugboy
Could that Adonis ab be a partial gynandromoph?
...To my bewilderment my new companion took a couple of record shots and left...
how very bizarre
![Confused :?](./images/smilies/icon_confused.gif)
If it wasn't for running out of liquids I might still be there!
You were a very lucky man to get them to yourself for so long, great shots as well!
![Smile :)](./images/smilies/icon_smile.gif)
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 5:24 pm
by Butterflysaurus rex
bugboy wrote:Could that Adonis ab be a partial gynandromoph?
The thought had crossed my mind, but I have no idea if it's possible to get partial gynandromorphism?
...To my bewilderment my new companion took a couple of record shots and left...how very bizarre
![Confused :?](./images/smilies/icon_confused.gif)
If it wasn't for running out of liquids I might still be there!
You were a very lucky man to get them to yourself for so long, great shots as well!
![Smile :)](./images/smilies/icon_smile.gif)
Cheers Paul, I see you got some great shots as well.
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
I was sure there would be at least a few others when I arrived! It was great to have some time alone though.
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 5:26 pm
by David M
I've never seen anything like that female Adonis, James. It's most peculiar.
Nice shots of the Queens too. It must have been a great feeling to see those on UK soil?
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 5:44 pm
by bugboy
Butterflysaurus rex wrote:bugboy wrote:Could that Adonis ab be a partial gynandromoph?
The thought had crossed my mind, but I have no idea if it's possible to get partial gynandromorphism?
There are various terms for partial gynandromorphism, 'moziac gynandromorphism' being one that springs to mind. A complete bilateral gynandromorph is the rarest form of this abberation. There was a Silver-studded Blue last year with 3 female wings and one male wing. Having said all that I'm not going to pretend to be an expert on them by any stretch of the imagination!
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 5:56 pm
by Butterflysaurus rex
bugboy wrote:Butterflysaurus rex wrote:bugboy wrote:Could that Adonis ab be a partial gynandromoph?
The thought had crossed my mind, but I have no idea if it's possible to get partial gynandromorphism?
There are various terms for partial gynandromorphism, 'moziac gynandromorphism' being one that springs to mind. A complete bilateral gynandromorph is the rarest form of this abberation. There was a Silver-studded Blue last year with 3 female wings and one male wing. Having said all that I'm not going to pretend to be an expert on them by any stretch of the imagination!
Many thanks for the info, I am not at all knowledgable about this. The photos have been sent off to an expert so I'll post an update if it turns out to be anything of interest. Even if it is a partial gynandromorph it is still a good match for Krodeli on one side. Quite an odd butterfly but still quite beautiful.
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 6:13 pm
by Pete Eeles
It's a VERY rare combination of an aberration (ab. krodeli) and a "mixed gynandromorph" (see
http://www.dispar.org/reference.php?id=17) - "The extent to which a gynandromorph exhibits aspects of each sex is dependent on the point at which the abnormality occurs. If late in the development of the individual, then there will be very little of the "opposite" sex since much of the cell division will already have happened."
Cheers,
- Pete
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 7:02 pm
by Butterflysaurus rex
Pete Eeles wrote:It's a VERY rare combination of an aberration (ab. krodeli) and a "mixed gynandromorph" (see
http://www.dispar.org/reference.php?id=17) - "The extent to which a gynandromorph exhibits aspects of each sex is dependent on the point at which the abnormality occurs. If late in the development of the individual, then there will be very little of the "opposite" sex since much of the cell division will already have happened."
Cheers,
- Pete
Goodness me Pete! I knew it looked very unusual but what are the odds of being both ab. krodeli and a partial gynandromorph! Astonishing!!
Thanks very much for your help here, this genetically confused butterfly certainly managed to confuse me!
Best wishes
James
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 7:27 pm
by Wurzel
Very interesting aberrant Rex, one could even suggest that it is even rarer than a QoS on British soil
![Shocked :shock:](./images/smilies/icon_eek.gif)
Or is that just the green eyed monster venting
Have a goodun
Wurzel
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 7:40 pm
by Butterflysaurus rex
Wurzel wrote:Very interesting aberrant Rex, one could even suggest that it is even rarer than a QoS on British soil
![Shocked :shock:](./images/smilies/icon_eek.gif)
Or is that just the green eyed monster venting
Have a goodun
Wurzel
I've just been to the world of Wurzel! Brilliant, I hope to do something similar one day, if I ever get enough time. Yes indeed like the (ab.brunnea) Green Hairstreak I found I believe this is another 'once in a lifetime' sighting. I also had good views of a Hoopoe not far from home last week, I'm ending my season on a high!
BWs
James
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2017 9:40 pm
by Wurzel
Aw schucks Rex
![Embarassed :oops:](./images/smilies/icon_redface.gif)
I reckon your ending the season on a high is good karma for the time missed earlier in the season
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
Good to see things are back on track
Have a goodun
Wurzel
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Fri Sep 01, 2017 4:34 pm
by John W
Butterflysaurus rex wrote:As others enjoyed taking photos of the star attraction my eye was drawn to a couple of very shiny and new Small Coppers.
Hi James, it's always good to see a fresh Small Copper! Were they in a particular part of the field?
Cheers
John
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Fri Sep 01, 2017 5:23 pm
by Pauline
That's one stunning butterfly James - well spotted
![Very Happy :D](./images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif)
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Fri Sep 01, 2017 6:34 pm
by trevor
I agree with others, James, you are ending the season in style.
A few Long Tailed Blues would end it nicely, ( remember last year when we were with Katrina ? ).
Or maybe the Queen of Spain Frit. was our end of season treat for this year.
Hope to see you around,
Trevor.
Re: Butterflysaurus rex
Posted: Sat Sep 02, 2017 8:05 pm
by Gary.N
Stunning Ab. James and thanks for telling me about the QoS. You got some great shots of them.
Gary