The past month has been rather hectic for me, with little opportunity to provide updates, so here's a mega-update which would normally be spread over at least 5 entries!
Bentley Wood
On 12th May I popped into the Eastern Clearing at Bentley Wood to see how the Pearl-bordered Fritillary were doing. At least a dozen males and half a dozen females were seen, with three females ovipositing in one small area that was drenched in sunlight. I'm always fascinated at how many fritillaries are able to "sniff out" the violets that are the larval foodplant before depositing an egg, often on the underside of nearby bracken rather than the food plant itself.
![Pearl-bordered Fritillary - female - Bentley Wood - 12-May-15.jpg (538.17 KiB) Viewed 730 times Pearl-bordered Fritillary - female](./files/thumb_3_4952eec6f64500f8c50e8df042567615)
- Pearl-bordered Fritillary - female
![Pearl-bordered Fritillary - ovum - Bentley Wood - 12-May-15-21.jpg (213.29 KiB) Viewed 730 times Pearl-bordered Fritillary - ovum](./files/thumb_3_415865f0eee9dc79f41d09ce546b110b)
- Pearl-bordered Fritillary - ovum
![Bentley Wood - 12-May-15.jpg (1.06 MiB) Viewed 730 times Bentley Wood](./files/thumb_3_4ab0eb5eed69003ed0c911187b6141ca)
- Bentley Wood
Stockbridge Down
On 17th May I revisited Stockbridge Down after dark, once again looking for Satyrid larvae, and this time in the company of Mark Colvin who kindly took some photos of yours truly! We found a few Meadow Brown larvae and, once again, over 50 Marbled White larvae were found, with a roughly 50/50 mix of green and brown form of the larvae.
![P1090948.jpg (392.75 KiB) Viewed 730 times Yours truly! Photo (c) Mark Colvin](./files/thumb_3_ee7e94a4607150e09d96a60a4a4f5cc6)
- Yours truly! Photo (c) Mark Colvin
![Marbled White - larva - Stockbridge Down - 17-May-15.jpg (335.94 KiB) Viewed 730 times Marbled White - larva](./files/thumb_3_2295d2d9e6ac4bcbff4c7dbe772fe6ed)
- Marbled White - larva
![Marbled White - larva - Stockbridge Down - 17-May-15-2.jpg (311.63 KiB) Viewed 730 times Marbled White - larva](./files/thumb_3_9f194adac9095afc549921eb164cd65a)
- Marbled White - larva
Home
I deliberately left a good number of Garlic Mustard plants grow in the garden this year (or, more correctly, my wife has let me!) and several females (based on the age of the eggs I've found) have found them. Larvae are present in almost all instars and the patterning on the head, when seen close up, still amazes me!
![Orange-tip - larva - Thatcham - 24-May-15.jpg (190.77 KiB) Viewed 730 times Orange-tip - larva](./files/thumb_3_caed32fa043a65b646e72c9261058c71)
- Orange-tip - larva
![Orange-tip - larva - Thatcham - 24-May-15-2.jpg (213.41 KiB) Viewed 730 times Orange-tip - larva](./files/thumb_3_74b8388648e38db02a15a5eae4c2d02d)
- Orange-tip - larva
I've also searched for nocturnal larvae closer to home and found an area where several Meadow Brown larvae were present and, while looking into a grass tussock where one larva had fallen, came across my first ever Meadow Brown pupa which really is beautifully-patterned and, based on other images I've seen, always seems to pupate with the larval skin left at the end of the pupa.
![Meadow Brown - pupa - Stockbridge Down - 01-Jun-15.jpg (318.76 KiB) Viewed 730 times Meadow Brown - pupa](./files/thumb_3_0bbe606e24f5fcb23baf5331290cd2af)
- Meadow Brown - pupa
Noar Hill
I revisited Noar Hill on 2nd June, making a point of looking for Duke of Burgundy ova in an area that is used year after year by ovipositing females. I found several single eggs, and a few pairs. One pair was very close to hatching, where the hairs of the enclosed larvae were clearly visible through the eggshell. The highlight, however, was finding a pair where one of the larvae had already emerged. Setting up the camera gear, and concocting a makeshift windbreak, I sat for at least 2 hours before, eventually, the second larva emerged; a real privilege to experience!
![Duke of Burgundy - ovum - Noar Hill - 1.jpg (404.27 KiB) Viewed 730 times Duke of Burgundy](./files/thumb_3_85ca40ba88a366a80282352b68b38138)
- Duke of Burgundy
![Duke of Burgundy - larva - Noar Hill - 2.jpg (347.48 KiB) Viewed 730 times Duke of Burgundy](./files/thumb_3_2c3b1e4b7f897ae8e96e7b5d9b57fc28)
- Duke of Burgundy
![Duke of Burgundy - larva - Noar Hill - 3.jpg (325.95 KiB) Viewed 730 times Duke of Burgundy](./files/thumb_3_ab74cd99b48fc25f5637208ac8a77139)
- Duke of Burgundy
![Duke of Burgundy - larva - Noar Hill - 4.jpg (355.94 KiB) Viewed 730 times Duke of Burgundy](./files/thumb_3_1ba3d267693dde7ef10f1404d18dfe42)
- Duke of Burgundy
![Duke of Burgundy - larva - Noar Hill - 5.jpg (368.56 KiB) Viewed 730 times Duke of Burgundy](./files/thumb_3_3d2c3f422ce872570a5f6ec21829adfc)
- Duke of Burgundy
![Duke of Burgundy - larva - Noar Hill - 6.jpg (372.52 KiB) Viewed 730 times Duke of Burgundy](./files/thumb_3_ba3458785704462a1d1908c9d9293b16)
- Duke of Burgundy
Dorset - Durlston Country Park, Ballard Down, Corfe Castle
I had a meeting at Butterfly Conservation HQ (where I'm helping them with one of the IT projects) on 3rd June and decided to make the most of being in prime Lulworth Skipper territory. I first visited Durlston Country Park and, with good numbers of Common Blue seen in the car park, was hopeful of finding my target. However, the wind had other ideas and the closer I got to the sea, the windier it got. In fact, finding a sheltered spot anywhere was quite a challenge! And so I decided to move to Ballard Down, just the other side of Swanage. The site was more sheltered and several Adonis Blue were seen, but no Lulworths.
![Durlston Country Park - 03-Jun-15.jpg (597.23 KiB) Viewed 730 times Durlston Country Park](./files/thumb_3_1d9e85ed68c6582133f97538554b087b)
- Durlston Country Park
On the way to BC HQ, I stopped off at Corfe Castle and there, right in the car park, I found at least 20 Lulworth Skippers (all male) and here, as everywhere, the wind made any photography extremely difficult. However, seeing the freshly-emerged Skippers (judging by their general condition) was a delight!
![Corfe Castle - 03-Jun-15-2.jpg (702.93 KiB) Viewed 730 times Corfe Castle](./files/thumb_3_836c67cca965ff57ba949c47a076780b)
- Corfe Castle
![Lulworth Skipper - male - Corfe Castle - 03-Jun-15.jpg (316.89 KiB) Viewed 730 times Lulworth Skipper - male](./files/thumb_3_c1f01c283ad34c27e461e39b8b61508c)
- Lulworth Skipper - male
![Lulworth Skipper - male - Corfe Castle - 03-Jun-15-10.jpg (300.78 KiB) Viewed 730 times Lulworth Skipper - male](./files/thumb_3_6d9f985c990db09a7dd5b8f67097aae5)
- Lulworth Skipper - male
![Lulworth Skipper - male - Corfe Castle - 03-Jun-15-9.jpg (285.56 KiB) Viewed 730 times Lulworth Skipper - male](./files/thumb_3_f6d67a5a84be2b31d7381a3096843ef6)
- Lulworth Skipper - male
![Lulworth Skipper - male - Corfe Castle - 03-Jun-15-7.jpg (301.39 KiB) Viewed 730 times Lulworth Skipper - male](./files/thumb_3_73736edc7e22b4da83836569214fff60)
- Lulworth Skipper - male
Craigavon Lakes, Northern Ireland
I travelled to Dublin on 4th June and had some time to visit Craigavon Lakes in Northern Ireland, a 90 minute drive from Dublin. The weather wasn't brilliant, but I did bump into "Peter and Danielle" who are conducting a mark-release-recapture (MRR) study of Cryptic Wood White. Of the 30 or so butterflies I saw, I didn't find a single marked-up adult, which would have been nice! However, I did find good numbers of males, especially, and half a dozen females, as well as a mating pair. I also managed to get some shots of the habitat, something I've been doing at every site I've visited so far this year in preparation for the addition of habitat information on UKB this coming winter.
![Craigavon Lakes - 04-Jun-15-12.jpg (600.81 KiB) Viewed 730 times Craigavon Lakes](./files/thumb_3_0ab3951afed2ac202536928262167949)
- Craigavon Lakes
![Cryptic Wood White - male - Craigavon Lakes - 04-Jun-15.jpg (300.21 KiB) Viewed 730 times Cryptic Wood White - male](./files/thumb_3_8c1c7cae67dfba94a011852a2aaa8425)
- Cryptic Wood White - male
![Cryptic Wood White - imago - Craigavon Lakes - 04-Jun-15.jpg (284.98 KiB) Viewed 730 times Cryptic Wood White](./files/thumb_3_910f7abe6ecfce42d4cecc5c7ce3e2d6)
- Cryptic Wood White
![Cryptic Wood White - female - Craigavon Lakes - 04-Jun-15.jpg (305.02 KiB) Viewed 730 times Cryptic Wood White - female](./files/thumb_3_d92c26b4b807d6b4555e7ef27e5eaa6b)
- Cryptic Wood White - female
![Cryptic Wood White - female - Craigavon Lakes - 04-Jun-15-2.jpg (239.44 KiB) Viewed 730 times Cryptic Wood White - female](./files/thumb_3_cf5476364d3d01a7251f87c4eaf41b9a)
- Cryptic Wood White - female
The Burren, Ireland
The following day I was able to get to the Burren, but the wind was horrendous! I did find a few Dingy Skipper ssp. baynesi, but there was no way any photo was going to get taken in this Atlantic-facing habitat! However, I did manage to get a shot of a Wood White from this area - something that might prove useful should any analysis of Wood Whites from different parts of the British Isles be worthy of interest at some point! However, I did get some shots of the spectacular and unique landscape - I'm always amazed at just how rich the flora here is, growing in between the limestone slabs that characterise this part of the world.
![The Burren - 05-Jun-15-19.jpg (1.14 MiB) Viewed 730 times The Burren](./files/thumb_3_129581fa8b19f5b7e1b971d9c281bbc3)
- The Burren
![The Burren - 05-Jun-15-2.jpg (783.74 KiB) Viewed 730 times The Burren](./files/thumb_3_275efc87bd6c469ce2efe7acc2770f7a)
- The Burren
![Lough Bunny, The Burren - 05-Jun-15-23.jpg (576.26 KiB) Viewed 730 times Lough Bunny, The Burren](./files/thumb_3_c3d754c51e48a56966e3cea885f8cd6d)
- Lough Bunny, The Burren
![Wood White - male - The Burren - 05-Jun-15-6.jpg (332.43 KiB) Viewed 730 times Wood White - male](./files/thumb_3_bc2cc5feabba7cd801b6daa6b286e24f)
- Wood White - male
Cheers,
- Pete