www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Saturday 12th - NW Gower coast:

Small White 20-30
Meadow Brown 15-20
Small Heath 9
Common Blue 5
Red Admiral 4
Small Copper 3
Speckled Wood 3
Large White 3
Brown Argus 2
Small Tortoiseshell 2
Green Veined White 2
Painted Lady 1
Peacock 1

Still seeing quite good numbers of fresh (probable 3rd brood) Common Blues, at the same Kent site that im observing the CY activities.

This last Sunday (20/9/20) as well as the Common Blues(15+) Clouded Yellows(possible 6, including a mating pair) several Small Heath/Meadow Browns, there were also good numbers of Small Coppers (10+).

Apart from the amazing highlight of the day...as in - sighting the mating pair of CY's, i sighted an usual coloured/marked female Common Blue ab.
Not quite as spectacular as a LTB but i think equally as stunning...this female is probably the best Common Blue that i have ever seen.
She is super fresh, an i would think she had just emerged...her colours were pretty much all blue an black!
Despite the strong winds, an losing/re-located her several times! i did manage to capture some nice images.

What an absolute stunner!
None of these images are cropped. Cheers Paul.


Not forgetting that mating pair of CY's.

Got lucky weather wise with our week away in the very north of Pembrokeshire.

Didn't go out specifically looking for butterflies and didn't see many species. 3-4 Speckled Wood, similar Red Admiral, 1 small Copper, 1 Common Blue but Small Tortoiseshells were thankfully everywhere including the beaches, plenty of Small Whites too. Also lots of Silver Y moths on the cliff-edge flower heads.

Beautiful place though. Saw bottlenose dolphins at New Quay and we counted 13 Atlantic Grey seals (including 2 pups) in the sheltered area between Cardigan Island and the headland. Also a pair of Coughs landed very close to us at Mwnt (could see they were ringed).

Could definitely have done with 2 weeks rather than 1 but was pleased to see that in my absence, the number of Common Blues has risen dramatically in the fields behind us - most I've seen at once all year, also saw my first Brown Argus there for ages. Small Coppers and Heaths in good numbers. Female Brown Hairstreaks still active and I'm now seeing Clouded Yellows pretty much on every circuit - but the most I've seen at one time is two, so I think they're just getting about a bit.

Testudo Man wrote: ↑Mon Sep 21, 2020 7:27 pm...this female is probably the best Common Blue that i have ever seen.

Extraordinary specimen, TM. It's almost Holly Blue-like. Never seen anything remotely resembling that.

Still a few Blues on the hill this morning

David M wrote: ↑Tue Sep 22, 2020 6:29 am

Testudo Man wrote: ↑Mon Sep 21, 2020 7:27 pm...this female is probably the best Common Blue that i have ever seen.

Extraordinary specimen, TM. It's almost Holly Blue-like. Never seen anything remotely resembling that.

Cheers David, yes, she is a real beauty.
Ive just had a quick look through all the Common Blue abs. on this forum/site, and i cant find one that looks quite like this one.
Heres a couple of extra images of her, as she was nectaring. Ist one with her wings closed, an the 2nd image as she starts to open her wings
Images are not cropped, an straight out of camera, no editing/pp.
Cheers Paul.

Testudo Man wrote: ↑Tue Sep 22, 2020 8:31 pm
Ive just had a quick look through all the Common Blue abs. on this forum/site, and i cant find one that looks quite like this one.
Heres a couple of extra images of her, as she was nectaring. Ist one with her wings closed, an the 2nd image as she starts to open her wings

Nor have I seen any resembling that one, TM. In fact, had I seen it wings closed and then watched as it opened them I think I'd have refused to believe my eyes!

Orkney 19 to 24 September 2020.  Splendid place to visit but not for butterflies of course.  Saw just one Small Tortoiseshell and three Peacocks. Excellent for birds.

Jack

Had feared the last week of chill and showers had ended my butterfly year. Today the sun is out and despite a strong breeze I’ve seen a Clouded Yellow, 5 Walls, a couple of Red Admirals, 3 Speckled Woods and assorted Whites.

Plenty of Small and Large Whites still about today, as they have been for the whole month. They are nectaring on hebe and the remnants of our scabious flowers, completely ignoring the ivy blossom. Is there a reason for this? There is nothing wrong with the ivy, which is attracting clouds of wasps from the two nests we have in our garden this year, as well as the few passing Red Admirals and Commas that are about at the moment.

Small Copper, Peacock and Speckled Wood also about this week.

Matsukaze wrote: ↑Sun Sep 27, 2020 5:16 pmPlenty of Small and Large Whites still about today, as they have been for the whole month. They are nectaring on hebe and the remnants of our scabious flowers, completely ignoring the ivy blossom. Is there a reason for this? There is nothing wrong with the ivy, which is attracting clouds of wasps from the two nests we have in our garden this year, as well as the few passing Red Admirals and Commas that are about at the moment

The reason, as far as I'm concerned, is that certain butterflies are attracted to certain types of plants, and the Whites generally seem to favour, in early autumn at least, valerian, asteracaea and legumes rather than ivy.

In fact, I can't ever recall any species of White nectaring from ivy, even though the vanessid family (and Speckled Woods) seem to love it.

A quick check of the Ivy today and I found a near fully grown Holly Blue larva complete with an Ant in attendance. One of the photos I managed in the shaded area also shows an old ova, whether it is the ova from this particular larva is not known but I would guess probably not.
Feeding damage is also evident in both images.
Another check about 20 minutes later and the larva had moved a few inches down the stem with the Ant still with the larva.

Sunday 13th, south Gower coast

Still plenty of butterflies about, but it's almost exclusively the usual suspects by now.

Small & Large White, Speckled Wood, Red Admiral, Small Tortoiseshell, Brown Argus, Common Blue and Small Copper all made an appearance, with this lovely caeruleopunctata being the pick of the bunch:

The hill still offering up some butterflies this morning but in less and less numbers. Nice to see a fresh Common Blue. Beacon Hill

My 'green-veined white' caterpillars have all gone wandering now - all over the inside of their cage, despite the various things I put in there for them to pupate on. I put 'green-veined white' in quotes as they now all look like small white larvae, even though I actually saw the mother lay the eggs (and she was very definitely green-veined white). To be exact, I saw her lay one egg and collected the plant with it on, then collected more plants of the same species (annual wall rocket), also with eggs on. Anyway, whatever they are, the eggs were laid on 26th-28th August, the caterpillars hatched on 4th-6th September and today, just over a month after laying they are now all doing their Walkabout, as rite of passage into adulthood ...

Actually, this one has already passed the point of no return:



That's quite a sensible place to pupate.

Some others:











Guy

After chasing Clouded Yellows over the downs of Sussex yesterday, today I went out ten minutes from home on my local patch near Heathrow and found... a male Clouded Yellow. The bright rather than sunny conditions meant it was untypically sedate and allowed close approaches.There's probably a moral to this somewhere...

Full report at some point soon (and for the Sussex trips too).

Cheers,

Dave

Nice sighting, Dave. Even a supercharged Clouded Yellow would be welcome for me; they don't seem to have penetrated south Wales much this year in spite of being fairly commonplace in southern England.

Monday 14th, Port Eynon, Gower coast:

Small White 40-50
Large White 10-15
Small Tortoiseshell 4
Meadow Brown 4
Red Admiral 2
Common Blue 2
Small Copper 1
Hummingbird Hawk Moth 1

David M wrote: ↑Wed Sep 23, 2020 5:06 pm

Testudo Man wrote: ↑Tue Sep 22, 2020 8:31 pm
Ive just had a quick look through all the Common Blue abs. on this forum/site, and i cant find one that looks quite like this one.
Heres a couple of extra images of her, as she was nectaring. Ist one with her wings closed, an the 2nd image as she starts to open her wings

Nor have I seen any resembling that one, TM. In fact, had I seen it wings closed and then watched as it opened them I think I'd have refused to believe my eyes!

Yes David, it was a bit of a surprise, when she opened her wings.
I returned to the same site on the 29/9/20. I'd finished work early, so took a chance an thought i could see some more 3rd brood common blues (as well as clouded yellows too). Both male an female common blues were on the wing, as well as small copper, a small heath, a large white, an a red admiral almost landed on my rucksack(as i was wearing it!). 4 clouded yellow were seen, 2 fresh an 2 worn, 1 of them was really worn!
Location - Kent. Images have not been cropped. Cheers Paul.

Not as spectacular as that female common blue ab. but certainly just as stunning! This female had not long emerged, an she was looking super fresh, with no wear to her at all. She is seen here basking in the late afternoon sun.

One of the Clouded Yellow seen here, resting on a yellowish leaf! I didnt see this male at 1st, but another male flew right up to it, which caught my eye, so i crept up, an took some images of it perched on this leaf. This male looks to be quite fresh.

David M wrote: ↑Wed Sep 30, 2020 9:23 pm Monday 14th, Port Eynon, Gower coast:

Small White 40-50
Large White 10-15
Small Tortoiseshell 4
Meadow Brown 4
Red Admiral 2
Common Blue 2
Small Copper 1
Hummingbird Hawk Moth 1

4.HBHM(1).jpg

Great shot of that HHM David, its not often you see these at rest like this.