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Clouded Yellow - Favourite Photo of 2021

Week 3

Happy Halloween and hopefully you enjoyed the extra hour The one good thing is that if the rest of the year passes as quickly as the last month we'll soon be in spring surrounded by butterflies!

Please could I ask that everyone waits until a topic has been opened by me for a particular species before posting photos as then it will be easier to keep track of things? Of course our overseas members are very welcome to fill in the obvious gaps relating to rare UK migrants. As in previous years details of locations, dates, times and circumstances would be welcome as would any accompanying stories and anecdotes or other observations of behaviour and interesting other points.

Another quick reminder that it might be a good idea to select your Overall Favourite Butterfly Photo of 2021 first so that you’ve got something to post when the series of threads culminates in 20 weeks time…

Have a goodun and stay safe

Wurzel

Clouded Yellow

I only had the one encounter with a Cloudy this year. I was planning on getting down to Southbourne to catch up with the resident population there but my visit coincided with the petrol nonsense so I stayed a home and lo and behold missed out on 6 or 7 Cloudies one of which was a Helice. So I had to make do with the one that I’d found at Martin Down. On several previous visits various people had informed me that they’d seen or heard of sightings of a Cloudy but I was unable to track one/it down until my final visit of the season. It made me work for the shots forcing me to climb up the Butts and follow it back and forth along the top and then down again but when it finally decided that I’d earnt a few shots it didn’t disappoint. Of the selection I took two stood out and so I chose them both as my Faves. The first was at an odd angle as the butterfly tipped to one side and the sun shone through its wings producing a gorgeous yellow. The second is a bit blurry but I caught it just as it took to the wing and so revealed the much sought after upperside.
Have a goodun

Wurzel

An in flight underside is a bit different so this one gets my vote

Very unusual ,interesting shot there Bugboy ! ....................Nice one !
Allan.W.

Agreed. That's a rarely seen view of crocea. Well captured.

No UK Cloudies seen in 2021, but as ever I saw quite a few whilst abroad. This male was among the three dozen or so seen in SW Andalusia in early October:

Guess I shouldn't complain about seeing CYs on only two days this year - after all, it doesn't seem that long ago that any year in which I saw even a single one counted as a notable CY year. The only one which stopped for a photo was this co-operative individual, as the afternoon shadows were lengthening on a sunny day in late September at Cissbury Ring.

As is often the case, my best sightings of this species were from Southwick (Shoreham Harbour), though I did see one or two elsewhere including a fleeting glimpse on my local patch and slightly more at Denbies. I'm a sucker for a backlit Cloudie, so this rises to the top of the pile......and there are always the attempts at capturing an upperside as well. Dave