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A record breaking New Year is in store as far as temperatures are concerned, with most places between 13 and 16c!!

Those lucky enough to have an hour or two of sunshine could well see a 1st January butterfly!

No adult butterflies on the wing here today, but at least one of the large white caterpillars on our curly kale is now fully grown and should be off to pupate soon:



A few red admiral eggs look viable still. This is a rubbish picture of one of them:



Guy

This Brimstone took up residence in a garden hedge on 9 November, a warm day when 1 male & 2 females were flying. It has remained under the same leaf ever since. Yesterday’s “warmth” didn’t tempt it out.

Nice shot, Wolfson. It looks rather exposed in that position. I always thought they hibernated deeper in the bushes. Clearly, it's in a deep sleep though.

I agree, a very exposed site. Given that most of the hedge is completely overgrown with ivy where many insects (probably including this Brimstone) feast in the autumn, it is/was an odd choice.

I do like that the Brimstone above has chosen to hibernate under a leaf that has a brown blemish on it, just as the Brimstone does on its hindwings.

I have received some observations from Dave Harris, which he has kindly allowed me to share with you. They are dated 3rd January 2022.

"Over the new year period two Large White and one Small White caterpillar have pupated. At the moment I am keeping an eye on a further Large White and Small White which have spun up and an additional third instar Small White which will presumably pupate sometime this month or next".


This is from his garden in Newhaven, Sussex and the food plant is Nasturtium, which has so far avoided being frosted. However some colder nights are now forecast and he has promised to keep me advised of further developments. He also confirms that there are plenty of Red Admiral larvae overwintering in the area as well.

Vince

This Small Tortoiseshell visited my garden today. I hope that it has found somewhere safe to go tonight, as the temperature is due to dip a few degrees below zero...

RSPB Assistant Warden Luke Gaskin recorded a Painted Lady on ivy in Centurions Copse at Brading Marshes RSPB reserve on Wednesday (5/1/22).
This is thought to be the third January record for the Isle of Wight of this species with previous reports on 6 January 2016 and 1 January 2013, both at Wheeler's Bay.
Although there were favourable weather conditions last week for an immigrant, supported by a scattering of immigrant moth records, I would think this is an individual from last year attempting to overwinter?

A peacock raced by me yesterday. I was hoping it would stop but it seemed on a sun-fuelled mission to get to the next field.

My first butterfly sighting for this year though.

Not a butterfly, but my brother sent me this snap he took last Saturday whilst walking along a local dyke in west Hull. He's lucky enough to have water voles in there too.

JimB wrote: ↑Thu Jan 06, 2022 11:40 amRSPB Assistant Warden Luke Gaskin recorded a Painted Lady on ivy in Centurions Copse at Brading Marshes RSPB reserve on Wednesday (5/1/22)

The first sunny day in what seems like ages here, and a Red Admiral flying along a lane between Coleford and Holcombe, Somerset. There's some Viburnum tinus coming into flower just nearby, so hopefully it has something to feed on in the next few days.

Red Admiral at the local garden centre today, settled on ornamental primroses. Not surprisingly, my first butterfly of the year .

Two Red Admirals in Crawley today. One at 10.45 on the way to the shops and the other at 12.10 at a favoured hot-spot for the species in Tilgate Park.
There was still frost on the ground and the air temperature was around 8C and crucially the wind was calm.

Vince

Great that a few of you have stumbled across Red Admirals. There have been a few about in south Wales too (and Peacock) but sadly none has crossed my path.

With another week of calm weather I daresay there'll be more on the wing.

Another check of the butterfly hot-spot in Tilgate Park, Crawley today produced 2 Red Admirals at 1.15. They were either feeding on Daphne flowers or basking on nearby Rhododendrons. One was the same individual as yesterday.
The sun had been out all morning and the air temperature at the time was 9C in calm conditions, but there was frost on the ground.

Vince

Small Tortoiseshell seen in our garden yesterday 14th Jan, first butterfly of 2022


also this Brambling in our garden today, feeding among the other birds

Small Tortoiseshell in the garden today, nectaring on hebe for around half an hour and occasionally basking on a wooden fence.

What is going on? It's unusual to see a butterfly in the village before mid-March - it's one of the highest in southern England - that's now three sightings of two species this week.

Today I checked for overwintering early stages of the Red Admiral at Ifield Meadows in Crawley. There is a south-facing cemetery wall there with nettles growing at its base, which has produced good results in past years.
The final count was 18 eggs, including 6 on one leaf, plus 4 others that had already hatched. Two eggs were fully coloured-up and ready for the larvae to emerge.
Also three 1st and 2nd instar larvae out in the open and around 15 larval tents which were not disturbed.
It had been sunny all day and the air temperature reached approximately 9C in calm conditions. It was considerably warmer at the base of the wall, where all of the sightings were made.

Vince

Nice finds, Vince.

If we don't get any seriously cold weather I guess we can expect quite a few spring Red Admirals?