www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

I am travelling to Cyprus at the beginning of April 2008 and will be staying in the Akamas peninsula but will probably have some days in the troodos mountains as well.
Cyprus being an island, I don't expect to see as many species as anywhere else but if anybody had some recommendations on good sites for butterflies, that would be great!!
Sylvie

http://www.grayling.dircon.co.uk/
This is a brilliant site, and I got some excellent help from Eddie when I visited Cyprus, very late in the year, a few years ago.
http://www.grayling.dircon.co.uk/page7.html is a MUST BUY book.
Good luck
Hamearis

Thank you for your links. These will be very useful !!
Sylvie

Sylvie
I have a copy of the Butterflies of Cyprus which I will happily lend you - but it is a very substantial book measuring approx 12" x 10" and weighing nearly 4lbs - useful for research but not a field guide!! If you can think of a way to get it from Bedfordshire to Glamorgan, you are welcome to borrow it!
Alex

Thank you very much, that is very kind!
I normally park the car somewhere and go walking all day looking for butterflies and any other sorts of crawling and flying animals. I will probably not be able to carry a heavy book with me and would not dare to leave it in the car!! This may be useful for identification purposes when I am back in Wales though and if I need it then I will probably borrow it from you. I will let you know in due time anyway. Thank you again I really appreciate your help!
Sylvie

The book might also give you hints on where to go and what to look for...

I have just come back from Cyprus (I was there from 28/03 until 08/04) and butterflies, were on the wings already.
I managed to identify the following:
- Eastern Festoon (3)
- Paphos blues (loads)
- Cyprus Grayling (3)
- Long tailed blue (1)
- Cyprus Meadow Brown (5)
- Swallowtail (1)
- African grass jewel (fairly abundant)
- Orange tip (abundant)
- Clouded yellow (3)
- Red Admiral (1) fairly uncommon in Cyprus so it was a nice to see one.
- Large wall brown (although not completely sure)
- Small copper(1)? -bizarrely, it had tails like the lesser fiery copper but had same patterns as small copper
- Large White (fairly abundant).
- Hermit (1)
These were seen in the Akamas Peninsula, and areas near Argaka, Lysos, Kinoutsa and Goudi. For anybody interested to go to Cyprus for flowers and especially for orchid photography, it is needless to say that March until May is the best months to see them. I was delighted with the island flora.
Sylvie