www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

I will start the new Month off with my very first sighting of an Orange Tip. Too quick for photos but at least I saw it with my own eyes.

Also today a large white (?) I think & a green Veined white.

Tomorrow is supposed to be warm & sunny so I will be ignoring the housework & will instead be wandering with my camera.

Angie

Duke of Burgundy at Noar Hill

Hi I found a green Veined white yesterday by the river Dee at Aldford while looking for Club Tailed Dragonflies.
Really pleased to see the first one of the year
I went to Eyarth Rocks this morning to look for PB Frits nothing yet but I think I,m a bit early
Pete

Went to Cardingmill Valley in Shrops today to see Green Hairstreak. No sightings yet this year, apparently, but today we spotted Orange tip, GVW, Large White, Holly Blue, ST, Peacock and Small Copper, so not a bad haul!

Chris

Today I had a Holly Blue in my garden who was quite happy to sit still while i took some photographs

Good start to May for me . Lets hope that sun keeps shining.

Angie

just peacocks at moment in ellesmere port

Went to the Dee again saw 5 Small tortoishells 2 Green veined whites 1 orange Tip and a Peacock, Good start for me too, got photos of the torts and Peacock. The Orange tip did not settle tho
Pete

Two male Pearl-bordered Fritillaries at Rewell Wood and my first Sussex 'Duke' of the year (private site) made for a 'Happy Monday'
Neil

Hello,

9 May 2008
I was two days late on parade to see my first Adonis Blue Butterflies of the year on the lower slopes of Mill Hill. One of the three looked very much like a brown female with its wings closed and without the distinctive blue as it flew off. I also saw five of my first Small Heath Butterflies of the year four on the lower slopes and one on the ridge return route. There was one Wall Brown, one male Brimstone Butterfly, one Green-veined White, eleven Dingy Skippers and four Grizzled Skippers. The Pyrausta nigrata pyralid moths were occasionally seen and many were missed. There was a probable Pyrausta despicata pyralid as well, but it eluded a photograph.
There was a damaged Speckled Wood Butterfly in the scrub and another was seen at the top of The Drive. Frequent Small Whites, occasional Large Whites and frequent Holly Blues were seen over Shoreham town and the outskirts. Another Brimstone Butterfly flew over the Pixie Path to Mill Hill and another unidentified orange butterfly flew into some Stinging Nettles.
Twelve identified butterfly species (my tally only, the most in a single day this year) plus one unidentified.

A very fresh Red Admiral was found in my south Lancing garden. It was in pristine condition and was very docile. Even climbing on to a finger briefly before flying off. An hour later, the same butterfly was redsicovered an hour later with half its wing missing.

Admiral Report by Ray Hamblett on the UK-Leps (Yahoo Group) & the Adur Valley News (Yahoo Group)

Adur Butterfly & Large Moth List
http://www.glaucus.org.uk/Butterfly-list2008.html

Cheers

Andy Horton
glaucus@hotmail.com
Adur Valley Nature Notes
http://www.glaucus.org.uk/Adur2007.html
http://www.glaucus.org.uk/Adur2008.html
Adur Valley Nature Notes: May 2008
http://www.glaucus.org.uk/May2008.html

Adur Valley & Downs Gallery
http://www.flickr.com/groups/adur/pool/

View and upload your Sussex Wildlife Images to:
http://www.flickr.com/groups/sussexwildlife/

Things have really started to happen at last here in Sussex. Over the last few days I've snapped this PBF in Rewell Wood, Green Hairstreak at Devil's Dyke and aberrant intermedia Grizzled Skipper at Beckley Wood. I spent a couple of very enjoyable days with UK Butterfly member Jack Harrison. Other species we got included Adonis and Common Blue, Wall, Dingy Skipper and Small Heath. See you again sometime Jack!
Neil

.... and yesterday had this Brown Argus at Levin Down and Duke of Burgundy on a private site. 5 of the freshly emerged Dukes had wandered some distance from the colony, to take on mineral salts from a muddy track.
Neil

Hello,

Strewth, the reports have been amazing as I have found everything late in Shoreham this year until I missed the Adonis cause I thought it was too early!



Is this a male or female Adonis?

Grizzled Skipper var. intermedia.

What is the difference please?

Perseus wrote:Grizzled Skipper var. intermedia.

What is the difference please?

Here's an intermedia I photographed just today, 10th May, on a hillside above Villars-sur-Ollon in Switzerland, hundreds of miles from Neil's (and yet they are amazingly similar!):



I've marked up some of the classic features:

1 - the 'dogsbone'
2 - full and elongated spots
3 - a short streak on the hindwing instead of the usual prominent mark

Guy

Ab. intermedia is midway between the normal form and taras.

Normal, then intermedia, then taras:





Guy

All my Grizzled Skippers are normal:

http://www.glaucus.org.uk/Skippers.html

Do you find Pyrausta nigrata in the same habitats at the same time?

http://www.glaucus.org.uk/P=nigrata340.jpg

Image is too large to display correctly. Click for link.

Out here P. aurata is the commoner moth - but yes, it is a frequent companion of grizzled skippers.

Grizzled skippers are abundant in my part of the world and have been on the wing since March 2nd this year. So it is not surprising that I pick up aberrant forms more regularly than you might in the UK. But Neil tells me that intermedia and taras are found at a relatively high frequency in some localised UK populations - it all depends on the local gene pool.

Guy

Went out this morning and found lots of Grizzled skippers and a few Dingys, also had three Small Heaths & 1 Common Blue.

Gwenhwyfar wrote:Went out this morning and found lots of Grizzled skippers and a few Dingys, also had three Small Heaths & 1 Common Blue.

Where?

Lovely day yesterday.
Buckland Wood again (and bumped into Simon C again), with Dukes out in force, and a few Dingies (including a pair making more Dingies) and Green Hairstreaks. no Grizzeld though. Lots of fly past Whites which prompted a brief discussion with Simon C about whether either of us could seperate them in flight - we couldn't - can anyone?
Off to Sand Point to see if the infamous Glanvilles had emerged yet (they hadn't!) but we had a great time with lots of Holly Blue, Common Blue, Brown Argus, Small Copper and a few restless Wall.
Not sure where I am off to today - probably Braunton Burrows for Grizzleds?!
Roger Harding