www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

I've just been sorting out old photographs on my computer and I found this butterfly that I saw in North Norfolk in 2006 - can anyone tell me what it is please?

Thanks Linda

That's a Monarch

Denise

Thank you Denise. Am I right in thinking that Monarchs fly over from America?

Linda

Hi Linda - and welcome to UKB!

The Monarch is an extremely rare migrant to the UK (see http://www.ukbutterflies.co.uk/species. ... me=Monarch) - some years none at all are seen. Most records are from the south coasts of England and Ireland - so your record would be highly unusual and worth reporting to the Norfolk branch of Butterfly Conservation (http://norfolk-butterflies.org.uk/).

Cheers,

- Pete

Thank you for that information Pete. I wish I had known that at the time! I feel quite proud to have managed to see one now. It never occured to me to search through pictures of anything other than British butterflies. I am struggling to remember exactly where I took the photo, but I am fairly certain that it was Pensthorpe (as in the last two years of Springwatch), they have a butterfly garden there.

Thank you all, you've quite made my evening!

Linda

Hi Linda and welcome to UKB.
I am quite envious. I've only ever seen one Monarch, and that was on St Mary's, Scilly Isles in September 1999, and before I had a camera. I was actually there birding and a lot of yank birds were turning up, so a true yank butterfly was possible. I could kick myself now for not buying one of the photo's that was for sale at the time. although I do have a pic of it now in Adrian M Riley's, British and Irish Butterflies, page 317 taken by Gary Thoburn.

Denise

Hello Denise and Pete

After sending that photo of the Monarch I noticed that the file date said 'modified on', so I've spent all morning rooting out old cds, that I'd copied photos onto, to try and find the original. It turns out that I actually took the photo on 29 July 2003, along with a few shots of much less exciting British butterflies - I had also modified their photos, labelling them with the prefix 'pen' (so definitely at Pensthorpe), by the time I got to the Monarch I must have been getting bored because I called it 'another butterfly'!!!!

So Pete, as it is so long ago, is it worth contacting the Norfolk branch of Butterfly Conservation?

Thank you

Linda

Only if you're absolutely sure of the location and date.

Cheers,

- Pete

And even then with the sighting so close to the butterfly garden it's a bit questionable?

Bill

Hello Bill

The butterfly garden is just an area planted with flowering plants designed to attract butterflies, it is not an area where butterflies are introduced.

Linda

Arh apologies, my mistake, I took it to be butterfly farm with rearing and tropical species. In which case please disregard my post.

Cheers

Bill

I should have made it clear that I was talking about an outside area, so it is probably my fault Bill.
Linda

LindaL wrote:I should have made it clear that I was talking about an outside area, so it is probably my fault Bill.
Linda

I figured that you were talking about an outside area but butterfly farms are renowned for escapees be they native, non-native or rare species. Had it have been close to a butterfly farm (the farms I've visited have reared Monarchs), I was thinking it might not be a significant sighting because it could have been an escapee. But it wasn't near one so it was....if you get what I mean.

D'oh

Bill