www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Is it just me or are the numbers of Peacocks vastly inflated at the moment?

I've been seeing a few of them every time I've been out, and yesterday I think I saw more in a single day than I've ever seen before.

Having re-discovered my interest in Butterflies last year I was suprised to see more Peacocks than Small Tortioshells.
I remember back in the seventies when I was a lad the SMs around my way in the West Midlands vastly outnumbered the Peacocks.
So far this year I have seen far more Peacocks than SMs again. They certainly seem far more common than I remember them to be.

In my part of the world, Peacock numbers seem similar to usual, though several people were concerned that they were low, following a poor showing in late summer. My theory is that they spotted an early winter coming and dived straight into hibernation.

As for Small Tortoiseshells, these have been more numerous this year than recently.

It all depends very much on where you are, I think.

Dave

I wonder if the early spring has helped them - less time to be predated over winter perhaps? I remember them being more abundant in 2007 which had an even earlier spring.