2014 - Butterfly winners and losers....
Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2014 10:20 pm
Been quite a bizarre season has 2014.
The spring of 2013 was unprecedentedly cold and many species seemed to suffer, only for warm conditions in summer to turn it into an almost 'golden' year.
Of course, last winter was as mild as most of us have ever experienced. The temptation was obviously to believe that this year would be similarly advantageous for our winged friends.
Sadly, although not disastrous, 2014 has proved to be fairly nondescript as regards butterfly numbers. In spite of a much better than average summer, I'm struggling to think of more than a handful of species that have really responded.
Here is my take on the top 3 butterfly winners and losers from 2014:
Winners
1. Clouded Yellow
The mild winter saw quite a few survive and they seem to have been a regular feature in the southernmost areas of England from mid-summer onwards. There have been no reports of mass immigrations however, so one suspects that most of the individuals recorded have been 'home-grown'
2. Green Hairstreak
Maybe it's just me, but Green Hairstreaks, from late April through to June have been ubiquitous. Has the mild winter been advantageous to them?
3. Peaccock
This species was around in silly numbers in late summer of 2013. My experience this year has been of far, far better numbers in spring, and a decent showing in mid to late summer.
Losers
1. Large White
What has happened to this butterfly? I saw no more than 60-80 ALL YEAR, and many of those were females patrolling the cabbage patch belonging to my neighbours in August.
2. Small Copper
This species had a nightmare 2012, but rebounded in 2013, only to become scarce again this year. I know that a few coastal sites have continued to see decent numbers but for me, this has been a highly disappointing year for this lovely butterfly.
3. High Brown Fritillary
Few people have this species on their doorstep, but the last Welsh site for this butterfly is less than half an hour's drive from my door. I can't comment generally but numbers have been way, way down on 2013, in spite of the intensive conservation work that took place in the early part of 2014.
The spring of 2013 was unprecedentedly cold and many species seemed to suffer, only for warm conditions in summer to turn it into an almost 'golden' year.
Of course, last winter was as mild as most of us have ever experienced. The temptation was obviously to believe that this year would be similarly advantageous for our winged friends.
Sadly, although not disastrous, 2014 has proved to be fairly nondescript as regards butterfly numbers. In spite of a much better than average summer, I'm struggling to think of more than a handful of species that have really responded.
Here is my take on the top 3 butterfly winners and losers from 2014:
Winners
1. Clouded Yellow
The mild winter saw quite a few survive and they seem to have been a regular feature in the southernmost areas of England from mid-summer onwards. There have been no reports of mass immigrations however, so one suspects that most of the individuals recorded have been 'home-grown'
2. Green Hairstreak
Maybe it's just me, but Green Hairstreaks, from late April through to June have been ubiquitous. Has the mild winter been advantageous to them?
3. Peaccock
This species was around in silly numbers in late summer of 2013. My experience this year has been of far, far better numbers in spring, and a decent showing in mid to late summer.
Losers
1. Large White
What has happened to this butterfly? I saw no more than 60-80 ALL YEAR, and many of those were females patrolling the cabbage patch belonging to my neighbours in August.
2. Small Copper
This species had a nightmare 2012, but rebounded in 2013, only to become scarce again this year. I know that a few coastal sites have continued to see decent numbers but for me, this has been a highly disappointing year for this lovely butterfly.
3. High Brown Fritillary
Few people have this species on their doorstep, but the last Welsh site for this butterfly is less than half an hour's drive from my door. I can't comment generally but numbers have been way, way down on 2013, in spite of the intensive conservation work that took place in the early part of 2014.