Greenwings: French Pyrenees 24 May - 2 June 2016

[David M]

The following is a resumé of an 11 day trip to the Pyrenees Orientales in south west France between 23rd May and 2nd June 2016.

I spent 9 full days based near Prades and had a wonderful time, even though the weather was regularly frustrating, with the final half feeling more akin to UK conditions.

As ever is the case in the grands massifs of France, the views were extraordinarily beautiful, and before I post images of the butterflies seen, I would like to share some images of the landscapes one can expect to see when visiting this exquisite part of Europe:

[Chris Jackson]

A tantalising mouth-watering start with these great scenic images, David.
It makes me want to have been there already.
Chris

[David M]

Tantalising it was, Chris, and trips like these simply make me yearn for more of the same.

Lifers are few and far between for me these days, but given that I was in an unfamiliar region at a time of year when I have never visited previously, my tally was an amazing TEN!! Here they are in reverse order of desirability:

10. De Prunner's Ringlet

This was the only erebia seen on the trip, and having now seen it regularly I'm sure I'll forever remember it in future. It has a distinctive fluttery flight pattern and is unmistakeable once settled. Here's an upperside:

.....and an underside:

9. Spanish Gatekeeper

Not a species to get particularly excited about, but one has to be in the right place at the right time and for once I fulfilled both of these criteria:

[Roger Gibbons]

Personally, I would have Spanish Gatekeeper (Pyronia bathseba) higher on my list as I consider it a special butterfly, although I don't know what #1-8 are - if they are the likes of Spanish Fritillary and Violet Copper, the competition will be tough.

Note to Chris - triaria is almost certainly the Ringlet you saw at Rimplas but couldn't ID. The only other Ringlet flying in May would be epistygne (out of range for medusa) and I don't think it flies at Rimplas.

Note to David - Piedmont Ringlet (E. meolans) is quite variable and some of them will quite closely resemble triaria. There are ways to tell them apart but would need a close look.

I look forward to the next chapters with interest...

Roger

[David M]

It's a lovely butterfly, Roger, but there were others worthier of higher ranking for various reasons!

The next one gets in because of how hard it is to find:

8. False Ilex Hairstreak

Sadly, my only image is a poor one, but one of the guests got a cracking shot of one of these Hairstreaks basking on a rock. Field guides came out and his (and mine I think) was a definite esculi:

7. Western Marbled White

A lovely species of butterfly, although its distribution was sporadic in this region. We probably saw about 100 at three different sites:

[mattberry]

Enjoying it so far David, especially the top ten lifers, which is far more interesting to read and wait for who is no.1 than the musical variation!

Thanks
Matt

[David M]

I think you already have a good idea of the ones to follow, Matt!

6. Provençal Short Tailed Blue

I was delighted to finally catch up with this species and it was quite common in the grassy meadows at low to medium altitude:

5. Short Tailed Blue

Even better was the presence of the above's close relative. A slightly more attractive insect and, whilst not abundant, it popped up fairly regularly, particularly in the early part of the trip:

[Chris Jackson]

Hi David,
Nice uppers and unders of the Spanish Gatekeeper; not exciting as you say (others may say otherwise), but you're in the club. You have to be in the right place at the right time for this one.
Looks good for esculi. You saw an exciting variety of species.
More to come ?
Chris

[Padfield]

That last short-tailed blue is extraordinary, David. It is a female, I presume, but almost as blue as a male. And it seems to lack a tail. I don't doubt the identity - there's nothing else it could be - but it is a very striking insect, especially from the upperside.

Guy

[David M]

That last short-tailed blue is extraordinary, David. It is a female, I presume, but almost as blue as a male. And it seems to lack a tail. I don't doubt the identity - there's nothing else it could be - but it is a very striking insect, especially from the upperside.

Yes. It puzzled me greatly, Guy, from an upperside perspective. Clearly, from the undersides it cannot be any other species and that is why I posted it confidently as an STB. Interesting to note that you believe it to be an unusually marked female. I DID briefly toy with this idea but assumed that no female of this species could be SO blue. Maybe I was too hasty?

[David M]

4. Chequered Blue

This beautiful little butterfly has hitherto eluded me because of its May/June flight period, which is a time of year I haven't been in France until now.

I was delighted to see about two dozen of them, popping up in ones or occasionally twos, usually on dry roadside verges or at the base of rocky slopes where the vegetation is sparse. There's no other Blue quite like it:

[Tony Moore]

Couldn't agree more about Chequered Blue. I saw it for the first time recently in Bulgaria - a really stunning, jewel-like little butterfly .

Tony M.

[Chris Jackson]

4. Chequered Blue .... There's no other Blue quite like it ..

David,
I saw my first orion (lifer ) 3 weeks ago on the GR5 in Rimp....
It is true, they are remarkable and out of the ordinary as far as blues go. Once you've seen one, ID no longer poses a problem (they are very cooperative from the ID point of view).
I wonder if your No. 1 photo is what I hope it is . You're certainly keeping us in suspense.
Chris

[David M]

Thanks for the comments, guys. Yes, Chequered Blues are right up there in both distinctiveness and beauty. I doubt I'd get sick of them if they were as common as Meadow Browns!

3. Clouded Apollo

I'd only ever see one, and that was an all too brief encounter in the Alps last year.

In the Pyrenees at this time of year, they're anything but rare, and can be found very easily between 1000m and 1500m altitude. In fact, I stopped paying attention to them in the last 3 days of the trip and ended up missing out on the first Black Veined White of the trip (although a second and a third were observed later on):

[Sylvie_h]

Hi David,

I particularly like your short tailed blue, it is a very fresh specimen and I have never seen them in this condition. Your chequered blue is also very 'cute' and likewise I have not seen it for a long time, not having been to France in May since many years because of work constraint ...
I wonder now what no 2 and 1 will be.... I would certainly place the clouded apollo in no 1 as I have never seen it ! Well done.
Sylvie

[Tony Moore]

I was in the Pyrenees in early June a couple of years back and had had a pretty thin day. About 4 p.m., I saw a butterfly some way away which didn't look quite right for Large or BV White. It settled and turned out to be a Clouded Apollo. Within ten minutes, there was a simultaneous eclosion and about 30 or 40 more appeared in one small area no more than a couple of Tennis courts. I had a glass of 'pop' that night .

Tony M.

[Roger Gibbons]

David,

Good that you've now had the full Clouded Apollo "experience", after last year when it stopped just long enough to see it but not long enough for a photo.

I have been given a location for Clouded Apollo on the upcoming tour, so hopefully you won't be too bored with them.

A good year for this species on UKB so far, with Chris' ssp cassiensis which I suspect only a handful of individuals have ever seen (not including me).

Roger

[David M]

Thanks for the comments, all. I didn't really get 'bored' with Clouded Apollo, but there's so much going on in species rich areas like the Pyrenees that it pays to be self-disciplined and try to concentrate on 'new' species.

2. Camberwell Beauty

Finally I got this particular monkey off my back! I saw five in total on this trip, but the first two were mere fly-bys, although unmistakeably antiopa given this insect's size and colouration.

Number 4 was basking wings closed on a rock by a river when it was suddenly spooked by another Camberwell. The pair went spiralling into the air and eventually out of sight over the trees.

That leaves number 3. I was eating my lunch talking to three of the ladies in the group when one of them commented that a large butterfly had settled on the path about 10 metres behind me. For the main part, it rested with wings folded, but just for a few tantalising seconds we were all treated to a glimpse of the uppersides:

[mattberry]

This has been a great read David and I sense you are keeping the tension going by making us wait for the number 1 spot - hopefully my hunch on what it is will be right!

From the photos my favourites so far are the Chequered and Short-tailed Blue, which are both stunning individuals in nice poses.

Matt

[David M]

Thanks, Matt. Number 1 is to follow, but firstly I need to set the record straight regarding Spanish Fritillary.

This species is scarcely present at all in France, and we visited the only commonly known site for it in the region twice. The first time we had low-lying mist for the duration of our visit, meaning that we only saw about a dozen butterflies in the entire two and a half hours we were there (all bar one of which was disturbed by footfall).

So, we tried a second time on the last full day. In spite of a promising forecast, skies were just as leaden when we arrived there. We DID get a few bursts of sunshine as the clouds broke up, but in total we probably had less than an hour of suitable conditions.

For me, this was the greatest disappointment of the trip. If conditions had been perfect then with 17 pairs of eyes I'm sure we'd have had a good chance of locating it.

Not to worry. Sometimes it's best to keep a handful of challenges alive for future visits.