Hi Rob. I'm on planet winter at the moment. It has snowed every day for ten days and temperatures have been down to -11°C at night. David asks about the small tortoiseshells: it's the violet fritillaries I'm most worried about at the moment. They began emerging in the local meadows about two weeks a...

Actually, that's a good point - these cameras are not waterproof. They're OK getting splashed and I even left my previous PowerShot outside overnight in the raing (in its carry bag) without damage; but then I accidentally dunked the same camera in a cattle trough last year and it appeared to die com...

Hi Nick. I feel a certain responsibility now! First, for butterflies, I always use the P setting on the wheel - never automatic. For long-exposure star shots &c., I use TV. The P setting lets you configure exactly what you want. It’s good to know how to navigate quickly to all the various settin...

A couple of pictures of males (both taken in Suffolk) to show that sex brand:





At the right angles, and on fresh specimens, it is easily visible as a grey sheen.

Guy

I do sympathise, Mr SpOck, and if aspersions were cast on named individuals I would moderate. But at the level of ideas and opinions about sites, isn't it better that they should be aired and countered than centrally censored? I've learnt far more about Hutchinson's Bank from your responses to criti...

I was woken by the sound of snowploughs at 05h00 this morning. Winter is back, for at least the rest of this week ... https://www.guypadfield.com/images2024/17apr2024a.jpg (morning walkies) https://www.guypadfield.com/images2024/17apr2024c.jpg (afternoon walkies) https://www.guypadfield.com/images20...

Hi Rob. I'm not really a connoisseur of wines (more a beer man), but I think those vineyards must belong to Henri Badoux, as his logo is a lizard (I'd noticed it on the bottles, but not previously in the vineyard). If you want to browse the wines, they are here: https://www.henri-badoux.ch/fr/les-vi...

Good job the house owner wasn't in her bedroom or I'd probably still be locked up :wink: :D I've been there - and missed some lovely photos, just because someone might have got the wrong idea! Unlike Paul and Trev, I've never seen a UK Camberwell beauty. I had the same childhood dream, but it will ...

In 1985, during the university long vacation, I was earning my pocket money gardening on a farm in Melton (Suffolk). The farmer and his wife were both away, and on leaving I was to lock up and pop the key through the door. As I weeded and dead-headed, a large tortoiseshell casually flew in and began...

I was able to go further east along the Rhône Valley today, where more Camberwell beauties were flying. I was hoping for de Prunner's ringlet, but it seems they are not on the wing yet - surprisingly. I've seen them as early as 15th March in previous years. There was just one grizzled skipper there ...

I like the way Minnie's alert ear directs us to the butterfly. :D You're right - she was twisting her head from side to side trying to pick up any sounds from the butterfly. But her right ear can no longer stand fully erect, since she suffered a haematoma in it a few years ago. She's lost her symme...

Hi David. Yes, it started warming up yesterday and was beautiful today. Because I was working in the morning, and it actually looked a bit iffy, I didn't go anywhere special for butterflies yesterday, but just walked Minnie at Les Grangettes, at Villeneuve in the afternoon. There were butterflies ar...

Hi Chris. In May 2018 I found a green hairstreak with a snow fetish too: https://www.guypadfield.com/images2018/rubisnow4may2018a.jpg It had set up its territory on a bit of old avalanche and was defending it with all the vigour with which they normally defend bushes. The altitude was about 1800m. T...

Hi Wurzel. I've never seen a sea eagle, anywhere, and it would make my year if I did! Yes, there are western and eastern Bath whites. If you nip down to Spain they'll all be of the western variety ( daplidice ) but in Switzerland (I'm told) they are all the eastern species ( edusa ). They motor arou...

Very unsettled weather continues over the Alps. Two days ago I woke up again to snow: https://www.guypadfield.com/images2024/24mar2024a.jpg It didn't stay long, despite low temperatures, because the ground was too warm. By yesterday morning it was all gone, even though the air temperature on our mor...

Thanks Dave, Buggy, Wurzel and David. I agree, small tortoiseshells are tough, though in most years, the Queens are on the wing before them, in the valley, at least. Both species seem to know that even if the ambient temperature is low, it is worth getting up and out if the sun is shining. Last Satu...

Hi Bert. My hunting grounds are mostly further south, in the Rhône Valley Alps and the Pré-Alpes, so sadly I can't advise on sites near Zürich. I suspect that for the really interesting spring species, you will be in the wrong place, but there will definitely be plenty on the wing by 8th April. Larg...

The genus Hypolycaena has a single forewing cell bar, rather than the double seen here. My vote still goes for Deudorix, though Charaxes is the expert on these butterflies!

Guy

Interesting. The genus is Deudorix (the playboys) and it looks most like antalus (the brown playboy) except for the complete absence of any basal spots. All my books, and photos on the internet, show specimens with basal spots, though there is one internet photo with just one spot ( https://www.inat...

For what it's worth, Tshikolovets has proteides over most of Turkey but not Mugla, and he expressly mentions proto for Mugla. I've never been to that part of the world, so it's a pleasure to take a vicarious peek at these butterflies. So much better than studying set specimens in the books ... Guy