Hoggers

[Allan.W.]

Hello Hoggers,
Sorry I missed you this morning ,funny you should mention "Peasoup" when I arrived around 7.15 am it was just that ! but within half hour it had lifted , I managed 52 Coppers ,including a couple of Blue Spots and another unusually marked Dusky individual, your bird is a Sparrowhawk as you suggested ,they did trap one sometime during the morning, Small Heaths ,fresh Brown Argus and 8 Humming bird Hawks warming up on the power station wall when I arrived. was good but I tried for your "Remota " but no joy ,but I did glimpse it yesterday .At Brookland ,dozens of Whites ,and Small Heath,but dissapointingly only 1 Copper ,but very good to see 3 Clouded Yellow ......bodes well for later on !
Regards Allan.W.

[Hoggers]

Cheers for the comments Trevor and Allan, much appreciated.

With reports of a poisonous gas cloud coming in off the sea at Eastbourne yesterday, it was with some trepidation that I ventured down to Dungeness this morning. Fortunately all was well

My brother was able to come along with me.He has some mobility issues (bad knees) so instead of the hard core extreme Coppering I'm accustomed to we took things at a far more leisurely pace

Whilst taking a break I was delighted to be well and truly "trousered" by a Copper

This is the first time I have been honoured in this way. I do not pretend that my "Matalan Chinos" can approach the mythic status of Neil Hulme's moleskins and their power over The Emperor, but I have decided never to wash them again.

A dream ending to my August Bank Holiday weekend

[Hoggers]

Autumn at Dungeness means busy times at the Ragwort

Conditions there today were perfect for Coppering

It seemed that every flower had at least one Small Copper

And the brambles had their own attractions

I counted 128 Small Copper today

Some boldly marked

but this one with reduced spotting

Dungeness is a wonderful place to be!

[David M]

That penultimate one is another very striking specimen, Hoggers. You sure have a varied range of individuals at that site. Small Coppers always seem to be attracted to yellow flowers....seeing one on ragwort is a real September scene for me.

[Goldie M]

Hi! Hogger's, My September scene is definitely the Copper on the Red Berries, Beautiful, Goldie

[Hoggers]

The third brood of Small Copper at Dungeness is still going strong

But has past its best

I noticed worn individuals now outnumber the fresh

Here's a Copper with her drinking-straw out enjoying some Blackberry juice

Another female was being pestered by a male

He pursued her for a good four minutes before finally getting the message that she wasn't interested

I saw 2 Humming-bird Hawk Moths, about 10 Painted Lady

And 2 Clouded Yellow

I also glimpsed a Redstart on migration.

I enjoy Autumnal butterflying

The pace is easier and it doesn't get too hot!

A good opportunity to stock up on some butterflying memories before the season comes to an end

[Goldie M]

Hi! Hogger's, great shots of the Copper's on the Berries, it's amazing their still going strong Goldie

[Hoggers]

Cheers Goldie, they are doing really well : I counted 74 yesterday, although overall condition is in decline. But I expect there to be a small fourth brood if the weather stays ok.

I've seen them drinking up juice from the ripe Blackberries in the past but it's not something I've come across very often (and from memory it's mostly the females that do so, rather than the males).

Hoggers

[Hoggers]

After two weeks of Tonsilitis I needed cheering up :

A bright new Small Copper met the bill perfectly

It's my first day out of quarantine and I'm not yet up to strength so I took a shorter walk than usual at Dungeness. I noticed how lush the plants now look

Such a contrast to earlier this year!

I met David Walker who kindly identified this attractive flower for me

Moth Mullien

My Copper-O-Meter registered 18 today

Eleven were worn and dented third brood

I find these old campaigners interesting

An example of how tough these little butterflies are. I look and wonder what hard battles they've fought through the late summer days

But the rest were beautiful fourth brood Coppers

I watched a male pursue a female

During her escape and much to my surprise she completely flattened herself!

This is something I have never seen a female do when repelling all boarders (although I once witnessed a male flatten himself to the ground on a breezy day)

It was a gorgeous day to see some Small Coppers and just what the doctor ordered

[David M]

I hope that tonsillitis is firmly behind you, Hoggers and yes, what better way to consign it to history with such a beautiful array of divine Small Coppers. All being well there’ll still be a fair few over the next week or three!

[Hoggers]

Hello David, my tonsils are back to normal thank you. Up until they went wrong I'd never have known they were there!

A day off work and plenty of sunshine. I saw a Clouded Yellow while taking my dogs out this morning so a good start to the day.

Dungeness by 11am and the Coppers were getting busy

What a treat to be able to find fresh Small Coppers so late in the year

Though a few old timers are still on the wing

I watched males in combat

After which the two contestants would sit in the sun for a rest

I counted 23 today

A real pleasure

It felt more like July than October!

[millerd]

What a glorious sight those new Coppers are, Hoggers! Long may they continue to appear down there. I had to make do with just the one on my local patch today...

Dave

[Allan.W.]

Hello Hoggers,
I had a day off as well today ,and we made a short visit to Dungeness as well,i recognise your second to last Copper ,with fairly distinctive forewing markings , I photographed it as well ! nearby I saw a very unusual Copper which I was unable to get a pic of ,it appeared to have just two spots on each forewing...... can't win them all ! Also managed 10 + Clouded Yellows and about a dozen Coppers .
Regards Allan.W.

[Hoggers]

Hi Millerd and Allan, it is a wonderful thing to be able to see fresh Small Coppers at this late stage in the season (and the one with the crescent markings was gorgeous)

My car dashboard indicated 17C when I arrived at Dungeness this morning and I immediately began finding Coppers

This Autumnal emergence is very exciting indeed

Most of the Coppers I saw today (26 in total) were newly minted

Some seem to glow with a fire all their own

I saw several newly emerged females and watched a male pester another male into having a fight with him

The one that was minding his own business nectaring ended up shimmying his wings at his opponent who eventually got the message and flew off.

I also saw 3 Clouded Yellows and a Speckled Wood

I'm pretty sure this is the first one I've ever found at Dungeness. Quiet why it was on the beach by the Power Station I can't guess!

Still, the Coppers don't mind it there

My favourite Copper of the day was this stunner

Drop dead gorgeous!

So a real bonus fourth brood at Copperness

Marvellous!

[Wurzel]

There is a such a subtle range of variation Hoggers that it's difficult to judge which one is 'normal' Some were definitely at the back of the queue when it came to getting their markings painted on

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[millerd]

More lovely glowing Coppers, Hoggers. I swear they must be internally lit when they are fresh! I wonder how long this emergence will carry on?

Dave

[David M]

Keep those Coppers coming, Hoggers. We love 'em and in a month we'll all be yearning for the first specimens of 2018.

[Hoggers]

14th October : Dungeness : T-Shirt and Sun Hat the order of the day. Must have been 19C and the Coppers were loving it!

My Copper-O-Meter registered 42

This has been an outstanding fourth brood

I saw Red Admiral, Peacock, Painted Lady and Clouded Yellow too but Coppers are the most plentiful butterfly now at Copperness

This female interested me

Coppery pixels outnumbering the blue

I can't recall having seen this before

I've noticed the number of individuals this brood with reduced spotting

I came upon a male with magnificent blue badges but only managed this photo before he whizzed away

Another fine day is forecast for tomorrow

I can't wait!

[Allan.W.]

Hello Hoggers,
Some interesting individuals there Hoggers ,the one with the Copper marks above the hindwing band is similar to one I found at Dungie today
as well .can,t make my mind up whether its the same one as yours, very unusual ! There is a description in the Abberations thread
that sort of fits the bill ,as AB; Cupreopuncta ,but unfortunately no pics !
I agree that the fourth brood has been excellent,i too have seen many Blue Spots, and reduced spotted individuals,still some beauties on the wing ,may even have another look myself tomorrow !
Regards Allan.W.

[Hoggers]

Hi Allan, "Cupreopunctata" certainly sounds right - a definite first for me!

Brian, an old school friend, came down this weekend from Norfolk. He said he'd never seen a Clouded Yellow before : I said I knew how to put that right!

We arrived at Dungeness in strong sunshine but it was much cooler and breezier than yesterday. There were no Cloudies to be seen at first so we turned our attention to the butterfly that gives Dungeness its real attraction

We counted 28 in all

And I was delighted to find a mating pair

The male looks to be at least 2 weeks old so he's hung on in there and beaten all the younger males to the prize. This is the first mating pair I've found since May.

I think Brian began to suspect I'd forgotten about the Cloudies, so we set off to look in the best place for them (along the power station wall) and upon arrival there was his first ever Clouded Yellow

Which was soon joined by a second

We followed one of these butterflies around the wall then bumped in to two fellow Butterfly enthusiasts photographing the Cloudie. We got to chatting about butterflies, Dungeness and Small Coppers in particular and soon we realised that this was the first meeting of UKButterflies' own EssexBuzzard and Hoggers!

It was great to meet you EssexB and I hope you managed to find plenty of Coppers

Brian had to be getting home so we went on our way with very fond memories of an excellent morning at Copperness