Do take a look - and help if you can!

https://donate.biggive.org/campaign/a05 ... AY?c=73357

Cheers,

- Pete

Great stuff, Richard - I'm sure that Vince will be in touch regarding the use of your images on UKB!

Cheers,

- Pete

Great report, Pete - as usual - and congrats on the SBW! Yes, I was 'locked and loaded' to take the post down ...

Cheers,

- Pete

Hi Edward,

A few years ago I saw Marsh Fritillary at North Bull Island. If you go, just head north east, walk past St Anne's golf club, and keep going until you reach significant patches of Devil's-bit Scabious.

I don't know about CWW near Dublin, I'm afraid.

Cheers,

- Pete

Given all of the features of the upperside that are usually highlighted, I would have to agree that, on balance, this appears to be a Scarce Tort!
Cheers,

- Pete

Looks like a female Common Blue to me, Charles, albeit with two joined spots!

Cheers,

- Pete

Very nice, Chris - took me a while to find the egg!

Cheers,

- Pete

That's actually a very nice photo, Paul! Not just showing the usual 'courtship', but also showing an open winged male at the same time is pretty special

Cheers,

- Pete

Brilliant - nice to see the season starting somewhere! That poor QoS - what an amazing feat to be able to fly with such tattered wings.

Cheers,

- Pete

Just 'doing what you do' is what the award is all about, to be honest, Wurzel! It's not something you could or should ever work towards, which makes it all the more rewarding when you receive it, I believe :D And a thanks from me too, for all that you do to foster an interest in butterflies in parti...

The UK Butterflies Outstanding Contribution Award for 2024 has been awarded to Richard Carter, who is known by most of us as 'Wurzel'! Richard is a long-time UKB member and has taken on several roles that help keep UKB going, not least running UKB's Facebook group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/57...

Wow - very nice indeed, Paul! Loving these posts!

Cheers,

- Pete

This is all excellent, David! When you're done, it would be good to get this posted as an article on Dispar (https://www.dispar.org/index.php).

Cheers,

- Pete

Happy Christmas for tomorrow everyone, or whatever greeting is relevant to you at this time. And all the very best for 2025! Once the festivities are done with, then I start to think of my favourite signs of spring, not least an Orange-tip emerging from its overwintering chrysalis! IMG_9042.jpeg Che...

That last photo is incredible, Paul, nicely showing that the Grayling often lays on dead vegetation near the foodplant, but not on the foodplant itself.

Cheers,

- Pete

I had a couple of visits to the regular LTB site at Kingsdown Leas here in Kent .As usual an excellent showing of Pea plants ........and as usual .....much trampling !l So others had obviously been looking .I only heard of a couple of sightings at Kingsdown this year ,but never saw any imago myself...

I see that Peter May’s book lists it, but possibly only in captivity.

Cheers,

- Pete

Yes they were definately Marsh Larvae that merged into a Glanville Web, Plantain is listed as an alternative foodplant "In Britain and Ireland the main larval foodplant of the Marsh Fritillary is Devil's-bit Scabious, Succisa pratensis, with various plantains (Plantago spp) also used occasiona...

Congrats to Barry Mills, winner of this year's competition, with his photo of a Small Copper! Barry wins a signed copy of 'Close-Up' by Matt Doogue. Thanks to all the competitors - all of the winning entries at https://www.ukbutterflies.co.uk/competition_album.php?year=2024. 2024-1.jpg My thanks to ...

A few from the persistant population at Hutchinsons Bank, they are using Small Scabious, Field Scabious and Plantain as larval foodplants. The use of a plantain by the Marsh Fritillary has never been recorded before, to the best of my knowledge. Are you sure it's not a web of Glanville Fritillary o...