Interesting article on Sussex BC by Dave Harris documenting breeding of LT in Sussex since 2021
https://sussex-butterflies.org.uk/down ... eshell.pdf
Kind Regards
Mark

Congratulations Wurzel - now I finally know your real name after all these years! Well deserved
Best Wishes
Mark

This is only the second pairing of Purple Emperor that I have witnessed. A female flew out of some Sallows with a male flying directly behind and she led him to the top of an Oak, some 20+metres up, where they paired within a couple of minutes. They stayed coupled for over five and a half hours! I w...

Nice to see that we have moved away from the toxic Twitter - X - UKB now on Bluesky which I have found to be a much friendlier environment
https://bsky.app/profile/ukbutterflies.bsky.social

I will be there too
Regards
Mark

I suspect you are right - I was on Southsea Beach last week and Small Whites were coming in off the sea at the rate of three or four a minute quite a few Large White too.
Kind Regards
Mark

One from East Grinstead on Sussex BC https://www.sussex-butterflies.org.uk/sightings/

As is my want at this time at this time of the year I have been wandering the local woods looking for Purple Emperor pupa with a UV torch. Unfortunately to take advantage of this trait you have to be in virtually total darkness, which at this time of the year means being in the woods after 10.30pm. ...

Larval web on DR Elm reported in Sussex.
https://www.sussex-butterflies.org.uk/sightings/
Kind Regards
Mark

2023 was a Black Admiral year at Alice Holt forest. This seems to happen every few years and I guess is probably a result of a frost pocket somewhere in the woods that creates conditions that cause aberrations in White Admirals. This year I saw at least four which were variants of ab.obliterae and p...

Every year I visit a small colony on the Hants/Sussex border which is high up on a north facing slope of the South Downs. The purpose is to do a count for Sussex BC and I suspect I am probably the only person to see them each year. The colony is quite small (20-30 individuals) and restricted to a re...

Living on the South coast in Hampshire I have been expecting LTB for some time. As Ben says they have been frequent visitors to our neighbours in Sussex for some years now but for me, other than a brief encounter on Hayling Island in 2013 they seem to avoid me on home soil. However this year a few w...

After a few years, and many fruitless hours of searching, I now seem to have successfully mastered the technique of finding Purple Emperor larvae by spotting their seat leaf which is left dangling by a silken thread in the autumn. This normally indicates that a larva is hibernating nearby. So far I ...

Good to see some familiar faces, and have Susie back in the fold. Some very enlightning discussion as always - sorry I had to leave early so I missed you Lee.
I am sure I will bump into one or two of you over the next 12months
Roll on next year
Kind Regards
Mark

I’ll be there all being well

After many fruitless searches I finally tracked down Long-tailed Blues on my local patch, Portsdown Hill. Seven or eight were frequently spotted in a fairly sheltered area of south facing slope that they were using as their lek. Three males and a female were extremely fresh and it ultimately resulte...

After seeing my first Long-tailed Blue at Beeding Cement works in 2013 I planted some Broad-leaved Everlasting Pea in my garden. I live in Portsmouth on the south coast, so I don’t think it was completely wishful thinking that one day my plants might be graced with a visit from this lovely butterfly...

Wow - a Marbled White in your nursery garden that’s a brilliant one to have.
Would you mind posting a picture of the garden when you have some time - my guess is that you have a nice meadow area, sounds great.
Kind Regards
Mark

Hi Quince Tree Children and Teachers, That is one of the nicest posts I have read in a long time! My lifelong interest in wildlife started at a young age and was fostered and encouraged by a teacher at my junior school. We need to get children engaged and interested in the natural world if we are to...

There have been a few White Admiral aberrations at Alice Holt Forest this year but this is the most extreme that I have seen so far - a bit faded now but no white bands at all ab. Nigrina?
Kind Regards
Mark