May 2023

[David M]

I think we all need a break...or a reset.

Will May provide one?....

[millerd]

Another day of cloudiness until around half four when the half-hearted sunshine tempted me out onto my local patch. It's always worth going out, and as well as late-afternoon flying Holly Blues and Orange Tips, I found a brightly-coloured female Speckled Wood. However, she was very restless, constantly diving deep into the undergrowth with only the briefest of pauses to rest.

My next attempt at a shot caught her in an awkward-looking pose...

...until I realised that she was laying an egg. this is the best I could manage at recording the new arrival - though this species' eggs are rather featureless so there is next to no detail to bring out.

I thought I'd lost the butterfly whilst photographing the egg, but a metre or so further on there she was continuing her efforts. The angle she chose this time allowed me to record the moment of laying *though she did hold the pose for a second or two before disengaging.

This shot probably captures things best

This is a close crop of the shot above.

SpW laying2 cu1 020523.JPG (110.08 KiB) Viewed 3388 times

Well worth the walk!

Dave

[Padfield]

Fantastic shots, Dave. I love watching females lay eggs. The care and attention they lavish on the progeny they will never know always moves me. Their pleasure is in doing their duty by their children - choosing just the right spot on just the right plant to give that caterpillar the very best chance in life. I don't think I've ever watched a speckled wood lay but I've watched many, many other species.

Guy

[Matsukaze]

Peacocks and Orange-tips chasing in the fields today. The Peacocks are in remarkably good condition for the start of May.

[David M]

Excellent sequence, Dave, especially the last image.

[Pauline]

Hi Dave - I agree with Guy and David. That is a great photo. I know there is some luck involved in being in the right place at the right time but there is also a lot of skill needed. Unless you have attempted such a shot for yourself it is difficult to appreciate just how much. Certainly one I wish I'd taken

[SarahM]

Fantastic photos Dave, well done.
Sarah.

[MrSp0ck]

Pictures from todays Surrey BC Walk to Hutchinsons And Chapel Banks
Not a lot to start with but a Marsh Fritillary Larva in the cutting

then a walk over to Chapel Bank for the Dukes, at least 20 around at the moment

Other butterflies were posing as well
Orange Tip

Brimstones

and Comma

[millerd]

Firstly, thanks to Guy, David, Pauline and Sarah for your appreciation of the Specklie photos. I was surprised at how well they turned out.

Secondly, that's a beautiful caramel ab. gracilens Duchess, Martin.

Lastly, a visit to Incombe Hole near Ivinghoe on the Chilterns today produced all the spring quartet:

Duchess

Duke

Also seen were Orange Tips, Peacocks, Speckled Woods, a Holly Blue or two, one Comma and lots of Brimstones. I couldn't resist an attempt to capture them in the air again, but someone spoiled things by putting a tree in just the wrong place...

As ever, I shall have a full report in my PD at some point...

Dave

[bugboy]

Today was a good day. Went to Kithurst where I met up with Katrina and Neil H. and saw my first ever Sussex Duke, indeed my first Duke not near Ivinghoe Beacon! Also saw a few Grizzlies (at last) but the Green Hairstreaks stole the show with a couple of scale perfect examples showing us what the colour green should look like! Managed several shots which may pop up again in the favourite threads next winter.

[MrSp0ck]

Secondly, that's a beautiful caramel ab. gracilens Duchess, Martin.

Dave

Thanks
Dukes seem to be all over the site [Chapel Bank] now, they have moved out of the fritillary clearing, we had a singleton reported from Hutch last year too.

Lots of male Dukes various markings through to the dark forms.

Should be interesting in 21 days, when the other notables emerge.

[aeshna5]

Had my first (fresh) 3 Small Coppers in Richmond Park. Also Green-veined White, Brimstone, Holly Blue & Peacock around.

Off to Hutchinson's Bank & Chapel Bank today so hopeful for the Dukes provided the sun remains out!

[Jack Harrison]

i/d disappointment.

Cawdor, north Scotland.

The spiralling behaviour looked Speckled Wood, but the two extremely distant butterflies looked almost dark blue.  Surely not Holly Blue, which is not known to occur this far north?  In the back of my mind was this was the exact spot where I first saw that recent colonist Comma two years ago.

I aimed the camera more in hope than expectation.  Not many photos on ukb are of such poor quality, but it served its purpose.  It's just a crop from the original 4,000 x 3,000 pixel image.  Sadly, not Holly Blue.

Jack

[MrSp0ck]

Are Dukes having a good year, today at Chapel Bank we had a female being chased by 3 males at the same time, with many others yards away.

[David M]

...I couldn't resist an attempt to capture them in the air again, but someone spoiled things by putting a tree in just the wrong place...

Just shows how difficult it is to pull off a winning shot like last year's, Dave.

Good to see the Dukes.

[aeshna5]

Weather not as sunny as forecast yesterday but it was good to see a few Dukes at Chapel Bank. Such exquisite butterflies.

Brimstones the most numerous there & adjacent Hutchinson's Bank. Orange Tip, Green-veined White, Speckled Wood, Peacock & Comma. Surprised not to see any skippers or Green Hairstreak.

In addition Red Kite, Buzzard & 3 singing Lesser Whitethroat.

A basking Common Lizard & a few of the bees- Osmia bicolor, as featured on the recent Attenborough series that breed in empty snail shells & hide with dead stalks.

The woodland flora looked amazing with the Bluebells & also Toothwort, Goldilocks Buttercup, Sweet Woodruff, Ramsons, Wood Anemones, Yellow Archangel & Moschatel.

[Allan.W.]

At Samphire Ho! (Dover ) today in perfect weather ,i saw around 10 Small White ,5 Dingy Skips , 2 Wall , one each of Red Admiral and Large White ,very surprised to see a single male Orange -Tip ,i don,t recall seeing Orange -Tip here before .Best of the bunch was a VERY !
worn Clouded Yellow ,but even with its wings in shreds it was still pretty active (overwintered ?)
Sadly no Small Blues ,Green Hairstreak , or Small Coppers.
At Dungeness ,still only a single first brood Small Copper reported (25/4) this time last year at this time there were generally well into double (even treble ) figures . First Holly Blue of the year in the back garden.
Allan.W.

[millerd]

That's a great selection from Samphire Hoe, Allan, somewhere that didn't even exist when I lived in Dover! It must overall be favoured being tucked under the cliff and close to the sea, but can also be very windy in my experience. A definite for a Cloudie, however ragged it might be.

The most notable aspect of my local sightings today was an significant upsurge in Red Admiral numbers. There was variety:

The old guard (overwinterers?)...

...newer, slightly worn ones (immigrants?)...

...and brand spanking new ones (just emerged locally?).

These three were seen along the same stretch of path, the middle one being most active and persistently chasing Orange Tips that were trying to settle down for the night on the cow parsley.

Dave

[Charles Nicol]

i saw this Small Heath at Sundon Chalk SSSI on Wednesday

[Testudo Man]

I have seen small numbers of fresh Dingy Skippers on the wing since Wednesday, an sighted my 1st Small Copper of the season yesterday. Im up to 15 species so far for this year now, so i guess Common Blue/Brown Argus/Small Blue/Small Heath etc. should be on the wing here in Kent pretty soon?! We just really need this poor weather to give us a break now!

Some highlight images from 2 Kent locations, cheers Paul. 1st 3 images are not cropped, but the last image is cropped some.

A fresh Dingy from Wednesday, looks quite dark this one, but could just be the light dirt background?

Small Copper from yesterday (just the 1 seen).

3+ Dingys seen yesterday. I know there were at least 3, because all 3 were dueling together at one point.