April 2009 Lepidoptera Sightings

[Charles Nicol]

I went to Woodwalton Marsh to see if there were any Grizzled Skippers about yet... none.

As I was about to drive away a male orange tip shot past the car... i ran after it for about 1/4 mile but did not get a picture

Charles

[Susie]

I thought I would be too late to catch any butterflies this afternoon but after the report from Kipper I thought I would try my luck. In the sunshine at Cissbury Ring there were a dozen peacocks and two Grizzled Skippers.

[Jack Harrison]

Charles Nicol

I went to Woodwalton Marsh to see if there were any Grizzled Skippers about yet... none.

I was tempted to try on Monday so thanks for saving me the effort. Maybe at end of week. It is VERY early for these parts.

Might instead try Foulden Common later in the week. It's about a similar distance for me. TF764000

Jack

[cjs]

Hi All,
An elderly lady I know has just described to me what appears to be a Peacock emerging from its chrysalis. She described a colourful butterfly with large round eyes emerging from a chrysalis. As far as I am aware they only emerge from mid July. Is she mistaken?
Regards cjs.

[Pete Eeles]

Definitely not a Peacock - but not sure what else it might be at this time of year! A Speckled Wood maybe?

Cheers,

- Pete

[Trev Sawyer]

How about an Emperor moth... They have large eye spots and definitely start hatching very early in April.

http://ukmoths.org.uk/show.php?id=559

Trev

[geniculata]

speckled wood starting to show more now here today, only thing i got a pic of.
gary.

[cjs]

Thanks Pete, Trev,
Trev I never gave that a thought but I think you must have it. I will show her a pic and see what she says. Thanks for the idea. It was from her back garden and she described it pumping its wings etc.
Regards cjs.

[Dave McCormick]

Gary, nice speckled wood. Like the small coppers too. I have not had much free time to be out and when I get 2 weeks free, it rains! well thats how it goes at times. Anyway, next week I am going to a bog if weather permits. Is it a bit early to see small heath? And at this bog there are emperor moths and looking for the best time to go and see if they are about.

Also, does anyone have an idea when my orang tip pupae should hatch? I have it in a net cage now but it appears lifeless and can't really see anything in it, but I never have seen anything in it.

[NickB]

hi jack,
the camera used is my prosumer compact panasonic fz50, ..... but has the draw back of not a very close focus macro setting. hope that answers your question mate.
regards gary.

I have (since my FZ50 didn't bounce ) a surplus-to-requirements Panasonic branded close-up lens (cost £55 new) which you could try using with the close-up setting in the FZ50 for better macro work. (And it does have great d-o-f - took me ages to get anywhere as near with my DSLR...)
Are you going to the Photographic Workshop this month - I could bring it along...?
N

[Ian Pratt]

First holly blue seen yesterday on bay tree outside my office in Ryde Isle of Wight.

[eccles]

I caught a male orange tip warming up this morning after a cloud stopped it flying for a moment.
Snapped at Willsbridge Mill, near Bristol.
Sony A700 + 55-200mm zoom + Canon 500D c/u lens.

[geniculata]

hi nick
no i won't be at the photography work shop, but i get around the fz50's inadequate macro facility pretty easily just slipping on a raynox close up lens, with its universal quick release mount i can flick it on and off when needed which gives me great flexability. the speckled wood pic above was taken using it. thanks for the offer anyway.

gary

[DaveW]

geniculata

You have amazing depth of field in that Peacock picture. Could you give us the camera details and settings (including crop), please?

Jack

You can download a freeware programs, eg iexif from comanys like http://www.opanda.com which will let you read all the EXIF data from a photo by right clicking on the imaging. NB if you use the save to web feature in som software programs, this will delete the EXIF data.

[NickB]

hi nick
... the fz50's inadequate macro facility gary

I feel compelled to say that this was NOT my experience - for those looking at this or similar cameras.
Setting the camera menu to accept the Panasonic "close-up" lens integrates it into the Leica lens system on the camera and gives truely great shots (for what it is)!
For instance....

HF_8_low_1.jpg (126.9 KiB) Viewed 1499 times

or

23_05_07_Small_Blue_7.jpg (202.12 KiB) Viewed 1496 times

were taken with the FZ50 plus Panasonic close-up lens, set to Macro mode in the camera.
Judge for yourselves...
My 2p...
N

[Jack Harrison]

1949 Fine spring morning. Large White lands in the garden. Ten-year-old school boy dashes for his net. He needs a spring brood specimen for his (pinned) collection aware that the underside is far less yellow than the ones he caught the summer before. He fails to catch it.

2009 Fine spring morning. Large White lands in the garden. Seventy-year-old senior citizen dashes for his camera. He needs a spring brood specimen for his (photo) collection aware that the underside is far less yellow than the ones he photographed the summer before. He fails again.

Dammit, why do I keep missing? Watch this space in 2049. I might have cracked it by then

Jack

[sahikmet]

Hi,

Today 8th April Today at Denham Quarry (Colne Valley) Speckled wood 1, Orange tip 1, Peacock 1. Camera Olympus, E510 lens 40-150 mm with 25mm extension tube. Small tripod.

Sezar Hikmet

[geniculata]

hi nick,
i feel compelled to ask the question why you bought the panasonic close up lens, that you now have spare, when you already think the cameras macro settings are adequate.
gary.

[eccles]

What is particularly interesting is that the lens will stop down to F/11,

The sensor on the FZ50 is larger than most superzoom cameras which means that diffusion effects are less noticeable at F11. This also accounts for the larger than usual physical size of the camera.

I saw a small tortoiseshell at Velvet Bottom near Charterhouse in Somerset today trying to court a peacock by playing its antennae on the peacock's wings. Every time the peacock took off the ST chased it and tried again. Trying to make peatorts maybe? I'll leave it to others to suggest alternative permutations.

[thepostieles]

or small peacockshells lol saw a peacock today on my post round