Black-veined White at Stockbridge Down!

Post by **Pete Eeles** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 1:45 pm

See:

http://www.hantsiow-butterflies.org.uk/sightings.html

for Tuesday 24th July.

Cheers,

- Pete

sidwemn · Post by **sidwemn** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 8:11 pm

Hi everyone,

According to Rare Bird Alert Pagers, the Black Veined White was still present at 5.20pm today - Wednesday at least

Any thoughts to it's origin?

Martyn

Dave McCormick · Post by **Dave McCormick** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 8:31 pm

Could be three things:

Migrant
Captive
Other

Apparently you can go years without seeing one and suddenly, there they are from what I was reading.

Perseus · Post by **Perseus** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 9:33 pm

Amazing.

I assume the ID has been confirmed. Who was the first to report it?

Jack Harrison · Post by **Jack Harrison** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 5:23 am

Look at the photos on the Hants IOW site. No doubt whatsoever.

I suspect it arrived with last week's "Spanish Plume". This is a weather phenomenon where hot humid air, potentially wet and thundery, moves up from Spain and western France. Now of course, there was a major event lat the end of ast week that resulted in the floods. It has long been believed that birds can be inadvertently "sucked up" in to such developing weather systems (very strong up currents) and there is every reason to presume that the same happens with butterflies.

Jack

Herr Schtriek · Post by **Herr Schtriek** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 10:02 am

Park in eastern car park, go through small gate, through 5-10m of scrub to clearing on right. Still present 17.45 yesterday (per birdforum).

Any news today ?

Matsukaze · Post by **Matsukaze** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 6:01 pm

I wonder if any more have turned up in places which are not frequented by butterfly-watchers?

sidwemn · Post by **sidwemn** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 8:57 pm

Still present this evening (Rare Bird Alert Pager).

Martyn

Dave McCormick · Post by **Dave McCormick** » Thu Jul 26, 2007 9:07 pm

If they are there now, would they stay? This could be an importance. They were here once, would they breed and establish again?

sidwemn · Post by **sidwemn** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 9:09 am

Still present this morning 8.15am at least (Rare Bird Alert Pager)

Martyn

Herr Schtriek · Post by **Herr Schtriek** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 2:59 pm

Birdguides reporting 2 BVW present, one of which was killed by a wasp. I suppose this means the chances are heavily in favour of them having emerged or been released locally rather than being vagrants themselves !

I'm not up on their life cycle. Would it be possible for a pregnant vagrant to give rise to these individuals, having mated over on mainland Europe, or would vagrants have to meet and mate in the UK for these individuals to have a chance of not being releases ?

FlyByWire · Post by **FlyByWire** » Fri Jul 27, 2007 8:45 pm

Doh! Wish I'd seen this before today. I passed very close to Stockbridge around lunchtime. I would have paused to take a look for sure. Ho hum. I'll be back in Hampshire tomorrow (30-40 min's away). If I have anough free time maybe I'll pay a visit...

-Mike

Gruditch · Post by **Gruditch** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 3:38 pm

Still there at 2pm on Saturday.

Gruditch

Jack Harrison · Post by **Jack Harrison** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 5:00 pm

I wonder if this is the biggest butterfly twitch ever?

Jack

Gruditch · Post by **Gruditch** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 5:16 pm

Stockbridge Down is only 4 miles from our house. But we never bothered to take a look till we were passing today. Judging by the flattened foliage, it sure has attracted some attention. I quized some of the people there and some had driven an hour or two to get there. And about one in three people were self confessed bird twitchers who were coming to have a look at a rare butterfly.

Gruditch

Jack Harrison · Post by **Jack Harrison** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 5:22 pm

I would love to see it but not that far away. You are lucky to be so close

However, you are all welcome to visit my garden in Cambridgeshire and twitch the Peacocks. If you are very lucky, go might get a Red Admiral as a bonus.

Jack

Post by **Pete Eeles** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 5:23 pm

jackharr wrote:I wonder if this is the biggest butterfly twitch ever?

Jack

Depends if you think this is a genuine migrant or a release. Seeing 2 in the same place, but nowehere else in the country, would favour the latter! Apparently, one was seen egg-laying today.

I think it's on a par with the release of Large Copper last year.

Cheers,

- Pete

Gruditch · Post by **Gruditch** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 5:58 pm

I'm with you, its got to be a release, its still a nice butterfly though.

Gruditch

Jack Harrison · Post by **Jack Harrison** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 6:04 pm

I guess we are unlikely ever to know unless someone owns up.

But I still think the storm assisted arrival (my earlier post) is definitely plausible.

More than one wouldn't prove anything one way or the other. If indeed storm assisted then it would be quite possible for several to arrive in the same general area.

So egg laying? And at least two?

Jack

Gruditch · Post by **Gruditch** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 6:24 pm

No, egg laying and one. Heard that the other one got eat by a wasp

Gruditch