Pauline

[Pauline]

Thanks for your comment Pete. I had been hoping to get a photo of the RA cat but it never seems to come out of its tent. Yesterday it had moved and created another tent and whilst looking for it I found another one!!!!!! I am so frustrated that this has happened on my doorstep on a tiny pot of worn nettles and I didn't even get to see/photograph the eggs! Talk about staying close to home !

Thank you too Bob. I am finding some of the moth cats fascinating and this one was dressed better than me

One of the reasons I avoided moths for so long Mike was the ID difficulties and it seems I have indeed made a mistake. I believe that the Coxcomb Prominent is in fact a Pebble Prominent and I shall amend earlier post. Thank you for your positive and encouraging comments.

Yesterday a brief visit to Noar Hill failed to reveal any BH although I did find a few eggs (well, you have to do something when the clouds come over ) as well as a Silver Y moth, one of very few I have seen this year:

Back home I think the Small Comma cats are now looking for a place to over-winter - they seem to have stopped eating and are wandering away from their food plant. These shots were taken on 20th August:

[Pete Eeles]

Back home I think the Small Comma cats are now looking for a place to over-winter.

A hybrid new to science - can't wait to see the adults

Cheers,

- Pete

[andy brown]

And what is more amazing is that Comma Larvae are disguising themselves as Small Copper Larvae

Andy

[Wurzel]

Brill Coxcomb Pauline - I managed to photograph an adult this summer, just like a splinter of wood Love the colours on that Small Copper cat too

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Pauline]

OK guys, you spotted my deliberate mistake - let's just call it a senior moment (actually, it was just one too many interruptions as I tried to post and I lost the thread - or the plot !)

Thanks for your comment Wurzel - much appreciated. I must amend my earlier post as the 'Coxcomb' is in actual fact a Pebble Prominent. This is one I currently have pupating:

An adult Coxcomb, which had been trapped in the garage, looks like this:

On a recent (unsuccessful) visit to Noar Hill I was given some information as to where a sizeable colony of Grayling could be found on the Longmoor ranges, quite close to where I live. Despite being given specific directions I could not even find the tumulus, let alone the Grayling . Given recent experience it will come as no surprise to you A. that I spent a couple of hours wandering round these tracks, totally lost . I saw lots of lovely fresh ST and lots of brand new RA, a total of 11 on this buddleia at one point.

A faded worn Blue looked (almost) as lost as me.

Probably the most exciting thing I saw with wings was this whilst admiring the view:

The world's only flying Avro Vulcan XH558

However, it was a pleasant walk and I eventually found my way back to the car. At this point I was remembering Alan T’s recent comment relating to the law of diminishing returns whilst trying to decide whether to go on that bit further to Noar Hill, especially as the clouds seemed to be gathering. I decided to take a risk. I had not been at the Triangle for long when another enthusiast arrived and together we scanned the trees for Brown Hairstreak whilst admiring the fresh RA here also. It was great to meet you Hazel and I'm glad you were able to share such an amazing experience.

We soon spotted our first Brown Hairstreak which flew over our heads and away into the distance and were chatting about the Grayling when I saw another female come down and land on a low plant.

She was not there for very long, flying up onto a higher branch, out of reach. At this point we were joined by another couple who had only recently moved to Alton and had joined the local wildlife trust. They were just out for a walk but as they had never seen a BH before we pointed her out to them.

As we all watched she flew down onto a low flower, allowing a couple of photos before flying onto a low Blackthorn to lay a couple of eggs.

What happened next stunned us all .....................

[Pauline]

The original small spider which disturbed the butterfly:

The following sequence of photos was taken in less than 20 seconds. Everything happened incredibly fast and there was a great deal of movement so some of the shots are not as sharp as I would have liked but are included anyway.

Having laid a couple of eggs in the depth of the Blackthorn the butterfly came out to rest, pausing by a small spider. She immediately fluttered out of its way, her intent being to rest on a nearby flower only a few inches away. Unfortunately, as she landed she was trapped in the web of a much larger spider. If I had re-acted a split second faster I could have rescued her but I hesitated very, very briefly and that fraction of a second was long enough for the spider to appear and grab her. 20 seconds later, after a brave and frantic bid to escape, she was neatly parcelled up and taken to the ‘nest’ the spider had created from the plant leaves.

Part of me felt elated and triumphant at having witnessed and recorded the event but there is a huge part of me that is filled with guilt and enormous sadness. I could only feel pity for the butterfly in her desperate fight for freedom and survival, the only saving grace being that the whole episode was over in seconds. If only I had acted faster ......

[nomad]

Wow. That's a truly amazing series of images. I never would had guessed that is what happened next. Although sad for this female Brown Hairstreak, I guess this is nature and imagine how many of the early stages and other adults fall prey to insects and birds. So we are extra lucky when we do see this lovely butterfly as a adult.
Regards Peter.

[Maximus]

Great photos of the female Brown Hairstreak, Pauline, but what a sad ending At least she had a chance to lay some eggs and spiders have to survive too

[Goldie M]

You seem to be doing ok at taking Quick shots Pauline Your photo's are great, but boy how I hate that Spider.
Goldie

[Wurzel]

Sad state to see a Brostreak in but at least she laid a few eggs so continuing the line - to that end she was an evolutionary success

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Neil Freeman]

Hi Pauline, sad to see the end of the female Brown Hairstreak but life must go on for the spider as well. At least she had done her bit towards the continuation of the species before her tragic end which you captured so well with your great photos.

A nice shot of XH558 passing by as well

All the best,

Neil.

[essexbuzzard]

That Brown Hairstreak female has a plump abdomen,which may have been full of eggs! I know the spider had to live,but if only the butterfly could have laid another 20 or 30 eggs. If only...

[David M]

Tragic viewing for me, I'm afraid. The female Brown Hairstreak is the most precious of UK butterflies and it's hurt to see the demise of one of that number.

[Paul Wetton]

Looking at the butterfly, she is not totally fresh and hopefully had chance to lay that 20 or 30 eggs before being captured. Attractive spider as well. Great shots Pauline.

[Pauline]

Thank you all for your kind and consoling comments. If only I hadn’t waited that fraction of a second to see if she could free herself (as I have seen Common Blue and Meadow Brown succeed in doing recently) then perhaps I could have saved her, and if the spider had been visible (rather than under the canopy of leaves it had created) I think my instinct would have been to intervene immediately.

Would I do the same thing again? Probably not! I know that one is not supposed to interfere in nature and on that basis alone I could never be a wildlife photographer as I find it distressing to watch any creature suffer. However, once the spider had her there was nothing I could do except take the photos. I also know that the spider has to eat but I found this short episode quite traumatic to witness as would have been the case regardless of species although I recognise the Brown Hairstreak is a bit special, so I reckon overall I’m with Mark and David on this one.

I remember feeling like this years ago when one of the many Sparrow Hawks which visit my garden brought down a Collared Dove under my apple tree. I kept thinking I should try to save it and then thought it probably wouldn’t survive the trauma and shock as I have tried to intervene many times before with only very limited success. However, as the Hawk plucked the bird and started eating the head, the little mite was still alive and struggling – it took 20 minutes to die

Thank you for your comment Paul as I am still feeling full of guilt and remorse. I so hope you are right about the eggs.

I’m not sure what sort of spider it was Goldie but it was huge – seemed to match the size of the butterfly. I can’t recall seeing one quite like this and would be very interested to find out what it is.

Thank you too Neil. I missed the shot of the Vulcan as it banked due to having to remove the close-up lens and re-focus but it was good to see nevertheless. Not sure where it was going but it has been at Farnborough Air show just up the road.

[Pauline]

Quick update on the little'uns. A couple of days ago I had my first view of the Red Admiral cat out of its tent. I hadn't realised that they spent so much time there. Surely it can't be long before they pupate:

As far as the Small Coppers are concerned it would seem they have settled down for the Winter as larva. I hope this is normal behaviour as they don't appear to be very well 'wrapped up' so I hope they are not dying on me. One way or another it seems like I have done all I can, for now at least:

Likewise, I have not seen the WA cats for a while now. They appear to be in the little pockets they have created out of the leaves, both of which can be seen in this shot, one on each side opposite each other:

I have avoided disturbing them so I hope they are OK as they seemed very little when they stopped eating. A close up view:

[Pauline]

I thought the season was slowing down a bit until I went to Old Winchester Hill this morning. I was not there as early as I had hoped as I have had no heating or hot water for over a week so the engineers were here sorting it out. By the time I arrived the warden had just finished his round and confirmed he had not seen a single butterfly. We looked up at the grey, leaden sky and he predicted that rain was on the way. Undeterred I headed off down the slope away from the car park and was delighted to see 3 Meadow Brown before I had gone very far. A few steps further and Blues started to fly up, startled by my disturbance. It seemed that they were certainly around, just hunkered down in the grass to avoid the strong breeze. I cursed the breeze as I anticipated the difficulties it would create when I wanted to take a few shots. I then remembered how it always seemed to be very windy where I grew up in the North which made me wonder how on earth the folk on this site from more Northern areas manage to get such cracking shots.

By the time I had reached the bottom of the slope the sun had broken through and the place immediately came to life. The first butterfly to catch my eye was an unusually dark female Common Blue. She looked almost black in flight. At first I thought it was because she was very fresh but she was certainly very attractive. The breeze made it difficult but I took a few shots - doesn't do her justice tho'!.

A Clouded Yellow patrolled back and forth the whole time I was there so I assume he had been fitted with some of those long life batteries. I only managed a couple of shots when it paused briefly and there was always a bit of grass in the way!!!

The next butterfly to catch my attention was an oddly marked Meadow Brown. I had taken a couple of record shots when I realised that I had ‘lost’ my close-up lens in the grass somewhere and spent the next 15 minutes looking for it!!

When it came to the Blues, well, they were plentiful but in various states of wear and tear ranging from this:

To these:

A pair of really rather tatty Common Blue were mating as were several pairs of Meadow Brown:

Realising that this might well be one of the last days of the season where I was surrounded by more than a dozen species, including Small Copper (no blue spots!!!) it was hard to leave the site. As I made my way back up the slope I said cheerio to the Stonechats (I'm guessing here and presuming that is a female in the background) and cheerio to the sheep (note the kestrels in the background) for another year.

[Wurzel]

Interesting range of wear in those Blues Pauline Great shots of the Meadow Brown too - aren't those type of variations pathological? Also I'm probably wrong but I think that those Stonechats might be a Redstart and the one hiding could be a female Pied Flycatcher I'll have a proper look after I've eaten my tea as I'm so hungry I may be hallucinating

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[jenks]

Hi Pauline.

Great photos as usual ! I agree with Wurzel. The bird in the foreground is a male Common Redstart with a (possible ) female Pied Flycatcher in the background. Our summering birds are moving out of their breeding areas now ready for migration. There have been 2 juvenile Common Redstarts feeding in hedges in the Newport wetlands reserve for weeks and Whinchats have been seen here too. Its a wonder there are any berries left !. The breeding areas for these 2 species would be some 20 miles further north and inland. Another reminder that autumn is here !.

Gareth

[Goldie M]

Pauline that Hawk story is quite gruesome UGH! I've had them in my Garden has well and although I know they've to kill to Live, it's still an harrowing experience to people like us who love Animals etc,to go on to a Brighter note, great Pic's , I hope when the weather is brighter next few days we'll both see more Butterflies. Goldie