Wurzel

[Wurzel]

Cheers Neil It has been concerning me but it luckily it hasn't got stupidly hot yet like it did in 2012 when it was reaching 20 regularly over the three week period (even 25 in Scotland) so hopefully if the summer isn't too crash hot it won't be a complete washout

Cheers Hoggers The Small Torts are a regular smorgasbord at the moment. In bad years it can be disappointing when you you find a worn Small Tortosieshell but this year that isn't a concern - just take a few more steps and you'll see another one, which will probably be in better condition

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Wurzel]

Because of the fact that I'm not even a week behind with my PD, which I can't get used too , I was thinking about not posting for a bit. But then I remembered that I'd already written a few posts to get me through the winter months and now with the change in the weather I reckon perhaps I should get on with it...

Moths of Downshay

Way back in the summer I took the family back to my old stamping ground on the Isle of Purbeck. I lived in Poole for my formative years and so spent a huge amount of time here; from beach days with my parents, driving the by-ways with friends, birding throughout the year to completing my A Level coursework counting Patella vulgata on the rocky shores of Peverill. Because of this I love getting back to this area and showing my girls all the glorious sights and enjoying the experiences I had when I was growing up.

Over the last couple of years we’ve camped at the same place, Downshay, which affords views of Ballard Down, Corfe Castle as well as the steam railway. The facilities are rustic but good and one of the shower blocks is a converted small barn. As the lights are on all night and the high roof space is still accessible it attracts plenty of moths. I’ve noticed this before but carrying my camera down to the toilet block didn’t seem appropriate so previously I just noted down what I thought that I saw and left it at that.

This year however I came up with a new plan. We use toddler sippy cups for the girls when camping to avoid spills etc. These have a lid with air holes and so are great for transporting moths. Once I’d carefully coaxed them in I’d carry them back up the hill to the car which served as my moth photography studio! Some of the little blighters stayed out of reach but others practically walked into cup.

The first one I tried the capture and release technique on was a large yellow moth that had been hanging around for two days previously. Once I checked on my app I identified it as a female Drinker (Euthrix potatoria) due to the two large white spots on the wings. I was quite lucky to find a female as the males are more strongly attracted to lights when flying at night. I’m often surprised by the odd names given to moths and this is one of the more unusual but apparently it’s because the larva has a fondness for drinking dew droplets. It was a huge specimen and was surprisingly placid, just sort of hanging around like a winged version of Alf.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Maximus]

What a beautiful moth that Drinker is Wurzel. We've often talked about getting a moth trap, as we used one in the Dordogne in 2012, and its really great seeing what you've bagged, the following morning

Mike

[Pauline]

Don't get me started with moths Wurzel! Don't you think I've got enough to do Lovely photos tho'.

[Wurzel]

Cheers Mike Several "Moth-ers" I've spoken too have told me that having a trap is a bit like Christmas morning everyday, I don't know if I could handle the anticipation
Cheers Pauline Sorry I'll try not to mention the "M" word again...for a while

This is more like it – I’m a week behind on my PD, being up to date was starting to freak me out a little

15-03-2014 Five Rivers

Last weekend I thought I better make the most of the good weather and also the peace and quiet that comes from having two girls who are at their Nanny and Dad-Dads. Having waved them off after their swimming lesson and then spent a good few hours clearing up the last of the mess from the ceilings I was ready for a break and more importantly a breather in some clean and dust free air.

I found myself at Five Rivers again as I often do during the early part of the season and headed straight to the banks hoping to get straight onto some butterflies and a White in particular as well as adding to my haul of Comma shots. As I rounded the line of bushes that runs right along the middle of the banks an orangey butterfly flew up and circled a few times almost as if greeting me. It was a Comma which landed in almost exactly the same position as I found my first last weekend

Happy at an early win I thought that I better do the serious bit and attempt to count the Small Tortoiseshells before moving on to my personal targets. So I lazily strolled along the path on the banks scanning the path ahead and the dead grass on either side for basking Small Torts. They came in a whole array of states of wear but the majority were looking well past their best now. The first walk along and count amounted to 17 Small Torts and there was the occasional nice one still a round to brighten the stroll.

But I was here to try and find Whites and so I walked the length and breadth of Five Rivers; along the banks, through the copse, down and around the ‘amphitheatre’ and around and across the central grasslands. But I had no joy, not even a Brimstone so the hard job of counting Small Torts over and whites postponed I settled down for some serious Comma watching along with the occasional bees that buzzed the path.

Away from the banks I found the third Comma of the day. This one was brighter, fresher with nicely rounded markings. So with the final Comma in the bag I realised that I needed to make a move home. As I grabbed my gear the final butterfly of the day flew by but didn’t stop like most of my Red Admirals this year. So despite almost two hours I’m still on five species for the year and only 4 seen today – so I’m going backwards...

Hopefully Five Rivers will host a Butterfly Family day this year if the local branch can get the go ahead. Part of me hopes that it happens and is a great success so that others can see for themselves what a little gem this site is. Another part of me hopes that it doesn’t as then I can keep it to myself.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Neil Freeman]

Hi Wurzel,

I have occasionally thought about a moth trap but really have too much on the go as it is, its difficult enough to find time to get out in daylight let alone looking at what is around in the hours of darkness.

Good to see that you are behind again on your posting, gives me something to catch up on even when it has been a rainy day

Cheers,

Neil.

[Wurzel]

Cheers Neil I'm glad that my tardiness at posting is serving a purpose I haven't succumbed to the Moth trap yet - I just leave the bathroom light on and the window open

03-16-2014 Lazing on a Sunday

After the rigmaroles of cleaning the extra dust that had settled over Friday night yesterday and with the girls still at Nanny and Dad-Dads Sunday morning arrived and so I had a bit of a laze. In fact I decided that I would just spend the day doing the things that I had to do and see what I could see butterfly wise without really trying. And so my day of lazy butterflying began...

With no food in the house we went to Waitrose to do the shop and on the way to the car saw a Peacock in a garden. Unlike the last time I didn’t have to walk up the garden path as the shrub it was on was right at the edge of the drive way. So a few shots and I was away.

Having loaded the trolley with the food my wife and I took advantage of our ‘My Waitrose’ cards and sat outside in the cafe. Whilst drinking a delicious coffee (free ones taste even better) a couple of Brimstones flitted by providing me with another lazy butterfly sighting. Then when I was lugging the shopping back to the house from the car afterwards I noticed that one small plot of heather in a garden. The bush was about the size of two footballs and was quite literally crawling with butterflies. It held 10 Small Tortoiseshells whilst there was another one basking on the path and the twelfth was hanging off the wall. Chuffed with more lazy sightings I headed back with the shopping and a Brimstone bombed by across the gardens whilst the Peacock was still hanging around on the same shrub.
We had arranged to meet my mum and dad at a local restaurant to pick the girls up and also have a meal to celebrate my dads’ birthday. After a 4 course lunch we retired to the patio and gardens for coffee and while the girls ran around I had a look. A Brimstone flew by down near the river and there were two Peacocks and 7 Small Tortoiseshells all around the heather by the lower patio and sun chairs along with my first Beefly of the year. I’d brought my camera so I tried for some shots but in a lazy way, only getting in close if I thought the shot was different from usual and most of the time I was happy just sitting back and watching the action unfold before me. Eventually while enjoying yet more coffee and the feel of the sun on my back a Jumping Spider briefly joined us.

So ended my lazy day, with three different species seen in good numbers for March and without even trying. Back to work tomorrow and I have a nagging feeling that the weather will turn and I’m sure Countryfile will confirm my fears...

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Philzoid]

That Small Tort on the muscari is a real cracking photo Wurzel

[Paul Harfield]

Part of me hopes that it happens and is a great success so that others can see for themselves what a little gem this site is. Another part of me hopes that it doesn’t as then I can keep it to myself.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Hi Wurzel

I know what you mean about having your own special places. It nice to share them with others but it is also nice to feel that you have somewhere that nobody else knows about
If Wurzel is already a week behind in his Personal Diary in March then that probably means this season is going to be a 'goodun'
I agree with Philzoid that Small Tortoiseshell is a cracker

[Wurzel]

Cheers Philzoid I'm quite chuffed with that one
Cheers Jack As the whole fate of 2014 now rests on me staying behind with my PD here's something from 2013

Moths of Downshay 2

Once I’d developed my technique of moth capture I’d take the cup with me whenever I headed down to the toilet block for subsequent “sampling”. There were more moths about during the evening and the night but getting shots back at my studio (the inside of the car) was next to impossible with only the dash light and flash so I restricted my collecting to the daytime trips. During the evening I’d spy out the new arrivals and the ones that were at about the right height to capture and then hope that they’d still be there later the next day when I‘d have some free time. One or two species evaded me as they were too high up for me coax them into the cup or I’d spy them out on one visit only for them to have moved when I went back to capture them.

On the second day I got really lucky and it all went a bit Moth mad. It started with a Moth that I was sure that I’d seen before, the Buff-tip. Once I got it out of the cup into the front seat I quickly realized that I hadn’t seen it before as this one was huge. I’ve found out since that the females are bigger but this was twice the size and also more silvery than the buff-tip I remembered seeing in my youth, I’ll have to check my App to try and work out what it was now. Apparently it’s quite common but I’ve not seen them before. A stunning Moth perfectly disguised as a broken twig, my favourite view was looking down the length of its body from the head end as it showed off the glorious golden crop of fluff like a stylized afro.

just stretching my wings now I’m out of that cup

About 45 minutes later I walked back down to the toilet block to have a shower as experience has taught me that then you can avoid queuing. I was performing my ablutions and was just reaching for the shampoo when I noticed an old twig on the top of the shower. As I carried on showering it would keep catching my eye and the more I saw it the more wrong it looked. One end was all splintered and frayed and there were sign of charring on it so I couldn’t make up my mind whether it was a twig or the butt of an old roll-up. So once I was dressed and just prior to leaving the cubicle I reached up to the top of the shower to prod. It moved! Luckily I’d brought the cup with me and so in it went for examination back in the car.

I couldn’t work out what it was as I didn’t have much battery on my iPod so couldn’t scroll through all the species it could be hence I took some photos, returned it and when I got home I sent it to my Moth expert in Residence, Philzoid. He got back to me almost immediately “It’s a Flame”. I’m sure this happens to others to; you can’t work out what something is and then when it’s pointed out it’s bleeding obvious and there is a “Doh!” moment. It’s another one of the cryptic Moths that likes to pretend to be a broken bit of twig, hence the frayed and splintered wingtips, the marks where its been broken from the rest of the branch.

I thought that was it but then I had to do some washing up after tea...

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Philzoid]

Thanks for the credit Wurzel You beginning to build up quite a good selection of shots and i'll expect there wil be quite a few more when the light in the bathroom with open window gets going.

[Wurzel]

Cheers Philzoid Hopefully my Moth tally will grow - but my younger daughter has now decided that she needs total darkness to sleep , so no bathroom light at the moment, though I'm sure she'll change her mind again


I'm getting further and further behind - work and ceilings keep getting in the way so I need to get my skates on and start catching up...

17-03-2014 Wringing it out at work

Almost as soon as the great weather started I had a suspicion that it wouldn’t last and so I decided to wring as much out of it as possible. This meant taking my camera with me wherever I went and making regular checks of the habitat available to me. So once again I set off across the field to walk the usual route. It was noticeably cooler and slightly windier along the main bit of path but despite that there were Small Tortoiseshells everywhere. Once at the end I turned round and made my back counting and watching were individuals went to try and avoid double counting. By the time I was back at the banks the count stood at 21 – slightly down on last week but still pretty respectable.

I had a little time so I thought I’d have a little look around the Wildlife area to see if there were any bees around. The large wood chip pile has gone but there were still some Solitary Bees around as well as a Buff Tailed Bumblebee and a Spider Wasp. As I approached the end of the Wildlife area I saw that the boundary gates were open so I had a little mooch around and quickly found another Small Tortoiseshell bringing the lunchtime total to 22.

I took the back way home scanning the verges as I went and stopping off near Coombe but I didn’t see any other butterflies and most importantly – still no whites!

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Butterflysaurus rex]

I've also found it very difficult to get out & about Wurzel. I've been enjoying a virus of some kind so the best I managed for a while was a Peacock in the garden. A brief walk yesterday produced several Peacocks some Small Torts and a Comma, I'm still not seeing many commas! In the unlikely event that you find yourself with some wine left over, you could try using some wine ropes in the garden. Not as good as a bathroom or a Moth trap but better than nothing.

[Philzoid]

Cheers Philzoid Hopefully my Moth tally will grow - but my younger daughter has now decided that she needs total darkness to sleep , so no bathroom light at the moment, though I'm sure she'll change her mind again

That's a shame . I have a similar problem with my neighbour . Interestingly Izzy used to need the light left on ... kids eh

Small Tortoiseshells everywhere. Once at the end I turned round and made my back counting and watching were individuals went to try and avoid double counting. By the time I was back at the banks the count stood at 21 – slightly down on last week but still pretty respectable.

 That's the understatement of the year .. .you've got them coming out of your ears in Salisbury, not so in Woking, it's Peacocks over here.

and a Spider Wasp.

Do you have any pictures? I'd love to see it.

In the unlikely event that you find yourself with some wine left over, you could try using some wine ropes in the garden. Not as good as a bathroom or a Moth trap but better than nothing.

That's a great idea of Rex's. Half a pint of Speckled Hen should do the trick

[Wurzel]

Cheers Rex Sorry to hear that the lurgy still persists I'd like to try out the idea of a wine rope but unfortunately there never seems to be any left
Cheers Philzoid I reckon the Small Torts are starting to wane a little now. Unfortunately the Spider Wasp escaped my lens. I was going to try out Rex's and your idea so I got a bottle ready but the Crafty Old Hen was gone almost as soon as the bottle was opened

Still trying to catch up - but at least the posts are written up ready now...well that was until I went out yesterday. Better get back to it but for now...

19-03-2014 More Lunch Please

Yesterday (this was Tuesday) was much cooler with a stiff breeze but I couldn’t get out anyway as I wasn’t at work – I was at home looking after my younger daughter who had just had pulse laser treatment on her leg. Mind you today wasn’t that much better with the weather still cooler than it has been of late and the wind was much colder. However I’d just about caught up with all the work that I’d missed yesterday and so at lunch I headed out to walk my usual route.
I didn’t have to go too far before I spied my first Small Tortoiseshell which was on the bank in amongst the nettles. In fact I didn’t get any further on the walk as this little area had up to five Small Tortoiseshells and my first Oil Beetle of the year. I think it’s a female as it had a massively engorged abdomen. Usually they’re just blundering along through the grass yet this one was having a good chow down so I tried to get some shots of the feeding behaviour.

Again I drove home the back way eyes peeled for fluttery white jobbies – but still no joy...

Have a goodun
Wurzel

[Wurzel]

April 2014

This is the month when things start kicking off, enjoy everyone.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[robpartridge]

That middle Small Tortoiseshell is beautifully coloured and it's a quality photograph, too,

Rob

[Wurzel]

Cheers Rob They've certainly made it easy so far this year

22-03-2014 Middle Street

Somehow or other – I really can’t work out how – I managed to wangle a free hour on Saturday afternoon. With the sun coming in fits and starts I had my first race against the weather; cursing traffic lights and dawdlers that can’t get in the correct lane while watching the cloud roll in and the sky grey. At the fore mentioned traffic lights a couple of Brimstones and a single Small Tortoiseshell flew by but I was hoping for more Peacocks and perhaps my first whites of the year over at Middle Street.
Once on site I breathed a massive sigh of relief and eased the tension out of my legs by walking over the football pitch to the other side of the reserve. As I got to the best bit of the unmown field the cloud swallowed the sun. Luckily it reappeared after about five minutes and I saw a couple of Small Tortoiseshells before the sun disappeared again.

This was the pattern for the whole afternoon. I remembered how I worked similar weather conditions last year and so while the sun was in I’d walk to the next likely looking spot and wait, the sun would come out and there would be butterflies. First there were three Small Torts all sitting in a row which I spied from the top of the ridge way which traverses the site. It was a bugger to get all three in shot with my macro lens and I almost fell off the ridge way as I had to stand back so far.

I then found another three later over by the reeds so I reckon they were the same three but there seemed to be Small Torts everywhere and on the way back they were fluttering all over the place, erupting from the grass and the reed edges. That being said I couldn’t be sure that I wasn’t double counting them so I revised my count down 11. As I got back to the car the cloud seemed to win its battle with the sun and swallowed it up so I had timed it just right.

So still fewer Small Tortoiseshells with only a conservative count of 12 - are they being to wane? Still no whites either and to make matters worse I’m kicking myself that I still can’t remember how I ‘earnt’ the afternoon off so now I won’t be able to earn a repeat performance and it’s back to old tried and tested earning of Brownie points.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[Goldie M]

Hi! Wurzal, sounds like we've had better weather here because their are loads of Tortoiseshells about and I've even seen a Brimstone so I'm pleased first I've seen around here.

No Whites though yet and no Lady Brimstones either yet but I'll keep going to Hall-Lee-Brook hoping to see some, chin up Goldie

[William]

You're building up quite a collection of Tortoiseshell shots Wurzel - superb stuff! That last one seems to have a bit less yellow on it, but maybe that's just the light?