Neil Freeman

[Willrow]

Lovely set of crisp images Neil, right up to your regular standard

Regards,

Bill

"When in doubt - venture out"

[Neil Freeman]

Hi Bill, may thanks for the kind words, very much appreciated as always

Thursday 21st May - part 1.

With most of my holiday from work now booked up for this year, I had a few days spare and earlier this week I saw that the forecast for Thursday looked promising and managed to book a day off at short notice.
Having missed seeing Duke of Burgundy last year I was keen to make up for it this year, so now I just needed to decide where. I could either have a run down to Bison Hill where I have not been before or head down to Cheltenham and one of my favourite sites at Prestbury Hill. In the end I decided to go for the site that I knew, and head down to Prestbury Hill.
My son Chris was also able to come along as he had not yet seen Duke of Burgundy and was keen to do so. This would be the first trip together we have managed so far this year, with the shifts he works and the fact that he now lives with his girlfriend in Stratford making it difficult for us both to be available at the same time.

We arrived at about 10.30 with some early cloud breaking up and some nice sun shining through and it was starting to feel pleasantly warm, albeit with a fair breeze at the parking spot in the lane at the top of the hill. As we made our way down the hill into the more sheltered lower slopes we started to see good numbers of Dingy Skippers along with a few Small Heath, my first of the year of the latter,

Small Heath - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Small Heath - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Moving slowly along the hedge line at the bottom of the slope and into ‘Happy Valley’ we soon found a couple each of Common Blue and Brown Argus plus a few Small Blues,

Common Blue - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Brown Argus - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Brown Argus - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Small Blue - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Brown Argus - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

As it warmed up during the morning we started seeing more butterflies which also included Peacock, Small Tortoiseshell, Holly Blue, Brimstone, Orange-tip, Green-veined White and Large white, mostly one or two of each but as usual with some of these, I am not sure if we were seeing the same ones coming round repeatedly on their patrol routes. We also found a number of Green Hairstreaks scattered about along the shrub line,

Green Hairstreak - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Green Hairstreak - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Green Hairstreak - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

So far though we had not found any Dukes despite checking the spots where I have always seen them in the past...after all, these were our main reason for coming here.

To be continued…

Neil.

[Goldie M]

Hi! Neil, lovely photos of the Butterflies, you'd think if the Dukes are out in the North they surely would be in your area, then again no Common Blue are Brown Argus are Small Heath here yet and as for Pearl BF I'm holding my breath Goldie

[Glostopcat]

It was nice to meet up with you and Chris yesterday Neil, I had a very enjoyable day at Prestbury Hill and saw many more species than i'd anticipated seeing beforehand. I shan't spoil the next installment of your diary by revealing if the duke of burgundy did indeed put in an appearance!

[Neil Freeman]

Thanks Goldie, the Dukes did eventually show up , I think they were just a bit slow getting going. Prestbury Hill isn’t really my area, it is an hour and a half drive from where I live but is the closest site for me to see Dukes.

Hi Glostopcat, it was a pleasure meeting you too. We had a great time at Prestbury Hill, one of my favourite places .

Thursday 21st May – part 2.

After spending about an hour and a half in The Bill Smyllie Reserve part of Prestbury Hill without seeing any Duke of Burgundies, we decided to walk along the short stretch of the Cotswold Way which takes you through to the Masts Reserve and try our luck that side. Climbing over the style into the lower slope of this part of the reserve we immediately saw a couple of Small Blues and then a small orangey butterfly landed in the grass right in front of us, a Duke , my first for a couple of years and Chris’s first ever.
We spent about 45 minutes in this spot, during which time we sat down and ate our sandwiches, and reckon we saw at least 4 different Dukes along with more Small Blues and a couple each of Dingy Skipper, Common Blue and Green Hairstreak.

Lower slope of Masts Reserve. DoB, Small Blue, Common Blue, Green Hairstreak and Dingy Skippers all in this spot.

Duke of Burgundy - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Duke of Burgundy - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Duke of Burgundy - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Duke of Burgundy - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Duke of Burgundy - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Duke of Burgundy - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Duke of Burgundy - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Duke of Burgundy - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

We then retraced our steps back into the Bill Smyllie reserve to check out one of the earlier spots, just by the gate where I had always seen Dukes before. Sure enough there were now a couple of individuals contesting one particular sheltered hollow. Perhaps they were just a bit slow waking up, not surprising really after the lousy weather earlier this week.

Duke of Burgundy - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Duke of Burgundy - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

Duke of Burgundy - Prestbury Hill 21.05.2015

It was whilst we were watching these that we were approached by three fellow enthusiasts including UKB member Glostopcat. After chatting for a while we went our separate ways and we slowly headed back up the hill to the car.

Before leaving the Cheltenham area I wanted to have a look at Nottingham Hill which is close by and was also thinking of making a little detour to Grafton Wood on the way home.

Bye for now,

Neil.

[Nick Broomer]

Hi Neil,

Just been looking at your diary.

Lovely photos as usual but, that female Speckled Wood ovipositing must be the photo of the year. What are the chances of getting the butterfly at that angle, just as she deposits an egg on the grass stem. Brilliant.

All the best, Nick.

[Pete Eeles]

As I watched her she appeared to be laying eggs on some of the blades of grass and taking a couple of quick photos, I managed to catch her right in the act of depositing one,

As others have pointed out, that is one amazing shot, Neil - well done! I've only just come across your photo, so apols for not mentioning this sooner!

Cheers,

- Pete

[Glostopcat]

You got some really superb images of the dukes from your visit Neil, I managed to get quite a lot more shots in both parts of the reserve after you had departed for Nottingham Hill. I also got some images of small blues mating and a cistus forester moth. I hope you managed to see some wall browns at Nottingham Hill. I may visit that site when I've time or try Leckhampton Hill and Charlton Kings Common the other side of Cheltenham, a few miles away. This used to be a good location for wall browns, although i haven't seen any there for the past few summers

[Neil Freeman]

Many thanks Nick and Pete for your comments on the female Speckled Wood, it was really just a case of being in the right place at the right time and catching a lucky shot

Cheers Glostopcat, no luck with the Wall Browns at Nottingham Hill but we didn't really stay that long and it was breezier there than at Prestbury. I took a record shot of a Forester/Cistus Forester Moth in the Masts Reserve at Prestbury but not being familiar with these I am not sure how to tell the difference.

Forester or Cistus Forester?

Thursday 21st May - part 3.

With wall to wall grey overcast today (Saturday) I have got time to catch up with a final post from last Thursday.

We left Prestbury and drove the few miles around the other side of Cleeve Hill to Nottingham hill. This is a spot that I had never been to before and I wanted to check it out to see if it looked like it would be worth another visit later in the season, as apparently Wall Brown and Chalkhill Blue can both be found here. I was not sure if we would see Wall Brown this time as talking to Glostopcat earlier at Prestbury, he was of the opinion that the season was running a couple of weeks late around here, but he thought there might be a slim chance.

From the parking spot we took a slow wander along the track as far as some woodland before turning around and retracing our steps. We didn’t find any Wall Brown this time but did see a number of fresh Common Blue and Brown Argus, some Dingy Skippers in various states of 'dinginess', plus a couple each of Small Tortoiseshell and Peacock, all looking a bit tired and worn now. We also had a high speed flypast of what looked a lot like a Painted Lady but neither of us was absolutely sure of the ID.

Looking towards Cleeve Hill from Nottingham Hill

Brown Argus - Nottingham Hill 21.05.2015

We didn’t spend that long here, just under an hour before we set off again as I wanted to do a detour on the way home to Grafton Wood. A few years ago, 2011 I think it was but I could be wrong, there was a re-introduction of Pearl-bordered Fritillary at Grafton Wood and I was keen stop off and have a look.
We arrived at the church at Grafton Flyford at around quarter past three and set off through the farmyard and across the fields to the wood.

The walk across from the farm to the wood.

Last year whilst looking for Brown Hairstreaks here I had met John Tilt and Dave Williams from West Midlands BC and they had shown me were the re-introduction had taken place and which was still the best place to see them. Walking through the wood to this spot we had no sooner arrived than we saw one skimming across the clearing. We stayed around this spot for something like 45 minutes and saw maybe two males and one female, the latter spending some time fluttering around the low vegetation and leaf litter and stopping occasionally to lay eggs.

Pearl-bordered Fritillary - Grafton Wood 21.05.2015

Pearl-bordered Fritillary - Grafton Wood 21.05.2015

Pearl-bordered Fritillary - Grafton Wood 21.05.2015

Pearl-bordered Fritillary female - Grafton Wood 21.05.2015

We then walked back on our now tired legs to the car and carried on our way home, the PBFs having been a nice bonus to a great day.

Bye for now,

Neil.

[Neil Freeman]

Saturday 23rd May

Saturday was a dull and gloomy day mostly with leaden skies that only cleared up right at the end around 7.00pm when I was settling down for the evening. I spent most of the day doing household and garden stuff to keep the ‘brownie points’ topped up in anticipation of next week when I have the week off work and am hoping to get out a couple of times, not sure where yet, that will depend on where the weather looks best.
I was doing a bit of tidying up in the garden when I accidently disturbed a roosting female Orange-tip from where she had been tucked up out of sight. She fluttered weakly down to a hawthorn where she settled and where I took some photos before leaving her alone to carry on pottering about.

Orange-tip female - Coverdale 23.05.2015

Orange-tip female - Coverdale 23.05.2015

Including this one taken from the other side against the background of the lawn. It is possible to get an uncluttered background with a Lumix bridge camera without any manipulation...if the subject is in the right place Having said that, I am not overkeen on the uniform green background, preferring a bit of shading as in the first photo above.

Orange-tip female - Coverdale 23.05.2015

When a looked again a little later she had disappeared, no doubt to roost up again somewhere.

Sunday 24th May

Sunday morning started off with rain which slowly cleared up for a dry but cloudy afternoon with a couple of very brief spells when the sun made a half-hearted attempt to break through. During one of these brief spells I noticed a ‘white’ fluttering about down the bottom of the garden and going down for a closer look I saw that it was the female Orange-tip from the previous day.

Orange-tip female - Coverdale 23.05.2015

Although I have seen a few Orange-tips lately whilst out and about, numbers have definitely been down this year and have dwindled noticeably over the past couple of weeks, with the last one seen in my garden on May 12th. With the female above looking fairly fresh at least it looks like there are some still emerging.

Bye for now,

Neil

[Maximus]

Hi Neil, just catching up. You've posted some great images in your PD recently, my partcular favourites being the Dukes at Prestbury Hill, and your superb photo of the Speckled Wood ovipositing

[Goldie M]

Hi! Neil, love the female OT's, sadly they've not appeared at my local spot, The meadow they were in last year was full of May flowers, It seems it was mowed very low last year, Why!! I don't know, I do wonder if this as any thing to do with their not showing because the flowers were very few this year, or if the weather is the cause, I'll just have to enjoy your shots Goldie

[bugboy]

That first OT on the Hawthorn blossom is gorgeous, the evening light really works well in bringing her to life

[Wurzel]

Just catching up Neil you've been really busy recently - those Duke shits are great and the Small Blues - lush

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

Just catching up Neil you've been really busy recently - those Duke shits are great..

[Neil Freeman]

Just catching up Neil you've been really busy recently - those Duke shits are great..

Well spotted David

Hee Hee have you been on the sauce Wurzel

Thanks for your comments Mike, I was particularly chuffed with that female Speckled Wood shot

Hi Goldie, not sure why but there have definitely been fewer Orange-tips around my patch this year as well.

Cheers Bugboy, the OT shots were actually taken earlier in the afternoon but the light was dimmer than in the evening when it brightened up a bit.

Monday 25th May

Another dull cloudy day around here so I stuck around the house to save the brownie points for another day. A couple of short spells when it was slightly less gloomy brought the female Orange-tip out but it didn't warm her up enough to go far, just a few feet in fact to a patch of brambles at the bottom of the garden. That is three days now that she has been in the garden without it warming up enough for her to continue on her way.

Orange-tip female - Coverdale 25.05.2015

The forecast is looking a bit better for tomorrow and with the rest of the week off work I am hoping to get out and blow the cobwebs off.

Bye for now,

Neil.

[Goldie M]

I think Wurzel's mistaken spelling could sum up the coming weather here tomorrow until Friday Goldie

[Neil Freeman]

Cheers Goldie, it wasn't too bad around here in the end today

Tuesday 26th May – A walk in the Wyre Forest.

After the past few days of dull cloudy weather and doing jobs around the house, I had promised myself a day out today…but where? With another band of cloud forecast to head across the midlands from the west, I figured that if I headed west then it would clear from there first, so with this in mind I set out for the Wyre Forest.
I arrived at the Dry Mill Lane car park at around 10.30 with a rough plan of starting off along the old railway line and then dropping down and crossing over Dowles Brook and then seeing how far I went before deciding to turn back. In the end I made it as far as the ‘pileline’, so named because the pipeline that brings water from the Elan Valley to Birmingham runs under the forest there. The whole walk, taking a slow wander in both directions with plenty of stops in meadows and clearings to take photos, took me until just turned 5.00pm when I arrived back at the car, tired but happy

My main target for the day was Pearl-bordered Fritillaries and these were easily the most numerous species seen…but I will come back to these later when I have sorted through the many photos that I took.

Other butterflies seen during the day in conditions of mixed cloud with sunny spells were Peacocks(4), Brimstone(2), Large White(1), Green-veined White (2), Small White(1), Common Blue(6), Small Copper(2) and Dingy Skipper(2).

Meadow by Dowles Brook. PBF, Common Blue, Small Copper, Small White all in here.

By the old railway track, this area good for PBF

Dingy Skipper - Wyre Forest 26.05.2015

Dingy Skipper - Wyre Forest 26.05.2015

Dingy Skipper - Wyre Forest 26.05.2015

Common Blue - Wyre Forest 26.05.2015

Common Blue - Wyre Forest 26.05.2015

Small White - Wyre Forest 26.05.2015

Small Copper - Wyre Forest 26.05.2015

I usually come here around this time and this was the first time that I didn’t see any Orange-tips, although I did speak to a chap who said there were plenty here a couple of weeks back.

There were also numerous Speckled Yellow Moths and nearly as many Common Heath Moths along nearly every ride and track that I went along. Both these species are difficult to get close to, when the sun is out they don't stop flying and when it goes in they disappear After many attempts I managed to get a record shot of each.

Speckled Yellow Moth - Wyre Forest 26.05.2015

Common Heath Moth - Wyre Forest 26.05.2015

Along one particular track there were loads of Green Tiger Beetles, in fact I see them along this stretch every year when I come here at around this time.

Loads of Green Tiger Beetles along this bit plus Speckled Yellows and a couple of PBFs

Green Tiger Beetle - Wyre Forest 26.05.2015

Now to sort through the rest of my photos for the next bit…

Neil.

[Pauline]

It is difficult to choose a favourite from your lovely photos Neil as they are always of a very high standard but for me that Dingy Skipper stands out - how did you manage that angle? Those insects and moths are great too

[Willrow]

Finally caught up with your diary Neil, must say, you really get the most out of your trips, super shots of super critters...much enjoyed

Regards,

Bill

"When in doubt - venture out"