www.ukbutterflies.co.uk

Is it just me or does there not seem to be a 'hiatus' in this most south westerly part of the UK?

Species are often early and they keep on appearing when they have all but disappeared elsewhere in the country.

For instance, at the moment in south Wales, Speckled Woods and Small Coppers have all but vanished; Pierids are practically non existent whilst vanessids haven't yet re-emerged.

I am thoroughly enjoying your reports from Cornwall Neil. It is nice to see the lovely scenery along with all those smashing butterfly images

Thanks for your comments Mike, glad you like the photos

Hi David, it seems that flight times in Cornwall can be somewhat extended for some species, Small Coppers for instance usually produce four broods there whereas on my patch I am lucky to see a third brood in a good year. Small Pearls usually produce a second brood which has been known to outnumber the first in some locations and apparently Silver-studded Blues have been known to produce a second brood on the dunes at Upton Towans.

Glad you like the reports and photos Pauline, the scenery is worth seeing in its own right, and I am sure that many people visit just for this, but add the butterflies and it truly is a special place .

Cornwall 30th May – 6th June part 4.

One of the places I had read about in my research prior to going to Cornwall was Predannack Cliffs and on the afternoon of Thursday 4th June I drove round to the National Trust car park at Predannack Wollas and from there walked along a public footpath that leads to the coast path and turned North towards Mullion Cove.
This was another walk along spectacular scenery with parts of the cliff tops covered with large expanses of Sea Pinks, a beautiful sight.
It was quite blustery along the more exposed parts of the path with little butterfly activity apart from a few Small Coppers and Common blues that were quickly whisked away in the wind if they ventured too high. As at Kynance Cove to Lizard Point, there were dry stone walls all along here, again covered with masses of Sea Pinks, and in the more sheltered sections this was where the butterflies were. Along one short length of wall, about fifty yards long at most, I counted 4 Painted Ladies, 3 Red Admirals, I Small Tortoiseshell, I Small Pearl- bordered Fritillary, 2 Wall Browns, 2 Small Coppers, 2 common Blues, 1 Large White, and a Hummingbird Hawk Moth.
I had already seen a couple of quite ragged looking Painted Ladies earlier in the week and now seeing these here, along with the other migrants seemed to show that a definite influx was happening, something that has been confirmed by all the sightings I have read about since returning home.

I had also read that Marsh Fritillaries could be found somewhere in this area, in fact this was one of the main reasons I had come for a look, but I was surprised when I found them in what was quite different habitat to what I was expecting, being quite exposed up on the cliff top.
In the end I wandered about half way to Mullion cove before turning back and walking slowly back to the car and heading back to Jane and my Mom.

To be continued…

Neil

Neil,

Beautiful photos from Predannack Cliffs.I like the first photo of the Painted Lady sitting on the lichen and the Marshies are excellent. I was not aware of them being at this site and it looks a habitat unusual to the Marshie. Well done for finding them and taking such good images.

Regards Kev

Just catching up on various diaries. Some great reports from Cornwall, looks like you had a great time with some nice weather. Love all those Marshies, gorgeous little creatures

Cracking Marshie's Neil, the first one is particularly stand-out

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Thank you Kev, Buggy and Wurzel for your comments, appreciated as always .
Before going to Cornwall I had read that the Marshies were around that area somewhere but was a bit surprised to find them on the cliff top, I expected them to be a bit further back from the cliffs in a more sheltered spot.

Cornwall 30th May – 6th June part 5.

Before I continue with the next report I will just add the photo below that I forgot to add to the last one and shows the stretch of dry stone wall where the Painted Ladies, Red Admirals etc were seen as described above. Mullion Cove can just be seen in the background above the wall.
Towards the end of the week before we went down to Cornwall, I had seen that Silver-studded blues had been reported from a couple of places including Upton Towans, an extensive system of dunes near Hayle on the north coast, and so had it in the back of my mind to have a look if I got the chance. My chance came on the afternoon of the Friday (5th June) when, after a morning spent doing touristy stuff (which included a stop off for a rather large Full English Breakfast ) with Jane and my Mom, I was free for a few hours.
Being down the narrow end of Cornwall, the drive from Kennack Sands on the Lizard to Upton Towns on the north coast took less than 40 minutes so I was soon parked up and wandering through the dunes. I didn’t have a clue where to start looking or if there was any particular spot which the Silver-studded Blues could be found so I just figured I would check likely looking spots in the sheltered dips and hollows between the dunes.
The first butterfly seen was a Painted Lady that settled briefly on the path in front of me before heading off in a generally north direction along the coast.
After a couple of false alarms from what turned out to be Common Blues, a smaller flash of brighter blue drew my attention and proved to be a nice male Silver-studded Blue. During the next hour or I found another half a dozen or so SSBs in various sheltered spots, all males, mostly in good condition but with a couple already looking a bit worse for wear.
As well as the SSBs and Common Blues I also saw a dozen or so Small Pearl-bordered Fritillaries, mostly looking more worn than those I had seen on The Lizard.
A solitary Clouded Yellow also landed in the grass at one point giving just time to grab a record shot before heading off in a determined fashion, like the Painted Lady, in a northward direction.
Also seen here was another Hummingbird Hawk Moth, my second of the week after the one at Predannack Cliffs, and a couple of Lackey Moth larval nests.
This was my last afternoon in Cornwall, we were due to head back in the morning , but hopefully we would be making a little detour before crossing into Devon

To be continued…

Neil

Cornwall 30th May – 6th June part 6, the final instalment.

Having already had a great week in Cornwall, I thought it would be nice to finish off with a little detour on our way back on Saturday morning. I had already mentioned this to Jane and my Mom earlier in the week to get their views, as it would involve them staying by the car due to them both having limited mobility whilst I went off for a walk, and they both said it would be ok as long as I didn’t disappear for more than a couple of hours.
So it was then, on Saturday morning we left Kennack Sands around 9.15 and headed for Greenscombe Wood at Luckett where a colony of Heath Fritillary can be found. After heading towards Bodmin we left the A30 and carried on across country, past Liskeard, and arrived at the car park in Luckett around 11.00am.

I walked along the track toward the wood and after a few minutes arrived at a point where the track divided into two separate ways into the wood…right then which way? I decided to try the right hand path first and walked along for fifteen minutes or so, noticing some areas along a slope that looked like they had been recently coppiced and where there was loads of cow wheat growing.
The first butterflies seen along here were a couple each of Brimstones and Holly Blues, a single Green Hairstreak that flew out in front of me and settled again a little further along, plus a male Large Skipper and a couple of fresh male Meadow Browns, both of the last two being firsts of the year for me.
There was also a Painted Lady to continue the theme of the past few days of them showing up everywhere I went.
I then saw an orangey butterfly flitting and skimming across the slope which I was fairly sure was a Heath Fritillary but I didn’t get a good enough view of it to be 100%. A little further along, I found a spot where it was obvious that people had previously walked up the slope and ventured up myself. I soon saw another Heath Fritillary (or maybe the same one again) and this one settled a couple of times so there was no doubt of its identity.
After a few more minutes here I decided to retrace my steps and try the other track. After going downhill for a short distance this track crossed a stream and then went uphill at quite a steep angle and eventually came out into a more open section of track and meadow areas. There were more Heath Fritillaries here, maybe a dozen or so in the first open bit of meadow, possibly more.
For a brief moment at one point I thought I had found a Marsh Fritillary but a closer look proved it to be a faded Heath Frit,
I stayed around this spot for about half an hour or so before heading back towards the car park, conscious that we still had a long drive ahead of us. On the way back to the car park I bumped into Lee Slaughter and a group from the Cornwall Butterfly and Moth Society who were on a field trip and with who I had a pleasant little chat with before carrying on. I was sorely tempted to linger on for a while with them but with my couple of hours just about up I reckoned I had cashed in most of my remaining brownie points and I didn’t fancy the ear-bending on the way home .

All in all, a great finish to a great week .

Neil

Great final report, the SSB and HF look stunning in your pics. Both are target species for me in the next few days, fingers crossed the weather plays nice for me

Cracking Silver-studs and Heaths, that last one looks almost like a Heath/Marsh cross

Have a goodun

Wurzel

That's one hell of a break, Neil.

Looks like you racked up 20+ species.

That's an amazing holiday you had, Neil. It almost reads like one of the reports from abroad we read enviously on here. All illustrated with some seriously good photos too.

Dave

Thank you Bugboy, Wurzel, David and Dave for the great comments, it was a fabulous week if a bit breezy most of the time. I reckon I would have seen even more butterflies if the wind had dropped more often but I doubt if I could have found any more species.

Total species count was 22 as reported in the sightings thread for June last weekend when I was back home,

Marsh Fritillary…good numbers at two locations on the Lizard.
Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary…good numbers at a number of locations.
Heath Fritillary…12-15 at Greenscombe Wood during visit on the way home
Wall Brown…15-20 seen during the week along various coast paths
Speckled Wood…loads of fresh examples everwhere.
Painted Lady…15+ seen mostly in second half of week.
Red Admiral…half a dozen in second half of week
Peacock…2 seen at Kennack Sands
Small Tortoiseshell…1 seen at Predannack Cliffs
Common Blue …almost everywhere, some very worn, some fresh males.
Holly blue …3 seen, 1 at Kennack Sands, 2 at Greenscombe Woods.
Silver-studded Blue …half a dozen males at Upton Towans of Friday afternoon.
Green Hairstreak …1 at Greenscombe Woods.
Small Copper …20+ especially along coast paths.
Orange-tip …half a dozen seen during the week both male and female.
Green-veined White …half a dozen seen, usually individually at various spots.
Small White…a couple seen at Kennack Sands and Upton Towans.
Large White…half a dozen seen during the week.
Clouded Yellow …1 seen at Upton towans.
Brimstone …2 seen at Greenscombe Woods.
Large skipper…1 male at Greenscombe Woods.
Meadow Brown …2 males at Greenscombe Woods.

Also seen were a couple of Hummingbird Hawk Moths at Predannack Cliffs and Upton Towns, and a Cream-spot Tiger Moth at Lizard Point.

Now I need to try and catch up on everyone else's diaries.

Cheers,

Neil

Just drop me a PM next time you go on holidays Neil and I'll come with you...

Regards,

Bill

"When in doubt - venture out"

Hi Neil,i'm so pleased you had a great time in Cornwall,blessed with good weather,too. Such a great set of imags to share with us! And i'm glad you managed the sites you were looking for,as well as the species- those Marsh Fritillaries are fantastic and,as you say,the markings are highly variable on this butterfly.
When i went to Predannack this time last year,it was blowing a gale-and i recognise all those sea pinks! In fact,i recognise most of the places you visited. Isn't Kynance Cove to Lizard Point a fab place?
Delighted you got to Greenscombe Woods-i didn't know where to go on my first visit,either,but you found it in the end. And congrats on bumping into Lee. Shame you didn't have more time,as he would certainly have shown you around. But nevermind,a great report from Cornwall and fantastic images,well done!

You're having a really good year so far Neil "if you don't mind me saying so" your diary has been and great and packed with quality photos. I really enjoyed looking at it when I was I'll recently.

Great stuff.

Best wishes

James

Hi Bill, likewise with some of your trips, you seem to be doing alright yourself

Thanks Mark, I had a really great week as you can tell I would certainly like to return again and re-visit every one of the sites that I went to. Once again, many thanks for the info

Glad you enjoyed my reports and photos James Sorry to hear that you have been ill recently and I hope that you are fully recovered now.

Cheers,

Neil.

Tuesday 16th June.

A few weeks back I had booked an appointment at our local doctors (or health centre as they insist on calling it now) for this morning, just for one of those annual check-ups that I seem to have copped for now that I am getting a bit frayed around the edges. I had booked all day off work and with the appointment at 8.00am I figured this would give me the rest of the day to go out somewhere…but where?

Black Hairstreak is one of only two mainland UK butterfly species that I have yet to see (Chequered Skipper is the other one) and I had seen over the past few days that they were starting to be reported from a few places so I decided to have a drive down the M40 to Bernwood Forest for a look.
I had decided to park at the small car park at Bernwood Meadows and then walk along the hedges checking the blackthorn on the way and then continue through the woods to the M40 compensation area.
I arrived at just after 11.00am and immediately noticed the profusion of wildflowers, my previous visits have been later in the year when I have stopped off on my way back from Aston Rowant and the meadows have usually been cut by then. Common Blues were all over the place, many of them looking tired and worn but with some females still in fairly good condition. There were also a fair number of male Meadow Browns plus a single Marbled White, my first of the year.
Within a few minutes of arriving, my decision to start here had paid off as I went through the gap in the hedge into the second meadow and looking up noticed two small brown butterflies dancing around each other above the shrubs on the corner. I watched them through my binoculars and as they separated one of them settled and I managed a quick long distance record shot of my first ever Black Hairstreak
He soon took off again and was lost to sight so I continued on my way and into the forest, noticing numerous Speckled Woods along the way plus Large Skippers and Common Blues along the sides of the rides.
Having read a few other peoples experiences of trying to find the M40 compensation area I was quite surprised when I went straight to it with no trouble, mind you I had studied the rides on Google Earth last night before going and had a good idea where to head for.
As I walked into the compensation area I met up with a couple who turned out to be from Upper Thames BC and who said to me that the BHs were a bit late getting started this year. They had seen a couple earlier and were just leaving to head to the meadows.
I ended up spending a couple of hours in the compensation area in conditions of warm sun and some periods when large clouds would come rolling in and I reckon I saw 5 maybe 6 Black Hairstreaks scattered about the site, 1 at the north end by the brick building, 2 maybe 3 in the middle by the motorway fence, and 2 at the far south end. They all stayed high up so it was a case of watching through binoculars rather than taking photos, in fact I only took 3 record shots of BHs all day, the one in the meadows and a couple here, all at long distance.
I very much had the impression that they had only just started and that I was a few days too early really, perhaps next week would have been a better time for a visit…hmm! I wonder how many spare days holiday off work I have left. Having said that I was still pretty chuffed with seeing this species for the first time and I had good views of them through my binoculars

Also in this area were more of the ubiquitous Common Blues and Speckled Woods and a fair number of fresh male Large Skippers plus some Burnet Companion and Mother Shipton moths. Those Burnet Companions really wind me up sometimes, they seem to have the uncanny ability to imitate almost anything Singles of Green-veined and Large White were also seen and a couple of Brimstones, I male and 1 female.
I believe that it was someone on UKB that mentioned sometime last year about the amount of damage done by deer to the lower parts of the shrubs around this site. I couldn’t help but notice this today, in fact it looked very much like a waist high tide mark around the site with practically no new blackthorn sucker growth.
Around 3.30pm I wandered back through the wood and saw a number of the culprits of the damage to the blackthorn and was watched from a distance more than once.
I then spent another hour or so in the meadows enjoying the late afternoon sun before heading off for home.
Bye for now,

Neil

Great stuff, Neil! Afraid I'll have to miss out on this species this year but these are the first 2015 images I've seen so that alone gives me a boost.

All you need now is a few days in Argyll next year to complete your quest!!

Well done on the Black Hairstreaks, Neil. I wonder whether they will stay high, as the leaves are very sticky with honeydew this year, and round here there hasn't been much rain to wash it off. No need for them to come down to the privet and dogwood to nectar...

Dave