essex buzzard

[essexbuzzard]

By the end of August, the Kent downs had a rather autumnal feel to them. The autumn lady’s tresses were now in flower.

And the hawthorns were heavy with berries.

I was hoping the numbers of Adonis Blues had picked up, but it seems the drought has taken it’s toll, and numbers were still low. Most were showing their age by now, but here’s a nice one.

This Meadow Brown had a washed out look on one side.

[David M]

Some lovely colours in your last few posts, Mark. I'm not surprised things were looking autumnal in Kent, given the regular blasts of heat you had during the summer (without much rain). That was bound to have an effect on larvae forced to feed during that spell which led to a reduction in the usual numbers of late summer species.

The Adonis Blue is a beauty though; it has a couple of spots on the hindwing submargins which is unusual.

Even more unusual is the Meadow Brown. Goodness knows how it got 'blanched' on one side!

[essexbuzzard]

Yes David, I think that’s exactly what happened.

The Meadow Brown is a mystery though, it really stood out from the others. Never seen one like it!

Mid September saw me back at Bedfords Park. I was pleased to find fresh Common Blues, undoubtably third generation.

And of course, there were Small Coppers. What lovely little autumn butterflies!

[essexbuzzard]

We were Canvey Island bound on the 17 September. The hot summer, unlike last year, had surely produced some third brood Walls. Sure enough, several were found. Here is a female.

Males were found, too, and were chasing off any other males or Speckled Woods that came their way.

I was really hoping to find a Clouded Yellow or two, having seen very few so far this year. It took a while, so imagine my delight at eventually finding this glorious fresh female, feeding on the Lucerne blooms.

Small Whites were still around.

Lastly, several third generation Common Blues were present. This lovely female was probably the pick of the bunch.

[Wurzel]

Cracking Cloudy and Walls Essex they fairly 'ping' out of the screen That was an interesting looking Meadow Brown from a few posts back as well - would that be classified as 'pathological'

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

Lovely range of colours there, Mark, especially that fabulous Clouded Yellow. Must have made your day!

[Neil Freeman]

A nice selection of late season butteflies there Mark

Cheers,

Neil.

[essexbuzzard]

Thanks everyone. The autumn butterflies, for me, have been much better than last year!

Monday 3 October started cloudy, so I was in two minds about having my only trip to Sussex this year. But the forecast was for it to brighten up, and so it proved.

I had a good run down to Shoreham beach, and the warm, if hazy sunshine soon brought out some Clouded Yellows, this helice female was perhaps the pick of the bunch. Although it was blowing in the breeze a little, so not quite a perfect picture...

It’s always a treat to see lots of wall lizards here.

Suddenly, it was early afternoon. Could we fit something else in? Well, Long- tailed Blues have been in Worthing, but sightings have dropped off in recent days. But it was only 20 minutes away, so it would be daft not to try. And so it proved!

The site was easy enough to find, as there was a group of people with cameras visible from the road, a good sign! Sure enough, they have found not one adult, but a mating pair!

At around 3PM, they separated, and the female gave us a glorious view, as she briefly basked in the weakening sunshine.

Meanwhile, the male had landed on the pebble beach.

Before heading to the red valerian, for a feed.

By now, the sun had gone, as high cloud increased, and both adults were lost from view. So it was time for a celebration ice cream. What a day!

[millerd]

A definite for that lovely female, Mark. One shot of the species I'm missing...

Cheers,

Dave

[trevor]

A few from me Mark, for the female LTB,
and another for your quality shot of her.
Amazingly one of the first LTB's I ever photographed was a female in 2015
and I haven't seen one since. Glad it worked out for you.

Trevor.

[David M]

Great timing, Mark. So pleased it worked out for you.

Helice, Long Tailed Blues (including mating pair) and that beautiful wall lizard make it seem like a different world. Welcome to southern England in 2022! Who knows what awaits in the next few years?

[Wurzel]

Cracking set of images Essex especially that fantastic female LTB

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[essexbuzzard]

Thanks, Dave. She was an absolute cracker!

Thanks, Trevor. Make no mistake, I was incredibly lucky!

Thanks, David. Even 10 years ago, who could have imagined an October day like this, in southern England!

Thanks, Wurzel. Who could have thought my best sighting of the year, and perhaps my best picture, would come in October!

[essexbuzzard]

There were still several Small Coppers at Bedfords Park on the 8th October. Here is a female.

And now a backlit shot of the same one.

Three Speckled Woods were seen, including this surprisingly fresh one.

[millerd]

That's a lovely Small Copper, Mark, and that Specklie is beautifully posed too. I saw several new Specklies in October, and I wonder if a proportion of those that would have hibernated as a chrysalis in a normal year have ended up hatching out instead.

Cheers,

Dave

[bugboy]

Glad you managed to get down to Worthing before the fun ended and that is a really nice female LTB

[essexbuzzard]

Thanks Dave. That’s a perfect valid point, although others that were destined to over winter at the caterpillar stage might have pupated into chrysalis’s?

Thanks Buggy. One of the highlights of the year, certainly. And it came so late!

Although I saw some Clouded Yellows and Painted Ladies in Cornwall last week, I didn’t manage any photographs. So that’s probably it until next season.

[Wurzel]

I love that second Small Copper shot Essex - that's one of my favorite poses that they make

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

Lovely Small Copper, Mark. They do pose ever so nicely for we human beings....as do Specklies to be fair.

[essexbuzzard]

Welcome to December! The start of winter. After a warm Autumn, the temperatures have certainly taken a dip. It is winter, after all! Watching the forecasts on TV this week, you would think we had never had a frost before. And, horror of horrors, some places might even get a few snow flurries! Well I never.

There was certainly no snow today, it was a glorious winters day. There were no butterflies, but I did see my first ever December dragonfly, a Common darter. Alas, I didn’t get a photo. It might be December, but definitely still autumn!