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Gatekeeper - Favourite Photo of 2024

Week 5

So we’re an 12th of the way through…feels like we’ve hardly started ! Mind you the recent days have all passed by feeling the same; a blanket of grey…

Please could I ask that everyone waits until a topic has been opened by me for a particular species before posting photos as then it will be easier to keep track of things? Of course our overseas members are very welcome to fill in the obvious gaps relating to rare UK migrants. As in previous years details of locations, dates, times and circumstances would be welcome as would any accompanying stories and anecdotes or other observations of behaviour and interesting other points.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

The species appeared bang on cue at Purple Emperor time, and on my local patch seemed to have a reasonable season (though a bit less frequent in some of the riverside areas that had been underwater rather a lot earlier in the year). Choosing from the many photos taken was as usual not easy, but here are a handful of fresh ones from the first half of July. Dave

This was our first of the year, seen at Great Holland Pits on the 30th June

Julian

After last years wonderful show of Gatekeepers ........this season the complete opposite ,well down in numbers at all of my local Kent sites .These two from Orlestone. One pretty standard (but no less attractive !) male ,and another slightly odd coloured individual.
Allan.W.

I was lucky to spot this ab at Monkton NR on 11th July, has to be my Favourite Goldie

I was surprised to find that I had recorded about 350 sightings of the Gatekeeper during 2024 from the 30th June through to the 28th August - so probably around 400 individuals spread over two months. It is not how I remember the flight season of one of my favourite butterflies. There seemed fewer than previous years and before I knew it the season was over. I remember looking forward to the emergence of the first one within the meadow I manage at home, hoping there would be more than the 19 of 2023 - 20+ I was looking forward to for the first time but only 6 emerged

And I felt I got complacent about getting some decent photographs which proved to be the case - I took one of my favourite species for granted and was left with a feeling of sadness that they did not have a very good year. So, 400 individuals was a surprise - perhaps I expected closer to a 1,000.

Anyway, I came across some good looking 'hairy' males:
And strangely, I thought, it was two weeks after the first male that I finally saw a female which was at Rainham Marshes where I came across this slightly different coloured example:

Gatekeepers certainly appeared to do better than many species around my local area in 2024 but I think that in reality numbers were down on the previous few years and just seemed to be good compared to other species having a poor season.
Cheers,

Neil

Gatekeeper

This was taken at Perham Down during a late afternoon/very early evening visit when I called in on my way home from work. After a lucky break with the Silver-spots, finally catching up with DGFs as well as a few other things this butterfly was a bit like the cherry on the top of the cake. She was so fresh and vibrant I was convinced that she had only just finished drying her wings out. I’d been wandering back and forth along a path, lazily chasing (if you can deem walking pace as chasing) after various DGFs which had been bombing about seemingly endlessly when this little beauty just opened up right in front of me. It was as if she was screaming “look at me” and it made a nice change for the butterfly to present itself to me rather than grabbing a few shots whilst in mild pursuit.
Have a goodun

Wurzel

Took till 23rd July for me to see this species on UK soil. Thankfully, both males and females were still in largely good nick:

A couple of abs. stick in my mind. The best excessa of the season and this one with an enlarged forewing ocelli which has been christened anticrasipuncta

bugboy wrote: ↑Fri Dec 20, 2024 6:31 pmA couple of abs. stick in my mind. The best excessa of the season...

That's a good one, Paul.

My favourite is this pair of GateKeeper's from my local patch on 17th July 2024. This photo was taken when on a slow stroll to work.

A very good year in my part of Wiltshire.

I can't choose between the one taken in my garden (one of half a dozen on my verbena) or the fresh male I encountered on my local patch.