essex buzzard

[trevor]

I am in awe of your Orange Tips. Beautiful markings and colour.
For me, they alone would have made the trip worthwhile!
Great shot of that dazzling, fresh, Spanish Festoon

[Wurzel]

Absolutely fantastic sights those OTs and Festoon Essex I think I know where/when I'm taking my first holiday post retirement

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

That was a great decision you made to visit Gibraltar, Mark. What better antidote for a miserable March in the UK than to check in with those stunners for a weekend!

[essexbuzzard]

Thanks Trevor. Wholeheartedly agree. Even without the other stuff, I would happily gone to see those two alone.

Thanks Wurzel, I’d recommend it to anyone who wants to get the season off of a flying start!

Thanks David. We certainly had a good time. We picked the right weekend, too, as the following weekend was wet and windy!

Here is a view from the Mediterranean Steps, towards Africa.

These glorious yellow Oxalis flowers were everywhere!

We found the famous Barbary Partridges! After failure in previous visits.

Here is a view from the other direction, looking towards the coast of Andalusia

The Gibraltar candytuft is, I believe, endemic to the Rock, and I always look for it. We found a few in bud, but this was the only one with flowers.

[essexbuzzard]

Not forgetting Gibraltar’s most famous inhabitants, the monkeys. Or, more accurately, Barbary macaques. These are the only free-living monkeys in Europe and, even in March, plenty of tourists had come to see them!

So, to sum up, we thoroughly enjoyed our visit to GBZ, and recommend a few days there to anyone. It is easy to get to, just over two hours flight from Heathrow, they speak English and, being just a few square miles, you can walk everywhere-no need for transfers. Though one doesn’t have to walk the steep paths, they is a cable car and plenty of taxis that will take you to the upper Rock! You can arrive in Gib and, in 30 or 40 minutes, be among the butterflies. March or April, or even February, might be best though, as it probably dries out in summer.

[David M]

...March or April, or even February, might be best though, as it probably dries out in summer.

It sure does, Mark. The grass is parched and yellow by June. I'd say around this time of year would probably be best although the last couple of winters round those parts have been like summers in the UK!!

[essexbuzzard]

Well, It’s just as well got to Gibraltar, as it’s been hard going since then, due to wind, rain and,above all, lack of sunshine. However, Easter Saturday gave me my only passable day of March, with intermittent sunshine and near-average temperatures. My first bee-flies appeared on that day, along with a few Comma and Peacock.

[essexbuzzard]

A few pictures below.

[essexbuzzard]

At the beginning of April, it was time to visit the north Essex anemone Woods. Several woods in the County, and no doubt elsewhere, have these flowers, but the floral display at the RSPB Stour wood is a sight to behold. It is a delight to see these simple, brilliant little flowers.

[David M]

They're lovely flowers for sure, Mark. Not certain I've ever seen a butterfly nectaring from them but they provide a nice diversion from the many yellow-coloured spring flowers at that time of year.

[essexbuzzard]

Agreed, David! With continuous poor weather, I’ve turned my attention to cherry blossoms. A favourite of mine anyway, I’ve spent more time looking at them this year. Nothing could be prettier than our parks and gardens adorned with these glorious trees, which reached their peak in mid April.People often say to me that the blossoms are transient, but the same could be said about daffodils, bluebells, hawthorn blossom etc. Perhaps the most familiar of the ornamental Japanese cherries is Prunus Kanzan, with it’s bubblegum pink blossoms.

However, one of my favourites is our very own wild cherry, a first class native, much planted in parks and streets throughout the country. Massive of single white blossoms are reliably produced each April, with the added advantage that it often has excellent autumn colours as well.

Another personal favourite of mine is the Sargent’s cherry, from the mountains of Japan. The glorious, single blossoms are a deep mid pink, and are produced in profusion. A small, fairly slow growing tree in Britain, it reaches twice the size in its natural habitat. The brilliant red autumn colour is very early, and even in the south it is beginning to colour up by the end of September.

[essexbuzzard]

Here in Essex, the bluebells reached their full glory in the last two weeks of April this year, which is a little earlier than 2023. They might have been even earlier, but cold, dull weather slowed them down a little, which is no bad thing! One of the most glorious sights in the world, we are so lucky to have these on our doorstep. We all complain about the weather, myself included! But that’s why they are here, for bluebells thrive in our cool, damp climate. On one occasion, I even watched the sun go down over the blue carpet, a truely memorable sight...

[trevor]

What a fine sight, Mark. Something many people can enjoy without having to travel too far.
Fortunately I rescued some English bluebells from my fathers garden years ago. They have
since seeded around my garden, where they have become a permanent feature.

[David M]

...One of the most glorious sights in the world, we are so lucky to have these on our doorstep. We all complain about the weather, myself included! But that’s why they are here, for bluebells thrive in our cool, damp climate...

Indeed, Mark. Whilst it can be depressing from a weather perspective in the UK, the riot of colour all these spring flowers (and blossom) provide is surely unmatched anywhere else.

[essexbuzzard]

Yes, exactly. Every cloud and all that...

We are all aware how wet a spring we are having. However, of equal importance to the butterfly observer is the lack of sunshine. Last weekend, 27-28 April, illustrates this fact well. It was my weekend off, and I photographed this roosting Orange Tip on the Friday evening. On Monday morning, it was still there!

[Padfield]

Only just catching up with your diary, Buzzard. I'm so glad you had a great trip to Gibraltar. It was my first home outside Suffolk (back in 1983), and though it has changed in many ways since I was there, the Mediterranean Steps have changed the least (apart from the fact you now have to pay to access them ...). You got brilliant pictures of some iconic species. Did you find time for a pint at the Red Lion?

Guy

[essexbuzzard]

Thanks Guy, I’m glad you enjoyed the pictures. I always think of you when I go to Gibraltar, as I know you lived there. Indeed it has changed, even since I last went. Lots of building work, cranes and so-on, no doubt a result of Brexit. To be honest, I would happily go there in March every year, as it’s so easy to get to, and has plenty of great stuff there.

No, I didn’t know about the Red Lion so thanks. I will definitely seek it out next time!

So, I finally got my day with the Orange Tips at the end of April. I haven’t seen that many this year, even on the better days, perhaps due to lack of food plants last year. There is no shortage of garlic mustard this year! There is tonnes of the stuff, everywhere. My site on the day was an old road, where lots of foodplant grows.

Lots of Green-veined White also fly there. Unlike the other whites, I always see more GVW in spring than in later generations.

[essexbuzzard]

Although the Orange Tips and Green-veined Whites were using the garlic mustard for both feeding and egg laying, a surprising range of other species were using it, including even a Holly Blue, briefly.

[essexbuzzard]