Butterfly Diary
- field notes by Adrian Hoskins
my earliest sightings
of each brood are highlighted in bold type
|
|
Sightings policy - details
of certain sites where visitor pressure or trampling may
pose a threat to butterflies or alienate landowners are
excluded from these pages.
|
2007
May
Jan
|
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jly |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct
|
Nov |
Dec
|
Sunday
20th May
At Magdalen Hill Down this morning the most abundant
butterfly was Brown Argus, of which I saw about 20 worn
individuals. Other species seen included a Red Admiral, a
female Orange tip, 2 Grizzled Skippers, a Green
Hairstreak, about a dozen Common Blues, 2 Grizzled
Skippers, 2 Brimstones, and 10 fresh Small Heaths. In the
afternoon I briefly visited a coppiced woodland near
Stockbridge, where I saw a minimum of 12 Duke of Burgundy,
mostly nectaring at wood spurge. Also a male Orange tip, 2
Brimstones, 2 Green-veined Whites and a Peacock.
|
|
Saturday
19th May
This afternoon at Tugley Wood there were very few
butterflies to be seen - just 7 Brimstones, 2 very worn
Speckled Woods, a Small Heath, a Green Hairstreak, a
Wood White at roost on bugle, and a single female Large
Skipper - my first of the year.
|
|
Friday
18th May
Windy and overcast conditions at Ballard Down minimised
butterfly sightings this afternoon. I saw 2 very worn Wall
Browns, 6 freshly emerged Speckled Woods, 2 Red Admirals,
about 15 Adonis Blues, 20 Common Blues including some very
blue females, 10 worn Brown Argus, a Small Copper, a Green
Hairstreak, 3 Green-veined Whites, 2 Large Whites, and 2
Dingy Skippers. Biggest surprise however was a male
Lulworth Skipper seen in a sheltered coombe. The
butterfly was slightly worn, and probably emerged about a
week ago - a full 2 months ahead of the normal emergence
time.
|
|
Thursday
17th May
I had a fairly unsuccessful day at Martin Down yesterday,
finding only a couple of roosting Grizzled Skippers, a
battered Adonis Blue, 4 roosting Common Blues, and a Small
Copper. This afternoon at Portsdown Hill however overcast weather interspersed with spells of warm sunshine
was enough to produce 11 species. At
the bottom of Paulsgrove chalk quarry I found about 25
Small Blues, including 2 or 3 fresh females. On the
higher slopes I saw about 20 female Holly Blues flying
around dogwood bushes, about 15 Common Blues, 2 Brown
Argus, a Green Hairstreak, a Small Copper, 2 Speckled
Woods, 12 Large Whites, 4 Small Whites, 3 fresh Red
Admirals, and about 15 Brimstones. The picture below shows
a female Brimstone raising her abdomen as a rejection
signal to the male.
|
|
Monday
14th May
Unperturbed by the damp
and windy conditions I visited a woodland site in east
Hampshire early this
afternoon. Butterflies were difficult to find, but
diligent searching produced 4 fresh Small
Pearl-bordered Fritillaries, all found at roost on
bracken fronds, rushes or dead flower-heads. I also
visited a woodland inclosure near Brockenhurst in the New Forest in the late
afternoon, by which time the sun had finally appeared, and
saw 13 weather-beaten Pearl-bordered Fritillaries, a
female Brimstone, a Dingy Skipper, a Speckled Wood, and an
ancient Holly Blue seen nectaring at daisies.
|
|
|
|
|
Saturday
12th May
Although observable
numbers of butterflies are always lower during poor
weather, it's always worth making the effort to get out
and explore the countryside. Today for example, despite
cool and blustery conditions I was able to see 6 species
at Stansted Forest - 2 Speckled Woods, a Large White, a
Red Admiral, a Common Blue, 3 Green-veined Whites, and a
male Orange tip. My impression is that the latter are less
abundant than normal this year, possibly as a consequence
of the long spell of cold wet weather during their 2006
flight season.
|
|
Saturday
5th May
I spent today on the
Isle of Wight.
At Wheeler's Bay I saw about 80 Glanville Fritillaries.
Many were worn and had clearly been flying for several
days, but I also found several males which were freshly
emerged and still drying their wings. Other species seen
included a Small Copper, a Clouded Yellow, 2 Dingy
Skippers, 2 Small Whites, a Large White and about a dozen
Common Blues. I also visited
a chine on the south-west coast, where I saw about a dozen Glanville
Fritillaries, 3 male Wall Browns, 4 Common Blues, and a
Small Heath.
|
|
|
|
|
Friday
4th May
This afternoon at Stansted Forest I saw 7 fresh Speckled
Woods, 4 Holly Blues, a Small Copper, 2 Brimstones, and 2
male Large Whites. I also saw 6 very active and
utterly pristine Red Admirals - almost certainly the
progeny of those which were seen flying throughout the
winter months at Stansted. Moths seen included several
Speckled Yellows, a Brown Silver-line, 2 Silver Y's, and a
Peacock moth.
|
|
