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Butterfly Diary
- field notes by Adrian Hoskins
my earliest sightings
of each brood are highlighted in bold type
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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.
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Click on
thumbnails to see more photos, and detailed descriptions of the
distribution, habitats, lifecycle and behaviour of each
illustrated species......
2008
Jan
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Feb
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Mar
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Apr
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May
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Jun
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Jly
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Aug
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Sep
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Oct
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Nov
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Dec
April
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Monday 28th April
I spent this afternoon on the Purbeck Hills in Dorset.
Cool,
overcast and breezy conditions greeted me on arrival, but
within a couple of hours the weather began to improve, with
bits of blue sky appearing between the scudding clouds.
Cowslips, ground ivy, cut-leaved crane's bill, daisies and
gorse were in full bloom, and the first few horseshoe
vetches were starting to flower. Although weather conditions
were far from ideal, in the course of the afternoon I
recorded a total of 9 Wall Browns, all males,
at least 2 of which were very ragged
and must have been flying for
several days. Other species
included 2 male Orange tips, 2 Large
Whites, 1 Red Admiral ( migrant ?
), 1 Peacock, 1 Comma, 10 Speckled Woods,
1 Brown Argus, 1 Green Hairstreak, 3
Small Coppers and 6 Dingy Skippers.
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Saturday
26th April
A warm
afternoon with hazy sunshine. I spent an hour or so walking
the dog in Stansted Forest, where wood anemone, bluebells,
dandelions, dog violets, hedge garlic, cuckoo flower, wood
spurge and bugle are now in full bloom. The first butterfly
seen was a female Brimstone found at roost under a bramble
leaf. I saw a further 8 Brimstones, most males, plus 2
Green-veined Whites, 10 male ( and 2 female ) Orange tips, a
Peacock, a Comma, and 2 Speckled Woods. Other records coming
in at the moment include the first Duke of Burgundy of the
season in east Hampshire, Pearl-bordered Fritillaries in
Devon, and from Kent -
Common Blue, Adonis Blue and
Small Heath.
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Sunday 20th April
This morning I
visited a chalk grassland site in West Sussex, where I saw 9
male Grizzled Skippers, and 2 fresh females. Grizzled
Skippers are well adapted to the vagaries of the English
spring, and were avidly nectaring at dandelions and violets
despite the breezy conditions. I witnessed territorial
engagements between 3 separate pairs of males. On another
occasion I watched a male intercept a female, and settle on
the ground next to her. He buzzed around her for a few
seconds, but she had clearly already mated, and refused to
copulate. In the much warmer conditions of early afternoon I visited
Stansted Forest, and saw 6 Orange tips ( including 1
female ), 6 male Brimstones, a Comma, 4 Peacocks, a Large
White, a Green-veined White and 2 Speckled
Woods.
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Sunday 13th April
White
dead-nettle, garlic mustard, cuckoo flower, common mallow
and wood forget-me-not are all now appearing along hedgerows
in Hampshire, while in the woods yellow archangel has now
joined the profusion of primroses, wood anemones, celandines
and dog violets. Today's cool breeze and frequent downpours
were enough to discourage butterflies from appearing though,
except for a single Peacock which I found basking on Stockbridge
Down during a short sunny spell this afternoon.
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Saturday 12th April
Heavy snow on
6th April, followed by hail, sleet and a week of freezing
nights should be enough to persuade any sensible butterfly to
stay in it's chrysalis, but Speckled Wood, Orange tip, Holly
Blue, Green-veined White, Large White, Small White and Small
Copper have all been recorded this week in Hampshire by
various observers. Grizzled Skippers have also begun to emerge in
Hampshire and Sussex - I saw my first specimen of the season
today at a grassland site near Winchester.
Green Hairstreaks have been reported from Kent, and Clouded Yellows
from Dorset.
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Thursday 10th
April
The Large
Tortoiseshell appears to be slowly re-establishing itself in
southern England, with specimens reported in the past few
days from coastal sites in Devon, Dorset and Hampshire.
Perhaps most surprising however is the news that
over-wintered Camberwell Beauty has been recorded in Dorset
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Snow scene in Stansted
Forest - 6th April was not a good day to look for butterflies !
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Saturday 5th April
A cool northerly wind and a paucity of
sunshine deterred butterflies from visiting the profusion of
violets, ground ivy and blackthorn blossom at Stockbridge
Down today, but at nearby Crab Wood I was lucky to see 2
Commas and a Peacock in flight. The mating Brimstones
that I discovered there last week were still in union
amongst the dog's mercury. It is quite common for Brimstones
to remain copulated for several days. The Crab Wood pair
have remained joined for 8 days so far, still a long way
short of the 17 day marathon enjoyed by a pair I found in a
Surrey wood in 1986 ! Love was in
the air amongst amphibians as well, with 6 Common Toads seen
at Stockbridge, including 2 mating pairs. Other wildlife
seen today included a Stoat and a Muntjac in Crab Wood, and a group of Roe
Deer at Farley Mount.
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Text and photographs protected by Copyright © Adrian
Hoskins 2007-2008, and must not be reproduced or published in part
or in whole elsewhere in any form without written permission from
Adrian Hoskins. Breach of copyright will be pursued by litigation.
Website designed, produced and owned by
Adrian Hoskins
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