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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2011
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
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Adrian and Emily's BLOG
August
Wednesday 31st August
Red
Admirals are flying in excellent numbers the moment, with at least
25 immaculate individuals seen by Emily and myself basking on
paths or feeding at hemp agrimony flowers in Stansted Forest
today. Green-veined Whites were also doing very well, with at
least 30 flying along the woodland trails. Other species seen
included 3 Large Whites, 5 Small Whites, 8 Speckled Woods, 6
Meadow Browns and 1 Painted Lady. We also found 3 Orange tip pupae
on garlic mustard stems.
Red Admiral
Vanessa atalanta, Stansted Forest, West Sussex
Saturday 6th August
This
afternoon I spent a couple of hours at Stockbridge Down in
Hampshire. Although weather conditions were mostly dull, and
temperatures barely reached 17C, I was fortunate to see a total of
18 species - 5 Essex Skippers, 1 male Silver-spotted Skipper,
2 Large Whites, 15 Small Whites, 12 Green-veined Whites, 5 faded
Small Coppers, 2 Brown Argus, 10 Common Blues, somewhere in excess
of 100 Chalkhill Blues, 2 fresh male Adonis Blues, 2 Red
Admirals, 1 Dark Green Fritillary, 2 Silver-washed Fritillaries, 2
Speckled Woods, 40 Gatekeepers, 100+ Meadow Browns, and 6 Small
Heaths. Highlight of the day however for me was finding an Orange
tip chrysalis, attached to a stem of its larval foodplant garlic
mustard.
Adonis
Blue
Lysandra bellargus, male, Stockbridge Down
Silver-spotted
Skipper
Hesperia comma, male, Stockbridge Down
Small
Heath
Coenonympha pamphilus, Stockbridge Down
Orange tip pupa
Anthocharis cardamines,
Stockbridge Down
Common Blue
Polyommatus icarus,
female, Stockbridge Down
Peacock
Inachis io
Chalkhill
Blue
Lysandra coridon, male, Stockbridge Down, Hampshire
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