BUTTERFLIES ON A SUMMERS DAY!

Yeeeh-haaa  we've had summer.. well one day... last Sunday, it was mostly sunny and warm (if a little windy) and the nearest  we've had to summer in what seems to be a long time...AND NO RAIN!!

I decided to make the most of it and go in search of some butterflies. I went to an area where I've found a good variety of butterflies in previous years, Incombe Hole in Buckinghamshire.

There were a few different species on the wing but nowhere near  the amount , in numbers, as I've seen before.

 

Small Heath, as usual, were  settling low down in the grass and making photography rather difficult.

Male

Meadow Brown

Male

Female

 Marbled White

Male

Male

 And I'm still trying to get a decent image of a Marbled White!!

Large Skipper...I only saw this one!

A male...note the dark sex-brands in the centre of the wings.

 And the one species I was hoping to see...Dark Green Fritillary. I found about ten of these nectaring on a large patch of thistles.

Male

Male

Female

The dark green colouring on the underside of the wings gives this butterfly it's name.

And I also saw quite a few Ringlet and one each of Red Admiral and Small White. And rather worrying I didn't see a single 'blue' butterfly all day!

And a video...

2011 Butterflies - Part 2

                                                       
                        
                                        THE "GOLDEN" SKIPPERS

The Small, Essex and Large Skippers are the three most common of our outwardly similar five, so called, Golden Skippers (the other two being the much rarer and localised Lulworth and Silver-spotted Skippers) each however has its own distinguishing characteristics.

The Small Skipper - thymelicus sylvestris - (despite its name, is not the smallest of our Golden Skippers , this accolade goes to the Lulworth Skipper) is a widespread and common butterfly to most of England and Wales favouring rough grassland and woodland glades. It is best distinguished from the other Skippers  by its unmarked golden wings and the colour of the tips of the antennae which are orange or dull brown on the ends. In flight between late May to early August it shows great speed and manoeuvrability.

The Essex Skipper - thymelicus lineola is widespread in the South Eastern part of England and is almost identical to the Small Skipper apart from the distinctive shiny black tips to the antennae and the slightly more pointed wings. Like the Small Skipper the male is much more active than the female. Its flight is also similar to the Small Skipper in speed and manoeuvrability but tends to be more ground hugging. It prefers tall, dry grassland, woodland rides and roadside verges, especially in sunny situations. Flight period is from late May to late August.

The Large Skipper - ochlodes sylvanus is common throughout  England and Wales and just over the border into Southern Scotland. It prefers rough, tall uncut grassland where on sunny mornings it can be seen patrolling in search of females and later in the day perched with its wings in the characteristic skipper 'V' shaped pose. It can be distinguished from the slightly smaller Essex and Small Skippers by the faint chequered pattern on both sides of its wings and the 'hooked' tips to its antennae. It can be seen in flight from  June to August.   

  

Some images from the files

I’ve just spent the last couple of days sorting and filing all the photographs that I’ve taken over the last month or so, prior to packing (everything from the kitchen sink to clothes for all four English seasons!!) for my forthcoming holiday to Arne in Dorset.

Here are a few (!!) images to fill the gap until I get back in a couple of weeks, hopefully with memory cards full of amazing top class award winning photographs (I wish!).

 Taken 1/5/11:  My garden,  Bedfordshire.

 House Sparrow

Taken 25/5/11:  Incombe Hole, Buckinghamshire.

Fledgling Blue Tit

Oxeye Daisy

Taken 2/6/11:  Marston Vale C.P.  Bedfordshire.

Large Skipper

Taken 10/6/11:  Edlesborough,  Buckinghamshire.

Bee Orchid

Bee Orchid

Burnet Rose

Scorpion Fly

Longhorn Beetle (oedemera nobilis)

Small Tortoiseshell

Meadow Brown

(a well worn  male) Common Blue

Taken 11/6/11: RSPB The Lodge, Sandy, Bedfordshire.

Spotted Flycatcher

A resourceful Grey Squirrel

I wish you all an enjoyable and successful couple of weeks and I’ll be back soon.