Vernditch 27-09-2020
So what I thought was my ‘ultimate trip’ to Vernditch today became my penultimate as the final throes of good weather my wife and I took a break from cold filled kids – snotty noses, sneezes and sore throats but luckily no coughs or fevers! As we wandered up the hill the afternoon sun was filtered out by the turning leaves and so in their shade it felt a little cooler that I was used to and the air had a crispness to it that I associate with autumn proper. Up until about three quarters into the visit I spent my time when not talking in marvelling at the glow as the light penetrated the ever growing weak spots in the canopy. Now along with the crispness I started to smell autumn the woody, damp notes as the annual process of recycling began. Then I finally spotted a butterfly and so what was possibly just a lovely early autumn walk gained the potential of a trip to report. It fluttered about weakly in the undergrowth despite its apparent youth but instead of perching on a nice stable log or tree trunk it chose the spindliest bit of vegetation it could find and so it rocked back and forth in the whisper of breeze.
I was hoping for a few more butterflies on the way now but weren’t any when we walked the Bramble lined stretch of path at the edge of the Coppice nor when we crossed the field to plunge onwards into the wooded tunnel of the next copse. It was only when we were reaching the end and the tunnel had started to open more that we came across another Specklie and then another in quick succession.
Cheered by this as this was now a definite post we turned right and onto the track that runs parallel to the Blandford Road. Here we paused so my wife could enjoy the sun now that we were out of the shadows. As we took a drink a Large White flew along the tall hedge, keeping up too high for my lens but compensation came in the form of a Small Copper (possibly the same individual as last time) which was treating the path as its own private race track. A Small White appeared but it was tricky to get a shot off as the yellow flowers it was feeding from didn’t hold its attention for long before it had drained them of nectar and sought its next stop. I’d watch it settle by a clump of these flowers and by the time I’d focused on it, it was off again and onto the next clump. I got round this by waiting for it to choose one flower in a clump and then focusing on one of the flowers it had yet to visit. Luckily it chose this one and so I got a few shots before it drank the limited source dry.
We were just about to start off again when a tiny silver butterfly came onto the scene. It was up high near some Ivy to start with but it didn’t look right for a Holly Blue – not white enough and with no suggestion of blue. It came down lower and after a few steps I had a Brown Argus before me. What it had been doing up at such heady altitudes I don’t know? Eventually it disappeared off over the Earth works getting lost amid the meadow and so, as a brace of Small Whites initiated their patrol along the hedge, my wife and I followed suit.
The next turn to the right taken things went quiet again until one side of the wall like hedge opened up onto the small meadow. As we felt the light intensity increase a Meadow Brown, appropriate really, flew across the meadow and again I wondered if it was the same one as before? I couldn’t get back down into the small ‘valleys’ as now a different portion was fenced off by electric fencing as part f the grazing regime. A Peacock darted up from its basking on the track as we watched the sheep and they in turn watched and the Peacock was the penultimate butterfly of the trip. The last one turned up right at the end of our return journey down through the wood – it was a Specklie, well finish as you started I suppose?
Now the final trip?
Last checking in at Vernditch?
Possibly, who knows?
I was hoping for a few more butterflies on the way now but weren’t any when we walked the Bramble lined stretch of path at the edge of the Coppice nor when we crossed the field to plunge onwards into the wooded tunnel of the next copse. It was only when we were reaching the end and the tunnel had started to open more that we came across another Specklie and then another in quick succession.
Cheered by this as this was now a definite post we turned right and onto the track that runs parallel to the Blandford Road. Here we paused so my wife could enjoy the sun now that we were out of the shadows. As we took a drink a Large White flew along the tall hedge, keeping up too high for my lens but compensation came in the form of a Small Copper (possibly the same individual as last time) which was treating the path as its own private race track. A Small White appeared but it was tricky to get a shot off as the yellow flowers it was feeding from didn’t hold its attention for long before it had drained them of nectar and sought its next stop. I’d watch it settle by a clump of these flowers and by the time I’d focused on it, it was off again and onto the next clump. I got round this by waiting for it to choose one flower in a clump and then focusing on one of the flowers it had yet to visit. Luckily it chose this one and so I got a few shots before it drank the limited source dry.
We were just about to start off again when a tiny silver butterfly came onto the scene. It was up high near some Ivy to start with but it didn’t look right for a Holly Blue – not white enough and with no suggestion of blue. It came down lower and after a few steps I had a Brown Argus before me. What it had been doing up at such heady altitudes I don’t know? Eventually it disappeared off over the Earth works getting lost amid the meadow and so, as a brace of Small Whites initiated their patrol along the hedge, my wife and I followed suit.
The next turn to the right taken things went quiet again until one side of the wall like hedge opened up onto the small meadow. As we felt the light intensity increase a Meadow Brown, appropriate really, flew across the meadow and again I wondered if it was the same one as before? I couldn’t get back down into the small ‘valleys’ as now a different portion was fenced off by electric fencing as part f the grazing regime. A Peacock darted up from its basking on the track as we watched the sheep and they in turn watched and the Peacock was the penultimate butterfly of the trip. The last one turned up right at the end of our return journey down through the wood – it was a Specklie, well finish as you started I suppose?
Now the final trip?
Last checking in at Vernditch?
Possibly, who knows?
Vernditch 20-09-2020
There was still a feeling of summer in the air today despite it turning into the tail end of September and so with chores complete and one daughter picked up from a play date – I counted 6 individuals present (so all were safe from the snoopers and curtain-twitchers) we headed out the fast way to Vernditch – crossing in Hampshire and then back into Wiltshire again before beeping and rounding the blind bend and pulling into the empty car park. Swinging the much lighter than usual day pack over my shoulders we set off up the hill and into the wood. Next up was the right hand turn into the denser wood with the narrower path and then through the Coppice at the edge of Kitts Grave. We hadn’t seen a single butterfly – not an errant White or a single Specklie but I thought that might change when we reached the grazed fields but no there were no butterflies. Neither were there any in the little scallops as the path trailed back through the small woodland.
Eventually we made another right turn and we were on the path parallel to the Blandford Road. A couple of Whites flew by and a male Brimstone caught my eye enough to make me wander carefully towards it as it played in the high hedge. Unfortunately it played too far up in the hedge to get any shots but as I turned round a reddish blur stopped me in my tracks. The little blur ceased its erratic flight atop a flower head and I could see that it was really a Small Copper. A few shots and it moved on and then a few more were all that it allowed before a fading Blue appeared and the Copper set off to bother it.
I’d like to have thought that now that I’d found a butterfly the dam would be broken and they would crawl or fly out of the woodwork but it wasn’t to be. True as we started on the return leg a Specklie appeared and a couple of Whites and Meadow Browns flew up in the field previously frequented by Sally the Snail. Down in the little valleys I also encountered the smallest Green-veined White I have ever seen but even it didn’t hang fire for long enough to get a few shots off. In fact that was it right up until the end of the walk when a Specklie thought that it had evaded my lens by pretending to be a dead leaf.
And that was it, possibly the final trip to Vernditch – at least one where I can expect to find some butterflies.
Final flourish
With copper on leaves and trees
Adieu fair Vernditch
Eventually we made another right turn and we were on the path parallel to the Blandford Road. A couple of Whites flew by and a male Brimstone caught my eye enough to make me wander carefully towards it as it played in the high hedge. Unfortunately it played too far up in the hedge to get any shots but as I turned round a reddish blur stopped me in my tracks. The little blur ceased its erratic flight atop a flower head and I could see that it was really a Small Copper. A few shots and it moved on and then a few more were all that it allowed before a fading Blue appeared and the Copper set off to bother it.
I’d like to have thought that now that I’d found a butterfly the dam would be broken and they would crawl or fly out of the woodwork but it wasn’t to be. True as we started on the return leg a Specklie appeared and a couple of Whites and Meadow Browns flew up in the field previously frequented by Sally the Snail. Down in the little valleys I also encountered the smallest Green-veined White I have ever seen but even it didn’t hang fire for long enough to get a few shots off. In fact that was it right up until the end of the walk when a Specklie thought that it had evaded my lens by pretending to be a dead leaf.
And that was it, possibly the final trip to Vernditch – at least one where I can expect to find some butterflies.
Final flourish
With copper on leaves and trees
Adieu fair Vernditch
The Devenish 19-09-2020
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I don’t know quite what had happened but when I pulled into the Car Park on this visit it was full! I guess it was down to various families struggling for somewhere ‘local’ to walk during the Lockdown earlier in the year and they’d discovered my secret. Time was when I’d have the car park and the whole reserve to myself. Wondering how much Social Distancing I’d have to do I strolled up track and through the little bit of wood towards the Orchid Meadow (Map 1). When I arrived there I was greeted by a Large White. They’re so much more amenable at this time of year; in the Spring they never seem to stop.
After getting a few shot of Mr. White I moved over to the fence and tried, unsuccessfully, to follow a Small White. It would flutter awkwardly to a stand still only for a Specklie to barrel into it each time it did and send it packing. As if to compensate the Specklie posed nicely on the top of the fence post, perhaps it was feeling a little unappreciated and wanted its share of the limelight? While I waited and watched the Specklie I let my eyes wander up and down the fence. There was plenty to see and photograph here with a further two Large Whites, a Comma slightly further back on the other side of the fence, a wasp with an extraordinarily long abdomen and ‘spike’ and a battle worn Common Darter. It seemed ancient and it had lost its red colour almost entirely. Its once resplendent livery replaced by a dull rusty looking beige a bit like a stripped down classic car awaiting a respray. An Ivy bush on my left has a couple more Darters partaking of its cover and a Red Admiral snobbishly looked down its nose at them.
I drifted down to the far end of the Meadow surprised that I’d not encountered any of the marauding masses and here I busied myself trying to follow one of the three Green-veined Whites that were present here. It was hard work as I’d decide which one to go for and then one of the others would flutter by closer and distract me. I paused for a moment and what with the sun, the calling of a Buzzard overhead and the self-generated warmth I could almost have been back in mid-summer. I decided to work my way back along the fence but got stopped early in my tracks by another Red Admiral. It was high up in a shroud of Ivy so I waited for it to deign to descend to my level and when it did I clicked away merrily and momentarily.
Form here I took a deep breath and made for the little track up the hill and further on up the Down. As the little tunnel of vegetation opened out a Red Admiral and a Small White greeted me but didn’t hang around and so I cut across the side of the Down about half way up following the diagonal path which leads back down to the margins of the Beech wood that forms the boundary between the Down and Orchid Meadow at its foot. In the large clump of Hemp Agrimony (Map 2) I paused to take stock and scanned the flower tops. I spied out a Red Admiral and a Green-veined White. Slightly further along was a Small Copper and right at the end were a non-paired pair of Green-veined Whites. With the available targets logged I slung my camera from my shoulder and ventured forth. The first Green-veined did an evasive manoeuvre but all the rest fell into line and I moved from one butterfly to the next and on finally coming to rest at the end of the Hemp Agrimony. Looking up I saw that there were two Roe Deer ahead of me, seemingly boxed in by the boundary fence. How long they’d been there I couldn’t say as I’d been so engrossed in the micro that I was totally oblivious to the macro around me! Now as I looked upon them it was as if the holding spell had been broken and they made off up gully looking for a break in the fence. I made to follow them and a Large White did a fly-by but none of the couple of Specklies sat for me (Map 3).
After this things went very quiet as I wandered the top fields. Mind you the wind cutting through from the fields behind the reserve didn’t help and the sward seems much higher this year so perhaps this had influenced the butterfly distribution? I maintained my altitude across into the middle part of the Down before following the fence line down and hopping over the stile into the Paddock (Map 5). In the distance I could make out a Large White and nearer to a Specklie but both were flying in the wrong direction so I had a quick look around the tiny paddock. As usual there was a Specklie holding territory around the gate the closes off the ‘tunnel track’ (Map 4). I managed to get a few shots of this despite being really concerned about trampling the huge number of Ivy bees that covered the ground. After this I tentatively tiptoed back and followed a Small White from the tiny Paddock out into the Paddock proper. I was glad that I’d out the effort into this individual as getting a photo of him had put me in the right place at the right time to spot a Brown Argus. I was a little surprised to see it still here, especially as it was still reasonably attired and over at Martin Down they were showing signs of fading fast but I didn’t let that get in the way of trying to get a few shots of it.
Time was pressing on so I decided to make a move and it was just as I started towards the gate and the car park that I finally found some of the multitude that I’d been expecting to see. It was one family out for a walk and so I let them use the gate first, partly out of politeness but mainly because I’d spotted another Specklie, a really fresh looking one at that and a Comma that they must have spooked form the Tunnel Track. Once they’d exited I swung the camera off my shoulder and set to on the photographing. I selected the Specklie first as it was in a better position. It was really fresh and the lustre and sheen from its wings was further accentuated by the minimal cream markings on the wings. When it flew to a new perch atop the gate it closed up and I could see that the markings one the underwing were more normal looking. That taken care of I sought out the Comma. It was still up high in the Ivy and so I thought about giving up and heading for home then and there but then it dropped down just long enough for it to have a quick sip of nectar and for me to get a shot off.
After this I climbed the gate, loaded up the car and made for home – not sure how much longer The Devenish will produce the goods now as it feels like 2020 is going to be an ’early doors’ season?
Time passes onwards,
With the butterflies waning…
Reasonable haul though.
After getting a few shot of Mr. White I moved over to the fence and tried, unsuccessfully, to follow a Small White. It would flutter awkwardly to a stand still only for a Specklie to barrel into it each time it did and send it packing. As if to compensate the Specklie posed nicely on the top of the fence post, perhaps it was feeling a little unappreciated and wanted its share of the limelight? While I waited and watched the Specklie I let my eyes wander up and down the fence. There was plenty to see and photograph here with a further two Large Whites, a Comma slightly further back on the other side of the fence, a wasp with an extraordinarily long abdomen and ‘spike’ and a battle worn Common Darter. It seemed ancient and it had lost its red colour almost entirely. Its once resplendent livery replaced by a dull rusty looking beige a bit like a stripped down classic car awaiting a respray. An Ivy bush on my left has a couple more Darters partaking of its cover and a Red Admiral snobbishly looked down its nose at them.
I drifted down to the far end of the Meadow surprised that I’d not encountered any of the marauding masses and here I busied myself trying to follow one of the three Green-veined Whites that were present here. It was hard work as I’d decide which one to go for and then one of the others would flutter by closer and distract me. I paused for a moment and what with the sun, the calling of a Buzzard overhead and the self-generated warmth I could almost have been back in mid-summer. I decided to work my way back along the fence but got stopped early in my tracks by another Red Admiral. It was high up in a shroud of Ivy so I waited for it to deign to descend to my level and when it did I clicked away merrily and momentarily.
Form here I took a deep breath and made for the little track up the hill and further on up the Down. As the little tunnel of vegetation opened out a Red Admiral and a Small White greeted me but didn’t hang around and so I cut across the side of the Down about half way up following the diagonal path which leads back down to the margins of the Beech wood that forms the boundary between the Down and Orchid Meadow at its foot. In the large clump of Hemp Agrimony (Map 2) I paused to take stock and scanned the flower tops. I spied out a Red Admiral and a Green-veined White. Slightly further along was a Small Copper and right at the end were a non-paired pair of Green-veined Whites. With the available targets logged I slung my camera from my shoulder and ventured forth. The first Green-veined did an evasive manoeuvre but all the rest fell into line and I moved from one butterfly to the next and on finally coming to rest at the end of the Hemp Agrimony. Looking up I saw that there were two Roe Deer ahead of me, seemingly boxed in by the boundary fence. How long they’d been there I couldn’t say as I’d been so engrossed in the micro that I was totally oblivious to the macro around me! Now as I looked upon them it was as if the holding spell had been broken and they made off up gully looking for a break in the fence. I made to follow them and a Large White did a fly-by but none of the couple of Specklies sat for me (Map 3).
After this things went very quiet as I wandered the top fields. Mind you the wind cutting through from the fields behind the reserve didn’t help and the sward seems much higher this year so perhaps this had influenced the butterfly distribution? I maintained my altitude across into the middle part of the Down before following the fence line down and hopping over the stile into the Paddock (Map 5). In the distance I could make out a Large White and nearer to a Specklie but both were flying in the wrong direction so I had a quick look around the tiny paddock. As usual there was a Specklie holding territory around the gate the closes off the ‘tunnel track’ (Map 4). I managed to get a few shots of this despite being really concerned about trampling the huge number of Ivy bees that covered the ground. After this I tentatively tiptoed back and followed a Small White from the tiny Paddock out into the Paddock proper. I was glad that I’d out the effort into this individual as getting a photo of him had put me in the right place at the right time to spot a Brown Argus. I was a little surprised to see it still here, especially as it was still reasonably attired and over at Martin Down they were showing signs of fading fast but I didn’t let that get in the way of trying to get a few shots of it.
Time was pressing on so I decided to make a move and it was just as I started towards the gate and the car park that I finally found some of the multitude that I’d been expecting to see. It was one family out for a walk and so I let them use the gate first, partly out of politeness but mainly because I’d spotted another Specklie, a really fresh looking one at that and a Comma that they must have spooked form the Tunnel Track. Once they’d exited I swung the camera off my shoulder and set to on the photographing. I selected the Specklie first as it was in a better position. It was really fresh and the lustre and sheen from its wings was further accentuated by the minimal cream markings on the wings. When it flew to a new perch atop the gate it closed up and I could see that the markings one the underwing were more normal looking. That taken care of I sought out the Comma. It was still up high in the Ivy and so I thought about giving up and heading for home then and there but then it dropped down just long enough for it to have a quick sip of nectar and for me to get a shot off.
After this I climbed the gate, loaded up the car and made for home – not sure how much longer The Devenish will produce the goods now as it feels like 2020 is going to be an ’early doors’ season?
Time passes onwards,
With the butterflies waning…
Reasonable haul though.
Garston Wood 13-09-2020
It had been a while since our last meet up and so today we made a last minute call to arrange a walk at Garston Wood with my parents. The last time we’d visited the Silver-washed were still flying but starting to look tatty and so today I was expecting more walk and talk than butterflying as befits the time of year. The woods quieten down and the action is now played out on the grasslands and the coastal hills…
The walk to the Log for lunch was as quiet as expected with a few Whites fluttering about in the distance over the usual sorts of places. The Specklies were still doggedly holding their territories in the normal spots. Nothing much was stopping though apart from a rather nice Green-veined White at the bottom of the track. Once at the Log we ate lunch and a Specklie actually sat still long enough to capture a few shots. It sat nicely on the edge of a leaf looking alert and reminiscent in posture of a pointer dog.
Repast replete we reconvened our ramble wandering lazily, preoccupied by conversation, into the enclosure. Again there were plenty of Whites and again all were pretty distant, flying over the tops of spent Bramble and collapsing Bracken that was on the turn. Slightly further on along this path a Comma put in a brief appearance with a flash past and a Brimstone seemed to be flowing suit. But it stopped suddenly, a still viable strand of Bramble had taken its fancy. Unfortunately the contrasting conditions of bright. Late summer sun and the dark shade from its absence were laying havoc with my settings and all the images came out bleached out; I got some cracking shots of a white triangle but none of the intricate beauty of a Brimstone.
There were a few more bits and bobs, mainly Specklies and Whites, but all too soon we were back at the car park. It was too lovely a day to leave it there so we headed back to my mum and dads to sit in the garden, sip tea and take advantage of the September sun. As we walked up the path to the house and I looked across to the neighbours gardens their lawns seemed to shimmer. It was kind of like a heat haze, mirage almost but it was nowhere near warm enough? When I got closer I could see that at least two of the Lawns were alive with bees. They were crawling and flying low over the grass, occasionally they’d clump together in a buzzing ball of bee. The black and yellow abdomens (when visible) made me think that they were Ivy Bees – even though they weren’t on Ivy.
Once in the garden whilst enjoying a Tea Sponge Cake I kept my camera handy and managed to pick up a couple of Whites and a Brimstone between bites of cake and slurps of tea – some semi-perfect butterflying all in all – change the tea for beer and the Whites for a rarity and it would be 100%. Time had eked away and as we said our goodbyes the lawns were still alive with bees…
Whites between tea slurps
Ivy Bees covered the lawns
Garston finale
The walk to the Log for lunch was as quiet as expected with a few Whites fluttering about in the distance over the usual sorts of places. The Specklies were still doggedly holding their territories in the normal spots. Nothing much was stopping though apart from a rather nice Green-veined White at the bottom of the track. Once at the Log we ate lunch and a Specklie actually sat still long enough to capture a few shots. It sat nicely on the edge of a leaf looking alert and reminiscent in posture of a pointer dog.
Repast replete we reconvened our ramble wandering lazily, preoccupied by conversation, into the enclosure. Again there were plenty of Whites and again all were pretty distant, flying over the tops of spent Bramble and collapsing Bracken that was on the turn. Slightly further on along this path a Comma put in a brief appearance with a flash past and a Brimstone seemed to be flowing suit. But it stopped suddenly, a still viable strand of Bramble had taken its fancy. Unfortunately the contrasting conditions of bright. Late summer sun and the dark shade from its absence were laying havoc with my settings and all the images came out bleached out; I got some cracking shots of a white triangle but none of the intricate beauty of a Brimstone.
There were a few more bits and bobs, mainly Specklies and Whites, but all too soon we were back at the car park. It was too lovely a day to leave it there so we headed back to my mum and dads to sit in the garden, sip tea and take advantage of the September sun. As we walked up the path to the house and I looked across to the neighbours gardens their lawns seemed to shimmer. It was kind of like a heat haze, mirage almost but it was nowhere near warm enough? When I got closer I could see that at least two of the Lawns were alive with bees. They were crawling and flying low over the grass, occasionally they’d clump together in a buzzing ball of bee. The black and yellow abdomens (when visible) made me think that they were Ivy Bees – even though they weren’t on Ivy.
Once in the garden whilst enjoying a Tea Sponge Cake I kept my camera handy and managed to pick up a couple of Whites and a Brimstone between bites of cake and slurps of tea – some semi-perfect butterflying all in all – change the tea for beer and the Whites for a rarity and it would be 100%. Time had eked away and as we said our goodbyes the lawns were still alive with bees…
Whites between tea slurps
Ivy Bees covered the lawns
Garston finale
Martin Down 12-09-2020
With a Tax return completed the afternoon was my own – and somehow (oh how I wish I knew how) I’d even managed to get out of starting the painting for another week! Hence I made my way over to Martin Down for probably my final visit of 2020. I could have kept on going but I felt that all too soon the quantity and quality of the butterflies would start to dwindle and I hoped to go out with a bang.
Parking at the Sillen’s Lane end again I strolled along the nice flat track. On the way I was accompanied by a few Whites that were still quartering the hedge and the odd Meadow Brown and at the little turf triangle I paused for a Small Copper. There was more of the same as I continued along the track even though I was hoping to add a few more colours to the palette along with the white, brown and orange. Again I forewent the Tunnel which during the Spring is a must for Greenstreaks and Holly Blues and took the left hand path at the fork in the track. At this point a slightly different orange tint showed up amid another couple of Small Coppers as for some reason this little spot was very attractive to the Small Heath and there were easily over double figures in a tiny section and as I continued onward they popped up with greater and greater regularity. One of them was doing the wing flicking thing that I and others have noticed before, flicking the wings wide open before only partially closing and giving a teasing glimpse of the uppers normally kept locked away from sight. I fancied a shot of it and so ventured off the main track and followed the Rabbit tracks to get close to it without trampling anything. Another Small Copper appeared after I hadn’t had much success with the Small Heath and so I tried for a few shots of it too. They seem to have another good season this year.
Slightly further along I branched off the main track again but this time headed into the small field walled in by the hawthorn hedge on three sides – what I like to think of since the Spring as Greenstreak Field. Whilst the numbers of Small Heath remained steady the numbers of Meadow Browns picked up and I also got onto a Common Blue which was slightly aged. By the time I got to the corner I’d added an Adonis Blue which was still looking in pretty good nick and there’s an unusual looking Small Copper and then I managed to work out why it looked so odd when it eventually settled down – it was missing some of its hind wing. There were also a few Brimstones about; a male and 2 female and another aged Common Blue. However the main two highlights of my time in this little section were first a ghostly Meadow Brown which I couldn’t, at the time, work out if it was an aberrant? Looking at it now the lack of the brown ground colour could either be pathological or more likely water damage. However the smaller than usual eyes mean that all three reasons together could be a possibility though I’m favouring the former two? The second highlight means that I went from the old to the new as it came in the form of a stunningly fresh Small Copper. The white fringes were still intact and the orange on the fore wing ran right to the edge and this combined with the minimal spotting and the orange from the hind wing margins extending in streaks across the wing gave it the more of the look of a foreign cousin of the Small Copper. All in all a stunning looking Copper.
After I’d been dazzled by the luscious Copper I continued on and worked my way through the break in the hedge and from there over towards the Hotspot Hollow. The Blues were still about with both Common and Adonis on the way along and there was yet another Small Copper – they seemed to be everywhere! In fact the first things that I encountered as I dropped down the path into the hollow was, yep you’ve guessed it – a Small Copper. However I’d now entered another realm. It was like a retirement home for Blue butterflies. First an aged Chalkhill, then an enfeebled Adonis followed by a venerable Common Blue and finally to complete the set as it were a superannuated Brown Argus. All were flying about in the little hollow, bumping into each other and grumbling and mithering. A more curmudgeonly bunch I’d not seen before! As I reach the edge of the Down I experience a little more temporal dissonance as a Tawny Owl calls from the adjacent wood. I continue looking around and soon find a few more old timers – with a veteran Small Copper, a decrepit Peacock and a couple of some well matured Adonis.
I then started to make my way back, retracing my steps and seeing the same butterflies (probably) although at the ridge behind the Hotspot there was a Brimstone as well as 3 Chalkhills, 2 Adonis and 2 Common Blues all intermingling in a dizzying ball of blue. I was getting really short of time and so I put my head down and tried my best to ignore the butterflies on the way back but just like Michael Corleone “just when I thought I was out they pull me back in”. This time it wasn’t the two Small Coppers on the path back to the car but it was the last one at the triangle that forced me to stop and watch it for a bit. At least I thought it was the last butterfly that I’d focus in on as slightly closer to the car still, there are three Coppers having a scrap as well as an attractive Small Heath and the smallest male Common Blue that I’ve ever seen – it was tiny – the size of a Small Blue! I tried to get something in to show the size but the best I could manage (what with not having any cash cos of Co-Vid) was to hold my pencil lead against the blade of grass once the butterfly had vacated its perch. It was small but perfectly formed!
I try to escape
But they pull me right back in
I don’t mind really…
Parking at the Sillen’s Lane end again I strolled along the nice flat track. On the way I was accompanied by a few Whites that were still quartering the hedge and the odd Meadow Brown and at the little turf triangle I paused for a Small Copper. There was more of the same as I continued along the track even though I was hoping to add a few more colours to the palette along with the white, brown and orange. Again I forewent the Tunnel which during the Spring is a must for Greenstreaks and Holly Blues and took the left hand path at the fork in the track. At this point a slightly different orange tint showed up amid another couple of Small Coppers as for some reason this little spot was very attractive to the Small Heath and there were easily over double figures in a tiny section and as I continued onward they popped up with greater and greater regularity. One of them was doing the wing flicking thing that I and others have noticed before, flicking the wings wide open before only partially closing and giving a teasing glimpse of the uppers normally kept locked away from sight. I fancied a shot of it and so ventured off the main track and followed the Rabbit tracks to get close to it without trampling anything. Another Small Copper appeared after I hadn’t had much success with the Small Heath and so I tried for a few shots of it too. They seem to have another good season this year.
Slightly further along I branched off the main track again but this time headed into the small field walled in by the hawthorn hedge on three sides – what I like to think of since the Spring as Greenstreak Field. Whilst the numbers of Small Heath remained steady the numbers of Meadow Browns picked up and I also got onto a Common Blue which was slightly aged. By the time I got to the corner I’d added an Adonis Blue which was still looking in pretty good nick and there’s an unusual looking Small Copper and then I managed to work out why it looked so odd when it eventually settled down – it was missing some of its hind wing. There were also a few Brimstones about; a male and 2 female and another aged Common Blue. However the main two highlights of my time in this little section were first a ghostly Meadow Brown which I couldn’t, at the time, work out if it was an aberrant? Looking at it now the lack of the brown ground colour could either be pathological or more likely water damage. However the smaller than usual eyes mean that all three reasons together could be a possibility though I’m favouring the former two? The second highlight means that I went from the old to the new as it came in the form of a stunningly fresh Small Copper. The white fringes were still intact and the orange on the fore wing ran right to the edge and this combined with the minimal spotting and the orange from the hind wing margins extending in streaks across the wing gave it the more of the look of a foreign cousin of the Small Copper. All in all a stunning looking Copper.
After I’d been dazzled by the luscious Copper I continued on and worked my way through the break in the hedge and from there over towards the Hotspot Hollow. The Blues were still about with both Common and Adonis on the way along and there was yet another Small Copper – they seemed to be everywhere! In fact the first things that I encountered as I dropped down the path into the hollow was, yep you’ve guessed it – a Small Copper. However I’d now entered another realm. It was like a retirement home for Blue butterflies. First an aged Chalkhill, then an enfeebled Adonis followed by a venerable Common Blue and finally to complete the set as it were a superannuated Brown Argus. All were flying about in the little hollow, bumping into each other and grumbling and mithering. A more curmudgeonly bunch I’d not seen before! As I reach the edge of the Down I experience a little more temporal dissonance as a Tawny Owl calls from the adjacent wood. I continue looking around and soon find a few more old timers – with a veteran Small Copper, a decrepit Peacock and a couple of some well matured Adonis.
I then started to make my way back, retracing my steps and seeing the same butterflies (probably) although at the ridge behind the Hotspot there was a Brimstone as well as 3 Chalkhills, 2 Adonis and 2 Common Blues all intermingling in a dizzying ball of blue. I was getting really short of time and so I put my head down and tried my best to ignore the butterflies on the way back but just like Michael Corleone “just when I thought I was out they pull me back in”. This time it wasn’t the two Small Coppers on the path back to the car but it was the last one at the triangle that forced me to stop and watch it for a bit. At least I thought it was the last butterfly that I’d focus in on as slightly closer to the car still, there are three Coppers having a scrap as well as an attractive Small Heath and the smallest male Common Blue that I’ve ever seen – it was tiny – the size of a Small Blue! I tried to get something in to show the size but the best I could manage (what with not having any cash cos of Co-Vid) was to hold my pencil lead against the blade of grass once the butterfly had vacated its perch. It was small but perfectly formed!
I try to escape
But they pull me right back in
I don’t mind really…
Work 09-09-2020
The Buddleia at work gave up a few more treats today. The end of the working day arrived, I’d sanitized my hands and closed the windows, sprayed and wiped the desks down and then sanitized my hands again. I had my mask ready to hand for the short walk along corridors and everything was packed and ready for the off. I happened to look across the Lab and through the window when I spotted a leaf that floated across the Quad. “Marvellous the mimicry butterflies show” I thought because the floating leaf was the approximate shape and colour of a Painted Lady. Then the leaf flapped its wings…
Within a couple of seconds I’d unpacked my camera, my hands working of their own accord whilst my eyes were locked onto the butterfly. It turned and flew towards the Tech Block and so I left the Lab and looked across the Quad which was now empty. My gaze fell on the little stand of Buddleia and so I went to check it out. Sure enough there was a Painted Lady – it was pretty battered but this was only my third of the year so I didn’t mind its poor state of repair. It thought it had been pretty clever, landing towards the top of the plant, approximately 7ft up, however by using one of the picnic benches I was dead level with it. So I got a few shots as it shifted around taking nectar effusively. At one point it became obscured by a few overhanging leaves and I took the opportunity to look at the rest of the bush - a few bees and then near the top, not actually on the bush but clinging onto a vent in the wall was a beautifully fresh Small Tort. It was stunning – not just in its colour and markings but in the contrast it offered to the Painted Lady which now seemed even more ancient.
I popped back in to grab my things and then spent a few more minutes outside with the butterflies. The Small Tort gave up the basking and came and joined the Painted Lady on the bush. In fact it actually shared one of the florets with its cousin. It was great to see the two species together but at one point a Large White bustled in, took a sip and moved on as did a Hummingbird Hawkmoth – a new species for the ‘School/Work List’. Not bad for quarter of an hour or so and for such a spindly little bush.
A brief break from the Haiku – but this needs to be sung to the tune of O’ Little Town… not the Cliff version though, Thor forbid!
O’ little stand of Buddleia
You’re reaching for the sky
Bedecked in sweet and purple treats
You catch a butterflies eye…
Within a couple of seconds I’d unpacked my camera, my hands working of their own accord whilst my eyes were locked onto the butterfly. It turned and flew towards the Tech Block and so I left the Lab and looked across the Quad which was now empty. My gaze fell on the little stand of Buddleia and so I went to check it out. Sure enough there was a Painted Lady – it was pretty battered but this was only my third of the year so I didn’t mind its poor state of repair. It thought it had been pretty clever, landing towards the top of the plant, approximately 7ft up, however by using one of the picnic benches I was dead level with it. So I got a few shots as it shifted around taking nectar effusively. At one point it became obscured by a few overhanging leaves and I took the opportunity to look at the rest of the bush - a few bees and then near the top, not actually on the bush but clinging onto a vent in the wall was a beautifully fresh Small Tort. It was stunning – not just in its colour and markings but in the contrast it offered to the Painted Lady which now seemed even more ancient.
I popped back in to grab my things and then spent a few more minutes outside with the butterflies. The Small Tort gave up the basking and came and joined the Painted Lady on the bush. In fact it actually shared one of the florets with its cousin. It was great to see the two species together but at one point a Large White bustled in, took a sip and moved on as did a Hummingbird Hawkmoth – a new species for the ‘School/Work List’. Not bad for quarter of an hour or so and for such a spindly little bush.
A brief break from the Haiku – but this needs to be sung to the tune of O’ Little Town… not the Cliff version though, Thor forbid!
O’ little stand of Buddleia
You’re reaching for the sky
Bedecked in sweet and purple treats
You catch a butterflies eye…
Work 07-09-2020
So after 5 full days back at work I finally got onto a butterfly. At various points over the time that I’ve been back the little clump of Buddleia on the corner of the Science block has held different butterflies. I’ve walked past and a Small Tortosieshell has been holding its own, a brace of Large Whites had been malingering and there has also been the occasional Red Admiral or Red Admiral pair. Unfortunately I haven’t been able to get any photos for one of two reasons. Number one, I’ve not had my camera as it’s been during the working day and so I was just passing through on my way somewhere else or number 2 I’ve seen it at break or lunch, gone back to get my camera and by the time I’ve navigated the one way system the butterflies have gone.
Today however I didn’t even give the butterflies the chance to land on the Buddleia. As I rounded the corner into the lab at lunch having picked up a coffee I watched two Red Admirals gliding about above the Science and Tech block. They’d land on one of the flat roofs and then glide across to the other flat roof, forward and back, rarely beating their wings and so looking like dead leaves caught on the breeze. Spotting them I quickly headed in, dropped my coffee off on my desk, grabbed my camera and was back out on the corner before they’d reached the end of the block. One carried on glided away across the Tech block and out of sight but the other landed first on the Tech Block sign and then on one of the window frames. It was at an unusual angle and so rather than trying for the classic open winged, a la Batman pose I took the shots from head on or at an acute angle. This meant that the brush feet, the pair of fore legs were really obvious. At times I had to double check that I was still looking at a Red Admiral as when I zoomed in close they looked kind of similar to the pincer palps of a slightly buck-toothed Tarantula!
Chuffed to finally have caught a butterfly out at work I made my way back in for another afternoon in the bubble.
Ahhh Tarantula!
No it’s a Red Admiral
Got far too close. Doh!
Today however I didn’t even give the butterflies the chance to land on the Buddleia. As I rounded the corner into the lab at lunch having picked up a coffee I watched two Red Admirals gliding about above the Science and Tech block. They’d land on one of the flat roofs and then glide across to the other flat roof, forward and back, rarely beating their wings and so looking like dead leaves caught on the breeze. Spotting them I quickly headed in, dropped my coffee off on my desk, grabbed my camera and was back out on the corner before they’d reached the end of the block. One carried on glided away across the Tech block and out of sight but the other landed first on the Tech Block sign and then on one of the window frames. It was at an unusual angle and so rather than trying for the classic open winged, a la Batman pose I took the shots from head on or at an acute angle. This meant that the brush feet, the pair of fore legs were really obvious. At times I had to double check that I was still looking at a Red Admiral as when I zoomed in close they looked kind of similar to the pincer palps of a slightly buck-toothed Tarantula!
Chuffed to finally have caught a butterfly out at work I made my way back in for another afternoon in the bubble.
Ahhh Tarantula!
No it’s a Red Admiral
Got far too close. Doh!
The Devenish 05-09-2020
Sooooo where to go today? An unexpected opportunity had presented itself to me and so now I had a decision to make – Martin Down or The Devenish? In the end I plumbed for the more local of the two so that if it turned into a disaster the disappointment wouldn’t be added to by having travelled further. Also The Devenish offered more shelter from the not exactly strong but very consistent wind which was blowing.
I started out in the Orchid Meadow and having gotten over the gate I started quartering the meadow, following the tiny track ways and animal runs that criss-crossed the reserve. The first butterfly I came across was a Common Blue which complimented the Knapweed despite its tired state. Onwards I went and towards the far end of the field there were several Whites all interacting and following each other around. I managed to get onto a couple of the less flighty individuals and they proved to be either Small or Green-veined Whites, the latter of which were noticeable smaller and more ‘flappy’. On the way back as I had almost reached the gate a Small Copper turned up and after that I was led a merry dance by yet another Green-veined White and this one was beautifully marked.
I then girded my loins before starting the ascent up the side of the Down however I needn’t have worried too much as I was offered a breather when only a few steps away from the narrow tack and out onto the Down proper. For here there was a female Adonis hiding down in the grass. She was a right little cracker as she was an aberrant – the one missing the spots on the under wing – and in fact she only had one clearly defined spot the rest of the hind wing was a lovely brown ground colour. She briefly opened up after a quick flutter to a more salubrious position amid the grasses and when she did she showed off her lovely inky upper side which was sprinkling with a few glitter blue scales. A great was to start!
As I carried on up the steps a few more Adonis came into view, both of which also seemed to be a similar aberrant form the second of which was very odd in that on one side she appeared fine yet on the other there was the reduced spotting? Both of them played hard to get and I couldn’t get anything decent of them so I carried on up and then followed the diagonal path across the side of the Down towards the scrubby area along the tree line that intersects the foot of the Down and the Orchid Meadow behind it. When I reached the edge of the scrub I found a Small Copper and so set about wandering around the edges of the clumps of Hemp Agrimony. There was a Comma nd then a different Small Copper, and another and another! The last one flew up the down and I tried to follow it in vain. I didn’t mind though as in the process of losing the Small Copper I’d spied another aberrant Adonis – I knew it was definitely a different individual as this one was a male. Again it had the much reduced spotting and again it had an area of wing damage. I remembered Dave pointing this out one time at Cotley so now I’m wondering if this particular aberration is developmental or structural/somatic in origin rather than genetic? Either way it made for an interesting addition to my memory card. I then followed a Small Copper back down into the Hemp Clump and managed a few shots before a Brown Argus successfully evaded my lens. A few Whites had now appeared including a Large among the Smalls. I didn’t open up fully but just enough to show off the blindingly white forewings.
After this I carried on along and made my way back up to the top via the gully which was surprisingly quiet nd then worked my way along the top following the meandering track that ends up skirting around the copse and back into the scallops up to the wire fence. The whole time up here I didn’t see a butterfly – possibly because this was where the wind was strongest as it was blowing form across the adjacent field right through the fence and down the side of the Down. So I decided to cut my losses and make my way back down the side of the Down and avoid the middle section. I again missed out on a Brown Argus but instead followed a misleading Adonis away from the path and the steps cut into the chalk. It was misleading as when it settled it was nowhere near as fresh as it had advertised during its’ slight. Sometimes Adonis males seem even more metallic blue when worn – something to do with worn individuals having a greater refractive index?
I then followed a female as she flew and was ready when she landed slightly higher up the Down but when I relocated her I spied mating pair. So now I settled down and got a few shots of the pairing whilst keeping eye on female – another aberrant…Then I moved back onto the female then back to the pair all the while keeping an eye on a section of the opposite valley. As I was watching out of the corner of my eye the sun rolled overhead lighting the green in the distance and I kept on watching, waiting for it to come to me. When it arrived I as ready and the butterflies really pinged out of the undergrowth. Back with the female the light had stimulated her to open up and she glistened with an oily electric blue sheen like female Silver-Studs from earlier in the season. On the final part of the descent a final Downside Small Copper popped up at the start of the narrow trackway down but it avoided my lens.
Back down to the Orchid Meadow the whites were still flying about and somehow I ended up following one right to the far end. It didn’t look quite right and once I’d caught up with it I could see why – it was a quite heavily marked Green-veined, with the green veins showing through on the topside more strongly than on the underside. On the walk back to where I’d started before the white had led me astray a Brown Argus disappeared from view again (this is getting to be a bit of a habit for the BAs here!), a Specklie flew across the field and various Dragonflies were about. There was definitely an Emperor as well as a few Common Darters. In the middle bit a stunning female Adonis Blue played in the sun looking gorgeous and a faded male Common Blue eked out it’s final days. One of the dragonflies buzzed me and then landed in the bushes. I managed to get within range of it by means of walking round in a wide arc to roughly where it was – whistling nonchalantly and acting interested in a bush that was just over the other side of the fence – honest! Then by way of melting into and melding with the bushes I was able to get a few shots of what I think is a Migrant Hawker? Could be a Common or Southern though – I do need to read up on my Dragonflies. Once I’d gotten a few shots and by way of reversing the process gotten back into the Meadow without disturbing it I turned my attentions back to butterflies as a beautifully fresh Small Copper was sitting nicely for me.
I hopped over the gate into the Tunnel of Trees and followed an Emperor along to the end where a couple of Specklies were jostling for the prime sunbathing position. In the tiny Paddock the ground was alive with Bees which I’m guessing are Ivy Bees – they were everywhere but despite the huge numbers getting any photos was next to impossible to photograph for two reasons. Firstly not one sat still for long enough and secondly there were so many I didn’t know which one to focus on at any one time!
I left them in the end with a few grab/record shots on the memory card, hopped over the other gate and started for home. None too shabby a haul for a cob-web buster!
A last minute trip
With Adonis and Coppers
Cob webs blown away
I started out in the Orchid Meadow and having gotten over the gate I started quartering the meadow, following the tiny track ways and animal runs that criss-crossed the reserve. The first butterfly I came across was a Common Blue which complimented the Knapweed despite its tired state. Onwards I went and towards the far end of the field there were several Whites all interacting and following each other around. I managed to get onto a couple of the less flighty individuals and they proved to be either Small or Green-veined Whites, the latter of which were noticeable smaller and more ‘flappy’. On the way back as I had almost reached the gate a Small Copper turned up and after that I was led a merry dance by yet another Green-veined White and this one was beautifully marked.
I then girded my loins before starting the ascent up the side of the Down however I needn’t have worried too much as I was offered a breather when only a few steps away from the narrow tack and out onto the Down proper. For here there was a female Adonis hiding down in the grass. She was a right little cracker as she was an aberrant – the one missing the spots on the under wing – and in fact she only had one clearly defined spot the rest of the hind wing was a lovely brown ground colour. She briefly opened up after a quick flutter to a more salubrious position amid the grasses and when she did she showed off her lovely inky upper side which was sprinkling with a few glitter blue scales. A great was to start!
As I carried on up the steps a few more Adonis came into view, both of which also seemed to be a similar aberrant form the second of which was very odd in that on one side she appeared fine yet on the other there was the reduced spotting? Both of them played hard to get and I couldn’t get anything decent of them so I carried on up and then followed the diagonal path across the side of the Down towards the scrubby area along the tree line that intersects the foot of the Down and the Orchid Meadow behind it. When I reached the edge of the scrub I found a Small Copper and so set about wandering around the edges of the clumps of Hemp Agrimony. There was a Comma nd then a different Small Copper, and another and another! The last one flew up the down and I tried to follow it in vain. I didn’t mind though as in the process of losing the Small Copper I’d spied another aberrant Adonis – I knew it was definitely a different individual as this one was a male. Again it had the much reduced spotting and again it had an area of wing damage. I remembered Dave pointing this out one time at Cotley so now I’m wondering if this particular aberration is developmental or structural/somatic in origin rather than genetic? Either way it made for an interesting addition to my memory card. I then followed a Small Copper back down into the Hemp Clump and managed a few shots before a Brown Argus successfully evaded my lens. A few Whites had now appeared including a Large among the Smalls. I didn’t open up fully but just enough to show off the blindingly white forewings.
After this I carried on along and made my way back up to the top via the gully which was surprisingly quiet nd then worked my way along the top following the meandering track that ends up skirting around the copse and back into the scallops up to the wire fence. The whole time up here I didn’t see a butterfly – possibly because this was where the wind was strongest as it was blowing form across the adjacent field right through the fence and down the side of the Down. So I decided to cut my losses and make my way back down the side of the Down and avoid the middle section. I again missed out on a Brown Argus but instead followed a misleading Adonis away from the path and the steps cut into the chalk. It was misleading as when it settled it was nowhere near as fresh as it had advertised during its’ slight. Sometimes Adonis males seem even more metallic blue when worn – something to do with worn individuals having a greater refractive index?
I then followed a female as she flew and was ready when she landed slightly higher up the Down but when I relocated her I spied mating pair. So now I settled down and got a few shots of the pairing whilst keeping eye on female – another aberrant…Then I moved back onto the female then back to the pair all the while keeping an eye on a section of the opposite valley. As I was watching out of the corner of my eye the sun rolled overhead lighting the green in the distance and I kept on watching, waiting for it to come to me. When it arrived I as ready and the butterflies really pinged out of the undergrowth. Back with the female the light had stimulated her to open up and she glistened with an oily electric blue sheen like female Silver-Studs from earlier in the season. On the final part of the descent a final Downside Small Copper popped up at the start of the narrow trackway down but it avoided my lens.
Back down to the Orchid Meadow the whites were still flying about and somehow I ended up following one right to the far end. It didn’t look quite right and once I’d caught up with it I could see why – it was a quite heavily marked Green-veined, with the green veins showing through on the topside more strongly than on the underside. On the walk back to where I’d started before the white had led me astray a Brown Argus disappeared from view again (this is getting to be a bit of a habit for the BAs here!), a Specklie flew across the field and various Dragonflies were about. There was definitely an Emperor as well as a few Common Darters. In the middle bit a stunning female Adonis Blue played in the sun looking gorgeous and a faded male Common Blue eked out it’s final days. One of the dragonflies buzzed me and then landed in the bushes. I managed to get within range of it by means of walking round in a wide arc to roughly where it was – whistling nonchalantly and acting interested in a bush that was just over the other side of the fence – honest! Then by way of melting into and melding with the bushes I was able to get a few shots of what I think is a Migrant Hawker? Could be a Common or Southern though – I do need to read up on my Dragonflies. Once I’d gotten a few shots and by way of reversing the process gotten back into the Meadow without disturbing it I turned my attentions back to butterflies as a beautifully fresh Small Copper was sitting nicely for me.
I hopped over the gate into the Tunnel of Trees and followed an Emperor along to the end where a couple of Specklies were jostling for the prime sunbathing position. In the tiny Paddock the ground was alive with Bees which I’m guessing are Ivy Bees – they were everywhere but despite the huge numbers getting any photos was next to impossible to photograph for two reasons. Firstly not one sat still for long enough and secondly there were so many I didn’t know which one to focus on at any one time!
I left them in the end with a few grab/record shots on the memory card, hopped over the other gate and started for home. None too shabby a haul for a cob-web buster!
A last minute trip
With Adonis and Coppers
Cob webs blown away
