Eastney Beach. Eastney Beach Friday 29th September 2023
A break from the storms which are hitting the UK at the moment, although the South-East part of the UK has got off rather lightly so far. Along ‘my’ beach the butterflies have dwindled down to a handful, with no Common Blues or Painted Ladies seen today. The Clouded Yellows were patrolling up and down pausing every so often for a quick sup of nectar, where it could find some willing plant life. There were several female Small Coppers on the ‘bank’ one was the blue ‘spot ‘variant, which was good to see as it was different to a smarter one I saw later. A moth being a Rush Veneer noted to be a strong migrant was also seen. In the garden many Red Admirals are still feeding on the dwindling Buddleia, which won’t last much longer.? [Posted by Ashley Whitlock]
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| Female Small Copper Photo © Ashley Whitlock | Rush Veneer Moth Photo © Ashley Whitlock | Hummingbird Hawk Moth at rest Photo © Ashley Whitlock |
Clouded Yellow at Lepe. Today's forecast looked promising, so we decided to go down to the coast at Lepe to see if we could find a Clouded Yellow, which had so far proved elusive. It was lovely sunny and warm afternoon, with a good number of Red Admirals and whites about, then Linda spotted a lone Clouded Yellow. We had good views as it patrolled a short stretch of the coast towards Stansore Point. Unfortunately it stayed the wrong side of a barbed wire fence, so I was only able to get a rather distant photo of it at rest on the ground. This was our first Clouded Yellow of the season, so I thought I'd post something to give hope to those of you who are still waiting. They're often seen in October and November, so there's still time if the weather stays mild. Coastal sites probably offer the best prospects. [Posted by Andy Barker]
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| Clouded Yellow at rest Photo © Andy Barker | Coastal view at Lepe Photo © Andy Barker |
Northney Common, Hayling. Several Small Coppers and a pair of Brown Argus amongst the Speckled Woods and Large Whites. [Posted by Ian Mears]
Old Winchester Hill. Despite mostly overcast conditions at Old Winchester Hill this afternoon, there were still 4 species flying at the bottom of the car park slope - 5 Meadow Browns, 3 Red Admirals, 1 Small Heath and a Small White. [Posted by Adrian Hoskins]
Havant Thicket. With the butterfly season drawing to a close, the best I could manage today at Havant Thicket were 5 Speckled Woods (one very fresh), 2 Red Admirals and a couple of Small Whites. [Posted by Adrian Hoskins]
Painted Lady at Lee on Solent. It's Lee Festival this weekend and as I dashed out into the garden to photograph a Spitfire passing over my house (two actually, in formation) something very orange passed me. A pristine Painted Lady that took a great liking to what's left of our verbena after last weeks storms. I couldn't resist some photos and needless to say, completely missed the Spitfires! [Posted by Mark Wagstaff]
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| Painted Lady - Lee on Solent Photo © Mark Wagstaff | Painted Lady - Lee on Solent Photo © Mark Wagstaff |
Long-tailed Blue on Portsdown Hill. Individual seen in same spot as the two seen on 16/9. I assume that it's one of those though I guess possibly another? Appeared to be a male and a bit worn. Tails just short stumps! [Posted by Keith Turner]
Brown Hairstreak again at Great Fontley. Hoping to see the Commas that had hatched in yesterday's deluge, I had to be content with two Painted Lady instead, together with the inevitable Red Admirals and whites. About to adjourn at
14:30, a small butterfly was espied beating its way westward across the field from the Meon river, alighting on the blackthorn in the 'hallowed scallop'. After performing a peculiar war-dance on a leaf, presumably to confirm the identity of the plant, the pristine Brown Hairstreak retreated down the stem for about one foot before stopping to oviposit. Typically, it then vanished westward, ignoring the potted floral delights enjoyed by the other butterflies. This is the third specimen observed here since 9 Sept., all on the same patch of blackthorn <10m2 in area. [Posted by Andrew Brookes]
Bad timing by Commas at Great Fontley. Two Commas emerged from pupation at Great Fontley this morning, one hour ahead of the rain... [Posted by Andrew Brookes]
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| Emergent Comma 1, 1200 hrs Photo © Andrew Brookes | Emergent Comma 2, 1200 hrs Photo © Andrew Brookes |
Long-tailed Blue on Portsdown Hill. A bit of a surprise on a walk round Top field and Fort Widley area at midday. On south slope adjacent to the car-park by the roundabout at east end of the Top field. Cross the road from car-park and there is a wooden bench near an information board and the Long-tailed Blue was close the bench and seemed faithful to this area for the 45 minutes I was there. It did chase off a second similar sized butterfly and they both sped off quite high, before one returned, so maybe another in area. Best of rest was a Painted Lady at back of Fort Widley. [Posted by Tim Doran]
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| Long-tailed Blue Photo © Tim Doran |
Hayling Island. A stroll along the Hayling Billy track in warm sunshine today produced a Comma feeding at the abundant blackberries. Also 3 Red Admirals and about 15 Small Whites. [Posted by Adrian Hoskins]
Portsdown Hill. Plenty to see at the western end of Portsdown Hill on a warm afternoon including two Clouded Yellows. Abundant Small White, plentiful Meadow Brown, four Small Coppers, Common Blue, two Red Admirals and a Peacock provided a still summery scene [Posted by James Clark]
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| Clouded Yellow Photo © James Clark | Small Copper Photo © James Clark |
Eastney Beach. Excellent hot weather on Eastney Beach and today and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky when I visited Eastney Beach. Today there was a lot of Kite Surfers as there is an International competition along the beach at Eastney. I had to walk a fair distance to find my quarry and sure enough there were at least 4 Clouded Yellows to be seen. Unfortunately they did not stop as the weather was very warm so they made the most of it! Other butterflies seen were several Small Coppers, Common Blues which seemed to have had another brood, and a first for me on this site was a pristine Brown Argus. I think this site has more broods than other sites as it perhaps has more sunshine.
The Common Blue and the Brown Argus must lay eggs on other plants as I’ve looked for their host plants and there aren't any. Other species of interest is the Bee Wolf which I find fascinating; they are constantly on the hunt and being sandy the slopes are littered with holes where the prey is kept. [Posted by Ashley Whitlock]
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| Female Small Copper Photo © Ashley Whitlock | Clouded Yellow feeding Photo © Ashley Whitlock | Bee Wolf and Honey Bee prey Photo © Ashley Whitlock |
Blashford Lakes. Most nectar sources in the countryside are now depleted, and the species that overwinter as adults all seem to have gone into early hibernation, so I was a little surprised to see a fresh looking Peacock basking on a track through Blashford Lakes reserve near Ringwood today. There were also at least 4 Red Admirals, a couple of Speckled Woods and plenty of dragonflies present. [Posted by Adrian Hoskins]
End of season delights at Great Fontley. Second brood Comma and Peacock joining Red Admiral and whites to create a minor end of season show at Great Fontley. The pristine Peacock defied photography, but Comma obliged, perhaps too inebriated on fermented blackberry. Also seen was a Hummingbird Hawkmoth enjoying the bountiful panicles of Buddleja 'Autumn Beauty'. The solitary remaining second-brood Peacock larva duly pupated in captivity, only to deliver a Tachinid pupa after four days. Reader, I murdered him, or her. [Posted by Andrew Brookes]
Moth trap in my garden at Leigh Park. I had my moth trap on overnight in my garden at Leigh Park from 11th Sept into the following morning. I caught 25 species some of the highlights included Dark Spectacle 2, Blair's Mocha, Rosy Rustic 2, Frosted Orange, Clancy's Rustic 16, Pale Mottled Willow 42, L-album Wainscot 31, Large Yellow Underwing 23, Vine's Rustic 22, Lesser Yellow Underwing 15, Square-spot Rustic 18, Setaceous Hebrew Character 4, Box-tree Moth 8, Small Blood-vein 3 etc. [Posted by Barry Collins]
Long-tailed Blue eggs. I have been growing Broad-leaved Everlasting Pea in my garden for five or six years now in the hope of attracting a passing Long-tailed Blue. This year, our neighbours in Sussex have reported increasing numbers of this once rare butterfly in the latter part of the summer, so every hint of a blue butterfly has had me dashing into the garden only to report ‘another’ Holly Blue. James’s sighting on Porchester Common prompted me to inspect one of my plants, that is still producing flowers, for eggs. Lo and behold the first flower I checked had a hatched egg with a neat hole in the top! Further checks revealed at least half a dozen little white discs, all hatched. Hopefully in early October I should be able to see home grown adults - a first for the garden. [Posted by Mark Tutton]
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| LTB egg Photo © Mark Tutton |
Old Winchester Hill. An overcast and breezy couple of hours this morning at Old Winchester Hill, with no butterflies evident on the ramparts, but in sheltered areas down at the bottom of the slopes there were plenty to be seen. The only species actively nectaring was the Small White, of which I saw at least 40 specimens. Several others were seen basking in rabbit scrapes and grassy hollows, including 1 Small Copper, 1 Red Admiral, 1 Speckled Wood and at least 60 Meadow Browns. Additionally there were plenty of roosting butterflies that flew up as I walked among the abundant flowers - 3 Common Blues, 8 very worn Chalk Hill Blues, 1 Green-veined White, 2 Large Whites, and about 30 Small Heaths. [Posted by Adrian Hoskins]
Brown Hairstreak at Great Fontley. Brown Hairstreak alighted on blackthorn branch about 30cm off the ground, before disappearing inside bush, as is the wont of this species, reappearing about three feet away from the point of entry several minutes later, and fleeing eastwards. A fitting end to the summer.
The two Comma larvae found on one of the Spanish field elms have both pupated, as has the solitary remnant of the second-brood Peacock larval colony first noticed and reported on 22 August.
Elsewhere, a few Red Admirals, Small White and Large Whites, mostly enjoying Buddleja 'Autumn Beauty' and Verbena bonariensis, but none of the anticipated migrants. [Posted by Andrew Brookes]
St Catherine's Hill, Winchester. A walk around the western and southern perimeter paths from 1320-1500 realised 13 species. It was incredibly hot (28 deg C) with still air and the butterflies were extremely fidgety and few posed for the camera. Total: Red Admiral (19); Small White (14); Comma (1); Speckled Wood (3); Large White (3); Small Copper (6); Common Blue (M)(5)(F)(2); Meadow Brown (53); Small Heath (12); Chalk Hill Blue (11); Green-veined White (1); Brown Argus (3); Brimstone (1). [Posted by Francis Plowman]
Portchester Common. There are a few Everlasting peas on Porchester Common which I have long suspected could attract in a Long-tailed Blue. Today one was seen and stopped long enough to snap. [Posted by James Clark]
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| Long-tailed blue Photo © James Clark |
Old Winchester Hill. The heat was just so exhausting and even on the summit there wasn’t any sunshine at the time just a thin veil of cloud, which kept the heat in like a vacuum. It was good for the butterflies as they were enjoying the last days of the season, and most importantly the Silver-spotted Skipper was in good numbers. I walked over to the far slope facing south, and looked on both sides of the footpath, where the sheep had been grazing the sward was about 5-10mm in height and here there wasn’t any Silver-spotted Skippers of note, and very little wild flowers. On the opposite side the sward height was between 20-30 mm in height and this is where I saw the majority of the Silver-spotted Skippers.
The rabbit burrows all seemed to be on this side as well. Next year the side where the sward is the shortest should yield some good results for the Silver-spotted Skipper and the Adonis Blue as well. I counted up to (40) individuals and there were still plenty of very fresh specimens only a day old I would say. There were good numbers of Adonis Blue still but dwindling numbers of Chalk Hill Blue, fresh Small Copper and Brown Argus were also noted. There were no Clouded Yellows noted. On the summit I was witness to a large flock of House Martins and these for some reason had an interest in the local Kestrels, they were certainly mobbing them, maybe they thought the Kestrel was a threat to eating their insect food.? [Posted by Ashley Whitlock]
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| Female and male Silver Spotted Skipper close engagement Photo © Ashley Whitlock | Female Chalkhill Blue Photo © Ashley Whitlock | Sward heights on Old Winchester Hill Photo © Ashley Whitlock |
Monks Walk, Frater Fields & Woods, Gosport. A later and shorter walk around my local patch (1455-1630) - in fact the first this month - brought sightings of ten species. All the usual Autumnal 'suspects' but one of my favourite butterflies was found among the field of Fleabane - ie Common Blue female Variety Fb. Two were in the same field but both showed different markings. The violet of the female's wings shimmered magnificently in the sunshine (28.5 deg C) and was just sheer pleasure to observe closely. Total: Large White (6); Brown Argus (1); Red Admiral (2); Small White (6); Holly Blue (4); Green-veined White (1); Small Copper (6); Speckled Wood (9); Meadow Brown (4); Common Blue (F)(2)(M)(1); [Posted by Francis Plowman]
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| Common Blue female Var Fb Photo © Francis Plowman | Female Large White rejecting a male Photo © Francis Plowman | Holly Blue female on Fleabane Photo © Francis Plowman |
Moth trap in my garden at Leigh Park. I had my moth trap on overnight in my garden at Leigh Park from 6th Sept into the following morning. I caught 28 species some of the highlights were. Vestal 2, Clancy's Rustic, Frosted Orange, Maidens Blush, Lesser Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing, L-album Wainscot 14, Setaceous Hebrew Character 8, Broad-bordered Yellow Underwing 2, Light Emerald 2 etc. [Posted by Barry Collins]
Monks Hill Promenade & Seafield Park, Hill Head. A later walk along the promenade from the Monks Hill car park and then around Seafield Park brought 10 species to book (1530-1650, 27.5 deg C, slightly high overcast). The surprise was to find quite a few very fresh specimens particularly Small Copper. Sadly no sighting of Clouded Yellow notwithstanding the abundance of flora in the promenade field and especially in the park. Total: Small White (25); Small Heath (2); Common Blue (M)(7)(F)(1); Holly Blue (3); Small Copper (11); Large White (1); Meadow Brown (F)(6)(M)(1); Brown Argus (3); Red Admiral (1); Speckled Wood (1). [Posted by Francis Plowman]
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| Brown Argus female Photo © Francis Plowman | Common Blue female Photo © Francis Plowman | Small Copper Photo © Francis Plowman |
Southleigh Forest. In search of respite from the heat, I spent a couple of hours in the relative shade of Southleigh Forest this afternoon. In woodlands the butterfly season is almost over, but I managed to see 24 Speckled Woods, 4 Red Admirals and 3 Small Whites. [Posted by Adrian Hoskins]
Old Winchester Hill NNR. Another visit to Old Winchester Hill inside a week, to see the fading species like Silver-spotted Skippers, and Adonis Blues with the heat they are fading quite fast. The Adonis Blue seems to have done rather well here in 2023, but the Silver-spotted Skipper was rather hard to find so early in September. Usually that’s when I get my best counts but today sadly it was just (7). The butterfly which has made a big impact in numbers is the Small Heath, one of those butterflies that we barely give a nod to, just because we always know they are there. I find it a lovely little butterfly and deserves more rankings than it gets. Two Clouded Yellows passed me, when I had settled down for a rest, these being the first of the year, and they were not stopping only briefly for a quick drink on a thistle, or Scabious. [Posted by Ashley Whitlock]
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| Small Heath at rest Photo © Ashley Whitlock | Unusual posture for a small heath showing upper wings Photo © Ashley Whitlock | Herdwick sheep going about its business. Photo © Ashley Whitlock |
Moth trap in my garden at Leigh Park. I had 24 species of moth in my moth trap this morning, some of the highlights included.
A Mocha, Delicate, Rusty-dot Pearl, Light Emerald, White Point 3, L-album Wainscot 8, Angle Shades, Large Yellow Underwing14, Box-tree moth 3 etc. Also in the trap were 2 Hornets, 4 Wasps and a Harlequin Ladybird. [Posted by Barry Collins]
Titchfield Haven. Blazing hot sunshine at Titchfield Haven this afternoon, but very few butterflies - 1 Brimstone, 1 Large White, 8 Small Whites, 1 Meadow Brown, 1 Speckled Wood, 1 Holly Blue, 5 Red Admirals and 1 Small Copper. [Posted by Adrian Hoskins]
Tortoiseshell aberration without blue rings. I found this Tortoiseshell in my garden today. An aberration without blue rings [Posted by Lori Cusworth]
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| Photo © Lori Cusworth | Photo © Lori Cusworth | Photo © Lori Cusworth |
Old Winchester Hill field trip. It doesn’t get much hotter than this as we walked around Old Winchester Hill today without a coat in case it rained. In fact in the afternoon it was really too hot to do that much. We saw all but one of our target species, the Clouded Yellow will probably appear at the end of the week as there is some warm southerlies coming in, so hopefully they should appear then. There were some good numbers of butterflies today. The top prize I think went to the Small Heath, they were everywhere. A close second was the Meadow Brown. Also there was good numbers of Adonis Blues, mainly males and most of these were in good condition, and Silver-spotted Skippers were buzzing about mainly females, and several were seen laying eggs, along with a couple of female Adonis Blues on the short turf on the far southern slope. Several Painted Lady were seen as well, but you do that feeling that despite the warm weather the ringing in of autumn is very close by.? [Posted by Ashley Whitlock]
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| Silver Spotted Skipper on Scabious Photo © Ashley Whitlock | Robber Fly at rest Photo © Ashley Whitlock | Class of 2023 Photo © Ashley Whitlock |
Browndown North. Returned to Browndown north with my wife to look for Grayling and had the great pleasure of bumping into Francis Plowman. So nice to meet a true enthusiast. Numbers of Grayling reduced from earlier this week but still plenty on the wing although most becoming faded no doubt due to the recent rain and advancing season. Small Heath, Small Copper, and many Holly Blues still going strong [Posted by James Clark]
Browndown (North) Gosport. Clearly Grayling have survived much better in the more weather-protected habitat of Browndown (North) where at least ten were recorded this afternoon. They were found across the expanse of heather-strewn heath with more concentrated at the path intersection adjacent to the scorched area (new growth now appearing). Other than the Grayling, all the usual species were seen in a walk from 1440-1615 with the temperature still a balmy 22 degrees and mostly clear blue skies. Total: Small White (10); Speckled Wood (3); Holly Blue (11); Grayling (10); Small Heath (9); Red Admiral (1); Meadow Brown (3); Common Blue (F)(1)(M)(4); Small Copper (3); Brown Argus (1). [Posted by Francis Plowman]
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| Grayling feeds on Heather Photo © Francis Plowman | Female Common Blue on Heather Photo © Francis Plowman | Small Copper Photo © Francis Plowman |
Browndown South, Gosport. Finally, a sighting of Clouded Yellow! This more than compensated for failing to record even one Grayling. From 1115-1400 (20-22 deg C and light SE breeze) I covered much of the area excepting the large meadow and surrounds due to model aircraft activity. The Clouded Yellow was zipping up and down over a field of yellow flowers but eventually stopped for a couple of seconds when cloud covered the sun briefly. Perhaps we'll see more this week with its rather more optimistic weather forecast? Just nine species to book but the walk and weather was a delight. Total: Small White (39); Meadow Brown (9); Small Heath (63); Red Admiral (7); Holly Blue (9); Common Blue (F)(1)(M)(4); Brown Argus (1); Small Copper (6); Clouded Yellow (M)(1). [Posted by Francis Plowman]
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| Small Heath Photo © Francis Plowman | Clouded Yellow male at a distance Photo © Francis Plowman | Red Admiral male Photo © Francis Plowman |
Defence Munitions Gosport. An hour-long perambulation of just part of this vast wilderness yielded Small Heath (13), Small Copper (7), Common Blue (4), Holly Blue (1), Speckled Wood (2), Meadow Brown (5), Small White (8), Large White (2), Red Admiral (2). Blackthorn relics of the original farm hedges (the site purchased by MoD in 1913) everywhere, possibly hold Brown Hairstreak? [Posted by Andrew Brookes]
Brown Hairstreaks at Shipton Bellinger. Although it's getting late in the season now, I'm pleased to report that Brown Hairstreak are still on the wing at Shipton Bellinger. I did the butterfly transect today, and was pleased to see three Brown Hairstreaks low down (all females). Conditions were pleasantly warm and sunny, and with a bit of cloud around at times, they posed nicely for me. I was fortunate enough to see one busy egg-laying on young blackthorn stems. [Posted by Andy Barker]
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| Brown Hairstreak (female) at rest Photo © Andy Barker | Brown Hairstreak egg-laying Photo © Andy Barker | Brown Hairstreak (female) basking Photo © Andy Barker |