Transect Update - Weeks 16 and 17.

The temperatures during my Week 16 and 17 transect walks varied between 24 and 28 deg.C definitely the hottest and most humid so far this season with the total number of sightings dropping slightly in the higher temperature last week.

Gatekeepers continued to be the highest recorded species over the last two weeks.

Gatekeeper

Sightings of all the three Skipper species recorded on the transect has shown a downward trend for the last three years. The reasons could be weather related at the larval stage; the timing when the grass rides are mown plus the ever increasing spread of bracken outcompeting the grasses.

Essex Skipper

Although the number of Meadow Brown and Ringlet logged during weeks 16 and 17 have fallen they continue to be the top two annual recorded species for this transect.

Ringlet

Perhaps not unexpectedly for this oak woodland site the one species that has done exceptionally well this year is the Purple Hairstreak. On the 21 July I recorded 26 and last week I logged 43 with many other sightings away from the transect.

Purple Hairstreak

Just one Marbled White seen again in Section 4 last week.

Marbled White

Two other species that has definitely caught my eye this season are the diminutive Brown Argus with nine individuals recorded last week plus six Common Blue.

Common Blue - Female (left) Male (right)

Brown Argus

Over the last 17 weeks I have now recorded 1024 separate sightings of 21 species. This total to date far exceeds any of the previous three years annual counts BUT this does not infer that some of these flutters are doing well just that the recent lengthy period of warmer conditions has brought them out of hiding and made it easier to find and count them.

Linking to:

Nature Notes

Headley Heath Fieldtrip.

Early on Thursday morning I spent a couple of hours wandering across the chalk heath and downland at Headley in the hope of adding a few species to my photo album for this season before joining an pre-planned Butterfly Conservation fieldtrip around this National Trust site.

Not unsurprisingly the most numerous species were the Gatekeeper (above) and Brown Argus (below) frantically nectaring everywhere I trod.

Not initially finding any of my target species I decided to sit awhile at a convenient spot and just soak up the atmosphere and monitor the comings and goings and nearby I spotted a couple of moths.

A Silver-Y and a Common Purple and Gold (Mint Moth).

As the temperature started to rise there was a marked increase in aerial activity and whilst I had seen Dark Green Fritillary at another site earlier this month I had not previously managed to grab any images so finding a female briefly perched was a bonus. I also saw two others, probably males, flying strongly across the hillside.

A few minutes later I located the species I was hoping to find, the rare Silver-spotted Skipper (Hesperia comma).

At around midday I was joined by the large group of BC members on this section of open hillside where a few more Silver-spotted were seen.

A male Chalkhill Blue (Lysandra coridon) was another first for me for 2018.

Above are just a few of the other species logged during our walk, including Silver-washed Fritillary, Marbled White, Speckled Wood, Common Blue and Brimstone.

The final new sighting was a very drowsy female Purple Emperor (below) who eventually fluttered high into the nearby woodland

Linking to:

Saturday's Critters

Transect Update for Weeks 14 and 15.

My butterfly transect walk for week 14 was undertaken with temperatures around 25 deg.C and just before a short camping holiday in Kent when it soared well above 30 deg.C. On my walk last Monday (Week 15) the temperature was a more comfortable 23 deg.C.

Week 14 produced the highest count of 11 Large Skipper (above) so far this year.

Whilst I logged sightings of 9 Small/Essex Skippers I was only able to clearly identify 4 individuals as Essex Skippers (above).

As expected the most prominent species seen were Ringlets (above) with a total of 171 recorded over the two visits and Week 15 saw the emergence of the Gatekeepers (below). 

I recorded Large, Small and Green-veined Whites on both walks with the former producing 14 sightings and was also the only species that stopped long enough to be captured by the lens.

Large White.

I also recorded my highest count of 26 Purple Hairstreaks in Week 14 and the highest overall annual total so far of 39 easily exceeding any of the previous three years records. The White Admiral tally for this season stands at 40 to date and is double the sightings recorded over the last four years, 

Conversely sightings of Silver-washed Fritillary has so far been much lower than last year.

Three new species for this season were seen in the last two weeks:

Holly Blue.

Peacock.

A female Brown Argus. This is only the second time in four years that I have recorded this species on the transect.

Linking to:

Saturday's Critters
Nature Notes

Recent Forays on Ashtead Common.

During the past week I have made three separate forays onto different parts of Ashtead Common and on each occasion whilst the temperature was more or less favourable the strong breezes and cloudy skies have conspired against me seeing and getting photos of some of the expected species. Nevertheless here are images of some of the species seen.

Large Skipper (Ochlodes venata). Of the three Skipper species this one is the easiest to find and identify and has been the most common on my transect walks from late June to date.

However the Small Skipper (Thymelicus sylvestris) has so far been less obvious than the same period last year and I have yet to find and clearly identify its close relative the Essex Skipper on my transect visits.

This mating pair of Small Skipper were spotted during a walk that I led for the local branch of Butterfly Conservation on Thursday when a total of 17 species was recorded including many Purple Hairstreak and Purple Emperor (c20) flying high above the Oak canopies. One Purple Emperor tantalisingly fluttered around a few of us at head height for a few minutes but failed to land!

Small White (Pieris rapae).

Comma (Polygonia c-album).

Red Admiral(Vanessa atalanta).

The most numerous species both on my woodland transect and other walks on the common at the moment is the Ringlet (Aphantopus hyperantus) which is happy to fly providing there is a little warmth even on the dullest of days.

The BC walk on Thursday also provided my first local sighting of a fresh male Gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus).

Finally this Beautiful Demoiselle (Calopteryx virgo) below was seen as I wandered alongside the stream on my return to the car and was certainly aware of my presence.

Friday Flutters - Weekly Update.

Despite the lack of sunshine over recent days the collage above proves there are still a few colourful butterflies to be found around my local birding patch, providing some photo opportunities, in lieu of the avian species that are all still hiding from my lens.

First up was a single Small Copper (Lycaena phlaeas) that alighted briefly beneath my feet before moving onto another leaf and then promptly closing its wings!

A few male Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus) were obvious as they flitted hither and thither before disappearing deep into the grasses to rest briefly before their next territorial foray.

I saw a few Meadow Browns but as expected the Gatekeepers (Pyronia tithonus) were far more numerous but not very active under a cloudy sky. The undersides of both sexes are very similar but this one opened its wings (below) to reveal a female.

A very fresh Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) landed on a old tree stump and provided a different splash of colour.

As I walked over the upper grassy meadow a couple of male Small Heath (Coenonympha pamphilus) were chasing one another and this was one of the few occasions I have managed to get a shot as this tiny flutter that is so well camouflaged when it settles deep amoungst the grasses.

The star find of the week was a resting Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui), a migrant species that visits our shores from North Africa. Interestingly I photographed this individual within 50 yards of a single sighting I recorded here during August last year.

With the present unsettled weather pattern it might be a while before I get some more photo opportunities.

Butterfly Forays.

It is rare for me to walk anywhere locally where I don't have to negotiate a fence or gate and there is always the anticipation of what may be found on the other side.

The semi-shaded track (above) is one route that takes me steadily upwards onto the chalk slopes of the North Downs where I recently spent a few hours in the company of hundreds of delightful black and white butterflies, the Marbled White (Melanargia galathea).

With Common Knapweed everywhere it wasn't too difficult, even with a gusty wind, to find a few obliging subjects and a seat conveniently placed to rest the weary legs and admire the wild Orchids.

Earlier this week on a dull, muggy day I decided to wander around the tracks and pathways within Horton Country Park. There are lots of fences here bordering the horse paddocks where the polo ponies and other breeds spend their time chilling out in between being ridden by their owners.

On the far side of one of the paddocks I again found the resident Little Owl (below), just discernible with the naked eye, perched on top of a fence post. [N.B. Original image heavily cropped].

The main purpose of my visit was to see what might be flying or perched in a meadow just beyond another gate and I wasn't to be disappointed. Despite the lack of sunshine there were good numbers of the expected grassland butterfly species with a few others perched on the field boundary vegetation.

Clockwise from bottom left: Small Skipper, Speckled Wood, Ringlet, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper and Comma.

Good numbers of the aptly named Gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus) were spotted dancing unhurriedly around the field margins and gateways often jostling with each other to find a sunny perch on the bramble leaves.

While back at home the first of the lilies, Lilium 'Lady Alice' are starting to open up and the resident Robin watches from his preferred fence perch.

I'll be wandering the tracks around Ashtead Common today in the hope of catching up with some other species that might come in range of the lens. FAB.

Linking to Good Fences hosted by Theresa.