8 Apr 20 - Finally Some Butterflies #BWKM0

Normally, I see my first individuals from the study on the flowers in my neighbour's garden when there is a small suntrap. But those flowers went over & their gardener tidied them, before I saw any Butterflies. In some years, I see the first individuals in late Feb or Mar, but typically the first individuals are seen in early Apr. So, this year was fairly normal. From early Apr, I was seeing Butterflies flying past, but not stopping. I failed to confirm their identification, but suspect they were Commas. Finally, on 7 Apr, I saw my first identified Butterflies: Comma & Large White.

Comma: Alner's Gorse (27 Jul 14)

Large White: Swanage (12 Aug 14)

Finally, I had two Butterflies on the #BWKM0 List, but this increased to five by the end of 8 Apr as the temperatures had finally started rising.

Brimstone: A male seen flying past from the study was great as they aren't annual. Fontmell Down (30 Jul 14)

Peacock: A look at the garden at lunchtime produced the first Peacock. St Aldhelms (20 Jul 14)

Holly Blue: There were no surprises when I saw the first Holly Blue as this is one of my commoner species given, I have allowed the amount of Ivy to increase significantly since I moved in. This was photographed in the garden (6 May 15)

Check tomorrow to see what the B in #BWKM0 stands for, in the next day's wildlife sighting when I will be confined at #BWKM0.

25 Nov 14 - Insect Photospot1 - Dorset Butterflies - The Whites, Hairstreaks & Blues

Following on from2 the First Birthday post, this is the first of several posts focusing on Dorset's fantastic Butterflies & Dragonflies. As we go into the Autumn & Butterflies are largely a distant memory, save a few late Red Admiral & a handful of other late species, then I thought I would remind everybody of the great range of Butterflies that occur in Dorset. I've managed to see all 45 species of Butterfly that breed regularly in Dorset these days. Additionally, I've seen 3 vagrant species in Dorset: Monarchs (3 different years), three of the five St Aldhelms Swallowtails & a Large Tortoiseshell, not forgetting the Maps which are most likely an illegal released. So here is a Photospot on the first half of the Dorset Butterfly list to help showcase how good Dorset is for Butterflies. Whenever possible I've tried to use photos taken in Dorset (where I've had to use photos from out of Dorset, I've indicated the county). There are many more photos of these species on the Blog which you can see by clicking on the labels on the right hand side of the Blog. Some of these photos could be improved or added to with additional upper or underwing photos or shots of both sexes, but that will give me something to do in future years.

Large White: Swanage (12 Aug 14)

Small White: Enjoying the Red Valerian in my garden (5 Aug 14)

Green-veined White: Old Harry (31 May 14)

Orange-tip: A species to photograph next year

Clouded Yellow: Old Harry (3 Sep 14)

Brimstone: Fontmell Down (30 July 14)

Purple Hairstreak: Alner's Gorse (20 July 13)

Brown Hairstreak: Alner's Gorse (27 July 14)

White-letter Hairstreak: Alner's Gorse (4 Aug 13)

Green Hairstreak: Allt Mhuic, Western Scotland (2 June 12)

Small Copper: St Aldhelms (2 July 14)

Small Blue: Old Harry (2 June 13)

Holly Blue: Swanage (8 Aug 14)

Silver-studded Blue: Female. Latchmore Brook, Hampshire (23 June 14)

Silver-studded Blue: Female. Latchmore Brook, Hampshire (23 June 14)

Brown Argus: Ulwell Gap (6 Aug 14)

Brown Argus: Ulwell Gap (6 Aug 14)

Chalkhill Blue: Male. Fontmell Down (30 July 14)

Adonis Blue: Durlston (Aug 14)

Common Blue: Female. Fontmell Down (30 July 14)

Common Blue: Female. Fontmell Down (30 July 14)

Part 2 of of this Insect Photospot will cover the remaining Dorset Butterflies including the Nymphalidae (Aristocrats, Fritillaries & Browns) and Skippers.