Extremadura, Spain, May 2008

Spanish Purple Hairstreak

The Marsh Fritillary Eurodryas aurinia beckeri is a variable species across europe and asia. This one was basking in the garden of our base in Extremadura.

Speckled Wood



A female Common Blue

Thanks to Don Green and David Anderson who helped in the identification of the lacewing Nemoptera pennis.

Sharpenhoe Clappers

A fine day and my first Painted Lady of the year !



There were a few Small Tortoiseshell around too.





Three Brimstone were seen - all in good condition



A grasshopper - not quite sure which one though ...

Wall Wonder

So, before the Wall Brown disappears completely from Bedfordshire, I managed to track down a known individual which took up territory just yards from a main-line railway track !





Common Blue



Small Heath

Maulden Woods

At last - a fine, sunny day, with 13 species of butterfly and 81 individuals.

There were plenty of Speckled Wood to be seen:



Meadow Brown abound:



Peacock



Only 2 Holly Blue were seen



... similarly, 2 Red Admiral:



Three Small Copper - including this tatty individual:

A winning streak

A successful trip out today to see Brown Hairstreak at Whitecross Green Wood in Oxfordshire. Individuals were noted in and around the car park, and the track leading south-west from there.

The female is orange underneath and has an orange flash on the upperside forewing:





The male has less orange on the underside and lacks the orange flash on the upper forewing:



The odd Purple Hairstreak were showing, but never quite close enough for a decent image.



There were two Silver-washed Fritillary on show - this one was very tatty.



A family of Common Lizard were quite close to a nest of Hornet located in an old hay bale.

Wet and Windy...

So, another day off - and yet more rain !

Unsuprisingly, King's Wood, Heath & Reach, didn't produce the excitement of a week ago, so I was grateful that something photogenic came by in the form of a Southern Hawker.

A Purple Patch

After a week of swanning around the Bedfordshire countryside it was back to work today - but not before one more visit to King's Wood, Heath & Reach.

There, amazingly, I found two Silver-washed Fritillary and Purple Emperor in the same area - both new for me ! A very satisfying end to the break.

A White-letter Day 30/07/08

A long, leisurly walk around Chicklands Wood this morning taking advantage of some hot sunshine and a chance to photograph the many insects on show.

The Canon 100-400mm zoom lens is not a dedicated macro lens, but reasonable images can still be had. The zoom allows you to stand off and thus not disturb your target. However, extraneous foliage often gets in the way as there is more 'stuff' to look through.


There were three White-letter Hairstreak on and around some bramble.



A new Longhorn beetle for me actually landed on my neck ! Stenocorus meridianus has been known to nip !



There were over thirty Peacock Inachis Io most in pristine condition. One or two were very obliging.



I only saw one Brimstone Gonepteryx rhamni today - looking quite immaculate but, as ever, posing with wings closed.



A moth which can be diurnal is the Ruby Tiger Phragmatobia fuliginosa fuliginosa It has two generations in the south and thinly scaled wings which is just noticable on this poorly focused image.

Sandhouse Lane NR

A single Brown Argus and a few Common Blue brightened up the afternoon !







Six-spot Burnet Zygaena filipendulae



A Small/Essex Skipper



A male Gatekeeper



A single Ruddy Darter by the main pool.

Bison Hill Beauties

A warm day at this great site. Just a few chalkhill Blue on the wing, and some pristine Brimstone too.

Gatekeeper



Brimstone



Chalkhill Blue





Marbled White



This leviathon hoverfly Volucella zonaria is up to 20mm in length. It is a Hornet mimic whose larvae scavenge in wasp nests !



Cinnabar moth larvae feeding on Ragwort. This moth has been introduced to some countries in an attempt to control Ragwort because of its voracious appetite for this plant.