Spring has Sprung.

The almost summerlike weather continues and another spring butterfly was seen enjoying the warm sunshine in my garden today. A first sighting of this Comma which spent some considerable time basking  in a particularly sunny spot. 

More Butterflies on the Wing.

The mild spell continued today and the butterflies were tempted out into the warm sunshine. First of all a male Brimstone was seen flying around my garden and later a Peacock also appeared.

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Stock Photo

New Season Underway.

Following several days of settled.sunny and daytime mild temperatures,the new season now seems to be underway.Yestwerday I observed the first butterfly of the year in my garden.A Peacock basked in the sun  on a paving slab and this morning after the fog had lifted this Red Admiral was seen on a bench also in my garden.

On the Up.

A return visit to Bouldnor Forest this morning  was rewarded with the sight of six White Admiral.Several were seen nectaring on bramble flowers and one individual was observed spending some time on a bridleway extracting salts. 

Summer Butterflies on the Wing.

Today's visit to Bouldnor Forest near Yarmouth was rewarded with sight of a male Silver-washed Fritillary and a White Admiral. Both individuals were flying around very vigorously and quickly disappeared into the woodland. Another first of the season sighting was a tally of five Marbled White. All of them were also very active.

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Stock photo

Butterflies in Hiding at Bouldnor.

Despite a bright and sunny afternoon the only butterflies to be seen in Bouldnor Forest today were several Meadow Brown and Speckled Wood. However the one exception was this Large Skipper that landed on a leaf right in front of me and seemed very happy to let me take its picture.

Glanvilles on the Landslip.

Following a couple of visits to the landslip near to Compton Chine  over the last two weeks that drew a blank,today in warm,sunny,and breezy weather the Glanvilles were out in small numbers. Also to show  were Common Blue,Dingy Skipper,and Small Heath. The  National Trust carpark at the foot of Afton Down produced two more Glanville Fritillaries in addition to several Small Blue and two further Common Blue.

 

Three in a Row.

For the third day in a row I have been fortunate enough to encounter a Painted Lady. Today this individual pictured below visited the flowering pyracantha  in my front garden. This species is particularly fond of the pyracantha flowers as it is not the first Painted Lady I have observed on these flowers over the years.

A Painted Lady Visits My Garden.

Very pleased to see a Painted Lady this afternoon in my garden at Freshwater. It was feverishly nectaring on some Camassia flowers and then on a Cosmos flower.Both plants were still in their pots awaiting planting out. The date is one of the earliest that I have recorded this species and perhaps it will be one of those bumper years for the Painted Lady here in the UK.

Update on this post.Today the 15th May I observed a Painted Lady at the Afton Down carpark near to    Freshwater Bay at 10am. The individual was energetically feeding on the flowers before flying on.

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The Small Blues at Freshwater.

Spring butterfly species at Whiteways carpark located just up the road from Freshwater Bay have been limited so far this year. Apart from several Green Hairstreak the only other species I saw today was a male Common Blue which was very active and elusive. However,thanks to help from A.N.Other I saw a first Small Blue of the season and once you see one others soon appear.In fact at least four Small Blue were recorded,all flying about at high speed.

Green Hairstreaks Out in Numbers.

 The first Green Hairstreak of the year was seen on the 14th April at the National Trust carpark at the foot of Afton Down close to Freshwater Bay. Another visit to the site today counted at least six Green Hairstreaks,all feverishly flying about. However no other species were recorded here as yet.

Very Active Green Hairstreaks.

With the first Green Hairstreak recorded at the National Trust Carpark at  the foot of  Afton Down on the 14th,the weather turned for the worse with cool temperatures and a very brisk wind. However today the wind abated and that allowed for a very pleasant and warmer spring day with plenty of sunshine. The butterflies responded and at least two Green Hairstreak were seen at the carpark.

  

A First Green Hairstreak of the Year.

Several visits have been made to the National Trust Car Park at the foot of Afton Down over the last few days. Today around noon  the first Green Hairstreak was observed flying energetically  over a large spread of Bluebells and  briefly landing on the flowers.It then flew off and could not be located again. However I am sure that it will soon be joined by other individuals.

Stock Photograph

Stock Photograph