Butterfly Islands: March 2016

Friday, 25 March 2016

Garden Visitors.

Following a wet and windy night, today dawned with clear skies and it was not long before the sun shone in a blue sky.Not surprisingly then,that I recorded my first butterflies of the year in my garden around midday.A pristine Small White flew in but not finding any flowers it liked,sunned itself high up on one of our leafy bushes.This was quickly followed by a handsome male Brimstone that settled nearby but at a lower level.The third species of the day was a Peacock butterfly,again enjoying the sun on one of our paving stones.

Perhaps the best sighting was a Hummingbird Hawk Moth that spent some time nectaring from our primroses.

Thursday, 17 March 2016

Old and New.

The weather remains settled with plenty of sunshine.However at Wheelers Bay today that persistent easterly breeze prevented many butterflies from taking to the wing.Still,the warmth of the early afternoon did tempt out a Large White that fluttered past as I sat on a seaside bench.This must be a very early record for this species and it was soon followed by the discovery of a Small Tortoiseshell that had found a bare piece of ground to sun itself.

The Glanville Fritillary caterpillars seem to be progressing well with several large webs.Many caterpillars were out in the sun and hope is that this will be bumper season.

Tuesday, 15 March 2016

First Butterflies of the Season.

Although I have already seen a Red Admiral this year on the 25th February,today was the first time that the butteflies were around in numbers. This morning the sun shone in a cloudless sky and in Walters Copse any trace of the nagging easterly breeze that we have had recently was gone.It was very pleasant along a rides with primroses now in flower.In flower too were the sallows which attracted numerous hoverflies.Visiting the primroses was the odd queen bumblebee and also I noticed a Dark-edged Bee-fly.

A female Brimstone was my first sighting of the day. I disturbed her enjoying a sunny moment.She took off and disappeared into the trees.It was not long before I came across a Comma and during the course of my wander in the copse I encountered at least three more.Finally,I finished by again disturbing a butterfly which had found a sunny spot,this time a Peacock.

The Adonis Blue

The Large Tortoiseshell

It seems the general view on the status of the Large Tortoiseshell in Britain is that it is now extinct as a breeding butterfly.
It is a butterfly of woodland edges and hedgerows that abound in willows,elms,and poplars.These trees are used by the adult to lay its eggs and this single brood appears in July and August.The emerging butterfly then hibernates over the winter in log piles and hollow trees until the next spring.
On the Isle of Wight sightings are more often than not made from early March to April.Have these butterflies overwintered on the Island or have they come from the continent where it is common?
Any sightings made in July/August pose the same question.Another explanation could be that captive-bred releases are responsible.Only the discovery of eggs and caterpillars will probably answer these questions.

I can now report that evidence has been found of breeding just along the coast at Portland in Dorset (June 2020) and again at the same location in the summer of 2021.

The Glanville Fritillary

This elegant butterfly is mainly confined to the crumbling undercliffs and chalk downs of the Isle of Wight.It is also found on the Channel Islands and at one or two isolated colonies on the British mainland.In Britain the Glanville Fritillary is at the extreme north-western edge of its range.On the continent it is readily found in flowery habitats.
Around the southern shores of the Isle of Wight the cliffs constantly erode causing them to slip away and provide perfect conditions for new growths of the butterflies laval host plant,Ribwort Plantain.
The eggs are laid to the underside of the leaves of this plant and normally hatch after about three weeks.The resulting caterpillars live together in communal webs spun over the plantain.In the autumn they hibernate and recommence feeding in the spring,eventually dispersing to prepare for pupation.
The adult butterfly is on the wing from May to the end of June with the female being larger than the male.They will feed on,amongst other things, Birds-foot Trefoil and Thrift.

The Wall Brown

On the Isle of Wight in particular,the Wall Brown is a butterfly of field edges,coastal cliffs and dunes,and rabbit-grazed downland.
The male is territorial and spends much of the time patrolling and basking on the ground.
The female,which lacks the males conspicuous dark sex brand across the forewings,is larger.The undersides of both sexes are beautifully cryptic when at rest.
The Wall Brown generally produces two broods a year,the first from late April until late June and the second from mid-July to mid-September.