Butterfly Islands: Nidri

Showing posts with label Nidri. Show all posts

Thursday, 30 May 2019

A Spot of Luck.

The Greek Island of Meganisi is reached via the tourist port of Nydri on Lefkada.So a short ferry ride back to Nydri to spend a short time in and around the town is easy and provides an opportunity to see the local butterflies.

A common species here in Greece and in Europe is the Spotted Fritillary.This female was seen enjoying the clover which proved very lucky for me.

Tuesday, 2 June 2015

Back to Lefkada.

A favourite Greek Island of mine and a visit at this time of year is perfect to enjoy what Lefkada has to offer in the way of butterflies.

Just three kilometres inland from the coastal town of Nidri is the local waterfall.The waters from the Islands' mountains cascade over this pretty waterfall into a rocky ravine.The base of the fall is easily reached from the approach road by a donkey track and here in places the sun can penetrate to the floor of the ravine.In these sunny spots butterflies gather to take the salts and moisture and I was pleased to see several species including Wood White,Nettle Tree Butterflies,Ilex Hairstreak,and Southern White Admiral.

However the prize butterfly was a male Iolas Blue,the largest 'blue' in Europe,and as it turns out not a species recorded on Lefkada or indeed any Greek Ionian Island before.So this sighting is now quoted by Butterfly Conservation,European Interests Group on their Facebook page.

A male Iolas Blue

Monday, 3 June 2013

More Lefkada Butterflies

On the outskirts of Nidri, on the island of Lefkada several streams and ditches flow from the mountains into the sea.As this island is part of the Ionian Islands rainfall is high in comparison with the Greek Islands of the Aegean that can be very dry especially during the summer.

So it seemed a good place to search for odonata and happily it did not disappoint.However butterflies too were around ,in the small fields(or wasteground as we would call it) feeding on the numerous wild flowers and grasses.

Whites and the lovely bright yellow Cleopatra seemed to be particularly common here although the sight of a Balkan Marbled White was a treat.It has some differences compared to the ordinary Marbled White.

Fluttering about in the grasses are small blue butterflies and an attractive example is perhaps a Southern Blue.Polymmatus celina,a cryptic species of the Common Blue. However it is not in the known range of this particular species and it can only be an unusual type of Common Blue.

Turning to the brown butterflies,another id problem a lot of the time,on a sunny wall or rock the Wall Brown can be seen.An underestimated species as its colouring and patterning are rich.This one was no exception.

Road to Paliokatouna

The beautiful Greek Island of Lefkada is one of our favourite destinations.We last visited it two years ago at the same time of year staying just above the hillside village of Paliokatouna with spectacular views over the coastal town of Nidri,and beyond to the Geni peninsula and the offshore islands.The mountains of the Greek mainland are clearly visible in the distance.

This year we made our base on the fringes of Nidri , where yachting is the main interest due to the safe mooring waters and sailing conditions.

As my butterfly trips were so successful around Paliokatouna last time I made a point of taking the road out of Nidri towards the village some three kilometres away.The quiet road gently rises up into the hills and dusty tracks lead off at regular intervals into olive groves and wooded areas.It wasn't long before I came across several species of butterfly,the most outstanding being the Swallowtail.A fast flier I generally only see it in passing but today I was fortunate enough to see it nectaring on scabious at the roadside.A notoriously difficult butterfly to photograph due to it's constant fluttering when feeding.

Scarce Swallowtail

As it turned out perhaps the best way to see butterflies on this very hot day was to find any wet spot along a track as they are in constant need of the moisture and salts.I was again lucky in this regard as on the same wooded track as two years ago I found again a Nettle Tree Butterfly, and amongst a recently watered flowerbed a Woodland Grayling.

One species of butterfly that in some years is abundant but others not so is the Black-veined White.I did not see more than one or two time but was happy to see one feeding on thistles at the side of the road to Paliokatouna.

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.