Orange Tip's Now a Common Sight.

My first record of an Orange Tip this year was on the 29th April which is quite late. However numbers have now increased and I now expect to see  this species almost every day while out and about and in my garden too. The individual pictured below was encountered yesterday along with several others and all it seems were males.

Glanville's Now on the Coastal Cliffs.

There was a bevy of butterflies today at the National Trust Viewpoint carpark  overlooking Freshwater Bay. A first of the year sighting of a male Common Blue was immediately followed by a Glanville Fritillary. Also in evidence were three Dingy Skipper, a Brown Argus.Green Hairstreak,a Small Copper.together with Small Blue and a male Orange Tip.

Walking along the clifftop and then descending the steps onto the landslip produced  a few  Small Heath,two Small Copper, three Common Blue,a Painted Lady, and at least twelve more Glanville Fritillary. 

Butterflies on Mottistone Down

During a lunchtime walk along the slopes of Mottistone Down the most numerous butterfly was the Glanville Fritillary and a close second, the Common Blue. However the latter was the only 'Blue' to be seen today. Other butterfly species encountered were Wall Brown,Dingy Skipper,Small Heath,and Orange Tip. 

The Cool Weather Persists.

Despite the sun today, temperatures were disappointing with a persistent cold wind that has prevailed for over a month. However some butterflies were to be seen in my local forest with several Brimstone and the occasional Orange Tip. Other  butterflies on the wing were a Green-veined White, a Red Admiral, one Speckled Wood, and a few Large White.

Garden Orange Tips.

Butterfly sightings in the garden have been disappointing so far, with only several Small White and a passing Holly Blue.However, I have a impressive honesty plant in flower at the moment and I was hoping that this would attract the Orange Tip.So at the weekend I was pleased to see a male flying around the garden.Unfortunately he was in a hurry and with other things on his mind he quickly passed on.Two more visits of male Orange Tip's that day had the same result, so I feared that my flowering plant would not be a success.

I did not need to worry as today a female Orange Tip took great interest in the flowers and laid eggs among the blooms.

Orange Tips and Garlic.

Today the sun struggled to shine but a walk along the wooded banks of Shalfleet Stream was rewarded with the display and heavy scent of wild garlic as the drifts of plants carpeted the woodland floor.In the damp ground near to the stream a good number of Orange Tip butterflies enjoyed the  cuckooflowers which are also known as Lady's-smock.

Butterflies Respond to the Warm Spring Weather.

The cold weather brought on by a persistent and brisk easterly wind last week has now gone and we are now enjoying sunny and warm days with temperatures in excess of 20 degrees Celsius.The butterflies are beginning to respond with regular sightings of Orange Tip and a big increase in Green Hairstreak at a favourite site at the base of Afton Down in the West Wight.A lunchtime visit to Whiteways today produced a count of six to eight individuals.Unfortunately no other new species were as yet on display.

Just the Usual Suspects.

With the spring weather warming up over the last few days and set to continue,I was very hopeful of seeing the first newly emerged butterflies of the year today.

Speckled Wood and Orange Tip have already been sighted on the Isle of Wight and an afternoon walk through Bouldnor Forest and later Walters Copse at Newtown proved to be a disappointment as I failed to see any of these two species.Still,the usual suspects were out and about.Male Brimstone forever on the move, along with several basking Comma,a Red Admiral or two on the tracks,and good numbers of Peacock.The latter it seemed always to be found close to  Pussy Willow which is now flowering in our damp woods.

Bonchurch Down Delivers a Bevy of Butterflies.

The south facing slopes of Bonchurch Down look out over the English Channel.The Down is well known for the Adonis Blue Butterfly as well as a selection of other butterfly species.The Adonis is not yet on the wing but a walk along the slopes this morning produced a bevy of butterflies.

It was the first sighting this year of Common Blue,Brown Argus,Dingy Skipper,and a Clouded Yellow.The latter is known to breed just a short distance away around Wheelers Bay where adults are observed regularly in April.More than likely the individual seen today was a migrant as we have been  enjoying a very warm southerly wind recently.

Orange Tips Busy in my Local Woods.

It was shirt sleeve weather today with temperatures topping 23 degrees celcius.At Walters Copse the trees and saplings are bursting into green and the primroses carpet the rides.To add to the colour the first Orange Tips are on the wing.Firstly a female busily searching for places to lay her eggs and a male trying to take her interest.He was given the message that she was not available and he quickly flew off to feed on the woodland flowers.

Finding a Place to Roost.

It has been a cloudy day and during a very brief brighter spell this afternoon a male Orange Tip floated into our garden on the lookout it seems, for a spot to roost.He finally landed on an emerging daisy,Anthemis punctata cupaniana at the edge of a flower border where he soon settled down for the rest of the day. 

Busy Orange Tips.

The first Orange Tip,a male, flew around my garden today.Most years I do not see this species in my garden until May, so much earlier than expected.Activity of this species has been evident since the first week in April when at Ventnor I came across a female taking great interest in the Honesty plants.She was soon joined by a male who fluttered feverishly around her.Her response,in this instance,was a rejection of his advances in typical Orange Tip fashion.Females who have already mated and want to shoo away a male will  flatten their wings and raise their abdomen.This is followed by an opening of the genital valve to release anti-aphrodisiac hormones to discourage the male.

New Spring Butterflies.

Spring has now arrived and several newly emerged species are to be seen on the wing.It is always a treat to see the first Orange Tip and at Wheelers Bay today a male was busily feeding on the flowers of the many Honesty plants that grow in any sheltered sunny spot.Another new species here was a male Holly Blue which occasionally stopped its brakeneck flight to nectar on any blooms.

Back at home a female Large White visited my garden to feed on the abundant flowers of our Berberis.This shrub is always a magnet for the bumblebees and also it seems, for this hungry White.