More First Sightings.

The weather continues to remain unsettled and today on the Isle of Wight it was generally cloudy with brief sunny spells and a brisk wind. So perhaps the best place to minimise the effects of that wind was to visit my local forest at Bouldnor.When the sun did appear one or two butterflies took to the wing and I was happy to see my first Silver-washed Fritillary of the season.He was feeding on the ample bramble flowers that are in the forest now, but unfortunately for me he decided to disappear over the hedge and was not to be seen again.However another first of the year was not too far away, for close by a male Ringlet fluttered around hoping to find a good basking place.Along the forest tracks were good numbers of Meadow Brown nectaring on the bramble flowers.

Top Highlight of 2015.

The past season has thrown up several exciting sightings, such as the close encounter with White-letter Hairstreaks  on an elm in Newport town centre,the joy of seeing the valezina form of the Silver-washed Fritillary in numbers at Porchfield,and finding a colony of Lesser Spotted Fritillaries on the beach on the Greek Island of Thassos. However the best must be the discovery of Glanville Fritillary pupae or chrysalies on the Island back in May.Here the habitat for this fritillary is unique as the continental Glanvilles frequent meadows,riverbanks,and woodland clearings.On the Isle of Wight it is a butterfly of our cliffs and clifftops.Therefore finding a spot to pupate can mean under stones or rocks and this is the place where these chrysalises were found.As normal they use a strand of silk to attach themselves to their chosen stone where it will take up to three weeks to emerge as an imago.
  

Back to Normal.

The Silver-washed Fritillary is a majestic butterfly of our woodlands in the summer months.The male is a strong flyer along our woodland glades stopping on feed at bramble flowers. The female on the other hand can sometimes be seen flying  in the shade of oak trees seeking a suitable place to lay her eggs at the base of the tree.

As they mature the female Silver-washed develop a slight green tinge to their upper wings.This can vary intensity and the female pictured below has a significant greening of her wings.Unlike the valezina form it does not extend to all the upper side.

Male Silver-washed.

On the Lookout for Something Special.

In the south of England including the Isle of Wight up to 15% of female Silver-washed Fritillaries occur in the beautiful form of valezina. These females are olive-green in colour with an underside of washed pink.This individual pictured below was spotted today in a nearby copse enjoying the ample bramble flowers.

It's Hotting Up.

With the promise of a heatwave this week the weather today was warm and sunny,and just right to prepare us for soaring temperatures by Wednesday.The butterflies certainly responded to the heat and there were plenty to see in my local copse.From just one Silver-washed Fritillary at the weekend,their numbers had increased to at least six.Also on show are the first White Admirals on the season and whereas the Fritillaries are happy to feed on the bramble and thistle flowers,the Admirals prefer at present to fly around the trees only occasionally coming down to land on the sunny spot.

More Marbled Whites are now in the wood and a real treat was to see a female Purple Hairstreak  leave the upper branches of an oak tree to bask in the sun almost at ground level.Many thanks to Andy Butler for the use of his photograph of this hairstreak.

Silver-washed Now Back in Our Woodland.

Walking around my local copse this morning on a very sunny and warm start to the day when I saw a solitary male Silver-washed Fritillary on the lookout for the new bramble flowers.Despite several attempts to land it was constantly shooed away by the Meadow Browns.Eventually he managed to evade their attentions and briefly feed from the flowers.

Summertime.

A very warm and sunny morning at Walters Copse today and it was not long before I came across a pristine Painted Lady butterfly.Not too far down the path and a Dark Green Fritillary was also feeding on the giant thistles.This fritillary can be found in our woodland as well as on our chalk downland.

Now good to see reasonable numbers of Marbled White,Meadow Brown,and Ringlet in the copse.Not many Silver-washed Fritillaries though and no sign of any Valezina as yet.The normal  females however are in evidence seeking out egg laying sites at the base of oak trees.

A Walk in Walters.

This National Trust copse  at Newtown village boasts a good selection of  flora and fauna and I took an extended wander through it today.

White Admiral numbers continue to grow with the Silver-washed Fritillary numbering just three at the moment with two males and a female.Ringlets are very numerous,as are Meadow Browns but Marbled Whites are scarce at present.A few more Small Skippers are out now together with a couple of Commas.With the weather continuing settled,in the main,butterfly numbers and species are set to increase.

Summer Hots Up.

We are enjoying a settled period of hot, early summer weather and butterflies are certainly responding to the conditions by emerging a little head of time than one would expect.In Walters Copse today I saw my first Small Skipper of the year and the first Marbled Whites are now flying with the ever increasing numbers of Meadow Browns and Ringlets.With the White Admirals now in the copse they have been joined by Silver-washed Fritillaries and with their strong flight they seem to rush from one nectar source to the other.
Of the several types of orchid now to be seen in our woods and copse is the beautiful Bee Orchid as discovered today in Walters Copse.

First Ringlet.

Hearing that a Silver-washed Fritillary had been spotted  in Bouldnor Forest,Yarmouth yesterday  I was hopeful for  a sight of one when I arrived at the forest this afternoon.It may well have been the hottest day of the year so far and it was not long before I counted several Meadow Browns busily nectaring on the ample crop of bramble flowers.Despite sometime spent searching I did not manage to find a Silver-washed.However I was lucky enough to see one Ringlet,the first of season.

More Summer Sweetness for Butterflies

The warm summer weather continues and now that the fleabane is in flower there are plenty of butterflies enjoying it's nectar.Around Walters Copse on the Island I came across numerous pristine Peacock on the plant as well as Brimstone,Painted Lady,Small Copper,Common Blue,Brown Argus,Whites,Silver-washed Fritillary, Meadow Brown,,and a Clouded Yellow.

Summer Sweetness for Butterflies.

In the copse and hedgerows the fleabane is now in flower.It is a great favourite with many butterflies as they flock to drink its nectar

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On the Lookout for Valezina in Walters Copse.

I have to go back to the 1970's to recall my last sight of the valezina form of the Silver-washed Fritillary.This rather beautiful form is found mainly in central and southern England and occurs in up to 15% of the females.There was no shortage of the usual coloured Silver-washed Fritillaries in Walters Copse today together with plenty of White Admirals.Making my way to where I understand the valezina has been sighted in the Copse recently I came across an individual high up on a bramble bush.After observing it for some time nectaring on the flowers it suddenly flew off pursued by a male.Somewhat farther on and in a sunny spot of oak trees fronted by brambles I was treated to a mating pair of Silver-washed not too high up in the tree.I was very pleased to see that the female was a valezina.They remained locked together on an oak leaf and to my amazement another valezina appeared close by and started to enjoy the bramble flowers.Two in one day,a very lucky day.

A Hot Afternoon in Firestone Copse.

On a hot afternoon the partial shade of the woodland glades in Firestone Copse was welcome today.Almost immediately along the first track,I was passed by a string of Silver-washed Fritillaries and one of my encounters here was with a female Silver-washed looking for a shady spot to lay her eggs.They tend to choose the base of a tree trunk and this one fluttered into the dark to lay on several trees.This was mixed with feeding on convenient bramble flowers and resting in the dappled sunlight

White Admirals were also plentiful and found particularly on bramble flowers and any damp spot on the ground where they could obtain moisture.Meadows Browns and Ringlets were very numerous.

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