A Walk on Freshwater Cliffs

Last  Friday,the 25th was the second meeting in 2012 of the Isle of Wight Group of the Hants&IOW Butterfly Conservation Branch.For the second time too this year we were blessed with glorious weather for our meeting on the Freshwater Cliffs.The eroding cliff tops just to the south of Freshwater Bay are of sandstone and backed by chalk downland.

Attendance on the day was a record 25 with a contingent of our friends from Hampshire.We soon saw Small Blue,Common Blue,Small Heath and other downland species,in particular several Glanville Fritillary which  fly on the cliff top.The walk ended at the excellent butterfly site of Afton Down Chalkpit where we noticed a brand new sign erected by the owners of this beautiful section of Island coast,the National Trust.

More Adonis Blue on Bonchurch Down

With the summer now well and truly arrived the Adonis Blue on Bonchurch Down are emerging in greater numbers.The male Adonis are to be seen flying on the Down in pursuit of females which have now appeared.They have a more brown colouring on the underside than the males and sport a brown upperside.

At Wheelers Bay the Glanvilles are also in profusion and now, at the Glanville sites along our south-west coast they will be seen on the clifftops. too.

Orange Tip,Garden Visitor

Although the Orange Tip butterfly has been on the wing since April,it is not until well into May that it can be seen in our garden here in the West Wight.The male is an unmistakable sight with its bright orange wing tips,but in contrast the female has no hint of orange as one can see from an earlier entry on this blog.The Orange Tip must surely be one of the most elegant and beautiful of the spring butterflies.

Bonchurch Down and Wheelers Bay

Sunny weather over the last two days has brought on a spurt of activity at Bonchurch Down and  Wheelers Bay.Todays count of Glanville Fritillaries at the Bay was eleven.I have not heard of any other Glanville sightings at any of the other Isle of Wight locations to date. With drifts of valerin at the Bay it has provided a colourful display to attract the fritillaries.

Meanwhile on Bonchurch Down there is another beautiful sight of the many Adonis Blue male butterflies.

First Glanville Fritillary at Wheelers Bay

Today started cloudy but by early afternoon the sun had appeared and also the first Glanville of 2012.At Wheelers Bay on the Isle of Wight I was very happy to see a Glanville today.This is nearly three weeks later than is normal for the last few years.The weather has been poor recently and that ,together with the very low web count may account for the delay in its appearance.

I was very lucky too, to see a Clouded Yellow at the Bay.It could have been at very recent arrival as the butterfly was keen to feed and rest.This was the first Clouded Yellow that I have seen since my first sight here on April 15th.

Adonis Blues on Bonchurch Down

As mentioned in one of my recent entries Bonchurch Down at Ventnor is well known for its Adonis Blue butterflies.The butterfly should emerge in the next few days on the Down and another brood will be out in the late summer.Todays visit did not discover any Adonis but I was very pleased to see two Brown Argus butterflies.This is my first sighting of 2012.In addition I came across a Small Heath roosting on a seed head.The weather at the time was rather cloudy and consequently butterfly activity was limited.

First Sighting of Common Blue

Although the Glanville Fritillary has not yet appeared at Wheelers Bay,there are many other butterfly species to be found there throughout the summer.Among them is the Common Blue,and yesterday I saw two males.This sighting could well be the first  in the UK this year.Also the Dingy Skipper is here and I counted at least four individuals

Wall Lizards too are still common at the Bay and the male is particularly striking with its green flanks.

The Glanville Fritillary at Wheelers Bay

I have mentioned Wheelers Bay several times in recent blog entries when refering to the Glanville Fritillary on the Isle of Wight.With its south facing aspect and protected to the north by sheer chalk cliffs,Wheelers Bay enjoys a very mild situation.

A few years ago the coastal defences were vastly improved here and an area created between  the coastal path and the base of the cliff.This area was quickly colonised by plants and became an ideal habitat for the Glanville.Around this time a stretch of the coast at Bonchurch, which maintained a colony of Glanvilles was in imminent danger of disappearing into the sea due to erosion.Therefore chrysalides were collected there and transferred to Wheelers Bay.A thriving colony was quickly formed with several hundred butterflies on the wing.However in recent years this figure has gone down mainly due to some of the habitat becoming overgrown.Nevertheless there is still a healthy population here.

Many other species of butterfly are to be seen at the Bay,one of which at this time is the beautiful Orange Tip.The following photos are of a female enjoying a sheltered sunny spot in one of the Bays private back gardens.

Here and throughout Ventnor one can also find the Wall Lizard.It is a very handsome creature particularly the adult.

Still waiting for the Glanvilles.

The weather over the last week or so has been very changeable on the Isle of Wight.Although there have been sunny spells we have had a lot of rain and wind recently.This must be detrimental to the early appearance of the Glanville Fritillary and a visit yesterday to Wheelers Bay,Ventnor in search of the butterfly on the wing was unsuccessful.However I did notice that their caterpillars were on the move.Here at Wheelers Bay many Glanville chrysalides are found under the chalk boulders and stones at the base of the cliff.

Earlier on Bonchurch Down I came upon a male Wall and a Small Heath.The latter is my first sighting this year of this species. It was always one step ahead of me a good photograph proved too difficult to achieve on this occasion

More Small Blues

A brief visit yesterday to Afton Down before the weather  turned wet and a first sight of a female Small Blue and also a male.At this location the appearance of this butterfly has been extraordinarily early this year with my initial sighting on the 30th March a national record for this species.Grizzled Skippers and Green Hairstreaks are already there in good numbers and hopefully very soon they will be joined by the Dingy Skipper.

Another first for 2012 was a female Wall Brown at the chalkpit.

Waiting for the Glanvilles

The Glanville Fritillary is now expected to be on the wing in the next few days on the Isle of Wight.

At Wheelers Bay which is sandwiched  between Ventnor and the village of Bonchurch the first sighting of this butterfly is always made here.The Bay is south facing and enjoys a very unique climate.Yesterdays visit did not produce any sightings of the Glanville,however I did see a male Orange Tip at the base of the chalk cliffs that mainly enclose the Bay.

Overlooking Bonchurch Village is Bonchurch Down,well known for the Adonis Blue butterfly.This butterfly too is soon due to emerge.At present there are several Small Coppers to be seen on the Down and the odd Wall Brown. 

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Yet More Spring Butterflies

With such an array of butterflies to be seen at Afton Down  Chalkpit I returned there this morning.The weather was sunny and warm as this site can be a sun trap.Immediately I saw three Dingy Skipper and it wasn't long before two Wall butterflies were flying around.One female,perhaps the same individual as seen here yesterday  and a male.Several Green Hairstreaks and Grizzled Skippers are on view along with an as yet single Small Copper.I was very pleased to see a male Small Blue as I have not seen this species since my initial sighting on the 30th March.