What is that Skipper?

A butterfly encountered on numerous occasions during my wanders along the tracks around our holiday base were skippers. All attracted to the roadside flowering plants and the garden flowers. There are records of three species of skipper on Rhodes,however the one I was hoping to see was the Laventine Skipper Thymelicus hyrax, which is restricted  to a few eastern Aegean Islands, although there are a couple of regions in mainland Greece where they can be found.The other two species on Rhodes are the Lulworth Skipper Thymelicus acteon and  T. sylvestris the Small Skipper.

All are difficult to identify,at least for me, so I thought it wise to consult an expert  on my return home. The result was not what I had hoped for and the Levantine Skipper was not among the photographs I had taken. Still,I had managed to photograph the remaining two species and they can be seen below,duly captioned. 

Lulworth Skipper

Small Skipper

Lulworth Skipper

Lulworth Skipper

Lulworth or Small Skipper

The Aegean Meadow Brown.

The Aegean Meadow Brown Maniola telmessia, is found on the island of Rhodes and as similar species are not present  it is safe to say that identification is certain. I was pleased to see quite a few of these this month (May) although I noted that there were a notable lack of female sightings. Perhaps the females were under cover before egg laying.

 

A Two-tailed Pasha Drops In Again...and Again.

Over the last few years I have been lucky enough to encounter the impressive Two-tailed Pasha butterfly. Not only in the field but on several occasions around our holiday pool. In Rhodes this month this magnificent butterfly appeared  poolside and helped itself to my Mythos beer. Spending some time on the can it eventually flew off. However this was not the only time we were fortunate enough to see it as  it returned at least three times in the next few days to sound out my wife's beaker of dry white wine and explore what other goodies it could find on my wife's skin and on the table. What a treat

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A Small Brown Skipper.

Almost four years have passed since I last made a visit to the Greek Islands ,so  a holiday to the island of Rhodes was much anticipated. There is still a burst of colour from flowering plants along the trackways and fields in May to tempt the butterflies. However despite being a rather small brown skipper I was  pleased to encounter  the Pygmy Skipper,Gegenes pumilio, by the side of a track as pictured below. Although a very fast moving butterfliy it was good enough the settle on this stone.

Butterflies Respond to the Warmer Weather.

Following a cloudy start to the day ,this afternoon was sunny  and  warmer with a brisk breeze. And the butterflies responded with another new spring species at Whiteway's. The single Green Hairstreak has now been joined by another of the same and that can be confirmed by the different underside markings,as seen below. The other  new arrival today was this Grizzled Skipper  shown in the following photo.

 

A Slow Start to the Spring Emergence.

With the first appearance of the Green Hairstreak at Whiteway's on the 23rd of this month,I would have expected to see other spring species following very soon afterwards at this site. However to date the Green Hairstreak is still a lone occupant. As the weather is now it seems improving, I am hopeful that everything will quickly catch  up.

With little new to see at  Whiteway's today I visited Bouldnor Forest and all was quiet with just four species on show. Brimstone male's were evident along with this female resting on a bramble in the sun. Several Speckled Wood were recorded  as well as a first Comma sighting of the year.

A First Spring Butterfly on the Wing.

Persistent visits to Whiteways at Freshwater Bay finally paid off today with a first spring butterfly sighting of the year. This single Green Hairstreak was observed  feeding on the usual flowering plants that are found at the site.

More Garden Visitors.

Although not as memorable as the species in my last post a good number of  butterflies have visited my garden this summer, attracted mainly by our flowering Buddleia. Apart from the more common garden butterflies there have been visits on several occasions by the Dark Green Fritillary and more recently Wall Brown. In addition  Painted Lady was first  seen in the garden back in May and also today when this individual spent some time nectaring 

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Everlasting Sweet Pea Brings In a Long-tailed Blue.

 In my back garden there is a well established Everlasting Sweet Pea  plant. It has now grown to a good size and flowers profusely. At this time of the year I always look out for the possibility of a visiting Long-tailed Blue as  I have just one record on  the 23rd August 2019 when a female was seen briefly close to the same plant. So it was with some excitement that I recorded one today flying vigorously around  and landing several times on the flowers.

Butterflies Out in Force.

Today in Bouldnor Forest the butterflies were numerous in the bright but sometimes cloudy weather. Now that the Yellow Fleabane is in flower it is a magnet for summer butterflies. Among the species enjoying  the flowers were three Painted Lady, all in prime condition and  therefore perhaps local emergents. In addition  Silver-washed Fritillary now seem to be more evident although some showing signs of wear and tear. At least four males were recorded either nectaring on Thistle or Hemp-agrimony. In the more open forest areas I came across a couple of Wall Brown.

Summer Butterflies Now on the Wing.

 A morning visit to Bouldnor Forest was rewarded with the sighting of three summer butterflies. We are enjoying a few days of warm sunny weather and the butterflies obviously responded. I quickly came across a White Admiral as it energetically fluttered in and out of the small trees and bushes at the side of the track. In all at least four individuals were recorded. It was also a thrill to see a first Silver-washed Fritillary of the year .The male was seen thrree times as he speedily flew along the ride. The visit was concluded with a single Marbled White.

 

First Skipper Sighting of the Season.

It was a very sunny and bright start to the day but by the time I dropped into Whiteways NT carpark at  0945 this morning the dark clouds had gathered and rain was on the way. Not surprisingly the butterflies had gone to ground. However one was seen roosting on a leaf and it was my first skipper of the year. It is of course, a male Large Skipper  and a worthy sighting as most first records are in June.

 

 

Same Date and Same Place.

Perhaps the warmest day of the year so far and a Painted Lady was seen in my garden nectaring on our Wallflower 'Bowles Mauve'.Seems to be the first influx of this species this year with numerous sightings in the south of England in the last few days. The sighting in my garden was the same as 2021 when one was encountered on the same plant  on the same day.

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