More Small Blue in the Wing.

Butterfly numbers are on the increase at the National Trust CP Afton where today several Green Hairstreak were seen along with at least three Small Blue and a first of the season Dingy Skipper.

Butterflies Brave the Blustery Winds.

Despite a strong and gusty wind today some butterflies were on show at the National Trust Viewpoint CP near to Freshwater Bay. The Grizzled Skipper that was seen a week ago put in a brief appearance while the count of Green Hairstreak has grown to at least four individuals.

More Spring Butterflies on Show.

The National Trust viewpoint carpark at Freshwater has certainly come up trumps today with three new spring butterfly species on show. Immediately on arrival I came across a pristine Green Hairstreak and that was closely followed by this Small Copper. The Grizzled Skipper of two days ago was not to be seen,however the Small Blue pictured below was a surprise. This is the earliest date that I have seen the latter since 2012 when two were recorded on the 30th March at the same location.

Grizzled Skipper at Afton Down Chalkpit.

The National Trust viewpoint carpark at the foot of Afton Down close to Freshwater Bay has always been a prime location for spring butterflies. Yesterday the first species was seen just after noon when I observed a Grizzled Skipper nectaring on a dandelion flower. Unfortunately I was unable to relocate it as it sped off after I disturbed it.

Stock Photo.

Speckled Wood Drops In.

The excellent spring weather continues and today it was good to see a first  of the year Speckled Wood in my garden. It spent some time enjoying a warm sunny spot and hopefully it will not be long before the Holly Blue is seen here too.

Brimstone on Berberis.

Our evergreen shrub Berberis or Barberry is in full bloom at the end of March.It is always popular with bees and other pollinating insects. Today this male Brimstone was observed nectaring on the shrubs prolific yellow- red flowers..

First Small White of the Year.

The Phlomis plant in our garden at Freshwater has always been popular with white butterflies and today it was host to my first Small White of the season. With the sun shining and despite a rather cold northerly wind this Small White spent some time on the leaves enjoying the sunny spot.

 

Spring has Sprung.

The almost summerlike weather continues and another spring butterfly was seen enjoying the warm sunshine in my garden today. A first sighting of this Comma which spent some considerable time basking  in a particularly sunny spot. 

More Butterflies on the Wing.

The mild spell continued today and the butterflies were tempted out into the warm sunshine. First of all a male Brimstone was seen flying around my garden and later a Peacock also appeared.

Stock Photo

Stock Photo

New Season Underway.

Following several days of settled.sunny and daytime mild temperatures,the new season now seems to be underway.Yestwerday I observed the first butterfly of the year in my garden.A Peacock basked in the sun  on a paving slab and this morning after the fog had lifted this Red Admiral was seen on a bench also in my garden.

On the Up.

A return visit to Bouldnor Forest this morning  was rewarded with the sight of six White Admiral.Several were seen nectaring on bramble flowers and one individual was observed spending some time on a bridleway extracting salts. 

Summer Butterflies on the Wing.

Today's visit to Bouldnor Forest near Yarmouth was rewarded with sight of a male Silver-washed Fritillary and a White Admiral. Both individuals were flying around very vigorously and quickly disappeared into the woodland. Another first of the season sighting was a tally of five Marbled White. All of them were also very active.

Stock photo

Stock photo

Butterflies in Hiding at Bouldnor.

Despite a bright and sunny afternoon the only butterflies to be seen in Bouldnor Forest today were several Meadow Brown and Speckled Wood. However the one exception was this Large Skipper that landed on a leaf right in front of me and seemed very happy to let me take its picture.