Friday, 8 July 2011

Bedford Purlieus butterflies



White-letter Hairstreak (Satyrium w-album)
White Admiral (Limenitis camilla)


Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina)

Large Skipper (Ochlodes venata)


Ringlet (Aphantopus hyperantus)
Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria)
Silver-washed Fritillary (Argynnis paphia)
Purple Hairstreak (Neozephyrus quercus)

Last weekend the weather was perfect for butterflies and so Lisa and I spent Saturday searching the woods at Bedford Purlieus and the chalk fields of Barnack Hills and Holes. Above are photographs of some of the species seen at Bedford Purlieus, I will put the ones of Hills and Holes on another as there are quite a few!

The stars of the show at the woods were the Silver-washed Fritillaries, we counted at least 35 individuals, with at least 10 Purple Hairstreaks, 3 White-letter Hairstreaks, 2 White Admirals, plus numerous Meadow Browns, Large and Small Whites, Green-veined Whites, Large Skippers, Speckled Woods, a few Red Admirals and Commas and the most numerous species was the Ringlet.

The sun was shining and the Silver-washed Fritillaries were very busy flying up and down the rides, very briefly stopping on a bramble or wild Thyme, but never long enough to get a decent photo (I managed one, but at distance). Also, the Purple Hairstreaks were very high up in the canopy of 200 feet oak trees, the only photo was taken by Digiscoping and the result is not very pleasing, but the butterfly is identifiable.

All photographs, except the Purple Hairstreak were taken with my hand-held Canon Powershot A640.
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18 comments:

  1. JRandSue8 July 2011 at 17:07

    Marvelous set of butterflies John,both Hairstreaks are new to us.
    We've got a planned trip next week,if lady luck is with us we may get both.
    John.

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  2. Roy8 July 2011 at 18:03

    Fabulous John. You certainly hit the jackpot there. Great photos as well.

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  3. Alan Pavey8 July 2011 at 18:45

    What a great collection of Butterflies and to get good photos of them all is great! I'm slightly enious of the White Letter Hairstreak but it's one to look forward to

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  4. holdingmoments8 July 2011 at 20:22

    What a lovely selection John, and great captures.
    Butterflies have been in short supply round here so far.

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  5. Kevin Groocock8 July 2011 at 20:58

    I do not know much about butterflies, but I have enjoyed seeing these. Perhaps I should take a few? Great captures.

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  6. theconstantwalker9 July 2011 at 00:58

    Beautiful images... I have never seen a White Admiral up here in Cheshire too far north I suppose.
    Many thanks for sharing.

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  7. klahanie9 July 2011 at 02:52

    Greetings John,
    Those photos of butterflies are truly awesome. Fantastic when you click on the photos and have them expand on the computer screen.
    Have a peaceful and pleasant weekend, my friend.
    In kindness, Gary.

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  8. John9 July 2011 at 08:03

    Hi John,
    Many thanks for that. Good luck with hte Hairstreaks, they are lovely little butterflies, the Purple Hairstreak is a little frustrating though, in that it seems to stay in the canopy and rarely comes any lower!
    Look forward to seeing your photo`s!
    J

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  9. John9 July 2011 at 08:04

    Hi Roy,
    Thankyou, yes it was definately a butterfly watchers paradise at the weekend.
    J

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  10. John9 July 2011 at 08:05

    Hi Alan,
    I don`t know about good photo`s, but thankyou! White-letters are only really just starting to emerge and will carry on until late August, so there is plenty of time.
    J

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  11. John9 July 2011 at 08:07

    Hi Keith,
    Thankyou. Up until last week I had hardly seen any and to be honest I am yet to see many in gardens. The buddleia is normally filled with insects, but it has been sparsely adorned so far! Fingers crossed that this will change.
    J

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  12. John9 July 2011 at 08:11

    Hi Kevin,
    Glad you enjoyed them! It is very rewarding taking photo`s of these jewels of nature, but can be frustrating when they decide to fly the minute you press the shutter button!
    I am no expert by any means, but I find a good field guide, such as `Pocket guide to the butterflies of Great Britain and Ireland` by Richard Lewington indispensable!
    J

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  13. John9 July 2011 at 08:15

    Hi Andrew,
    Thankyou. According to my field guide, the White Admirals range does not go any further north than Lincolnshire, but the below the line of the Humber.Not sure if this helps any?
    J

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  14. John9 July 2011 at 08:16

    Hi Gary,
    Thankyou very much. I am quite pleased with them, although I would love to get a closer one of the Purple Hairstreak, maybe next time!
    Have an harmonius weekend too Gary.
    J

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  15. ShySongbird10 July 2011 at 14:00

    What a great visit you had John and such lovely photos! I am very envious of both of the Hairstreaks and the S-w F having never seen any of them :(

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  16. John11 July 2011 at 19:57

    Hi Jan,
    Yes, it was a good visit and the haul of butterflies was quite pleasing! We are quite lucky here in that we have a couple of `reliable` sites for White-letters and Bedford Purlieus has had recent `work` done on the rides to make it more inviting to Silver Washes which seems to have worked very well! :)
    J

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  17. Susan Scheid14 July 2011 at 05:16

    I was thinking about your earlier butterfly post just today. Nice to see this one as well, and of course I'm most impressed that you know the names of the butterflies, too. I have so far utterly failed to master that!

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  18. John14 July 2011 at 19:52

    Hi Susan,
    Thankyou very much. In Britain we only have 59 resident species of butterfly, so it is easier to get to grips with each one. Having said that, I still need a good field guide!
    J

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