Just in time for when I fly out to Norway on Wednesday for a week. Doh!

The Importance Of Being A Recorder

Although the work party season only lasts for 6 months of the year, the conservation of butterflies is a year-round occupation. It’s pretty obvious how we can assist butterflies and moths by helping to control scrub on downland sites, or by clearing open spaces in woodlands, but perhaps less obvious is the important contribution made by recording through the summer months. The value of those records collected while out photographing, or just observing and enjoying butterflies, cannot be over-stated. It is, of course, vital to either submit them to your BC Branch online (if such a system exists in your area), or send them to your local Recording Officer in a more traditional format at the end of the season, otherwise they are of little use. All of this will come as second nature to many, but there are probably many others who don’t appreciate the contribution they could be making to the conservation cause.

A good example of this came yesterday (16th May), when I joined Colin Knight, Mike Mullis and Paul Day to cover some very steep and difficult slopes around Harting Down, in the far west of West Sussex. Here, BC Sussex has worked closely with the National Trust to monitor and manage the habitat for the Duke of Burgundy over many years. More recently, the site has been further improved as part of the national BC ‘Dukes on the Edge’ project led by Dan Hoare.

From the data we collected yesterday, it is clear that the butterfly is now beginning to spread its wings and become more mobile, which is essential if it is to persist on these slopes in the longer term. Of the 24 Dukes we counted, 11 were outside the steep-sided coombe they have traditionally occupied, where targeted habitat management has encouraged the population to expand and become more adventurous.

Now that we know the precise locations to which they have moved, we can target future habitat management to ensure that scrub conditions and food-plant density are suitable on an ongoing basis.

Thanks go to Colin, Mike and Paul for helping with the search, but I suspect that reward enough came with just being in such a beautiful and unspoilt location, far from the crowds and with traffic noise replaced by the magical sound of a nearby cuckoo.

Gorganus Alert - We're Off The Mark!

The following is an update posted to the BC Sussex website by our dedicated Member for Europe, Michael Blencowe:
Something has survived... Last year's great summer weather encouraged Continental Swallowtails to cross The Channel and visit Sussex. Sussex Butterfly Conservation asked the people of Sussex to look out for these distinctive caterpillars in their gardens. We were amazed to discover that Swallowtails had laid eggs on carrots and fennel and their caterpillars (the first reported in the county since the 1940's) were munching away in gardens and allotments. With the kind co-operation of the gardeners we were able to track the caterpillar's progress and tracked them as they pupated in their chosen habitats - an unprecedented opportunity. We've monitored 13 pupae at sites across the county for the past 9 months. Sussex BC members will have read the full story in our 2013 Annual Report.

But the question was could we be able to prove that Continental Swallowtails can survive a Sussex winter? This weekend we were privileged to witness the first of these Swallowtails emerging - a truly magnificent sight as they took to the Sussex skies. Could this be the first step in the colonisation of Sussex by Continental Swallowtails? There must be many more pupae out there that we don't know about so keep your eyes peeled over the coming weeks and let us know if you see any of these beautiful butterflies in Sussex. (Michael Blencowe)

Wonderfully exciting news!

That sounds fantastic Neil How do they that they were specifically migrants from the continent and not releases from captive breeders?

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Hi Wurzel,

All of the information which shows very clearly that they're the offspring of bona fide immigrants is spread around the BC Sussex website (Sightings page 2013), the BC Sussex Annual Report (full story), an excellent and detailed account in the latest supplement to Colin Pratt's 'A Complete History of the Butterflies and Moths of Sussex' and accounts in my own UKB diary. There's a huge amount of information out there, but a synthesis of the above is very much a winter job!

BWs, Neil

Cheers Neil - I'll make a note and then settle down for a good read come November, I like to be busy

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Dukes Thriving

On Sunday (18th May) I searched numerous sites along the Downs near Storrington, both with public access and on private estates. The news for the Duke of Burgundy is good and my composite count easily beat my best C21st figures for the area, with an encouraging 119 seen. My running Sussex total for the species this year stands at just below 800, which compares very well with the entire 2003 Sussex count of just 8!
Later in the day, when the counting was over, I took a walk through Rewell Wood. Most of the butterflies were already tucked up in bed, but I did notice a dragonfly which wasn't one of the resident Hairys. After carefully stalking it to get a better look, I was surprised to see it was an early Black-tailed Skimmer. I assumed it was a teneral male, but local dragonfly expert John Luck informed me it's a fully mature female. These things are far more confusing than butterflies!

Neil Hulme wrote:
Something has survived... Last year's great summer weather encouraged Continental Swallowtails to cross The Channel and visit Sussex. Sussex Butterfly Conservation asked the people of Sussex to look out for these distinctive caterpillars in their gardens. We were amazed to discover that Swallowtails had laid eggs on carrots and fennel and their caterpillars (the first reported in the county since the 1940's) were munching away in gardens and allotments. With the kind co-operation of the gardeners we were able to track the caterpillar's progress and tracked them as they pupated in their chosen habitats - an unprecedented opportunity. We've monitored 13 pupae at sites across the county for the past 9 months. Sussex BC members will have read the full story in our 2013 Annual Report.

But the question was could we be able to prove that Continental Swallowtails can survive a Sussex winter? This weekend we were privileged to witness the first of these Swallowtails emerging - a truly magnificent sight as they took to the Sussex skies. Could this be the first step in the colonisation of Sussex by Continental Swallowtails? There must be many more pupae out there that we don't know about so keep your eyes peeled over the coming weeks and let us know if you see any of these beautiful butterflies in Sussex. (Michael Blencowe)

This is a really interesting development.

I've always found it hard to comprehend how Swallowtails can thrive in East Anglia yet the British sub-species' continental cousins (which are far less habitat choosy) struggle to gain a foothold here.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if this glorious species colonised the southern parts of our islands? Even more intriguing would be if they did so and wandered north east to meet their britannicus brethren.

On Sunday (18th May) I searched numerous sites along the Downs near Storrington, both with public access and on private estates. The news for the Duke of Burgundy is good and my composite count easily beat my best C21st figures for the area, with an encouraging 119 seen. My running Sussex total for the species this year stands at just below 800, which compares very well with the entire 2003 Sussex count of just 8!

Great stuff Neil, the work you put into these butterflies is very admirable. Let's hope other species fare as well this year...

Wouldn't it be wonderful if this glorious species colonised the southern parts of our islands? Even more intriguing would be if they did so and wandered north east to meet their britannicus brethren.

I wonder whether the two sub.sp would be able to hybridise if the opportunity arose?

ABerryman wrote: I wonder whether the two sub.sp would be able to hybridise if the opportunity arose?

One would assume so, but the interesting factor would be how they would reconcile their habitat differences - the British sub-species is an evolutionary work in progress and might well be adversely affected by in-breeding with a wider countryside cousin that seemingly cannot successfully overwinter in the UK.

David M wrote: One would assume so, but the interesting factor would be how they would reconcile their habitat differences - the British sub-species is an evolutionary work in progress and might well be adversely affected by in-breeding with a wider countryside cousin that seemingly cannot successfully overwinter in the UK.

Evolution is a work in progress, by definition . However, this is very interesting speculation. My guess is that, if the European sub-species were able to get a hold in southern Britain (due to climate change or whatever), it would eventually hybridise with the more specialised British sub-species and replace it.

Mill Hill Adonis

The weather wasn't quite good enough to continue my Duke of Burgundy surveys today (20th May), so I took time out to visit Mill Hill (Shoreham) and its beautiful Adonis Blues. There were plenty about and during the short spells of milky sunshine they became very active. Most of the time they just lay around in the grass looking pretty. Whenever the cloud thickened and the temperature dropped they closed up, showing off their equally lovely undersides. The first brood is probably at peak now and plenty of females were present, all keen to get on with the job of laying eggs. It would be advisable to visit this coming weekend if you wish to see any fresh ones.
Male
Female

Dukes And Orchids Peak

This morning (21st May) I met South Downs National Park Authority (SDNPA) Biodiversity Lead Emily Brennan, her mother, and SDNPA Ranger Simon Mockford for a tour of Heyshott Escarpment. The SDNPA and their predecessors the South Downs Joint Committee have always been great partners in projects which benefit butterflies and moths in Sussex and the neighbouring counties. Certainly in Sussex we would be lost without them. Simon does a huge amount of work to help the Duke of Burgundy in the Arundel and Storrington areas, but this was his first visit to Heyshott.

As expected here, we saw a huge number of butterflies, along with White Helleborine, Greater Butterfly and Fly Orchid (all now fully in flower) and a large female Adder. Despite the overcast conditions we had already seen 45 Dukes before we completed our walk. I later returned to cover the rest of the ground under slightly improved conditions and ended up with a count of 88 Dukes. It appears that the emergence is all-but-over on this site, with only a few of the female butterflies being in really good condition. They've had a great season here already and, assuming we get some decent weather over the next ten days, there should be sufficient eggs laid to ensure a very bright future.

Amongst the other species seen were Dingy and Grizzled Skipper, Green Hairstreak (including newly emerged females), Common Blue, Small Heath, Small Copper and Red Admiral. I saw half a dozen of the latter, including two laying eggs in the lowermost pit.

1 Green Hairstreak female
2 Duke of Burgundy female
3 Greater Butterfly Orchid
4 Fly Orchid
5 White Helleborine

Neil Hulme wrote: They've had a great season here already and, assuming we get some decent weather over the next ten days, there should be sufficient eggs laid to ensure a very bright future.

EXCELLENT The forecast says we're in for some rain but it's showery in nature - meaning there will be ample opportunity for some egg laying. I really hope I can go again next year.

My visit there was the highlight of my season so far this year - I doubt I'll top it.

The Greater Fly & butterfly Orchids look lovely.

Cheers Neil

B'saurus

Dukes In The Rain

Yesterday (23rd May) the Met Office weather forecast was spectacularly inaccurate. The consecutive three hour periods of either 'full sunshine' or 'sunny spells with white cloud' predicted for SE England gave no warning of the cold, driving rain and threatening, dark grey clouds which blanketed the landscape as far as the eye could see, extending over the Isle of Wight in one direction and northwards over the entire Weald.

Despite this, by the time I returned to an empty cark park, drenched to the skin, I had seen plenty of Duke of Burgundy. A little warmth and early sunshine had been sufficient to tempt them down from their roosts but, like me, they had been caught out by the sudden change in weather. Knowing where they would most likely be sitting, I soon started to find dormant male Dukes in the lekking areas and females on adjacent parts of the slope, where lush cowslips grow. In a short spell during which it seemed that the rain might stop and a little heat bled through the clouds, a few Dukes started to open their wings, keen to get on with their business as their flight season starts to wane.

With a good survey count achieved over three areas, and a few pleasing images in the bag, it was well worth venturing out. The Met Office was almost forgiven.

I am sick with jealousy seeing all those Orchids, absolutely stunning stuff, hoping to look for some Somerset Flys in the next few days

Glad to see that you got your orchids William!
BWs, Neil

Survey Day

Today (25th May) I conducted the first of three annual surveys I now perform at Fairmile Bottom, just to the north of Rewell Wood near Arundel. Nothing spectacular appeared during my search of the mixed habitats here, although it was encouraging to find both Grizzled and Dingy Skippers. Other species included Common Blue, Holly Blue, Small Heath, Speckled Wood, Red Admiral, Peacock, Brimstone and Green-veined White. Day-flying moths were quite common and I recorded Burnet Companion, Mother Shipton, Speckled Yellow, Silver Y, Fox and Pyrausta aurata. By far the most common species on site was the Five-spot Burnet ssp. palustrella, of which I counted more than 100. This is also a good area for orchids, supporting Fly, Southern Marsh and hybrids between the latter species and Common Spotted.

A Two Part Tale Of The Exotic (Part1)

The weather forecasters had promised a brighter afternoon today (29th May), with the suggestion of a long overdue return to at least sunny spells. Eager to get out and about I arranged to visit Ferring Rife with my father in the morning, where earlier in the spring I'd seen good numbers of Small Tortoiseshell. However, today we were keen to see the Early Marsh Orchids which grow here in profusion; there are estimated to be in the region of 30,000 of them in good years! Also present are Common Spotted Orchids and some vigorous hybrids between the two species.

Two very attractive subspecies of Early Marsh Orchid can be found here, namely the rich purple coloured pulchella and the more delicate, dusky pink incarnata. Some of these orchids are huge, standing over 60 cm tall. Forget the subtle beauty of the petite and slender Fly Orchid, these are in-your-face, garish skyscrapers!