Gatekeeper butterfly

The butterfly population of the UK seems to have crashed this year. Survey numbers show they are well down, and our unscientific study of local butterflies shows it to be the case in our garden and in the wider countryside too. Interestingly, the gatekeeper butterfly has thrived more than most other species, and this obliging example let me get quite close for my photograph.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

Painted Lady

In the Victorian period "painted lady" was a derogatory term for a "disreputable" woman. Today it is widely known as the English language name of a colourful butterfly, Vanessa cardui. The example in the photograph is feeding on the nectar of a white buddleia, a background colour that probably suits it better than the usual purple variety of that plant. In Britain the painted lady is migratory, arriving in May and June. Researchers think that its southward autumn migration is unseen because it happens at high altitude.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

A gatekeeper butterfly

One of the things that can make identifying butterflies problematic is the variation within species. I've recently photographed what my eyes suggest is a quite rare High Brown Fritillary but my mind is fairly sure is a much more common Dark Green Fritillary. I've also photographed this Gatekeeper, and even though it looks somewhat different to my previous photograph of the species, both have variations in colour and markings that correspond with fairly common examples of the type.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Small White butterfly - Take 2

I was reasonably pleased with my photograph of the Small White butterfly that I posted recently. But, this shot, taken as we walked by the River Wye, is much better. Both were taken in slight wind and required several shots taken at the most opportune moment. What distinguishes the more recent photograph is the background: it is less distracting and the colours complement those of the main subject much better. We are currently trying to identify the flower that the Small White is feeding on. It seems to be a wild or escaped cultivated aster of some sort.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Small White butterfly

When I was a child I knew this butterfly and the similar larger species as the Small Cabbage White and the Large Cabbage White. The word "cabbage" became associated with the butterflies because they were always found around cabbages and laid their eggs on the underside of the plants' leaves. They still do of course. Today I know the butterflies by their English zoological name - i.e. minus the cabbage. In our previous garden we were plagued by both White butterflies and members of the brassica family on our vegetable patch were not worth growing without small-mesh netting covers to prevent the caterpillars eating them. Our present garden has no cabbages but the buddleia and verbena flowers attract them with no apparent harm being done. In the photograph the butterfly is on the latter.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Gatekeeper or Hedge Brown

Both English names of the butterfly Pyronia tithonus indicate something of the species' habitat. Gatekeeper alludes to it commonly being found on flowers growing in gateways, whilst Hedge Brown describes how it likes hedgerows and field edges. The species' food plants include wild marjoram, common fleabane, ragworts, and bramble. This particular example - and others nearby - favoured bracken, but this was probably only used as a place on which to sun themselves. Gatekeepers exhibit some variation in their markings. The butterfly in the photograph has four small brown "eyes" as well as the big dark eyes with double white spots.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

Peacock butterfly on buddleia

The peacock butterfly is not only one of the most commonly seen butterflies in my part of the world, it is also one of the most striking. It is both colourful and, because of the "eyes" that are reminiscent of those found on the tail feathers of a male peacock, very distinctive. The latter feature ensures that it is one of the few butterflies to which the layman can give a name. The man in the street is also quite likely to recognise the buddleia, the flowering shrub that seems to attract more butterflies than any other.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

Orange tip butterfly

One of the butterflies of spring in the UK is the orange tip (Anthocharis cardamines). These distinctive insects with their illustrative name appear after the brimstones, around the time when the peacocks become noticeable. On a recent walk we saw what appeared to be a particularly small orange tip and I wondered if, like some other genera, there were distinct "greater" and "lesser" or "large" and "small" species. It appears not. The explanation, however, is very interesting. It appears that the size of the male orange tip (the female is more drab without the eye catching colours) depends on the food that the individual feeds on. Smaller examples favour Cardamine pratensis (Ladies Smock or Milkmaids) whilst the larger butterflies feed on Alliaria petiolata (Garlic mustard). Interestingly, before seeing the orange tip, we had noted the milkmaids growing on the verges and by the hedges.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Peacock butterfly on blackthorn

One of the problems of running more than one camera is keeping up with the shots you take because, of course, there are multiple memory cards to manage. Today's photograph is a recent one that I'd have posted earlier if I'd remembered I'd taken it. In these coronavirus times a colourful, uplifting shot carries more weight than it might otherwise. Butterflies seem more abundant this spring though I have no hard evidence to support my feeling. Peacocks in particular are everywhere and this one minded my presence rather less than usual.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon P900