Scottish Borders Butterflies 2021

Due to Covid travel restrictions our planned holiday to Spain was cancelled for the second year in a row. I always look forward to a trip abroad and the opportunity to see different butterflies.  On previous trips to Spain I have managed to see about 40 species of butterflies, so for the second year in a row my tally was going to be particularly low.

I am lucky that we have some land where we have done much to encourage butterflies and just a few hundred metres above our house there is an amazing valley where there are a lot of interesting species. There are a few interesting species that occur a few miles away, so I decided this year to see how many species I could find in the Scottish Borders.

The year started off well with a couple of Small Tortoiseshells, Aglais urticae,  visiting the garden in March and in April Peacocks, Aglais io, and Commas, Polygonia c-album,  joined them. Despite the good start to the season the weather was cold and wet later in the spring and I didn't find any caterpillars of these species, which is unusual. However, they obviously did manage to breed as there were more adults later in the summer, but not in as good numbers as normal.

I am always pleased to see the first Orange Tip, Anthocharis cardamines, of the season, as to me they mark the start of the butterfly season. This year they did well here and were seen in good numbers.

Of the other three species of whites, the Green-veined White, Pieris napi, didn't do as well as normal for some reason. Unusually, it was outnumbered by the Small White, Pieris rapae. Large Whites, Pieris brassicae, are never really numerous, but they were a regular visitor.

In early  June I drove over to Burnmouth to look for Small Blues, Cupido mimimus. Although there was a cool breeze coming in off the sea I still saw quite a few, along with Small Heaths, Coenonympha pamphilus, Small Coppers, Lycaena phlaeas, and Wall Browns, Lasiommata megera.

Back home and a walk up the valley added Northern Brown Argus, Aricia artaxerxes, and Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary, Clossiana selene, to the count along with loads of Small Heaths, Ringlets, Aphantpopus hyperantus, and Meadow Browns, Maniola jurtina.

Red Admirals, Vanessa atalanta, arrived in June and in September their numbers picked up as the new generation appeared. I was amazed how long they remained here with the last one I saw being on the 25th October, long after the first frosts.

At the beginning of July I headed towards Treepwood where I had seen old records of Large Heaths, Coenonympha tullia. It was difficult to find a suitable location amongst the fields grazed by sheep, but eventually I managed to find a boggy area with Cotton Grass growing. After much stumbling about I was delighted to find one Large Heath. I am not sure if numbers would have been higher earlier or later in the year, but hopefully they are doing well there.

In another visit up the valley above the house that month there were a few Dark Green Fritillaries, Argynnis aglaja, and loads of Small Skippers, Thymelicus sylvestris. Amongst them I spotted one Large Skipper, Ochlodes sylvanus.

Towards the end of July I went to Kelso to look for White-letter Hairstreaks, Satyrium w-album. Iain Cowe, the Borders butterfly recorder, had previously shown me how to find eggs on Elm trees, so I headed to the same spot. Within a few minutes I spotted some butterflies high in the trees and a little later one kindly flew down and landed on a branch next to me.

I was planning on a visit to a valley a few miles away to see Scotch Argus, Erebia aethiops, but the weather at the weekends was disappointingly poor. However, one lunchtime when I was walking around my meadow, I spotted a dark butterfly which turned out to be a beautiful fresh Scotch Argus. Of course, I didn't have my camera with me and I couldn't find it once I had run back to the house to get it! However, six days later I spotted a quite faded Scotch Argus in the meadow. Unfortunately, I will never know if it was the same butterfly!

So, I managed to see 23 species of butterflies in the Scottish Borders this year. I don't think there are many more species that I could have seen. Green Hairstreak, if I had been in the right place, possibly Grayling somewhere on the coast and Painted Lady, had there been more around this year. I was very pleased to have seen a Large Heath and White-letter Hairstreak - two butterflies I have never seen before.