All the right signs

The weather here has been a little disappointing recently. Nothing unusual, but I am always impatient at this time of year, because as soon as it warms up I know we will see more butterflies.
The Butterfly Transect Surveys are meant to start the first week of April, but we haven't had good enough weather here yet to make a start. Today I walked my transect route, just in case there were any butterflies there, but I didn't hold out any hope as it was quite cloudy and there was a cold wind at lunch time when I could get out of the office to do it.
Things started off reasonably well with bumble bees feeding in the willow trees. I think this one is a Buff-tailed Bumblebee.

A little later I saw my first Red-tailed Bumblebee of the year.

The clouds kept breaking, revealing large blue patches of sky. As I reached the river I saw a flash of blue as a Kingfisher flew past me. A little further upstream a Heron was looking splendid with its plumage blowing in the wind.

Ladybirds seem to have survived the mild winter in great numbers. The foliage next to the river was littered in them.

As I climbed the fence into a meadow a Peacock butterfly, Aglais io, flew up in front of me. These butterflies over-winter as adults, hibernating in sheds or log piles.  This one seems to have come through the winter in lovely condition.

I noticed some Sand Martins flying over the river. They have spent the winter in Africa, but they spend the summer over here, breeding in sandy river banks. Their arrival is always a sign that the weather is about to improve. As I watched them flying low over the river, catching flies, I noticed that there was a Swallow amongst them. It briefly stopped on a dead tree for a rest.

While I was watching them I heard the squawk of a buzzard and I looked up to see it flying overhead.

Shortly afterwards some grey clouds blew over and I thought that I had no chance of seeing any more butterflies. However, all the signs are there that the weather is about to improve and I shouldn't have too long to wait.

As it turned out, I only had to wait about ten minutes! On my way back to the office I saw a white butterfly flying along the edge of the meadow. I followed it for a while until it stopped, allowing me to identify it. It was a Green-veined White, Pieris napi. The first one I have seen this year. It would have spent the winter as a chrysalis and probably only emerged today.

There were plenty of signs that the weather may be about to improve, so I hope it won't be long until I see several more new species of butterflies for the year.

Moth Trap

I was recently contacted by a moth enthusiast who told me that Butterfly Conservation is undertaking a project to produce an Atlas of moth distribution. They have produced an excellent Butterfly Atlas, which incorporates records from enthusiasts around the UK, and this will follow a similar format. I have therefore been lent this moth trap so that I can help with records from this area.

It is an ingenious home-made device. It is left out over-night. The light attracts the moths and then bounce off it and fall through the funnel-shaped lid. Inside the trap are sections of egg crate and the moths settle down for the night amongst them. In the morning it is just a case of lifting off the lid and checking for moths in the egg crates.

I set the trap up last night for the first time. I wasn't very hopeful, as it was only 5.8 degrees, but this morning I could see one moth through the lid. As I checked through the sections of egg crate I found that I had caught nine moths. They were all Hebrew Characters, Orthosia gothica.

Once identified, I put the moths in a shed, where they would be safe from the garden birds that were showing an interest in what I was doing! 

They may not be as colourful as a butterfly, but I can see that I could get quite hooked on trapping moths. At least it will keep me occupied until the weather warms up enough for the butterflies to start appearing.

First Butterfly of the Year

After a long grey, damp winter we woke up this morning to see white frost on the ground and a lovely blue sky. Although it was colder than it has been for some months, it was lovely to see bright weather for a change.

At lunchtime I went for a walk along the river to an area where I have often seen my first butterfly of the year, but there was nothing there. I told myself that I was being stupid as it was far too cold for a butterfly to awaken.

On my way back to the office I walked along a cold, shady pavement and noticed a little brown triangle out of the corner of my eye. I stopped to take a closer look and saw that it was a Small Tortoiseshell. It was almost certain to perish where it was, as the sun would never reach it and it was likely to be trodden upon.

So, I picked it up and carried it to a sunny spot where I put it on a Marigold. Almost immediately it opened up its wings and I hope it managed to have a feed to give it the energy to survive the remaining cold days of winter.

It was lovely to see a butterfly again. I hope it won't be too long before I see more.

Burnet Moths

The Six Spot Burnet Moth, Zygaena filipendulae, is a day-flying moth that is found on meadows and coastal grassland around Britain. It flies between June and August and can be quite common around the coast here.

As the name implies, the moth has six red spots on the upper side of the fore wing. The hind wing, which is only really visible when it is flying, is red with a black border.

The caterpillars feed on Bird's-foot Trefoil, Lotus corniculatus. They are nicely marked and easy to find in the late spring. 

After hibernating for the winter, the caterpillars emerge in the spring and form a yellow cocoon on vegetation or fence posts. They are very easy to spot.

Last year there was great excitement when someone noticed a Narrow-bordered Five-spot Burnet moth, Zygaena lonicerae. Further investigation at the site found a lot more and then people noticed them in various areas of coastal grassland in East Lothian. This is a species that occurs in England and Wales, but it now seems to be extending its range northwards. When we started checking our photographs from the last few years we discovered that the Narrow-bordered Five-spot Burnet moth had been here for some time!!

It is quite strange that they hadn't been noticed before as the cocoon is quite different from the Six-spot Burnet moth.

It just goes to show that we shouldn't become complacent about the wildlife around us and we should always be on the look out for something new or different.

Speckled Wood - Pararge aegeria

The Speckled Wood, Parage aegeria, is a small to medium sized butterfly with a wingspan of about 50mm. As the name suggests it is usually found in wooded areas, choosing sunny sheltered spots, where males tend to take up territories.

Pararge aegeria tircis

It is a butterfly that excites me, as until recently it hadn't been recorded in East Lothian. Over the last few years it has been extending its range in the UK northwards. In 2009 a colleague saw one just inside East Lothian and another one was seen the following year. In 2011 I came across a small colony of Speckled Woods at John Muir Country Park, about ten miles further along the coast.

In only two years since then they have continued to spread through East Lothian and now they are found in many small areas of woodland over about two thirds of the county.

The map on the left above show the distribution of Speckled Woods in 1970. I have marked East Lothian in red. (This map is taken from The Provisional Atlas of the Insects of the British Isles, 1970) The map on the right is taken from the UK Butterflies web site and shows the distribution in 2004. The butterfly has clearly extended its range considerably in those 40 years. It has also continued to spread northwards by about 100 miles since the second map was produced.

The caterpillars feed on a variety of different grasses. In the UK adult butterflies are on the wing from late March to early October in several generations. They can overwinter as a caterpillar or chrysalis. In southern Europe adult butterflies can be seen almost all year round.

Pararge aegeria tircis

The Speckled Wood occurs over most of Europe and there are four subspecies. Pararge aegeria aegeria occurs in northern Africa and south-west Europe to about half way across France. It has orange markings on a brown background.

Pararge aegeria aegeria

Pararge aegeria aegeria

The subspecies that is found in much of the UK is tircis, which occurs in much of north east Europe. This has smaller cream markings instead of orange and a slightly darker background colour.

Pararge aegeria tircis

Pararge aegeria tircis

There are two other subspecies - insula, which occurs on the Isles of Scilly. Its markings are somewhere between cream and orange. The subspecies oblita occurs in north-west Scotland and its markings are said to be closer to white on a dark brown, almost black, background.

When we were in Tenerife last July, I was delighted to find the Canary Speckled Wood, Pararge xiphioides. This looks much like the southern European subspecies. The most obvious difference is the white markings on the underside of the wings.

Pararge xiphioides

Pararge xiphioides

Pararge xiphioides

There is another species of Speckled Wood, Pararge xiphia, which lives on the island of Madeira. I haven't seen it, but that gives me a good excuse to go there on holiday in the future! I wonder if the family agree!!

East Lothian Butterflies 2013

The weather in 2013 was a big improvement on the previous two years. Although the winter wasn’t particularly hard, it dragged on for a long time, and spring didn’t arrive until half way through April. This, and I think last year’s very poor weather, had an impact on the number of butterflies early in the year. Other than a couple of sightings in March, the first records of butterflies didn’t come in until 26th April!

However, from mid April until the end of August, the weather was reasonably warm, dry and sunny. It was never particularly hot, so there was a continuous source of food plants and the number of butterflies really picked up during July and August. The weather in September and October was rather disappointing, so we didn’t get the influx of butterflies migrating north, that we were hoping for. The first frosts arrived in early November, putting an end to the butterfly season.

Peacock, Aglais io

The first record I received this year was a Peacock, seen on North Berwick Law on the 1st March. There were a few seen throughout the spring, but the number seen dropped at the end of May. In August, though, there was a sudden explosion of Peacocks when the next generation appeared. Numbers through August were the highest I can remember seeing.

Peacock

Small Tortoiseshell, Aglais urticae

The first record this year of a Small Tortoiseshell in East Lothian was on 2nd March. After that they appeared regularly through to May. Like the Peacock their numbers picked up considerably with the new generation in July and August.

Small Tortoiseshell

Painted Lady, Vanessa cardui

One Painted Lady was recorded on 25th April, but it wasn’t until the end of June that more were seen having worked their way northwards through Europe. They weren’t seen up here in great numbers this year, though.

Painted Lady

Green-veined White, Pieris napi

The butterfly season kicked off properly with the first record of a Green-veined White on 26th April. Numbers were a little low, but they were seen regularly up until the middle of June. In July the second generation appeared with a vengeance. It seems that the weather conditions must have been perfect for them this year with numbers peaking around the middle of August.

Green-veined White

Small White, Pieris rapae

The first record of a Small White this year was on 29th April, which is more than a month later than last year and two months later than 2011. This just shows how their emergence is related to the weather. Like the Green-veined Whites, their numbers were low for the spring generation, but when the second generation started to appear at the beginning of August they were seen in far greater numbers than they have been for many years.

Small White

Comma, Polygonia c-album

The Comma is a butterfly that isn’t seen in great numbers here. It was first recorded in East Lothian in 2004 and is now seen all over the county, but rarely more than one at a time. The first one recorded here this year was on 30th April and a few records kept trickling in until the end of October. I find it odd that we never see it in greater numbers like the Small Tortoiseshell or Peacock with which it shares a similar life cycle and food plant.

Comma

Orange Tip, Anthocharis cardamines

The first Orange Tip seen this year was on 7th May. Their numbers were lower than average, but considering the rain and flooding we had last year this isn’t surprising. They don’t have a second summer generation like the other whites, but hopefully they should do well next year. Strangely, I didn’t see very many eggs or caterpillars, which are normally fairly easy to spot.

Orange Tip

Large White, Pieris brassicae

The first Large White was seen on 7th May. Generally we don’t see Large Whites in great numbers here, however this year, as with the other species from August onwards we had unusually high numbers of Large Whites. It wasn’t unusual to see more than 40 on a buddleia bush.

Large White

Speckled Wood, Pararge aegeria

Speckled Woods are butterflies that excite me a lot! In 2009 we received our first couple of records of them in East Lothian. The following year I found a small colony of them and since then they have increased in numbers year on year. The first record this year was on 14th May. After that records came in from all over the north and middle of the county. It seems that they first arrived here on the east coast having spread up from the Scottish Borders. This year they have worked their way almost along the entire length of the coast and up the River Tyne valley. It is amazing to see such a rapid spread of this species and next year I won’t be surprised if they are seen all over the county.

Speckled Wood

Holly Blue, Celastrina argiolus

I only received one record of a Holly Blue this year on the 21st May. This was sad after they had been seen in various locations over the previous two years. Hopefully this one sighting means that they are still clinging on at the long-established colony in the west of East Lothian.

Red Admiral, Vanessa atalanta

The first Red Admiral we saw this year was on May 22nd. Thereafter they were seen a few times, but compared with other butterflies this year, they weren't around in great numbers. I think the long winter was too much for any of them to survive and we didn't get very many making their way up from Europe.

Small Copper, Lyceana phlaeas

The weather this year seemed to suit Small Coppers with the first one being recorded on 30th May and thereafter higher than normal numbers being spotted. It was interesting to note that last year the majority of those seen were of the caeruleopunctata aberration, with a number of blue spots on their hind wings. However, this year very few aberrations were noted. It is interesting to speculate whether the aberration is a result of the climate, or quality of the caterpillar food plant, or for some other reason.

Small Copper

Wall Brown, Lamiommata megera

Like the Speckled Woods, Wall Browns were first recorded in East Lothian only a few years ago, but they don’t seem to have spread as quickly. We had a new record of them on North Berwick Law, so they have spread about half way along the coast in that time. The first record this year was on 30th May. They seem to occur mostly on the coast, but in August I saw one six kilometres inland at Woodhall Dean.

Wall Brown

Small Heath, Coenonympha pamphilus

The first Small Heath was recorded on 2nd June. It is a common butterfly along the coast in East Lothian and it is also found in the Lammermuir Hills. This year they appeared to do as well as ever.

Small Heath

Common Blue, Polyommatus icarus

The common Blue had a fairly normal year. I think that because they have come from eggs that were laid last year, they seem to be affected less by this year's good weather. The first Common Blue was seen on 16th June and they were on the wing until the middle of September.

Common Blue

Ringlet, Aphantopus hyperantus

Ringlets have a very short flight period. They occur in damp grassy areas and normally start to appear in late June, and this year they turned up right on cue on 21st June. The number of Ringlets on my transect this year was lower than normal, but that isn't surprising given that the area was flooded twice last year. At other sites around East Lothian there were good numbers of Ringlets.

Ringlet

Grayling, Hipparchia semele

The Grayling was restricted to a couple of very small sites in East Lothian, with the odd record of them being found at other coastal sites in the past, but these seem to be one-offs. The first Grayling recorded this year was on 25th June at one of the established sites. Last year a new colony was discovered on a re-landscaped mining spoil heap close to one of their other colonies. When I visited this colony in mid July I counted 80 individuals in a short visit, double the number that I saw last year.

Grayling

Meadow Brown, Maniola jurtina

Meadow Browns seemed to do very well this year. The first record was on 25th June and they were seen in good numbers up until the end of August. I only saw one on my transect this year, but again, this isn’t surprising given the flooding we had in that area last year.

Meadow Brown

Dark Green Fritillary, Argynnis aglaja

The Dark Green Fritillary is a lovely bright butterfly that occurs in many coastal areas and valleys in the Lammermuir Hills. The first one was seen in East Lothian this year on 30th June. They never occur in great numbers, and this year proved to be about average for them.

Dark Green Fritillary

Northern Brown Argus, Aricia artaxerxes

I am aware of four colonies of Northern Brown Argus in East Lothian, but I am sure there are probably more in the Lammermuir Hills. The colonies are very small, one being based around a patch of their food plant – the Rockrose, Helianthemum nummularium on a golf course and another on a small patch of Rockrose in a private garden.  I tend to go and specifically look for them where I know they occur and this year they seemed to be a little later than normal, but in reasonable numbers.

Northern Brown Argus

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary, Boloria selene

Having visited a reserve in the Scottish Borders this year to see Small Pear-bordered Fritillaries, I was delighted to find them at a site just inside East Lothian a couple of weeks later. There have previously been a few unconfirmed sightings of Small Pearl-bordered Fritillaries in East Lothian, but this time I saw them long enough and took some pictures which confirmed their identification. It is funny how seeing a butterfly elsewhere can lead to identifying them in different sites. If I hadn’t seen those in the Scottish Borders I may have dismissed these as Dark Green Fritillaries and not looked any closer!

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary

Small Skipper, Thymelicus sylvestris

Another very exciting record this year was the discovery of a number of Small Skippers at Aberlady Local Nature Reserve. There had been three isolated sightings of Small Skippers at two locations in East Lothian the previous two years, but on 12th July I received an excited phone call from a local volunteer who had found more than ten of them on a patch of thistles in the reserve.  She went on to find more at the reserve and I then received other records of them at three other locations within three kilometres of this site. It is great to hear that they are doing well and if we have good weather next year I am sure we will find them at various other locations.

Small Skipper

Clouded Yellow, Colias croceus

We only very rarely see Clouded Yellows here. I saw one thirteen years ago and a colleague saw one seven years ago. This year we received two records. The first was seen in North Berwick on 31st July and the following day we were told of one about 25 kilometres further along the coast in Musselburgh. I guess it must have been the same individual. In August and September high numbers arrived in southern England from the continent. They were seen laying eggs and I was hoping that we would be invaded by the next generation. Unfortunately the cold weather proved too much for them and they didn't venture up here!

All together this has been a fantastic year for butterflies. In total I received sightings of 23 different species, which I think must be a record for East Lothian. Only ten years ago eight of those species hadn't been recorded here. It is amazing that so many species continue to expand their range into East Lothian. We seem to be losing more and more habitat, and yet the butterflies seem to be better than ever. I wonder what the next new species will be. I can't wait for next year!