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YEAR LIST,
2012
For previous years' lists and commentaries, often incomplete, click: 2011, 2010, 2009; 2008; 2007; 2006; 2005; 2004; 2003; 2002; 2001. I seem to have
lost the file for 2000.
Two of my friends also keep online year-lists. Tim Cowles,
living in the Monts du Lyonnais, publishes his list HERE
and Matthew Rowlings, who lives not far from me in Vevey, Switzerland,
has his HERE.
SCROLL DOWN for the 2012 CHECKLIST or use the menu below to jump to the
COMMENTARY for each month.
CHECKLIST
FOR THE YEAR 2012
1 Small tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae) - 15th January - Valais
Commentary
(Links in the
commentary are to pictures of the particular butterflies referred to)
January
3rd: The sun shone in the valley in the morning, but by midday it had begun to cloud over. It was very cold and probably never reached higher than about 3°C - so no adult butterflies were on the wing. A few flies were out in the vineyards and this green lizard put in an unexpected appearance. I found a very few brown hairstreak eggs at the same place I saw a female laying last October. Here is another. Although I didn't spend long looking, I was surprised not to find any purple hairstreak eggs in their usual spots.
7th:
After violent storms and blizzards this week I thought it worth
checking up on Aurelian, my purple emperor caterpillar, in the woods.
The winds had brought down some trees (this is a sycamore) but Aurelian's sallow bush was undamaged. Here he is (and here). On the way home I checked some oak trees and found this purple hairstreak egg (and here).
A little further on I discovered a wandering female brown hairstreak
had laid on the local patch of blackthorn, for the third year running. Here and here are eggs.
15th:
In the mountains it has been sunny all week. In the valley it has often
been cloudy, the upper limit of the cloud varying between Ollon and
Huémoz. Today it was sunny everywhere, though bitterly cold (probably reaching a maximum of -1°C in the shade). I went looking for purple hairstreak eggs near Martigny but despite quite extensive searching found only two. Here
is one. I can't explain the lack of eggs, given that the species was
abundant in July and August. I didn't look for brown hairstreak eggs
but noticed this sprig of blackthorn in leaf!
Because of the low temperatures there was very little insect activity -
I saw a few flies - and almost no lizard activity either. Nevertheless,
just before I headed home, at 1.20pm, a small tortoiseshell crossed my
path and flew into a garden. I got this distant proof shot of the sighting but because the car was in the drive I didn't venture into the garden for a better photo!
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December