Butterfly Year 2019

YEAR LIST, 2019

SWISS BUTTERFLY CALENDAR 2019 - CLICK HERE

For previous years' lists and commentaries, often incomplete, click 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009; 2008; 2007; 2006; 2005; 2004; 2003; 2002; 2001. I seem to have lost the file for 2000.

Some of my friends also keep, or have kept, 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. Another friend, Robin Fox, in Italy, keeps a regularly updated sightings diary HERE.

SCROLL DOWN for the 2019 CHECKLIST or use the menu below to jump to the COMMENTARY for each month.

NOTE TO MY REGULAR READERS:
Following the death of my mother on 15th March 2018 I have moved to England to keep my father company. This diary will therefore be very different from all my previous ones. No longer will I have alpine species on my doorstep and purple emperor caterpillars in my local woods. No more midwinter visits to Queen of Spain fritillaries in the Rhône Valley or spring trips to nettle tree habitat in Italy! Thank you to everyone who has followed the Swiss butterfly years with me. I will try to keep some interest in these pages and hope to get some holidays abroad, but in the short term my diary will record mostly the creatures in and around Woodbridge, Suffolk. I will try to include at least one photo, of nature or scenery, every day.

CHECKLIST FOR THE YEAR 2019

Peacock (Aglais io) - 14th February - Suffolk
Small tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae) - 15th February - Suffolk
Brimstone (Gonepteryx rhamni) - 24th February - Suffolk
Red admiral (Vanessa atalanta) - 24th February - Suffolk
Comma (Polygonia c-album) - 25th February - Suffolk
Small white (Pieris rapae) - 20th March - Suffolk
Austaut's blue (Polyommatus celina) - 31st March - Málaga
Painted lady (Vanessa cardui) - 31st March - Málaga
Wall (Lasiommata megera) - 31st March - Málaga
Clouded yellow (Colias crocea) - 31st March - Málaga
Spanish marbled white (Melanargia ines) - 31st March - Málaga
Spanish festoon (Zerinthia rumina) - 31st March - Málaga
Black-eyed blue (Glaucopsyche melanops) - 31st March - Málaga
Large white (Pieris brassicae) - 31st March - Málaga
Bath white (Pontia daplidice) - 31st March - Málaga
Provence orange tip (Anthocharis euphenoides) - 31st March - Málaga
Green hairstreak (Calophrys rubi) - 31st March - Málaga
Meadow brown (Maniola jurtina) - 31st March - Málaga
Monarch (Danaus plexippus) - 31st March - Málaga
Long-tailed blue (Lampides boeticus) - 31st March - Málaga
Green-striped white (Euchloe belemia) - 1st April - Málaga
Spanish gatekeeper (Pyronia bathseba) - 2nd April - Málaga
Swallowtail (Papilio machaon) - 2nd April - Málaga
Small copper (Lycaena phlaeas) - 2nd April - Málaga
Iberian scarce swallowtail (Iphiclides feisthamelii) - 2nd April - Málaga
Speckled wood (Pararge aegeria) - 2nd April - Málaga
African grass blue (Zizeeria knysna) - 2nd April - Málaga
Western dappled white (Euchloe crameri) - 3rd April - Antequera
Provence hairstreak (Tomares ballus) - 3rd April - Antequera
Southern brown argus (Aricia cramera) - 3rd April - Antequera
False baton blue (Scolitantides abencerragus) - 3rd April - Antequera
Lorquin's blue (Cupido lorquinii) - 3rd April - Antequera
Small heath (Coenonympha pamphilus) - 3rd April - Antgequera
False mallow skipper (Carcharodus tripolinus) - 3rd April - Antequera
Adonis blue (Polyommatus bellargus) - 3rd April - Antequera
Holly blue (Celastrina argiolus) - 3rd April - Antequera
Orange tip (Anthocharis cardamines) - 8th April - Suffolk
Green-veined white (Pieris napi) - 18th April - Suffolk
Common blue (Polyommatus icarus) - 14th May - Suffolk
Brown argus (Aricia agestis) - 21st May - Suffolk
Little blue (Cupido minimus) - 17th June - Suffolk
Silver-studded blue (Plebejus argus) - 22nd June - Suffolk
Ringlet (Aphantopus hyperantus) - 23rd June - Suffolk
Small skipper (Thymelicus sylvestris) - 23rd June - Suffolk
Purple hairstreak (Favonius quercus) - 25th June - Suffolk
Scarce swallowtail (Iphiclides podalirius) - 29th June - Vaud
Marbled white (Melanargia galathea) - 29th June - Vaud
Lesser marbled fritillary (Brenthis ino) - 29th June - Vaud
Dark green fritillary (Argynnis aglaja) - 29th June - Vaud
Large skipper (Ochlodes sylvanus) - 29th June - Vaud
Marbled fritillary (Brenthis daphne) - 29th June - Vaud
Black-veined white (Aporia crataegi) - 29th June - Vaud
High brown fritillary (Argynnis adippe) - 29th June - Vaud
Niobe fritillary (Argynnnis niobe) - 29th June - Vaud
Woodland brown (Lopinga achine) - 29th June - Vaud
Silver-washed fritillary (Thymelicus sylvestris) - 29th June - Vaud
Large wall (Lasiommata maera) - 29th June - Vaud
Cardinal (Argynnis pandora) - 29th June - Vaud
Provençal short-tailed blue (Cupido alcetas) - 29th June - Vaud
Chequered skipper (Carterocephalus palaemon) - 29th June - Vaud
Wood white (Leptidea sinapis) - 29th June - Vaud
Bright-eyed ringlet (Erebia oeme) - 30th June - Vaud
Alpine heath (Coenonympha gardetta) - 30th June - Vaud
Clouded Apollo (Parnassius mnemosyne) - 30th June - Vaud
Apollo (Parnassius apollo) - 30th June - Vaud
Queen of Spain fritillary (Issoria lathonia) - 30th June - Vaud
Pearl-bordered fritillary (Boloria euphrosyne) - 30th June - Vaud
Bright-eyed ringlet (Erebia oeme) - 30th June - Vaud
Grizzled skipper (Pyrgus malvae) - 30th June - Vaud
Dewy ringlet (Erebia pandrose) - 30th June - Vaud
Berger's clouded yellow (Colias alfacariensis) - 30th June - Vaud
Large blue (Phengaris arion) - 30th June - Vaud
Violet copper (Lycaena helle) - 30th June - Vaud
Sooty copper (Lycaena tityrus) - 30th June - Vaud
Dingy skipper (Erynnnis tages) - 30th June - Vaud
Titania's fritillary (Boloria titania) - 30th June - Vaud
Marsh fritillary (Euphydryas aurinia) - 30th June - Vaud
False heath fritillary (Melitaea diamina) - 30th June - Vaud
Mazarine blue (Cyaniris semiargus) - 30th June - Vaud
Olive skipper (Pyrgus serratulae) - 30th June - Vaud
Northern wall (Lasiommata petropolitana) - 1st July - Valais
Mountain green-veined white (Pieris bryoniae) - 1st July - Valais
Heath fritillary (Melitaea nevadensis) - 1st July - Valais
Alpine grayling (Oeneis glacialis) - 1st July - Valais
Asian fritillary (Euphydryas intermedia) - 1st July - Valais
Blind ringlet (Erebia pharte) - 1st July - Valais
Almond-eyed ringlet (Erebia alberganus) - 1st July - Valais
Great sooty satyr (Satyrus ferula) - 1st July - Valais
Knapweed fritillary (Melitaea phoebe) - 1st July - Valais
Southern white admiral (Limenitis reducta) - 1st July - Valais
Marbled skipper (Carcharodus lavatherae) - 1st July - Valais
Chapman's blue (Polyommatus thersites) - 1st July - Valais
Grayling (Hipparchia semele) - 1st July - Valais
Ilex hairstreak (Satyrium ilicis) - 1st July - Valais
Southern grizzled skipper (Pyrgus malvoides) - 2nd July - Valais
Small Apollo (Parnassius corybas) - 2nd July - Valais
Dusky grizzled skipper (Pyrgus cacaliae) - 2nd July - Valais
Peak white (Pontia callidice) - 2nd July - Valais
Cynthia's fritillary (Euphydryas cynthia) - 2nd July - Valais
Shepherd's fritillary (Boloria pales) - 2nd July - Valais
Grisons fritillary (Melitaea varia) - 2nd July - Valais
Idas blue (Plebejus idas) - 2nd July - Valais
Baton blue (Scolitantides baton) - 2nd July - Valais
Great banded grayling (Brintesia circe) - 3rd July - Vaud
Sloe hairstreak (Satyrium acaciae) - 3rd July - Vaud
Pearly heath (Coenonympha arcania) - 3rd July - Vaud
Violet fritillary (Boloria dia) - 3rd July - Vaud
Scarce large blue (Phengaris telejus) - 4th July - Bern
Purple-edged copper (Lycaena hippothoe) - 4th July - Bern
Safflower skipper (Pyrgus carthami) - 4th July - Bern
Dusky large blue (Phengaris nausithous) - 4th July - Bern
Thor's fritillary (Boloria thore) - 5th July - Bern
Arran brown (Erebia ligea) - 5th July - Bern
Northern brown argus (Aricia artaxerxes) - 5th July - Bern
Large ringlet (Erebia euryale) - 5th July - Bern
Alpine grizzled skipper (Pyrgus andromedae) - 5th July - Bern
Darwin's heath (Coenonympha (gardetta) darwiniana) - 6th July - Valais
Red underwing skipper (Spialia sertorius) - 6th July - Valais
Mountain ringlet (Erebia epiphron) - 6th July - Valais
Essex skipper (Thymelicus lineola) - 6th July - Valais
Swiss brassy ringlet (Erebia tyndarus) - 6th July - Valais
Woodland ringlet (Erebia medusa) - 6th July - Valais
De Prunner's ringlet (Erebia triaria) - 6th July - Valais
Turquoise blue (Polyommatus dorylas) - 6th July - Valais
Chalkhill blue (Polyommatus coridon) - 6th July - Valais
Rätzer's ringlet (Erebia christi) - 6th July - Valais
Eastern Bath white (Pontia edusa) - 7th July - Valais
Provençal fritillary (Melitaea deione berisalii) - 7th July - Valais
Spotted fritillary (Melitaea didyma) - 7th July - Valais
Swiss Zephyr blue (Plebejus trappi) - 7th July - Valais
Gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus) - 13th July - Suffolk
White admiral (Limenitis camilla) - 17th July - Suffolk
White-letter hairstreak (Satyrium w-album) - 22nd July - Suffolk

Commentary
(Links in the commentary are to pictures of the particular butterflies referred to)

January
1st: The year began bright but cold. Here is Minnie on her morning jaunt around Fen Meadow in Woodbridge. No time for any nature excursions today.
2nd: Bright in the morning, grim later, cold always! I searched for purple hairstreak eggs around Sutton Heath in the afternoon, finding none. I did find this harlequin ladybird (and here, and here) hibernating among the oak buds. Most of the red admiral eggs I saw laid in November 2018 have either perished or simply become impossible to find. None hatched successfully. Today I could find just one - one that I saw actually being laid. It was as if knocked over on its side (and here).
3rd: A brilliantly clear morning (and here), which continued most of the day. I had little time for nature - here are a grey plover and ringed plover on the far side of the river on my quick afternoon dog-walk.
4th: Rather grey and gloomy all day. No real nature excursions, but here is a black-headed gull disconsolately wading in the mud, dreaming of spring and a black head!
5th: Very grey and cold all day. Here are some distant avocets (and here, and here) photographed on the Deben.
6th: Again, grey and cold all day, with a hint of snow in the air (which never came). Here is a group of dunlin, redshank and black-tailed godwits on the Deben, with an avocet, and here is another part of the group with two avocets. Here is one of the avocets and here a teal.
7th: It looked brighter first thing in the morning but then descended once more into grey gloom! Here is Minnie trudging around her now familiar route ... And here is an oystercatcher among the waders in the mud of the Deben, and here a dabchick out on the water.
8th: Finally, blue skies over the meadow on our morning walk and a promise of a good day! Later in the morning I cycled off to the Martlesham region, where I used to watch silver-studded blues in my youth. Since then, the heaths have been almost entirely built over - an act of criminal vandalism on a tragic scale. I located a few tiny, isolated spots where the habitat has remained relatively undamaged, where the butterflies flew in the day. It remains to be seen whether they are still there ... I also explored a bit through local woods, finding a potentially good clearing for green hairstreaks.
9th: Very cold today, the temperature barely rising above 0°C all day. I took Minnie for a hasty walk after lunch but it began raining ice-cold rain and she was happy to turn back. Here is a rainbow over the Deben.
10th: The Deben near Kyson Point. A wigeon out there on the water. Again, a bitterly cold day.
11th: Grey and overcast but warmer than recently. Here is the view from near Kyson Point. Having seen a few kingfishers zooming past over the last few weeks I was fortunate enough to see one stop to fish today. Here he is perched near to the water. Unfortunately he was a long way away and I was on the wrong side for pictures. I will return when the tide is high in the morning, when the sun will be behind me. Here's another shot - the most detail I could draw out at that distance - and here one of him in the act of fishing.
12th: Very dark again. My river walk was at lower tide than yesterday and there was not enough water for the kingfisher where I saw him yesterday. Here is a fat squirrel in the morning, keeping well out of Minnie's way, a group of godwits on the water's edge and another group resting up in a bank in the stream.
13th: The light is still generally too poor for my camera! Here is a green woodpecker among the pigeons this morning.
14th: The light on the Deben this afternoon - and with Minnie. Here is a curlew down by the water's edge.
15th: Bright and sunny some of the day, turning very grey by late afternoon. I took Minnie on a forest walk, seeing no butterflies nor even finding any eggs but catching a fleeting glimpse of muntjac and seeing these roe deer far away along the track. They had seen us too and soon silently disappeared. Crossing Wilford Bridge on the way back I spotted a greenshank wading at the river's edge (and here).
16th: Utterly grim, cold and wet until the late evening, when suddenly the moon appeared in a clear sky. Here is the scene across the Deben from Kyson Point in the afternoon. A winter plumage black-headed gull dreams of spring, while a lapwing gives up all hope. A few shelduck have recently returned from their Christmas holidays in the Waddenzee. Here is one far away on the other side of the river, with an avocet and redshank also in the picture.
17th: Bright and very cold all day. This is the Deben in the afternoon. Here are couple of ringed plovers with a dunlin, a rather splendid wigeon, a black-tailed godwit going deep and a distant group of avocets. Another clear night, dominated by the gibbous moon. No possibility of any butterflies in Woodbridge today!
18th: Mixed weather, starting off very cold (-2°C) but warming up considerably during the day. Here is the view from Kyson Point this afternoon and here is Minnie on her way there. Here are a kestrel about to drop, a mucky-but-happy female wigeon, a lapwing and yet another group of avocets. There were at least 20 of these elegant birds feeding together. Finally, here is another shot of the gibbous moon as it approaches full.
19th: Bright but again very cold. Here is Minnie enjoying her morning jaunt. My first goldeneye of the winter were bobbing far out across the Deben. Again, it was a clear night, so I photographed the moon. There will be a total lunar eclipse early on Monday morning.
20th: A bright but chilly morning (and here). The usual mix of species out on the river, including many groups of ducks and waders feeding happily together. Here is a grey plover with a muddy bill, here a curlew and here an avocet. The sky was still clear on our evening walk, leaving hope of views of the blood moon tomorrow. Here is the near-full moon as she was tonight.
21st: The lunar eclipse at the beginning of totality and at mid-totality (when she was closer to the horizon). Then I went back to bed.
22nd: Bright and beautiful on the Deben today (and here). Lots of godwits wading around in the shallows (here is a group of them). This little egret, all wrapped up in himself (and here) shows that it really wasn't very warm, though!
23rd: The day started off bright but was overcast and even raining during my afternoon walk. This was a shame as the kingfisher put in another appearance. Here he is silhouetted against the river and here is a closer view of him. I would have liked to get closer but too many people were walking along the sea wall. Here is a distant shot of him perched on a post in the river. By the evening it was clear again. Here is the waning moon.
24th: Magic light at dawn. Later in the day the magic left and it both snowed and rained.
25th: Mostly wet, though a clear night. Here is the view from Kyson Point in the afternoon. It was generally dark and not good for photos, but here and here are a couple of collared doves sitting on a street lamp, here a lapwing with black-headed gulls, here a turnstone and here a couple more turnstones.
26th: Overcast and wet most of the day. Here are a flock of lapwings near the Woodbridge tide mill, some black-tailed godwits and a female wigeon and a grey plover with a lapwing. Roll on spring and butterflies!
27th: From a beautiful morning, through a grim, overcast afternoon, to a wonderful, windy, cloud-racing-in-clear-sky night.
28th: A beautiful morning, leading to a beautiful day. Here is a barn owl I was lucky enough to catch hunting and perching near the river in the late afternoon. This is where he was hunting.
29th: Another promising morning, but a very cold afternoon and sleet in the evening. I had no time for adventures today but had to hurry along the river. This lapwing having a bad hair day shows how windy it was - but not how cold!
30th: Woke to the first settled snow of the year (and here). In the afternoon I saw another barn owl and snatched a couple of shaky shots - here and here - of it before it caught some prey and dropped hidden to the ground. This was a kilometre or two from where I saw the owl on 28th and might even be the same owl.
31st: A beautiful start to the day (and here) led to a cold and half-overcast afternoon. A group of bar-tailed godwits was feeding on the mudflats (and here, and here with a dunlin flying in). This picture shows well the slightly upturned bill. Here is a pensive common gull.

February
1st: A grey day on the Deben. Flocks of dunlin were scattered across the mudflats at low tide.
2nd: Beautiful morning leading to a beautiful afternoon. Sadly I had no time for nature walks today. Minnie had to settle for regular trots around the meadow!
3rd: Another beautiful day without much time to enjoy it! In the afternoon I cycled Minnie to Rendlesham forest (and here) but we had to come back far too soon because of the risk of icy roads as the sun set. The only creature picture I took today was this robin in full song this morning.
4th: Drizzle all day and no opportunities to spend time in nature. Snowdrops are coming into flower in the local meadow.
5th: This has become more of a weather log than a nature diary. Today was overcast and grey from dawn to dusk. This picture is from our morning walk and this from the afternoon. It was flood tide, with a few dabchick out on the river and a few gulls and lapwings over the meadows. Here is a wood pigeon sitting it out.
6th: After a grey and gloomy start to the day, the sun came out and much of the morning was warm and sunny. There is in fact a squirrel on top of the telegraph pole in that last picture. By way of illustrating the zoom of my Canon SX60, here is that squirrel, taken handheld from the same spot. Flies were taking advantage of the mild weather and the first crocuses were out in the garden. Sadly, no butterflies. By the afternoon all was dark cloud again and photography was difficult. Here is a group of waders and teal feeding on the mudflats, here a ruff in the water meadows, digging for worms with black-tailed godwits and here is a green woodpecker who thought I couldn't see him. Heavy rain by evening.
7th: A beautiful but windy day, morning (and here), afternoon and evening. Here are snowdrops in the garden, a kestrel hunting over the watermeadows and some turnstones commandeering a dinghy (and here).
8th: Wet and windy all day, with storm Erik passing. Here is a live picture from the afternoon. Here is a squirrel keeping well out of the way in the morning (and eating a nut).
9th: Up early with Minnie for a walk before leaving her at the kennels while I headed across country on the trains to pick up my sister's dogs from Wales.
10th: A day near Carmarthen in West Wales. A wet and windy morning - here is Boo, one of the dogs I went to pick up, on our morning walk. My main hope during the day was to photograph red kites. I saw plenty, but they were generally silhouetted against cloudy skies (and here). Only occasionally did I get a glimpse of colour (and here). Several were hunting around and between these wind turbines. Here, here and here are some shots taken from that same vantage point. Flocks of thrushes (fieldfare, mistle thrush and redwing) abounded, as did flocks of starlings. A few more shots from the day: here (Minnie would have gone wild for the rabbits in this part of the world!), here (there's a buzzard in that shot), here and here.
11th: Return with the dogs to the East Coast of Suffolk. Here they are in Carmarthen at the beginning of the journey ... I was very impressed with how dog-friendly the trains in England and Wales are. On one train, the woman pushing the bar trolley even brought them water to drink, without my asking.
12th: A bright but frosty morning. I had to travel again to take one dog to kennels and pick Minnie up. On the journey I scented butterflies and knew they were flying somewhere. Although I saw none myself, when I mentioned to my father at lunch that I knew butterflies were flying today he said he had seen one in the garden in the morning, while I was out. He wasn't close enough to see what it was, except that it wasn't a brimstone. I did see a great white egret from the train though. By the time I took Minnie out in the afternoon it was too late for butterflies. Here is a greenshank feeding in open water on the Deben (and here).
13th: Still mild, but high cloud persisted well into the morning and though it did clear, the wind ensured butterflies never felt likely. Here and here are afternoon shots from Martlesham Creek. Here is a juvenile rook surveying the creek and here some wood pigeons on the far side. There were hundreds. This is a black-tailed godwit.
14th: No butterflies in the morning sun, nor any on a long dog walk and cycle ride near Wickham Market at lunchtime, but this single female peacock waiting for me in the garden on my return at about 15h00.
15th: A promising start to the day, followed by my first small tortoiseshells of the year - two, both probably males - in local woods at lunchtime. Back in the garden, bees and wasps are on the wing.
16th: An interlude of grey, after two days of sun and, we hope, sun tomorrow. Here are Minnie and I setting off for the river. It's not quite as exciting for her as it was zooming down Swiss mountains ... We watched a barn owl hunting far, far away along Martlesham Creek.
17th: The day started beautiful, as forecast, but rapidly clouded over and in Rendlesham Forest, where I headed to look for early butterflies, didn't clear properly until after 12h30. So unsurprisingly, no more butterflies today.
18th: Overcast all day, and raining sometimes, though clearing in the evening to a starry night. Here is a rainbow as I was cycling back from Tesco in the afternoon. The black-headed gulls have now got sooty faces and will soon be sporting summer plumage. Here is a different individual. Here is a redshank in a great hurry and here a curlew.
19th: A beautiful morning but cold and windy much of the day. Near Wickham Market in the early afternoon hares were sitting around in the fields (and here).
20th: Promising but windy morning. On the coast in the afternoon the first skylarks were in full song-flight. Here is a fly-past of cormorants. They were sweeping off the coast in great Vs.
21st: Warm and sunny but strangely no butterflies in the garden or the woods. Wood larks (filename treepipit because I thought at the time that's what they were) were in full song, alternately from the treetops and from the air. Buzzards were flying over the woods.
22nd: A perfect day until about 14h30 when hazy sun became thicker cloud. No butterflies flew despite the sun and warmth all morning.
23rd: Yet another perfect day without any butterflies. Here is the patch near Bromeswell where I saw small tortoiseshells over a week ago. This photo was taken near Rendlesham in the afternoon. Extensive banks of flowering gorse, heady with the scent of coconut, were almost completely devoid of any insects at all.
24th: A warm and sunny day. In the late morning, a male brimstone came roding regularly through our garden. He never stopped for a picture but here, here and here are three awful flight shots for the record. At about midday I saw a red admiral as I nipped up the road to buy bread. I took a long cycle ride to three local sites in the afternoon, having good walks (and here, and here) but seeing no more butterflies.
25th: Warm and sunny all day. In the morning and early afternoon, at least three commas (here, here and here - and here the underside of one) were sparring and sunning in the garden. I saw a single brimstone in town and both peacock and small tortoiseshell in the garden later. In local woods I found this peacock. The fine weather is set to continue for some days at least.
26th: Commas again established in our back garden. Here and here are two different individuals from the ones seen yesterday. Here, here and here are three more shots of that first one, on various perches. Near Wickham Market I saw several peacocks and probably two brimstones - both males, roding.
27th: Comma in garden much of morning, taking minerals (video) and sunning. Peacock and comma at Ufford in the afternoon. Today was probably the last day of the present hot, sunny spell.
28th: Mostly bright and sunny in the morning but 10 degrees cooler than yesterday and no butterflies flew. By the afternoon it had largely clouded over and there was rain later. Here is a linnet in bushes by the river and here a black-tailed godwit.

March
1st: Return of cloud all day. Here are two buzzards in a tree near Wickham Market and here a muntjac in fields nearby.
2nd: Alternately bright and cloudy/rainy. Used my afternoon walk to explore new sites. This one looks promising for green hairstreaks.
3rd: A day of wind and rain, overcast until the evening. Here are an oystercatcher, a teal and a black-headed gull sporting his fresh spring headgear.
4th: Today would have been my mother's 88th birthday. Here is Minnie by the memorial garden we are making for her. It was bright but wintery all morning and some of the afternoon. Here are a wigeon, a godwit and a group of godwits.
5th: Bright but cold in the morning. It was about 7°C when I spotted a small tortoiseshell in the garden. I grabbed my camera, ran outside and got one quick shot of it digging into a daffodil before it flew off. Stayed bright all day but no more butterflies. Here and here are a couple of 7-spot ladybirds in the garden in the afternoon.
6th: Overcast, windy and sometimes wet. Here is a black-tailed godwit in the mud. The wind was blowing too hard to hold the camera still.
7th: In the morning, bright enough for 7-spot ladybirds to be sunning on the nettles, though windy. By the afternoon a storm was brewing, leading to heavy squalls later.
8th: A bright morning gave way to cloud and rain later. In afternoon, walked the dogs near Wickham Market. Lots of fallow deer (and here, and here) were moving over the fields. Here is a muntjac (and here) also enjoying the spring growth.
9th: Sometimes bright, sometimes torrential rain, always windy. Here is a live photo from the river and here a still one. Here is a curlew, here a turnstone, and here a black-headed gull checking his friends are asleep before trying out his dance moves.
10th: Another sometimes bright, sometimes stormy (briefly snowy) and always windy day. This is Minnie in the morning in my mother's memorial garden. Here is another live photo from the river and here a still one. A redshank in the mud; a turnstone toying at gull droppings on the jetty.
11th: Bright and windy again. Happy dogs in the morning; empty recreation ground in the afternoon - too cold for everyone else; the sun behind clouds; black-headed gulls and turnstones on the jetties as usual; lesser black-backed gulls keeping watch on the chimney stacks.
12th: Windy and rainy until the evening.
13th: Mostly overcast and windy. No time today for nature photography.
14th: Stormy with torrential downpours in the morning. Bright and windy (and here) in the afternoon.
15th: Clouds all day, with occasional rain and lots of wind. Here is a grey plover in the grey mud on a grey day. My mother died a year ago today.
16th: Another cloudy, often wet day, though less windy and generally milder than recently. A ruff (and here) was scurrying around busily in the mud along the river.
17th: A day of sun, rain, sleet, hail, snow and wind, all at different times. Here, here, here and here are four pictures from the same afternoon walk.
18th: Bright enough in the morning (and here) for me to wonder whether butterflies might fly today - but things turned grimmer later (and here). Buzzards were circling in the sky by the river, while godwits, wigeon, dabchicks and black-headed gulls dabbled in the mud.
19th: In a rare period of sunshine in late morning, as I was coming back from the shop with bread, I saw a butterfly fly speedily across the road, then back and over a wall. Bizarrely, I have no idea what it was. It was pale with darker markings, but definitely not a Pierid - more like a Papilionid, though with a fast, direct flight and sharp turns. I wondered about painted lady afterwards but not in the moment of seeing it. It will remain a mystery. In the forest in the afternoon, what I took to be orange underwings were flying, though unlike in Switzerland they never settled so I couldn't confirm. Woodlarks were perched in the tops of birch trees. The whole time I was in the forest the sky was grey.
20th: Partly sunny in the morning. At least one small white was drifting in and out of our garden. In late morning I took Minnie for a cycle ride to a woodland ride, seeing another small white on the way, but sadly all sun was lost before I got there.
21st: Mostly cloudy all day, but warm and with some sunny spells. In the morning, found this Hemipteran in the house, so put it outside. It is a western conifer seed bug, recently introduced from North America. The first European specimens were found in 1999 and the first British ones in 2007.
22nd: Unrelieved grey (and here) from dawn till dusk - and quite cold too.
23rd: Partly sunny. In the early afternoon a couple of peacocks were flying in this lane. Back at home, I saw a comma in the garden at about 15h30. It didn't stop for photos, but this blue tit did (and here).
24th: Mostly warm and sunny with some cloudy spells. In the garden, peacocks, commas (and here, and here), a single small tortoiseshell and a single female brimstone were flying. In the countryside, peacocks were widespread. This one was nectaring on blackthorn in this lane. Here is another, in woods some distance away. A single male brimstone was roding that lane and I saw a pair of commas sparring there. A single red admiral appeared on the corner of a road as I was cycling home.
25th: Partially sunny, especially in the morning. Here is one of two or three commas present in the garden. I didn't have the opportunity to look for anything else.
26th: Sunny but cold in the morning. Every time I went into the garden, one or two commas were in evidence. I saw no other species today.
27th: Overcast from dawn till nightfall. No butterflies. Here are two lonely teal out on the river.
28th: Mostly cloudy in the morning, leading to mostly sunny in the afternoon. Whenever it was sunny, commas flew in the garden, and I saw one female brimstone (often being used as a sunspot by flies) and one small white too.
29th: A sunny day. I couldn't profit from it fully, as I had much to do in preparation for leaving tomorrow. But I saw: comma (several in the garden, as ever), peacock (in garden and around the countryside), small white (one, in garden), brimstone (one, in garden), small tortoiseshell (one, in local woods).
30th: Spent day travelling to Málaga. Was a beautiful day when I left Suffolk. Will post butterflies seen and some pictures during the next week, with full pictures to come when I return.
31st: The forecast was for rain until midday and cloud afterwards. That is exactly what happened. Here is a little egret standing in the rain as I began my walk out of Málaga into the hills. During the climb I found this single male Polyommatus celina roosting but I saw nothing else until I had put my umbrella away. Then, a painted lady soon appeared. This species was constant throughout the day, flying whether or not there was any sun and even after the rain returned (at about 17h00). The only other butterfly I saw before 15h00, when the sun suddenly came out, was a single wall. Then, with the sun, lots of other species appeared, beginning with Spanish festoon and Spanish marbled white, and continuing with black-eyed blue (I saw two males - neither stopped), small white, large white, Bath white, Provence orange tip, clouded yellow, lots more walls, green hairstreak and most surprisingly, this meadow brown. I was at my Provence hairstreak site when the sun came out but none flew. It might be too late for them - the meadow brown suggests this is a very early season. At 16h15 cloud returned, with only brief moments of relief after that. Painted ladies continued to fly. On my way back to the hostel I added red admiral (while still in the hills), monarch (in town) and long-tailed blue to the day's tally. Here is another painted lady from that part of the walk, when the sun shone.

April
1st: Despite a forecast of generally good weather, it rained almost all day in the hills today. Between showers - sometimes downpours - it was mostly cloudy, with just a few sunny spells of about 10 minutes at most. Thus, I spent most of the day walking around with an umbrella, seeing very little. When the sun did come out, the first thing to fly was always painted lady, closely followed by clouded yellow. I also saw a long-tailed blue, a Bath white and a wall. I came down relatively early, to go to the bus station and get timetables for later in the week. In Málaga the weather was a little better and I saw several large and small whites, plenty of painted ladies and three monarchs. Finally, after I had been to the bus station, at about 17h00, it looked as if the sun might stay out and I headed back to look for African grass blues. I saw none, but did find my first green-striped white of the holiday (and here) and took some more photographs of monarchs. This is the same male I photographed yesterday. This (and here, and here) is a female. I also saw two red admirals. The green-striped white is a second brood individual, as evidenced by the slightly diffuse and yellowish underside markings. This confirms it is a very early year in Málaga.
2nd: The first day forecast to be properly sunny, at least for the morning. I climbed into the hills relatively early, reaching my hilltopping spot shortly after 10h00. On the way I saw two black-eyed blues and several painted ladies. There, the first hilltoppers - walls - were just arriving. These were soon followed by long-tailed blues and Spanish marbled whites. Swifts were swooping around in large numbers. I left before things really hotted up, to look for the Provence hairstreaks. At their site, usually so strong, there were none. I think they have finished for the year. On the way I saw two Spanish gatekeepers - a big surprise, given the date. I saw three more on my way back to the hilltopping site, where bee-eaters had joined the swifts and many more butterflies were on the wing, including swallowtails, Iberian scarceswallowtails, red admirals, painted ladies, walls, long-tailed blues and lots of Spanish marbled whites (and here). I visited the hairstreak site once more before heading back down the hill, seeing Provence orange tip and a single, female Cleopatra, as well as several Spanish festoons and a small copper, before heading back down the hill. Back in Málaga I finally caught up with a single African grass blue. Photographed monarchs again and found a lovely, fresh helice female clouded yellow. Full day list: Spanish festoon (quite a few, but not common), swallowtail (half a dozen at most), Iberian scarce swallowtail (several at hilltopping site and a few elsewhere), large white, small white, Bath white, probably dappled white but didn't stop, Provence orange tip, clouded yellow, Cleopatra (just one female), black-eyed blue, long-tailed blue, African grass blue, small copper, painted lady, red admiral, wall, speckled wood (just one seen, in Málaga), Spanish gatekeeper, Spanish marbled white, monarch.
3rd: Caught first bus for Antequera, with target species false baton blue, on the sole grounds that Tolman mentions it for this region. I hoped at least to find Panoptes blue, if the long-shot failed. Initially, it seemed I would see very little. On the way to the area I hoped to find the blues (which I had picked from Google Earth) I saw painted ladies, clouded yellows, walls, black-eyed blues and a handful of western dappled whites. When I got there, my first obstacle was cows with calves - which deterred me from the path I had initially chosen (one calf came towards me, followed by a very serious-looking mother ...). So I went a different way and soon came across a single Provence hairstreak. That was a good sign - but there were very few butterflies apart from it, and it scarpered after just a record shot. Then I found a southern brown argus and several more dappled whites. Finally, I hit gold and located a small colony of false baton blues (pictures will be much better when processed properly). I saw males and females and got reasonably good shots of both. Here is an underside. At the same site, Lorquin's blue was common - and as I returned to the bus station afterwards I found more of these over quite a large area. Here is a female and here another male. This male enjoyed taking sweat on my backpack. This is not a life tick but I've only seen one individual before, in June 1991, so it feels like one! Some individuals were beautifully fresh and again I found males and females. Also at this site I watched a female Cleopatra laying: unlike brimstones, she laid eggs one at a time on separate leaves, taking less than a second to lay - so impossible to get a focused shot. Here is one of the eggs she laid. What appeared to be common blues were also flying. They did not look like the Austaut's blues I am used to seeing in this region. Another surprise was a single Lysandra female. Since Provence chalkhill blue does not fly here, she must be Adonis. A further species new for the year was false mallow skipper, Carcharodus tripolinus. Although indistinguishable from mallow skipper in the field, the species is confirmed by distribution. I saw at least two small heaths. As I came down from the hills a holly blue rested on the path, my first of 2019. Full write up and pictures to come.
4th: Spent day in Gibraltar. Much of the day was really just a wander down memory lane but I enjoyed a few good butterflies. I watched several female Spanish festoons laying eggs on Aristolochia plants and was able to photograph both the eggs and some early stage caterpillars. Little else was flying. I saw a few female Provence orange tips and one male - none settled - lots of large and small whites, and in town speckled woods, a female Cleopatra and a monarch. This is me with a monkey on the way down.
5th: Rain all morning - sometimes heavy - clearing up by late afternoon. At about 17h00 I found African grass blues (and here) and monarchs flying in their usual place, as well as a single helice female clouded yellow, several painted ladies and a handful of small and large whites.
6th: Weather forecast bad, so decided to go back to the false baton blue site and look for the foodplant. The forecast was accurate. It was mostly rainy, always windy and generally very cold up at their site. I believe this is the foodplant, Cleonia lusitanica. I found it quite commonly near where I had seen the blues, but never in flower. Eggs are apparently laid on leaves, from where the caterpillars move to the flowers and spend the rest of their larval lives there. Yellow bee orchids were common all over the site and nearby - these were over in the Málaga region. Because of the weather, no butterflies at all flew. When I got back to Antequera there was some sun, though it was still cold. I looked for pelargoniums, hoping to find geranium bronzes, but although I found the plants there were no bronzes. The only butterfly flying near them was this painted lady (and here). The maximum temperature forecast for the day in Antequera itself (so lower up the mountain) was 11°C.
7th: Up early for the journey back to Suffolk. Left the hostel at 0700, arrived at Woodbridge 16h18. Unfortunately, I forgot to take any photos, so this is the first day of the year without evidence of its existence.
8th: Spring has sprung in Suffolk. Male orange tips were cruising up and down the garden all day (very rarely stopping) and commas, small whites and peacocks were much in evidence both in the garden and out on my dog walk.
9th: Cloudy at first but sunny (and cold) later. In the garden, commas, orange tips, small whites and peacocks were flying. On my afternoon walk I saw several more peacocks and two small tortoiseshells.
10th: Bright much of the day but cold and windy. In the garden, the first holly blues (and here) were nectaring avidly on alkanet and a few orange tips and peacocks were on the wing too. Generally, little flew, presumably because of the temperature.
11th: Often bright, sometimes overcast and always quite cold today. I wasn't able to get out much and saw no butterflies.
12th: Cold and overcast most of the day. No butterflies. Here is a pensive curlew, and here a distant group of redshanks at the water's edge.
13th: It snowed quite heavily in the morning, then alternated for the rest of the day between bright sun, cloud, sleet and rain. During the sunny periods, at least two orange tips (and here) passed through the garden, flying weakly and stopping often. I also saw a small white.
14th: Mostly cold but occasionally bright. No butterflies seen today.
15th: Sometimes sunny, sometimes cloudy, often with a cold wind. In the garden, at least three orange tips and a small white flew. On my afternoon walk I saw more orange tips and two peacocks.
16th: Again, sometimes sunny, more often overcast or densely hazy. In garden: commas, peacocks, small whites and orange tips. In local woods, orange tips, peacocks, a comma and my first Suffolk speckled wood of the year.
17th: Like yesterday, sunny with such dense haze there were often no shadows. In morning, peacocks, small whites and orange tips flew in the garden. Before lunch, I went off to see if any green hairstreaks were yet on the wing, but there was no real sun. I saw a few peacocks, a single male brimstone and my first Suffolk small copper of the year on a local heath. This last was very weakly marked and I would have liked better photos of him but he was off and the sun never returned.
18th: A beautiful, sunny day throughout. In the garden, comma, peacock, orange tip, holly blue, small white and green-veined white were all flying. The first female orange tips are on the wing, frequently checking out the garlic mustard, on which I hope they will lay. I searched locally for green hairstreaks, finding none but coming across brimstones, peacocks, orange tips, green-veined and small whites and a single small copper.
19th: Another beautiful day. I had limited time for butterfly-hunting but even in the garden saw holly blues, speckled woods, orange tips, green-veined and small whites, peacocks, a small copper and a small tortoiseshell. I had two short excursions to local spots to look for green hairstreaks, finding none but seeing plenty of other butterflies, including more speckled woods (and here), orange tips, whites, peacocks, coppers and a comma.
20th: A busy day, with only one short break to look for butterflies beyond the garden - or indeed in the garden. This was a shame as it was very warm and sunny all day. In the garden, holly blues, speckled woods, orange tips, commas, peacocks, brimstones and whites were all flying. On my outing to look for green hairstreaks (none found) I encountered plenty of peacocks and orange tips and more speckled woods. Exceptionally, I took no photos at all today.
21st: Easter Sunday and hot all day. In the garden, holly blues, orange tips, peacocks and whites were on the wing. I went searching for green hairstreaks in the early afternoon, again finding none. It is very strange. I am looking in perfect habitat and simply not finding any. I did see quite a few peacocks, speckled woods, whites and small coppers, and a single comma. In the late afternoon this slightly wing-damaged orange tip was ranging the whole length of the garden. Its deformity had no obvious effect on it, except that it did perhaps stop to rest more frequently than others. At least two holly blues were hanging around our large holly tree at the same time. This teneral female large red damselfly was near our pond in the morning.
22nd: Another hot day, and another afternoon walk spent failing to find green hairstreaks. I have searched in lots of suitable sites and am amazed not to find this common species. On the continent I don't look for it - I just see it in every patch of scrub or wasteland from March onwards. In my garden, all the usual species flew: speckled wood, orange tip, holly blue (now common - here is one on apple blossom and here one taking minerals on our alpines - several males were hanging around the holly in the evening), peacock, small white, green-veined white and comma. On my afternoon walk I saw dozens of peacocks, lots of orange tips and a single brimstone. Orange tip males are showing a distinct interest in garlic mustard, which is now in flower all over the garden, and I have found a few orange tip eggs on this plant.
23rd: Cloudy at first but generally warm and sunny by late morning. In the garden I found more orange tip eggs (and here). Orange tips, small whites, green-veined whites, commas, peacocks and holly blues were all much in evidence. Speckled woods are common in the local meadow and woodlands. In Martlesham, small coppers (and here), speckled woods, commas, holly blues, orange tips, peacocks and a single male large white were on the wing. I am confident I saw a single green hairstreak at a site where I have been looking for them but only saw it silhouetted as it flew over my head and there were small coppers at the site, so cannot formally register it. There are newts in the pond. For the last week I have been hearing - and once or twice seeing - plenty of nightingales, at at least four different locations.
24th: Mixed cloud, rain and sometimes very warm sun. No chance to hunt for butterflies beyond the garden, where principally holly blues, orange tips and small and green-veined whites were flying. Here is a freshly laid orange tip egg - creamy white rather than bright orange, as the eggs become after a day. This is a large red damselfly - possibly the same one I photographed on 21st. Like that one, it has green eyes, without a hint of red.
25th: Raining at daybreak and much of the morning, clearing later, but with a cool wind. The only butterflies flying in the garden were orange tip and holly blue.
26th: Have a chesty cold, affecting my larynx. So though much of day was sunny, spent it mostly inside. On my morning walk with the dogs - all three, as I chose not to take Boo for her morning run today - saw orange tips, speckled woods and a holly blue already on the wing. On my afternoon walk a red admiral flew past. In the garden, orange tips and holly blues took advantage of every moment of sun, though it wasn't really warm. I took this iPhone shot of a male orange tip because it just seemed to become one with the flower heads of shepherd's purse it landed on. It is very really excellent cryptic colouring.
27th: Spent all day in bed with a streaming cold (apart from taking the dogs out for short walks). Rained much of day and cloudy most of the rest. Read Jules Verne's Voyage au centre de la Terre - the perfect length for a day in bed.
28th: In bed all day with fever.
29th: Again, in bed all day, now mostly recovered. I didn't really see what the weather was today or yesterday.
30th: Mostly cloudy today, with some sunny spells. I had much to do to make up for time off ill, and couldn't get off specifically to look for butterflies. Here and here are two orange tip eggs in the garden. The first of these is probably 9 days old now so the caterpillars should be emerging soon. It was completely overcast during my afternoon dog walk but this green-veined white was taking no notice of the weather.

May
1st: Little time to do anything, though there was some sun in the afternoon. In the garden, holly blues and orange tips are both very common, even when it is dull. On a swift, afternoon walk, during sunny spells, I saw plenty of small coppers, green-veined whites, small whites, orange tips, holly blues and peacocks.
2nd: Again, holly blues and orange tips very common. Speckled woods common in the local meadow, and small coppers on rough ground almost everywhere now. In the garden, some of the orange tip eggs are looking ready to hatch. The caterpillar is (sort of) visible within that egg. Here is another. Other eggs are still bright orange. There was a comma in the garden, in the same place all the commas have been this year.
3rd: Cloud and rain. Here and here are photos of orange tip eggs I expected to hatch today but will, I hope, tomorrow.
4th: A very cold day, with alternating rain, heavy hail, cloud and sunshine. In the evening, the two orange tip eggs I have been expecting to hatch did hatch. Here and here are one of them. Here and here are the other.
5th: Another cold day, and almost entirely overcast. The two orange tip caterpillars that hatched yesterday were still by what remained of their eggs and didn't seem to have ventured onto the seed pods to feed. Here is one and here is the other. Here is a still orange egg. While I was examining and photographing the eggs, I completely failed to notice a female orange tip was sitting on the flowerhead, motionless!
6th: Cold again. Here is one of the orange tip caterpillars. As I was photographing him I again totally failed to see a female orange tip - perhaps the same one as yesterday - on the flowerhead in front of me. The camouflage is brilliant.
7th: Mostly overcast with some sunny spells. Generally cool. Holly blues were hanging around the holly in the garden but I saw no females. I couldn't relocate either of the hatched orange tip caterpillars.
8th: Pouring with rain most of the day. In a brief dry spell I managed to relocate one of the orange tip caterpillars.
9th: Mostly rain. Again, I was able to relocate just one of the orange tip caterpillars - but the one I couldn't find yesterday. Here it is, on a garlic mustard fruit. A female large red damselfly was sheltering on the side of our house in the afternoon.
10th: Mixed cloud, rain and a little sunshine. I was able to locate both the hatched orange tip caterpillars (here and here), though it took me until the evening to find the second of them! Both have moved to the tips of fruiting bodies. They are still very small and extremely difficult to spot among the flowers, even if they are obvious once the photo is taken.
11th: The orange tip cats are both still in first instar: here and here.
12th: Mostly sunny today but still cold. Clementine and Tangerine (and here), my two orange tip caterpillars, are still 1st instar. There are plenty of orange eggs around. This white egg has been freshly laid on Clementine's garlic mustard today. It will turn orange soon. Otherwise, holly blues, orange tips and a peacock were at large in the garden.
13th: Sunny all day, though I couldn't get out much. Both caterpillars (Tangerine and Clementine) are still small and still apparently first instar. Tangerine's flowerhead is still covered in ants but they don't seem to cause her any bother. When I cycled off to buy groceries I checked a local heath, where I saw peacocks, commas (several sparring and sunning), orange tips, holly blues and small coppers. A male brimstone passed through the garden in the morning.
14th: In the afternoon I finally found my first Suffolk green hairstreaks of the year (and here). At least three males and probably more were holding fort in a patch of dense broom and gorse. I have searched there earlier this year without success, though not in the last week or so. I suspect the species is newly on the wing at this site. As well as resting on broom and gorse they sometimes flew up into the birches and settled on leaves a while before coming down again. On my way back to the bike I spotted my first common blue of the year (assuming all those I saw in Málaga to be celina). Other species flying were peacock, orange tip, speckled wood, brimstone and small copper. In the garden I saw brimstone, orange tip and plenty of holly blues, including this presumed female checking out holly flowers high up. In the woods I got a single photograph of this hairy dragonfly before it zoomed off. There are lots of large red damselflies hanging around near our pond in the garden. Clementine was in exactly the same place she was yesterday. I couldn't see Tangerine but I didn't look for long.
15th: The presumed orange tip egg laid on the same garlic mustard plant as Clementine the caterpillar is still white, so must be a green-veined white egg. I watched several orange tip females laying on hedge mustard today. Here and here are two of the eggs. In the garden, Clementine appears to have died. She is in exactly the same position as two days ago, and visibly darker. My only shot of her didn't come out very well. Tangerine appears to be thriving and is in 2nd instar now. A female holly blue was apparently laying on low holly flowers, though I couldn't find any of the eggs. I will keep looking tomorrow. Other butterflies seen during the day were peacock, brimstone, speckled wood (first brood now looking very tatty), comma and lots of small tortoiseshells.
16th: The presumed orange tip egg that I decided had to be green-veined white has finally turned orange, so is indeed an orange tip egg. It was laid on 12th (or before - I found it on 12th) and turned orange today, 16th. Clementine is certainly dead. Tangerine is alive and well, though I am told she is still 1st instar, despite her age and size. It was beautifully sunny but windy today. I had little chance to get out. Here is a speckled wood in local woodland. I was checking for green hairstreaks (where I saw them two days ago) but either the wind or the lateness in the day meant none were flying.
17th: Cloud all day with a few showers. No butterflies flew and though I spotted Tangerine in the same place as yesterday I took no photos.
18th: Cloud all day but with good sunny breaks. This is Tangerine this morning, now 13 days old. In a nettle bed in the garden I found this larval tent (and here for a peep inside, showing frass I think). I am not experienced enough to know if this is red admiral but I think it might be. Also on the nettles were these shield bug eggs. On bramble in the nettle bed was this moth caterpillar.
19th: Mostly cloud and rain. Day of the round Woodbridge race. Found a strangely placed orange tip egg in the garden. But it has stuck, and the caterpillar will probably be able to make it onto the plant. Here is another possible red admiral tent, and here the frass on the leaf beneath. I'm not convinced, as there have been so few red admirals around this spring and none of the eggs I saw laid last autumn appeared to have survived.
20th: Mostly cloudy with some rain and some sun, especially later. Tangerine is nowhere to be seen, alive or dead. Lots of holly blues, male and female, are hanging around our holly tree. This female spent much time feeding on honeydew on the nearby sycamore and supping at holly flowers. The shieldbug eggs are still unhatched. There were several hairy shieldbugs (Dolycoris baccarum) on the same nettles, so I imagine this is what the eggs are.
21st: Mostly sunny until mid-afternoon. In the morning I cycled to woodland where I have seen white admirals in my youth, to look for honeysuckle - and caterpillars, of course. After searching for over an hour I eventually found a ride with some honeysuckle (and here), but all nearby rides were closed for forestry. I didn't find any caterpillars on the plants I searched but will return (perhaps at the weekend when foresters might not be working) directly to the right place. In the early afternoon I spotted my first brown arguses of the year in my local meadow. I was handling a lively dog so couldn't really get photos but snatched this one, record shot. I also saw a single, male common blue. The hairy shieldbug eggs have not hatched yet.
22nd: At lunchtime returned to my green hairstreak site. Initially I couldn't find any. Eventually I spotted one, resting motionless on broom (until I tried to photograph him), and then saw there were plenty more on the trees behind, either resting on leaves or nectaring on hawthorn. This female common blue damselfly (and here) was my first of the year.
23rd: A warm, sunny day. Little time to get out except for the usual dog walks. In the local meadow, common blues, holly blues, speckled woods and brown arguses are all flying. The garden is still full of holly blues and orange tips. In the afternoon I had a quick trip to a potential green hairstreak site. I had two 'corner-of-eye' sightings but because of the huge numbers of small coppers (and here) and the presence of holly blues I couldn't confirm these as definite green hairstreaks.
24th: Revisited the green hairstreak site in the morning. Again, the butterflies were to be found resting on leaves in the trees or nectaring on hawthorn, above and beyond the broom where I first found them. Here is the context. I saw my first UK small heath of the year not far away, sparring with a small copper. Small coppers are very common and seemingly everywhere in the countryside. In the local meadow, common blues and brown arguses are now becoming common. At another site near heathland, peacock and comma were still flying. Holly blues and orange tips are almost as ubiquitous as small coppers. On my excursions today I saw my first male common blue and azure damselflies of the year and in the garden found this pair of large reds mating.
25th: Long sunny spells but getting less frequent during the day. I had little time to spare. Here is one of the brown arguses flying on my local meadow. Here is my father walking in Rendlesham Forest during the afternoon.
26th: I think I have found Tangerine, the orange tip caterpillar that went awol a few days ago, when she was about to graduate into 2nd instar. She is now in 2nd instar but on an adjacent garlic mustard plant to the one where she was born.There are lots of tiny first instar cats (and here) still around and plenty of eggs too. Southern marsh orchids are now in flower in the local meadow.
27th: Mixed sun, cloud and rain throughout the day. In the garden, Tangerine is thriving (and here). A female red admiral spent much of the day laying eggs on our nettles (here, here, here and an egg here). My shield bug eggs were found by a velvet mite (and here, and here) but by the evening there were still plenty of intact eggs.
28th: A little sun but mostly overcast with some rain. Here is Tangerine, here a younger relative and here a future caterpillar. Eggs are still being laid daily.
29th: Tangerine (and here) is 3rd instar and growing. Satsuma is 2nd instar and this is one of many first instar caterpillars now all over the garlic mustard in the garden. Little sun today - mostly cloud and latterly rain.
30th: Visited local forest in the morning, hoping to find white admiral caterpillars. I found plenty of honeysuckle but no caterpillars. Perhaps they have already pupated - I don't know the phenology here. In fact, on a hot, sunny day I saw precisely one butterfly altogether in the woods - an orange tip. At one of the forest ponds there were plenty of restless azure damselflies (and here a female) and a few large reds. In the garden, orange tips and holly blues were flying. Here is Tangerine (3rd instar) and here Satsuma (2nd instar).
31st: Sunny in the morning and evening, cloudy between. Tangerine (and here) is thriving. Here, here, here and here are other orange tip caterpillars. I didn't see any eggs today. This magnificent female stag beetle (and here) was wandering over our lawn in the late afternoon. When I went for my evening walk, a large male was flying around local gardens.

June
1st: Morning trip to Shingle Street to look for walls. I found none. There were plenty of common blues along the sea wall, including this interestingly marked female, plenty of small heaths, a few small whites, a single peacock and a single small copper. It was warm but there was a wind. Also flying were Mother Shipton moths and a fair few hairy dragonflies (and here). That was the only hairy dragonfly that paused in its hawking, and then only briefly.Tangerine appears to have been feeding on a garlic mustard leaf. I found her in retreat from it in late morning. Here is another orange tip caterpillar. Late in the day I passed briefly by some local heathland, where lots of small coppers were still flying and I saw my first cinnabar of the year. I spotted a painted lady flying through the garden in the afternoon.
2nd: In our nettle patch, hairy shield bug nymphs are hatching out. This is Tangerine and this is Satsuma, two of the many orange tip caterpillars in the garden. Another painted lady seen near the house, flying over the road.
3rd: Cycled to my green hairstreak patch but clouds covered the sky while I was there. I did see a couple of hairstreaks briefly. Not far away I found this entire sloughed snakeskin (and here and here), which I think is an adder. This painted lady was flying elsewhere in the woods. I only photographed Tangerine in the morning when she is in complete shade, hence the poor picture. More hairy shield bugs are emerging.
4th: Very little time to get out today. Here is Satsuma, one of my orange tip caterpillars, here a poor picture of Tangerine and here one of Jaffa.
5th: Some sun in morning, leading to mostly cloud then rain in afternoon. On local heathland found this green hairstreak - a new site for this species for me. In the local meadow, common and holly blues were trying to find warmth, and speckled woods were out in some numbers. Also there was this cabbage shield bug, running all over a hedge mustard plant. In the garden, more hairy shield bug nymphs have hatched out and there are lots of 7-spot ladybird larvae around (and here).
6th: By the time I was able to get out in the afternoon it was largely overcast and very few butterflies were on the wing. I saw a couple of small heaths at one site, a couple of common blues at another, a couple of painted ladies by a field of thistle and a female orange tip. I did, however, quite unexpectedly, find a female Norfolk hawker, Aeshna isosceles, at a woodland site not far from sallows and a ditch. I will return as soon as possible for better photos, as this individual zoomed off before I could get a proper, dorsal view and I didn't have time to wait around. Elsewhere, I checked some hedge mustard where I had seen female orange tips laying eggs on 15th May and found this caterpillar (and here). Tangerine is ailing. A couple of days ago I dislodged what looked like an aphid from her. I fear it might have penetrated her and done damage.
7th: Tangerine has disappeared - I think dead. It is a shame. Nevertheless, there are plenty of orange tip caterpillars still alive and growing in the garden (and here).
8th: Some orange tip caterpillars in the garden. This is Mandarin, whom I found in the evening (and here), and this a still unnamed caterpillar.
9th: Mandarin is now about 18mm long. In the late morning/early afternoon I watched a harlequin ladybird larva during the last part of its ecdysis. When I found it, it had largely shed its skin but its legs and newly exposed chitin were still white (and here, and here). Over the course of the next half hour the legs darkened (here and here) and when I returned to it in the afternoon they were fully black and it had moved away from its exuvia. Here is a different larva, looking like a harlequin but lacking the four yellow spots. This is the larva of a 14-spot ladybird and this of a 7-spot ladybird.
10th: Raining most of the day. Here is an orange tip caterpillar in the garden, beside its newly shed skin. Here is another orange tip caterpillar. There are still orange tip eggs around. A red admiral egg I watched being laid on 27th May now looks black and full.
11th: Back at my Norfolk hawker site I saw a single green hairstreak on bramble. This is now the third local site where I've seen green hairstreak. I had no confirmed Norfolk hawkers but did see several four-spotted chasers, two black-tailed skimmers and a southern hawker. A painted lady was nectaring on the bramble. On my morning dog-walk, as usual, I saw both common blue and brown argus, as well as several speckled woods.
12th: Rain all day. This orange tip caterpillar is perfectly camouflaged on a garlic mustard fruit (and here). This is another shot of the same caterpillar later, and this a younger caterpillar.
13th: Sometimes sunny in morning, with occasional heavy showers, tending to cloud and rain in the afternoon. Orange tip caterpillars are becoming much thinner on the ground now. Here and here are one; here is another. This is the red admiral egg I have been watching. It doesn't look healthy.
14th: Very little chance to get out. When I did, I found this spotless form of harlequin ladybird and lots of common blue damselflies. Holly blues flew in the garden in all weathers (it was mixed cloud and sun today, with wind) and I saw another painted lady on bramble near heathland.
15th: Again, very little time to get out. Here is Satsuma, one of the few orange tip caterpillars in the garden I still have a name for. This is a teneral (I think) female blue-tailed damselfly. I saw several males and this female in cloudy weather by the river in the afternoon.
16th: Even less time today and the weather generally poor. Here is a harlequin ladybird with one of the shoulder-spots on each side vestigial, as if rubbed out.
17th: Following a tip-off from a post on UK Butterflies, I headed off this morning to an urban park where a little blue had been spotted. After a little searching, I found a small population and photographed two males: this one (underside) and this one (underside). Altogether I estimated I saw 5 individuals but it was difficult to tell as I only saw those two well enough to photograph. I didn't want to venture into the flower meadow and trample the plants, so took the photos from the path. I also saw several meadow browns, quite a lot of small heaths, a couple of painted ladies, a few small coppers and a green-veined white. I spotted a hairstreak tumbling above some sloe but couldn't relocate it when I got close enough. This is a male broad-bodied chaser. Back in the garden, Satsuma is now nearly 3 cm long.
18th: The first meadow browns are now flying in the local meadow (and here). Brown arguses were still on the wing there too. This is a teneral male common blue damselfly.
19th: Cloud and rain all day. I believe this picture of Satsuma shows the pale patches that will develop into testes later. I therefore think she is in fact a he. He munched his way through a lot of garlic mustard fruit today. Here he is in the evening, in the rain.
20th: Satsuma this morning (and here). He is now over 3cm long and eating up greedily.
21st: Satsuma was still on his plant in the morning but disappeared at the same time as the lawn was being mown. His plant is on the edge of the lawn but was not touched. In the afternoon I took Minnie to our best green hairstreak site. The hawthorn is now over and the broom mostly too. About half a dozen hairstreaks were tumbling and sparring above a young sweet chestnut tree, often stopping to rest. Here, here and here are some very distant shots of them. All are very worn.
22nd: Headed towars the coast in the afternoon to search heathland for silver-studded blues. For some while I walked without finding any - and indeed found no butterflies at all except the odd painted lady zooming through - but then I spotted a dead silver-stud caught in a spider's web, attended by the spider. That confirmed, at least, I was in the right place. Not far away I soon spotted another, alive (and here) and then proceeded to see at least a dozen, including two females and one mating pair, as I continued along the track. Here, here and here are some more males. Here is a female. Apart from the blues and painted ladies I saw a very few small heaths (including this one caught in a spider's web, also attended by the spider) and on the road, off the heath, a few meadow browns. The first common darters are now flying and there was at least one hawker on the wing I couldn't identify. I think it was an emperor. I saw my first brown hawker of the year.
23rd: In the morning, the first ringlets were flying in the garden, and in the afternoon I found my first small skippers of the year locally. Painted ladies are everywhere, though still in low numbers. It was hot and sunny all day, though I had little opportunity to take advantage of this.
24th: Mostly overcast with some sun and some rain - and always very warm. Exceptionally, I had no opportunities to get out into nature and took no photographs even in the garden. When I walked the dogs in the evening, stage beetles were flying around in some numbers. It was spitting with rain but very warm.
25th: A hot and sultry day, often but not always overcast. In the morning a female purple hairstreak (and here) descended from the spreading oak over our garden and settled on one of our holly bushes.
26th-27th: Still hot, with no time to go exploring.
28th: Up early for journey to Switzerland, arriving in Villars early evening.
29th: Day of Beau Soleil Graduation (during which I spotted a scarce swallowtail passing the marquee). After Graduation, at about 14h00, I was able to get down to what were my local woods and catch up on some of the butterflies. I had to be back in Villars for 16h30, so it was very hurried and I couldn't take may photos. In fact, because of the heat, the butterflies were mostly hiding, but I clocked up the following list: chequered skipper, large skipper, large white, small white, green-veined white, wood white, clouded yellow, common blue, silver-studded blue, Provençal short-tailed blue, marbled fritillary, lesser marbled fritillary, Niobe fritillary, high brown fritillary, silver-washed fritillary, cardinal (very interesting - a sighting in the woods - it didn't stop for a photo), painted lady (many very old and tatty), meadow brown, ringlet, woodland brown, marbled white.
30th: Set off at 09h00 up my local mountain, arriving at my first site at 09h00. Even by then it was hot and little was stopping for pictures. Nevertheless, during the day I found: grizzled skipper, olive skipper (and here), dingy skipper, large skipper, black-veined white, large white, small white, Apollo (generally scarce on this mountain), clouded Apollo (out in good numbers but far too mobile in the heat to photograph), swallowtail, common blue, little blue, Adonis blue, silver-studded blue, mazarine blue, large blue (locally common, including this female laying on thyme, and this egg, laid deep within the flower head), geranium argus, sooty copper, violet copper (and here - still flying in very good numbers), false heath fritillary, marsh fritillary, Titania's fritillary, pearl-bordered fritillary, Queen of Spain fritillary, painted lady (ubiquitous), small tortoiseshell, red admiral, alpine heath, large wall, bright-eyed ringlet (very common - the only Erebia on the wing for most of the walk), dewy ringlet (just a couple, at what is normally a very good site) and marbled white. It is clear this is a late year. No cranberry blues were flying at their site, nor was the Vaccinium at all well grown. In fact, it looked as if the snow had only recently cleared there. The grass was low and unhealthy, also suggesting it had been snow-covered until recently and the real spring growth had not begun. To see so many violet coppers at the tail end of June was also surprising.

July
1st: Cycled down the hill early to head for the Val d'Anniviers, mainly for Asian fritillary. I spent the morning at that site, catching up on a host of wonderful species, including lots of Asian fritillary (and here, and here). This seemed to be at peak abundance. Other species seen were: dingy skipper, chequered skipper, small white, mountain green-veined white (and here, a female), orange tip, green hairstreak (several rather tatty individuals), sooty copper, large blue (like yesterday, including a female laying, and here - here is the egg), little blue, mazarine blue, pearl-bordered fritillary, heath fritillary, false heath fritillary, painted lady, small tortoiseshell, northern wall, alpine heath, almond-eyed ringlet, blind ringlet. In the afternoon I dropped back down to the valley, where I found great sooty satyrs out in abundance, as well as southern white admirals, marbled whites and knapweed fritillaries. Also seen were large skipper, small skipper, dingy skipper, small white, clouded yellow, wood white, Chapman's blue, holly blue, common blue, Adonis blue, ilex hairstreak (a single, my first ever at that site), comma, thousands more painted ladies, small tortoiseshell, red admiral, marbled fritillary (abundant), Queen of Spain fritillary, heath fritillary, speckled wood, grayling (two, including this one that delighted in landing on my sweater).
2nd: Headed up to 2500m in Valais in the hope of finding Cynthia's fritillaries hilltopping. When I got there, I could see that as on my local mountain it is a late year. The vegetation was low and the buttercups they like to nectar on not yet numerous, though they were out. So it didn't completely surprise me that I saw no males. It did surprise me to find a female Cynthia's fritillary there. In sometimes sunny, sometimes cloudy weather I saw just one shepherd's fritillary, one marsh fritillary lower down and two Grisons fritillaries. The commonest butterfly by far was painted lady, out in the thousands, closely followed by little blue, also in thousands. Other blues were much scarcer. I saw a few idas and just one baton blue. The only skippers flying were dusky grizzled - common both at altitude and lower down (but always above 2000m) and a few southern grizzled. Peak whites were about at altitude, forever cruising around and very rarely stopping and lower down there were clouded yellows, mountain green-veined whites and small whites. I saw a single small Apollo. The only Erebia species flying was pandrose, the dewy ringlet. Because the sun kept disappearing behind clouds it proved possible to get nice shots of the uppersides.
3rd: Storms were expected in the mountains so I stayed lower today, looking for Satyrium species around sloe in Vaud. In the event, I found a single sloe hairstreak at a site where this species is numerous. I think I am simply too late this year, and perhaps that last night's storms, which were violent, finished off some of them. I saw no ilex or blue-spot hairstreaks. There were lots of great banded graylings around, bouncing out of the meadows and along the tracks, and locally lots of pearly heaths. Violet fritillary was also new for the year. Other species seen were marbled white, small skipper, small copper, silver-washed fritillary, dark green fritillary, meadow brown, ringlet, small white and large white. On the way home I popped into my local woods, where heath fritillaries were flying. But it soon clouded over and rain came so I headed back up to Villars, where I am staying.
4th: Up early and off to the Bernese Oberland, for scarce and dusky large blue. I arrived at my site by 09h30 and very soon saw a single scarce large blue roosting on a greater burnet flower. During the next hour, more came out to play and by 11h00 I was standing by a sunny bank watching dozens of males and females flying back and forth. The females settled more frequently, opening their wings between bouts of egg-laying. Males stopped less frequently, and opened up less often, but thanks to some cloud I was able to get acceptable photos of uppersides as well as undersides. By then, too, the dusky large blues were up and about. These spend almost all their time sitting on flower heads with their wings closed. Other species seen were dingy skipper, safflower skipper, small skipper, small white, green-veined white, black-veined white, violet copper, purple-edged copper, mazarine blue, common blue, silver-studded blue, heath fritillary, false heath fritillary, marbled fritillary, lesser marbled fritillary, silver-washed fritillary, (probably) Niobe fritillary, painted lady, meadow brown and ringlet.
5th: Back to the Canton of Bern, this time for Thor's fritillary. I got there early - before 10h00 - and quickly found a male and a female nectaring and sunning at one of their favourite sites. From then on, throughout the day, I saw many - probably more than I have ever seen before. Here, here and here are some more. This one was nectaring with a speckled wood. They hang in the half shade near paths, frequently pausing but rarely posing - more often moving restlessly over flowerheads. Other fritillaries flying were pearl-bordered, which was quite common, Titania's, which was less so, and false heath, which was abundant (this one, taking sweat on my ankle, is glowing yellow in the reflected light of my bicycle anklets). I also saw a couple of silver-washed fritillaries. Painted ladies were common and a couple of red admirals were flying about too. The only common Erebia species was oeme - bright-eyed ringlet - but I also saw and photographed Arran brown and large ringlet, both new for the year. Two more new species for the year were northern brown argus and alpine grizzled skipper (and here, and here) The former were in meadows at about 1600m, the latter (two different individuals) down by the river at 1500m. Other species seen and identified were meadow brown, ringlet, large wall, alpine heath, small white, mountain green-veined white, wood white, mazarine blue, common blue, little blue, small tortoiseshell, meadow brown, ringlet, dingy skipper, grizzled skipper (or southern - to be confirmed) and chequered skipper.
6th: Trip to the Simplon for Erebia christi. Given the lateness of the year at altitude I didn't expect to see any but in the end was thrilled to confirm and photograph a fresh male after almost three hours of searching. Here he is in the inspection box. It was hot and he didn't hang around long afterwards, but here, here and here are some poor photos of him. Many other Erebia were flying, with alberganus (almond-eyed - and here) being by far the most common. Euryale (large - and here, and here) was numerous too, and other species included medusa (woodland), tyndarus (Swiss brassy), triaria (de Prunner's - just one seen) and epiphron (mountain). Notably, there were no melampus (lesser mountain), a species I associate with christi. There were no montana (marbled) either. A few red-underwing skippers, my first of the year, were on the wing, and turquoise and chalkhill blues were also my first of the year. Both large and northern wall were flying and Darwin's heath was very common. There were lots of Apollos, a few swallowtails and a few black-veined whites. Other blues included lots of little blues and good numbers of silver-studded, with a few mazarine thrown in. I saw at least one common blue. Both Essex and small skippers were flying and there were a few (southern) grizzled skippers. As the day hotted up many species began taking minerals at damp ground, including congregations of Erebia, but neither epiphron nor christi joined them.
7th: Last day of my Swiss trip. Storms were forecast for many places - in the mountains in particular - so I stayed low, visiting a site for Provençal fritillary, Swiss Zephyr blue and rock grayling. Lots of fresh, second-brood heath fritillaries were flying, as well as beautiful knapweed fritillaries, but I saw just one, rather worn, female Provençal fritillary (and here). I suspect the heatwave of recent weeks used them all up. I also saw just one, equally worn, male Swiss Zephyr blue but surprisingly no rock graylings at all, in several hours on site. Other species flying included my first eastern Bath whites of the year (and here) - quite common here, though I hadn't seen them the other day at a valley site - orange tips, black-veined whites, small whites, green-veined whites and large whites (but no southern small whites), scarce swallowtails and a couple of Apollos, wonderfully fresh marbled skippers (and here), lots of large skippers and a fair few small skippers, common blues, holly blues, Provençal short-tailed blues and a single turquoise blue, marbled and lesser marbled fritillaries, a single spotted fritillary, Queen of Spain fritillaries, Niobe fritillaries, southern white admirals, plenty of great sooty satyrs (here is a female), a single grayling and a few ilex hairstreaks. I was surprised by some of the absentees - no purple-shot coppers, for example, though I looked in their favourite spots, and the lack of rock graylings and southern small whites was very strange. Nevertheless, it was a great day, bringing to a close a great week, during which I saw 106 species of butterfly.
8th-10th: Catching up on things back home - no opportunity to get out for butterflies.
11th: At least two wonderfully fresh and bright hutchinsoni commas competing for sunspots in our back garden.
13th: A single, male silver-studded blue at the local site where I used to see them in great numbers in my youth. Gatekeepers have now emerged.
14th: Grey most of the day. Here is a lovely large white flying in the garden this morning, and a small copper from the local meadow.
15th: Again, grey all day. In the afternoon I wandered around a local heath while waiting for my bike to be repaired. Small skippers, gatekeepers, ringlets, meadow browns and small coppers, as well as small and green-veined whites, were all flying, despite there being no hint of any sun at all.
16th: No opportunities to get out at all, though it was a lovely day. I wanted to record the partial lunar eclipse in the evening but low cloud obscured the moon completely.
17th: Warm in the morning, though I couldn't get out except for the usual dog-walks. Gatekeepers are now common in the garden, as are meadow browns and ringlets to a lesser extent. A second brood brown argus was flying in the local meadow at lunchtime, along with speckled woods, meadow browns, gatekeepers, ringlets, small skippers and whites. In the afternoon I had an opportunity to visit the white admiral woods I last visited on 21st May, looking for caterpillars. It was relatively late in the day and only occasionally sunny, but I found at least four different white admirals and expect to be able to get good photos if I return on a sunny morning. I only photographed one individual, and at a distance through dense bramble, but here, here and here are the record shots. Also flying were lots of small coppers, peacocks, gatekeepers, meadow browns and ringlets, with good numbers of hutchinsoni commas too and a few red admirals. The full day list today was 12 species: small skipper, large white, small white, green-veined white, small copper, comma, peacock, red admiral, white admiral, meadow brown, ringlet, gatekeeper.
20th: Mixed weather. In the afternoon I went to check some local heathland I hadn't known about before, after studying Google maps. The area looked excellent for silver-studded blues and is probably the feeder site for the single male I saw on 13th. I didn't see any today but it is relatively late in the season and the weather was only occasionally sunny. I did see brown argus, lots of small coppers, small skippers, meadow browns, gatekeepers and ringlets and a single purple hairstreak at the end of my visit. I had already packed my camera away and it had flower by the time I got it out again.
22nd: In morning, revisited same heathland as on 20th. Surprisingly, no silver-studded blues, though I saw plenty of common blues, brown arguses and small coppers, as well as about half a dozen purple hairstreaks, mostly high in the canopies of oaks. Other species flying there were small skipper, Essex skipper, meadow brown, speckled wood, ringlet and lots of gatekeepers. In the local meadow after lunch I photographed these common blues mating, and later in the afternoon this single white-letter hairstreak. I had time for that one, distant shot before it zoomed off across the meadow.
23rd: Spent an hour in the morning at the white admiral site I found on 17th. Strangely, no white admirals were flying, though I had specifically gone at that time so the bramble bushes would be illuminated by the morning sun - which they were. I did see lots of hutchinsoni commas, as well as a single dark (starski?) individual. Graylings were common (and here, and here), as were peacocks, small commas, brown arguses, meadow browns, ringlet, gatekeepers and the three whites (small, green-veined and large). I saw a single common blue and what I took to be a holly blue but might have been common. In the afternoon I found another two white-letter hairstreaks in the local meadow. Unfortunately, my camera chose that moment to break - the LCD screen blanked - but I got a few poor shots of one of them using the viewfinder. She is a heavily gravid female, with eggs still attached to some kind of gunk exuding from her abdomen.
24th: In early afternoon found where my local white-letter hairstreaks are lekking. I saw about half a dozen males cavorting in the canopy of a large elm, sometimes being chased into a neighbouring sycamore, and a single female that came down lower to check out egg-laying sites. This is very good news. Here is one of the males, right at the top of the tree.
25th: In late morning a female silver-washed fritillary flew through our garden, paused briefly on our buddleia, and moved on. I was on the phone at the time and my camera was in its bag. By the time I had got it out and to my eye (the LCD is broken) she had gone. On my afternoon dog walk I saw a couple of white-letter hairstreaks lekking in the same place as yesterday. I only stopped a few minutes to check as the dogs were feeling the heat.
26th-31st: Very little time to get out butterflying, despite some very hot weather. My main camera is still broken as I haven't had time to take it to the repair shop. Nevertheless, I have seen white-letter hairstreaks lekking almost daily as I pass the trees on my dog-walks. Only on one day, when it was raining, did I see none. I have been told the trees are not true elms, Ulmus, but Zelkova. The second brood of green-veined whites (and here) are now common in the garden (those were taken on 29th July). Brown arguses and common blues are common in the meadow.

August
2nd: At least 6 white-letter hairstreaks were lekking in the Zelkova canopy. My old camera doesn't have quite such a powerful zoom but I was able to get a few shots of them in flight over the leaves (and here). Here is a second brood common blue with a meadow brown. Some of the second brood brown arguses are already looking old.
5th: A speckled wood in my local meadow.
6th: On my lunchtime dog-walk I found some white-letter hairstreak eggs (and here) in the meadow. I am now led to believe the trees are not Zelkova after all but Siberian elm, Ulmus pumila. Later, I took Minnie to local heathland, where we saw loads of graylings (and here, here and here) as well as plenty of painted ladies on the thistles.
7th: A painted lady in the morning - one of dozens in the meadow.
8th: Went to Colchester to pick up my camera, which has now been repaired. Here is Minnie in Colchester, stalking a crow, and here a common darter photographed back home.
9th: In the morning, our garden rocket was covered in large white caterpillars. By the evening only a handful remained. Here and here are a couple of pictures - the light was not very good by then.
11th: A gatekeeper in the garden. I have never seen so many of this species.
12th: One of the now ubiquitous painted ladies. You can't tell from the picture, but this one was particularly small.
15th: At lunchtime, while walking the dogs, I saw a purple hairstreak zoom from one oak in the meadow to another. Sadly, she - for it was a female - flew straight into a spider's web and by the time I could get the camera even roughly focused on it up in the tree the spider had already wrapped it up. Here is the first shot I got, and here one a few seconds later. She is clearly gravid. I hope she had already laid a lot of eggs. Here is common blue in the meadow nearby, unaware of the drama, and here a mating pair. Painted ladies had gathered in good numbers, along with red admirals, in a buddleia by the roadside. Here are two of them closer up, with a red admiral.
17th: A trip to the forest to look for white admiral caterpillars. I found none, and indeed saw little altogether. Here are a peacock, a painted lady, a small copper and a gatekeeper. This is a common darter. In the morning I had tried to string a small white into a southern small white, as in flight it looked convincing, but it turned out just to be a well marked female small white.
19th: Stayed local. Here are a painted lady, a green-veined white and a hutchinsoni comma (and here) in the garden. In the meadow I found a white-letter hairstreak egg on the lekking tree, where I hadn't previously found any eggs.
20th: A female holly blue feeding up in the garden (and here). She never settled with her wings open but when she flew she exposed a beautiful upperside.
22nd: A walk with Minnie at Shingle Street, in the hope of seeing migrants. In the event, I saw very little at all, though admittedly it was very windy. There were probably hundreds of painted ladies, a few small tortoiseshells and meadow browns, a couple of small heaths and a single grayling.
23rd: A migrant hawker near local heathland (and here) and a small copper.
24th: An osprey circling over the Deben (and here). Here is another migrant hawker and here a very worn female black-tailed skimmer.
25th: A swift trip to part of Rendlesham Forest, where I saw very little apart from a lot of red admirals. Here is a beautiful male ruddy darter.
29th: On my morning walk to the meadow I tried to string this female small white into a southern small white (and here, and here, and here). Unfortunately, I was attached to wild dog Boo and couldn't approach for definitive shots of the underside. I suspect she is a small white. An afternoon trip to local woods. Here is a grayling, beautifully camouflaged as always. There were still plenty of these on the wing. Here is a common darter.
31st: Another wannabe southern small white, this time in my garden.

September
8th: We have travelled to Brixham for the launch and book-signing of my father's latest book on book on Mayflower II. Here is my father walking along the breakwater the following day, and here a rock pipit not far away. This is a shag. We only have cormorants in Suffolk.
11th: A common darter in our garden (and here).
13th: A small copper and a male and female common darter. Butterflies are very much beginning to wind down now.
14th: A small white and a small copper.
15th: A tufted duck on an inland lake near Martlesham Creek.
20th: Brief trip in the afternoon to a woodland clearing near Martlesham. Small coppers still common (and here), and a few peacocks still around. Nearer to home, this large white flew just as I was getting the perfect shot of her. This small white was in less mint condition. Here is a male common darter and here a female.
21st: Trip to local woods/heathland. Small coppers (and here) were about in good numbers, as were common darters.
22nd: In a woodland clearing near Martlesham, small coppers were abundant, feeding together on ragwort (and here, and here). There are six in this picture.
23rd: A brown argus in my local meadow.
25th: Another brown argus in my local meadow.

October
TO BE COMPLETED

26th: We scattered my mother's ashes in Switzerland today. Red admirals were flying from Villars, at 1250m, right up to the top of the mountain. Small tortoiseshells were common in the mountains and there were several clouded yellows and Berger's clouded yellows still drifting around. The only blue I saw was this Adonis blue and the only white a single small white. I saw a fritillary at distance near the lake - probably a late dark green fritillary.

November
I am RESUMING daily pictures and will fill in more of September, October and November each day. NO BUTTERFLIES seen at all during November ...
28th: A very grey day, with some rain. Here is a view of the Deben at high tide Here is a teal in the greyness, and a perkier dabchick. The godwits were all asleep on mud islands. A lapwing was sleeping on one leg but with his eyes open.
29th: Finally, a brighter day (and here). Although the outside temperature was barely 5°C, a female red admiral (and here) appeared in the garden in the morning. Here is an animated gif of her sunning herself, taken with my iPhone.
30th: Spent the afternoon at the Suffolk Butterfly Conservation AGM. An excellent series of presentations, crowned by Pete Eeles (on the left in this picture) talking about themes from his recent bestseller, the Life Cycles of British and Irish Butterflies.

December
1st: A busy day, mostly grey with plenty of rain but with some briefly brighter spells. Here is an Advent rainbow over the Alms Houses in Woodbridge, promising better to come!
2nd: Very cold but bright. In late morning this red admiral (and here) was sunning on our garden fence - I hope before laying eggs on our nettles. Here she is about an hour later. She then flew off.
3rd: Another bright, cold morning. The red admiral did not return.
4th: Heavy frost again last night. Here is Fen Meadow in the morning.
5th: Another very cold morning but the frost thawed quickly as the temperature rose. In the afternoon, a large flock of brent geese settled on the river (and here, closer up), then rose again with a cacophony of wings and calls. A few avocets and this single knot (and here) were in the mud at the water's edge, along with wigeon, godwits, redshanks, curlews and the rest.
6th: A largely wet day, though it cleared up miraculously just when I had to walk my father to an appointment in town.
7th: Windy, warmer, and bright in parts of the afternoon. The brent geese on the river had retired to the fields, where they were grazing in the half-sun. Here are an avocet, a golden plover, a group of godwits and a ruff, all on the mud of the Deben.
8th: At times very windy today, and generally feeling warm. Here is the moon, photographed on my evening dog-walk.
9th: Windy but colder. Here is the moon again, 24 hours later ...
10th: Back to cloud and rain for a day. This is Fen Meadow in the morning.
11th: Colder but brilliantly sunny. Here are our garden in the afternoon and the full moon this evening.
12th: A chilly morning, followed by a wet day.
14th: A beautiful day. Here is the sun rising in the morning and here the moon setting. here are my two best friends walking in the cemetery in the afternoon and here the moon high in the evening.
15th: Yet another clear night, following a mostly clear day. Here is the moon.
18th: After rain yesterday and the day before, a beautiful day today. Here, here, here and here are some pictures to capture the atmosphere of the morning.

28th: Grey morning, followed by a grey day (and here) ...
29th: Cloud in the morning.
30th: The year drew to a close with glorious sunshine and no less glorious moonshine.
31st: Another lovely day. Here are the moon and Venus setting for the last time in 2019. Here is the moon, earlier in the evening, and here after dark.