A new garden butterfly ..

Following the introduction of scraps of wildflower turf into the back garden, we have enjoyed successive years with "home-grown" Essex Skipper (Thymelicus lineola) gracing the lawn. They are often seen - brand spanking new - on the day that they emerge. Our max. daily count to date has been 3 individuals.

I always check them carefully, never assuming that they are all Essex - but for the past five summers that has always been the case.

However, today, I noted a single skipper arrive and it went straight to nectar on the Red Valerian (Centranthus ruber).

I gave the butterfly a quick scan, and there was just something different about it's jizz? It definitely needed a closer look!

Grabbing my camera from the house, I knew I was risking the butterfly moving to another part of the garden, or worse still leaving the garden altogether - and being unable to relocate it. Not trusting my poor eyes alone, I needed a photo to clinch it.

My risk paid off, the skipper was still imbibing from the same plant, and I was able to get a decent close-up, and confirm that my gut instinct was right, and that it was indeed a Small Skipper (Thymelicus sylvestris).

This new arrival, brings my garden butterfly list up to 20 species.

Garden catch up - end of Summer 2015

As the weather has turned and the summer feels lost to this wind and heavy rain, I just wanted to take the opportunity to capture the garden highlights for the summer. All records new for garden [NFG].

A single male slow worm (Anguis fragilis) was present from May 12th to May 23rd. The month also produced moth records for light green apple moth (Epiphyas postvittana), and Esperia sulphurella.

June produced migrant moth sightings of Hummingbird hawk moth (Macroglossum stellatarum), and yellow shell (Camptogramma bilineata). Whilst 14 spot ladybird (Propylea 14-punctata), made a welcome change from the usual Harlequin (Harmonia axyridis) numbers seen.

In July, small skipper (Thymelicus sylvestris) was observed nectaring on red campion (Silene dioica) on the 17th, and a gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus) arrived on the 31st.

The gatekeeper brought the garden total to 12 spp of butterfly, although an attempt to review the 2013 record of Essex skipper (in light of current learning, was inadvertently sabotaged when the original photo files were deleted by mistake!). A dodgy 12 but a solid 11 nevertheless!

August brought a confirmed record of common pipistrelle (Pipistrellus pipistrellus) when two were observed foraging along the hedge-line.

A return to Old Winchester Hill

Vanessa cardui



Autographa gamma



Lysandra coridon



Polyomattus icarus



Colias croceus (record shot only)



Gonepteryx rhamni



Thymelicus sylvestris

Coccinella 7-punctata

On the wing at Old Winchester Hill

chalkhill blue (Lysandra coridon), male



chalkhill blue, male



comma (Polygonia c-album)



Essex skipper (Thymelicus lineola)



large white (Pieris brassicae)



meadow brown (Maniola jurtina)



small skipper (Thymelicus sylvestris)



small tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae)



common blue (Polyomattus icarus)



chalkhill blue, fem.