Essex Skipper. Photo: Mel Bray
Mel found this Essex Skipper at Throop on 16/07/19 and commented that he doesn’t often manage to photograph them with such a clear view of the black tipped antennae which is the diagnostic feature of this diminutive butterfly.
Posted on: 11 December, 2019
Painted Lady. Photo: Martin Wood
A colourful reminder of the warm days of Summer, a Painted Lady seen by Martin at Longham Lakes on 7/07/19. Whilst we had fantastic numbers migrating into the UK this year, it did not turn out to be on a par with 2009 when millions were recorded.
Posted on: 11 December, 2019
Red Admiral. Photo: Roger Peart
The lovely warm sunshine yesterday, 03/12/2019 seems to have encouraged a late appearance of Red Admirals in Dorset. This photo sent to us by Roger Peart of one he saw in the afternoon on a house wall in Wimborne is the second photo taken yesterday of this species sent in for the Dorset BC Gallery. It is good to know that butterflies are still responding to occasional warmer sunny days in a cold spell and can only hope that they find somewhere suitable to return to overnight.
Posted on: 4 December, 2019
Red Admiral. Photo: John Kirwin
A welcome sunny morning after a cold night encouraged this somewhat damaged Red Admiral to visit John’s Harman’s Cross garden today, 03/12/2019. John tells us that this individual has visited his garden quite a lot recently to feed on the juices leaking from rotting apples. A pretty hardy butterfly – could this be our last reported Red Admiral sighting for the year?
Posted on: 3 December, 2019
Adonis Blue. Photo: Shona Refoy
Adonis Blue. Photo: Shona Refoy
Shona has sent us this photo of a female Adonis Blue she came across at the foot of Hambledon Hill on 05/09/2019. Looking at the photo on a cold, frosty December morning, Shona’s comments below are a heart warming reminder of the pleasure butterflies give us.
I nearly trod on her as she was lying on her side on the path (first photo). Wondering if she was alive, I slid my hand under her, and she climbed aboard! I watched her as she opened and closed her wings, then swung my hand round so we had a good look at each other before she flew off up the hill. Seeing her on my hand shows how small she is (my hands aren’t huge)!
Posted on: 2 December, 2019
Mark sent us this photo of a male and female Silver-studded Blue sharing bramble flowers at Slop Bog on 29/06/19. (more…)
Posted on: 26 November, 2019
Marbled White. Photo: Roger Peart
On a wet grey day, a reminder of Summer. Roger took this photo of a lovely Marbled White at Longham Lakes back on 24/06/19.
Posted on: 26 November, 2019
Small Tortoiseshell. Photo: Emma-Kate Perry
Emma recently sent us this photo with the following query:
So sorry to trouble you, hope you don’t mind, wasn’t sure where to ask the question. I found this little chap on 10/11/2019 under a stair in a storage barn in Lytchett Matravers the other day. I wondered if you could tell me what it is? Is there anything we should /not do ? Just hoping everyone leaves him in peace.
We are always very happy to try to answer your queries/questions whenever possible and one of our BC Supporters who deals with some of the queries sent to us wrote to Emma as follows – the advice given is particularly relevant for everyone at this time of the year:
It’s a Small Tortoiseshell hibernating. If the storage barn is unheated, it is already in an ideal place to sleep until spring. There is plenty of information on the web if you Google butterfly in your house. If it is in a heated place, it really needs moving to somewhere cool and dark. Small Tortoiseshell are having a thin time at the moment, so I hope it makes it through to breed in the spring.
Posted on: 18 November, 2019
Red Admiral. Photo: Ann Barlow
In mild, sunny conditions in Autumn it is not unusual to see Red Admirals on the wing well into November and this photo taken by Ann in her Corfe Mullen garden on 13/11/2019 shows one enjoying the morning sunshine.
Posted on: 14 November, 2019
Cinnabar Moth. Photo: George McCabe
George spotted this daytime flying Cinnabar Moth on 23/06/19 while walking around Weymouth.
A striking moth with an equally striking caterpillar which can be readily found on Ragwort ,sometimes in large numbers. the caterpillar has bright gold stripes around a black body. The moth has one generation and is in flight mid May- early August.
Posted on: 11 November, 2019
Red Admiral. Photo: John East
We were sitting in the dining room today, 10/11/2019, when my wife noticed a butterfly flying in the back garden which then settled on an Artemisia plant – we both said it must be a Red Admiral which proved to be the case and it stayed on the plant just long enough for me to get this photo. Shortly before we saw this butterfly we had both remarked that we didn’t think we would see any more butterflies in the garden this year and then this one appeared just to show how wrong we were.
Posted on: 10 November, 2019
Speckled Wood. Photo: Brian Arnold
Brian, like the butterfly, took advantage of the sun this morning 10/11/2019 and ventured into his garden where he took this photo which he has sent us with the following comment:
The sunshine here at Harman’s Cross this morning has brought out a Speckled Wood and a Red Admiral. The Speckled Wood posed on one of our apple trees in the sun, however the Red Admiral was not so obliging!
Posted on: 10 November, 2019
Chalkhill Blue. Photo: Shona Refoy
Chalkhill Blue. Photo: Shona Refoy
Shona has just sent us a couple of photos she took on 23/07/2019 commenting as follows:
Back in the summer, I watched this pair of mating Chalkhill Blues at Tout Quarry as they moved around. The female isn’t very obvious in the first photo – she is dangling upside down with her legs facing us. The second photo shows that she eventually got her feet onto something more substantial than air! Roll on Summer!
Posted on: 9 November, 2019
Large White. Photo: Shona Refoy
Several weeks ago Shona sent us this really beautiful photo taken in the Kitchen Garden at Kingston Lacy on 17/09/2019 – I thought it was a lovely, colourful and crisp photo which would brighten up any gloomy winter’s day so held back on adding it to the Gallery until now.
Posted on: 8 November, 2019
Grayling. Photo: Lyn Pullen
Lyn describes this as a lovely memory from August, finding the first Grayling on the transect she had seen for a long time. Taken at Tadnoll DWT Reserve on 21/08/2019.
What amazing camouflage!
Posted on: 6 November, 2019
More photos: Gallery Archive
