Tag Archives: Pike

Brown and Orange butterfly on fingertip

Brown Hairstreak. Photo: Mark Pike

View of Orange and Brown butterfly with some unusual white markings

Gatekeeper aberration. Photo: Mark Pike

On a rather cloudy morning a visit to Alners Gorse on 08/08/2019, Mark found this superb female Brown Hairstreak which very obligingly was good enough to “display” on his fingertip. Continuing with his search despite the weather about an hour later he found this Gatekeeper aberration.

Orange brown moth with one whote dot on inside edge of each forewing

Vapourer moth. Photo: Mark Pike

This is one moth that is easy to identify male from female as the female Vapourer is wingless and sedentary remaining on her cocoon. The male flies by day, in a fluttering flight,searching for the scent of a female, and is often mistaken for a Brown Hairstreak butterfly.  It can be found July-Oct here in the South.

an small white moth which rests with wings closed.It has a smudgy grey brown pattern which makes it resemble bird poo.

Chinese Character moth. Photo:Mark Pike

This small moth resembling a bird dropping turned up in Mark’s garden moth trap in Motcombe on 26/08/19.

This species has two generations, Apr-early June, July-early Sept. It comes to light in small numbers and can sometimes be found by day resting on vegetation.

small golden butterfly with spotted fore-wings and silver spots on under-wings

Silver-spotted Skipper. Photo: Mark Pike. 

When Mark went to Fontmell Dowm on the 5/08/19 in search of Silver-spotted Skippers, he found seven of this delightful but scarce little butterfly.

This species is found on chalk grassland that contains short, sparse, turf. This warmth-loving species is typically found on south facing slopes on which its sole foodplant, Sheep’s-fescue, grows.

In Dorset Fontmell Down is the only site it has been found in recent years.