Home and Away: Butterflies Galore

Today Ted and I had a walk along the old Tram Line to Tout Quarry, a walk we did here in August last year. And as it was like last August, there were quite a few butterflies about, with the pick of the bunch being a stunning Adonis Blue and a Clouded Yellow which as per usual just carried on flying down the track.

Other highlights were 4 Hummingbird Hawk-moths, flying up and down the old track, and occasionally stopping off at flowering Buddleia.

Oddly enough though, I didn't see a single bee or many other insects. Perhaps it was just a bit too windy!!

Birds Recorded:
Herring Gull

Wood Pigeon

Collared Dove

1 Swallow

1 Common Whitethroat

Magpie

Carrion Crow

Jackdaw

Linnet

Butterflies Recorded:
7+ Large White Pieris brassicae
3 Small White Pieris rapae
1 Clouded Yellow Colias croceus
1 Meadow Brown Maniola jurtina
1 Painted Lady Vanessa cardui
1 Small Copper Lycaena phlaeas

1 Holly Blue Celastrina argiolus
12+ Common Blue Polyommatus icarus
1 Adonis Blue Polyommatus bellargus

Small White Pieris rapae

A well camouflaged Meadow Brown Maniola jurtina. Surprisingly this was the only one I found.

A real stunner of a Painted Lady Vanessa cardui

Small Copper Lycaena phlaeas

Hmm a very worn "blue". Hard to say what it is, possibly a Common Blue Polyommatus icarus. So it will just remain as a Polyommatus sp.

The underside of a male a Common Blue Polyommatus icarus

A male Common Blue Polyommatus icarus which is looking quite smart.

And this male Common Blue is an absolute stunner. It is so blue you would be forgiven for thinking it was an Adonis Blue Polyommatus bellargus...................

...................And as luck would have it, just a few feet away was a male Adonis Blue Polyommatus bellargus.

And here is the underside.

Moths Recorded:
4 Hummingbird Hawk-moths Macroglossum stellatarum

Below are a few shots of one of the four Hummingbird Hawkmoths seen this afternoon.

Bees Recorded:

None. Most odd!!

Wasps, Ichneumon Wasps, Parasitic Wasps and Gall Wasps Recorded:
Mossy Rose Gall Wasp Dipoloepis rosaea

Robin's Pincushions on a Dog Rose Rosa canina. These are the galls caused by the larvae of a tiny gall wasp, Dipoloepis rosaea. More on this Here.

Hoverflies Recorded:
1 Dronefly Eristalis sp.

On this Herb Bennet Geum urbanum is either a Common Dronefly Eristalis tenax or a Tapered Dronefly Eristalis pertinax. Unfortunately it didn't stay long enough for me to get a good ID.

Flies, Craneflies, Gnats and Midges Recorded:
Many unidentified flies

Common Green Bottle Fly Lucilia sericata

A Common Green Bottle Fly Lucilia sericata

Bugs and Beetles Recorded:
None

Crickets and Grasshoppers Recorded:
2 unidentified grasshoppers

Spiders Recorded:
None

Plants:
Blackthorn Prunus spinosa Also known as Sloe
Bramble Rubus fruticosusa
Buddleia Buddleja davidii
Common Knapweed Centaurea nigra
Common Ragwort Jacobaea vulgaris
Cotoneaster Cotoneaster sp.
Dog Rose Rosa canina
Domestic Apples Malus domestica

Hawthorn Crataegus monogyna
Hemp Agrimony Eupatorium cannabinum

Herb Bennet Geum urbanum
Honeysuckle Lonicera periclymenum
Ivy Hedera helix
Red Valerian Centranthus ruber
Wayfaring-tree Viburnum lantana
Wild Clematis Clematis vitalba

Blackberries on Bramble Rubus fruticosusa

The rose hips of the Dog Rose Rosa canina. More on Dog Rose here.

Domestic Apples Malus domestica - Feral

Domestic Apples

Hawthorn berries Crataegus monogyna

Hemp Agrimony Eupatorium cannabinum AKA 'Raspberries and Cream'

Dead centre, the toxic/mildly poisonous berries of the Honeysuckle Lonicera periclymenum, which if eaten would definitely cause stomach upset. However directly behind them are Blackberries Rubus fruticosusa which are great for your daily vitamin C intake, and a rich supply of vitamins K and E, manganese, and powerful antioxidants called anthocyanins. More on Honeysuckle here and Blackberries here.