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Spring 2012 newsletter - Butterfly Conservation

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No 80 <strong>Spring</strong> <strong>2012</strong><br />

www.bedsnorthants-butterflies.org.uk<br />

ON THE WING<br />

<strong>Butterfly</strong><br />

<strong>Conservation</strong><br />

The <strong>newsletter</strong> of<br />

Bedfordshire & Northamptonshire <strong>Butterfly</strong> <strong>Conservation</strong>


Editorial Andy Wyldes<br />

The <strong>newsletter</strong> this time has been given a holiday<br />

feel to it, this being the time of year when we are<br />

all thinking of where to visit in the warmer months<br />

ahead, perhaps they will give you a few ideas !<br />

Thankyou to all contributors.<br />

This year’s field trips are advertised at the back of<br />

the <strong>newsletter</strong>, one or two favourite locations and<br />

a couple of new ones - all intended to give people<br />

a chance to see our counties butterflies in all their<br />

glory!<br />

The branch AGM & Member’s Day this year will<br />

be held in Bedfordshire at the Forest Centre at<br />

Marston Vale, south of Bedford. An afternoon start<br />

with a butterfly walk before the AGM has been<br />

planned, this site being good for a few of our rarer<br />

<strong>Spring</strong> species. Details can be found on page15.<br />

Two books on Northamptonshire butterflies are<br />

being published this spring. The first book on the<br />

We would like to issue a warm welcome to the following new members<br />

who have joined our Branch since the publication of the last <strong>newsletter</strong><br />

Richard Bayliss East Haddon<br />

Miss Louise Brooke Northampton<br />

Francis Buckle Dunstable<br />

Mrs Glynis Bultitude Northampton<br />

Mrs Alison Comery Grendon<br />

Craig Austin & Stephanie Deane Bozeat<br />

Garth Clarke Daventry<br />

Steven & Judith Codling Barton-le-Clay<br />

Jodie & Steven Coles & Family Maulden<br />

Daniel Doyle Kettering<br />

Bill Draper Scaldwell<br />

Mrs Jenny Driessen Edlesborough<br />

Andrew & Kim Exley & Family West Haddon<br />

Richard Goswell & Miss Harriet Graham Rushton<br />

Mrs Carol Kitchiner Lower Stondon<br />

Ms Emma Goodship Marston Mortaine<br />

Mrs Margaret Liddle Grendon<br />

Paul Osborn Hardingstone<br />

Robert & Sheila Pedder Luton<br />

Miss Dominic Rhoades Dunstable<br />

Frank Robertson Dunstable<br />

Mrs Anne Rogers Braunston<br />

Mrs Paula Rowlands Dunstable<br />

Andrew & Margaret Thorpe Sandy<br />

Peter Tomlinson Cranfield<br />

Miss Hazel Unsworth Stony Stratford<br />

Dr Rae Webster Little Houghton<br />

Mrs Jane Wilkinson Barton-le-Clay<br />

Mr T P Wood Polebrook<br />

We look forward to meeting you at some of our future events.<br />

Front cover: Doug Goddard with his award at the national AGM at Cheltenham<br />

History of <strong>Butterfly</strong> Recording in Northants from<br />

1820 - the present by Martin Izzard and is on<br />

sale now. The other book, a more comprehensive<br />

account of the Butterflies of Northamptonshire<br />

will be available in March. This will be the first<br />

book of its kind to be published in the county.<br />

More details about the two books will accompany<br />

this <strong>newsletter</strong>.<br />

Finally, I would like to congratulate Doug<br />

Goddard on the Outstanding Volunteer Award he<br />

has received from the national office of <strong>Butterfly</strong><br />

<strong>Conservation</strong>. This award is in recognition of his<br />

work within our branch over the last 25 years. He<br />

was presented with his award at the national AGM<br />

and member’s day at Cheltenham in November.<br />

Doug has waved the butterfly banner for the<br />

county almost single handed since the mid 1980’s,<br />

being the first point of contact in our area for<br />

anyone’s interest in butterflies, whether local or<br />

national.


<strong>Butterfly</strong>ing in the Pyrenees Greg Herbert<br />

It was about 25 years ago that three families from<br />

the branch camped in the Pyrenees for a week’s<br />

butterflying. On that trip we saw Camberwell<br />

Beauty, Apollo and Chapmans Blue among about<br />

seventy species. This year I went with Chris Lunn<br />

and some members of the European Interest Group<br />

from <strong>Butterfly</strong> <strong>Conservation</strong>.<br />

We started early on Wednesday 6th July with a<br />

drive to Paris where we left the car in the hands<br />

of the SNCF who were to take it to Narbonne<br />

for collection the following morning. While we<br />

travelled on a TGV express train to Narbonne<br />

arriving the same evening. We collected the car<br />

after a hot and airless night in a cheap French Hotel<br />

and drove the long way to the Pyrenees via the<br />

magnificent Millau Viaduct arriving at the campsite<br />

on Thursday evening. The rest of the group were to<br />

arrive on the following day.<br />

FRIDAY 8th July Weather 100% sunshine<br />

Today was a free day so we chose to visit the Circ de<br />

Truemouse, not as spectacular as the nearby Circ de<br />

Gavarnie but on the narrow road we saw numerous<br />

Apollo butterflies and large fritillaries, in a lay by<br />

we were met by Scarce Coppers, Mazarine Blue,<br />

Dark Green Fritillary and many Marbled Whites,<br />

Meadow Browns and Ringlets.<br />

SATURDAY 9th July South facing hillside above<br />

Bareges. Weather 60% sun<br />

Our party gathered in the village car park, where<br />

a dozen of us set off up a path through the wood<br />

to some open meadows above the village where<br />

in addition to numerous British species we saw<br />

Amandas and Echers Blue; Large Wall Brown,<br />

Pearly Heath and Woodland Grayling; Weavers<br />

Fritillary; Black-veined White; Marbled and<br />

Oberthur’s Grizzled Skipper. 32 species for the day,<br />

not a bad start.<br />

SUNDAY 10th July Col de Tourmallet. Weather<br />

AM 60%, PM 90% sun<br />

3<br />

Today we met the rarest of animals, a group of<br />

French <strong>Butterfly</strong> enthusiasts, who led us up a path<br />

off the main road up to the pass. Along this path<br />

were seen, in mixed sunshine Large and Turquoise<br />

Blues, Purple Edged and Scarce Coppers; Bright<br />

Eyed, Gavarnie, Mountain, Yellow Spotted,<br />

Pyrenees Brassy and Western Brassy Ringlets<br />

and Northern Wall Brown and; False Heath and<br />

Lesser Marbled Fritillary; Apollo, Clouded Apollo,<br />

Peacock, Mountain Dappled White, and in the<br />

afternoon in some meadows at the foot of the climb<br />

Map, Swallowtail, Clouded Yellow, Cleopatra,<br />

Queen of Spain and Meadow Fritillaries, Large<br />

Grizzled, Olive, Marbled, Red Underwing and Rosy<br />

Grizzled Skippers 47 species.<br />

MONDAY 11th July Above the Circ de Gavarnie.<br />

Weather AM 70%, PM 55% sun.<br />

We drove through Gavarnie village, getting views<br />

of the famous Circ in the distance, to a road up<br />

towards the Spanish border, we stopped to survey<br />

some roadside meadows where numerous butterflies<br />

were flying in good sunny intervals these included<br />

Amandas, Mazarine and Large Blues; Mountain,<br />

Gavarnie, Yellow Spotted and Piedmont Ringlets;<br />

False Heath, Niobe, Lesser Marbled, Meadow and<br />

Spotted Fritillaries; Apollo and Swallowtail with<br />

Large Grizzled, Marbled, Olive and Rosy Grizzled<br />

Skipper. In the afternoon we drove to the top of the<br />

road not far from the Spannish Border. 46 species.<br />

Gavarnie Ringlet on Greg’s hand, the Circ de Gavarnie in<br />

the background.


TUESDAY 12th July Pibest Nature Reserve.<br />

Weather AM 20%, PM 60% sun.<br />

Our guide for the first week, Jude, a British lady<br />

who has lived in Luz St. Sauveur with her husband<br />

for the last 25 years running Borderline Holidays - a<br />

holiday firm offering Bird and <strong>Butterfly</strong> watching<br />

holidays, had made some phone calls and advised us<br />

to head away from the mountains to a local nature<br />

reserve some 15 kms on the way to Lourds. We<br />

parked by the entrance to the Pibest Nature Reserve<br />

and walked along a track through light scrub in a<br />

disused quarry area. Ilex Hairstreak was the first<br />

new species seen followed by Weavers Fritillary,<br />

Southern White Admiral, Scarce Swallowtail and<br />

Cinquefoil Skipper which was later confirmed to be<br />

Pyrgus malvoides a species thought by some to be a<br />

sub species of Grizzled Skipper, in Spain it receives<br />

full species status. In a book of Spanish butterflies it<br />

is called the Southern Grizzled Skipper. 43 species.<br />

Southern Grizzled Skipper<br />

WEDNESDAY 13th July Weather 100% rain<br />

We sat around the hotel most of the day reviewing<br />

what we had seen, I sent some post cards and watched<br />

the Tour de France on the TV, Pizza for lunch.<br />

THURSDAY 14th July Valley de Lys.<br />

Weather AM 70% PM 95% sun<br />

We had to go south from the village along a narrow<br />

dead end track as all other roads were closed due to<br />

the Tour de France. We drove about 8Kms along<br />

the track then parked and walked to the end of the<br />

road. We saw just three new species: Sooty Copper,<br />

Camberwell Beauty larvae (100) and Purple<br />

Emperor. 37 species.<br />

4<br />

FRIDAY 15th July Lac de Gloriette.<br />

Weather AM 60% PM 90% sun<br />

Walking around the lake, high in the mountains,<br />

in bright weather a Purple Shot Copper was flying<br />

with Large Blues, we then came across a group of<br />

blues and skippers mud-puddling on a patch of<br />

urine soaked earth; species seen included Turquoise,<br />

Adonis and Common Blues with Mallow, Marbled<br />

and Grizzled Skippers. Higher up amoung the scree<br />

we discovered Gavarnie Blue, one of two butterflies<br />

to have Gavarnie in their names. 39 Species.<br />

Marbled and Grizzled Skippers, a Turquoise Blue, and a<br />

Silver-studded Blue<br />

Gavarnie Blue<br />

SATURDAY 16th July Transfer to Ariege.<br />

Weather 100% sun<br />

We moved about 180 Km east to meet an old<br />

friend from my days on BC’s National Executive –<br />

Graham Hart an English Vet now established with<br />

a local veterinary practice. Graham was to be our<br />

guide for the second week.<br />

SUNDAY 17th July Porte Puymorens<br />

Weather AM 30% PM 75% sun<br />

The weather was overcast and showery so Graham<br />

suggested that we go south east towards the Spanish<br />

border to a valley into the mountains where Graham<br />

had done most of his studies on the Violet Copper.


The weather cleared slightly and butterflies came<br />

out in the thin sunshine. Bog, Lesser Marbled, Small<br />

Pearl-bordered, Spotted and Dark Green Fritillary;<br />

Chestnut Heath and Purple Edged, Sooty and Scarce<br />

Copper. After lunch we to the north side of the<br />

valley on the hillside where Iberian Marbled White,<br />

Piedmont and Large Ringlet with Weavers Fritillary.<br />

On the hillside, a scrubby patchwork of grazed grassy<br />

areas were a number of blues – Adonis, Amandas,<br />

Idas, Mazerine and Silver-studded. The only skippers<br />

seen were Small and Essex. 27 Species.<br />

MONDAY 18th July Above Caussou Village and<br />

Col de Marmare.<br />

Weather AM 70% PM 35% sun<br />

Walking alongside a stream into another scrubby<br />

hillside with plenty of butterflies flying in the warm<br />

sunshine Adonis, Amandas, Chalkhill, Eshers,<br />

Large, Common, Silver-studded and Small Blues,<br />

Purple, Sloe and Ilex Hairstreak; Woodland and<br />

Great Banded Grayling; Marbled and Lesser<br />

Marbled, Heath, Meadow, Spotted, Weavers, Silverwashed<br />

and Dark Green Fritillaries; Bergers and<br />

Clouded Yellow, Black and Green–veined, Wood<br />

Whites. Mallow, Marbled Large, Essex, Small,<br />

Dingy, Grizzled and Large Grizzed Skippers. After<br />

lunch we moved up to the Col de Marmare but the<br />

weather closed in few butterflies were seen but we<br />

found lots of Mountain Alcon Blue eggs on Cross<br />

Gentian. 44 species<br />

Mountain Alcon Blue eggs on Cross Gentian<br />

TUESDAY 19th July Barry d’en Haut, above<br />

Ussat-le-Bains and above Verdun.<br />

Weather 50% sun<br />

Changeable weather did not prevent us seeing<br />

Large Blue, Sooty Copper, False Ilex Hairstreak<br />

and Dryad in the morning and as the weather<br />

5<br />

deteriorated to a heavy shower in the afternoon<br />

after we saw High Brown, Silver-washed Fritillary,<br />

White Admiral and Holly Blue as we walked<br />

through the woods above our camp site in la<br />

Cabannes. About 30 species.<br />

WEDNESDAY 20th July Montsegur Lasset valley<br />

and Gorges de la Frau.<br />

Weather AM 60% PM 80% sun<br />

Poor weather in the Ariege Valley sent us north over<br />

the mountains in search of better weather which<br />

occurred as we walked along a track running out of<br />

the village of Montsegur. Here we found a splendid<br />

display of Dark Red Helleborine; Bright Eyed<br />

Ringlet, Heath and Dark Green and Silver-washed<br />

Frillary. After lunch we drove to the Gorges de la<br />

Frau I took a lot of photographs of two Apollos<br />

on Great Knapweed Flowers and more of Marbled<br />

Fritillary on Thistles as these insects posed before<br />

my camera. Many of the species seen here would<br />

normally be found in England but a few continental<br />

species were seen Weavers Fritillary, Woodland and<br />

Large Wall Brown, Pearly Heath, Ilex Hairstreak<br />

and Rosy Grizzled Skipper.<br />

THURSDAY 21st July Return to Narbonne.<br />

Weather 90% sun<br />

Just typical, as we took the tent down the clouds<br />

drifted away to reveal a blue sky and lots of sunshine<br />

to accompy us on our journey back to Narbonne.<br />

With memories of a great holiday, assisting the<br />

French with their butterfly survey, 106 species,<br />

including 21 new species for me. Thanks to our<br />

guides Jude Lock and Graham Hart and to Simon<br />

Spencer and B.C’s European Interests Group for<br />

arranging the tour.<br />

Shepherds Fritillary


The Trials of a White-letter Hairstreak Douglas Goddard<br />

The White-letter Hairstreak had a<br />

good season in 2011. Observers sent<br />

in records of larvae found on Wych<br />

Elm in Daventry and Boughton,<br />

the adults were seen from 10th June<br />

until 28th July, and several new sites<br />

were discovered, notably Wicksteed<br />

Park.<br />

In Fermyn Wood, there are a<br />

number of elm trees, some of which<br />

provide sightings of White-letters<br />

reliably each year. One lies at a ride intersection<br />

in Cherry Lap, and here, at the beginning of July,<br />

pupae were to be found under the leaves and good<br />

numbers of the adults were emerging and laying<br />

eggs. Commas also use the tree as a foodplant and<br />

their larvae were also easy to find here.<br />

The dark pupa<br />

While searching and photographing Comma<br />

larvae on 4th July, a White-letter pupa was still to<br />

be seen, long after the emergence of others. Dark<br />

brown in colour, it had clearly been parasitized<br />

and was not going to hatch. I decided to take it<br />

home to note further developments. A<br />

week later, sure enough, a small wasp<br />

emerged from the pupa, sawing off<br />

the end to make its exit. I photographed<br />

the specimen and sent it to Mark Shaw at<br />

Edinburgh. He identified it as a female of<br />

Virgichneumon tergenus (right), a known,<br />

6<br />

but rarely collected, parasitoid<br />

of the White-letter. It attacks the<br />

host in the pupal or prepupal state,<br />

so is only found in pupae. It has<br />

been reared from Black Hairstreak<br />

(Perkins’ Royal Entomological<br />

Society Handbook), and the<br />

National Museum of Scotland has<br />

specimens from Silver-studded<br />

Blue, Common Blue, satyrium<br />

esculi (from Spain) and three from<br />

White-letter Hairstreak, including<br />

mine. The hibernating strategy of this wasp is<br />

not known; if it, presumably, over-winters as an<br />

adult, only the female will do this, having mated<br />

beforehand.<br />

On 1st October, Andy Wyldes and I visited the wood<br />

again, looking (unsuccessfully!) for Purple Emperor<br />

larvae. As we walked through Cherry lap, the work<br />

of the Forestry Commission was much in evidence,<br />

the lower branches of sallows and other trees having<br />

been hacked away by mechanical cutters to make the<br />

route clear for lorry access. Our favourite elm had<br />

not been spared this destruction, several of the lower<br />

branches lying in a heap on the ground. We searched<br />

the branches and found a couple of eggs and cleared<br />

the remaining ones into a heap to look through<br />

later. That evening I took a few of them home and<br />

searched them, discovering eight more eggs. Closer<br />

inspection revealed that three of these had exit holes<br />

made by another parasitoid, a tiny wasp. The rest<br />

will be kept and hopefully reared in the spring to<br />

be released as adults, along with any others we find<br />

among the remaining branches later on.<br />

Predation of butterflies in their early stages is<br />

widespread, and these discoveries serve to remind<br />

us that it can be extensive in some years. Of a<br />

hundred eggs laid by a female butterfly, only<br />

two must survive to adulthood, to replace the<br />

original pair which mated and keep the<br />

population level stable, so normally species


The White-letter Hairstreak eggs with exit holes<br />

can cope with these natural enemies. Occasionally,<br />

as in the case of the Small Tortoiseshell and the<br />

arrival of Sturmia bella, the balance can be changed<br />

7<br />

dramatically. The population cycle of the Holly Blue<br />

is well documented, determined by a host-specific<br />

parasitoid.<br />

The destruction of habitat is another matter<br />

altogether. Perfectly healthy eggs were lost by flailing<br />

the branches of this elm in Fermyn Wood and,<br />

although the higher reaches of the tree were not<br />

affected, the lower levels are no longer available for<br />

egg-laying White-letters and Commas and for us<br />

to see the early stages within reach. The potential<br />

survival rate of the eggs collected should be higher<br />

than in the wild, at least addressing the balance for<br />

this year, but here is a reminder of how precarious<br />

life is for our butterflies.<br />

Wider Countryside<br />

<strong>Butterfly</strong> survey<br />

Clare Topping, a member who lives in Daventry, has kindly<br />

agreed to co-ordinate the WCBS for Beds and Northants, a<br />

position which has been vacant for the past year since Julian<br />

Bull left to live in Norfolk.<br />

We extend many thanks to those members who recorded a<br />

square last year. Branch participation in the scheme was down<br />

in 2011 compared with previous years, so we are looking for<br />

more people to take part this summer. Please contact Clare<br />

by email: ctopping@ratfox.net for more information and to<br />

allocate a square near where you live.<br />

Clare will be contacting previous participants shortly. Please<br />

let her know if you are willing and able to survey your square<br />

again, indicating the Grid Reference.


Northamptonshire Butterflies 2011 Douglas Goddard<br />

There were very few records in the early part of the<br />

year, none at all in January and only four in February,<br />

consisting of Red Admiral and Brimstone (8 th ),<br />

Small Tortoiseshell (the same specimen 9 th -11 th ,<br />

found dead on 12 th ) and Peacock (24 th ). Comma<br />

(7 th ) and Small White (21 st ) appeared in March,<br />

but of species hibernating as adults there were few<br />

sightings, fifty Brimstones across the county on<br />

23 rd being a notable exception.<br />

As the warmest <strong>Spring</strong> on record began, Orangetip<br />

(27 th March) and Holly Blue (29 th ) set the<br />

trend for exceptionally early emergences which<br />

continued into the summer. Twelve species were<br />

on the wing on 6 th April, including an early<br />

Painted Lady, and by the end of the month<br />

twenty had already appeared. Green Hairstreak<br />

(16 th ) and Grizzled and Dingy Skippers (20 th )<br />

were on the wing early and all three species did<br />

well. Forty-nine Green Hairstreaks counted on<br />

the transect at Twywell was the biggest tally for<br />

decades. 25 th April saw the earliest-ever Brown<br />

Argus and Small Heath, plus the county’s firstever<br />

April Wood Whites. This species enjoyed its<br />

best season since the 1990s, a count of ninety in<br />

Salcey Forest on 19 th May bringing a peak which<br />

was a welcome echo of days past.<br />

8<br />

The Black Hairstreak was another record-breaker,<br />

emerging in May (28 th ) for the first time. It was<br />

also seen in better numbers this year. The other<br />

hairstreaks, the Purple and White-letter, enjoyed<br />

a good season, and were reported from new<br />

localities, notably Wicksteed Park.<br />

It was not all good news, however. The lack of<br />

rainfall and the cool July and August had an<br />

adverse impact on those species whose larvae feed<br />

on grasses. Although the Large Skipper<br />

and Gatekeeper fared reasonably well,<br />

populations of Small and Essex Skippers,<br />

Ringlet and Meadow Brown were depleted,<br />

as were those of the Marbled White,<br />

although individuals of the latter continued<br />

to be seen in new localities.<br />

The Small Heath<br />

thrives on shorter<br />

turf growth and its<br />

numbers grew in<br />

late summer. Eightyseven<br />

were counted at<br />

Bradlaugh Fields on<br />

24 th August and a record<br />

thirty-seven on the Twywell<br />

transect on 2 nd September. Good<br />

numbers of second-brood Brown<br />

Argus were reported, but the summer generation<br />

of Holly Blues was disappointing and Common<br />

Blue numbers crashed.<br />

April Wood Whites in courtship display 2nd brood Dingy Skipper on 14th August at Twywell


Silver-washed Fritillary Photo Douglas Goddard<br />

Two species, Wood White and Dingy Skipper,<br />

had uncustomary (at least for Northants)<br />

second broods for the second successive<br />

year. The Wood White was seen in nine<br />

woods across its county range: Sywell,<br />

Hazelborough South Block, Salcey, Bucknell<br />

and five sections of Yardley Chase. The<br />

emergence comprised at least 38<br />

butterflies between 22 nd<br />

July and 19 th August.<br />

A single Dingy<br />

Skipper was found<br />

at Twywell on 5 th<br />

August, followed by six<br />

on both14 th and 15 th . This<br />

is the first multiple count of the<br />

second brood recorded in the county.<br />

Above left: Comma ab. suffusa Photo Matthew Oates<br />

Below: Purple Emperor ab. afflicta Photo Andy Wyldes<br />

9<br />

The number of sightings of Silver-washed<br />

Fritillary increased again in 2011, with sixteen<br />

locations recorded to date. This species seems<br />

to be well established again in the north of the<br />

county in Wakerley and Fineshade woods, in<br />

the Salcey and Yardley Chase area and in the<br />

Silverstone woods. The Purple Emperor was<br />

seen from 23 rd June in Fermyn Wood, reached<br />

a peak by the end of the month and had largely<br />

disappeared by mid-July. Eggs and caterpillars<br />

were very difficult to find this year in Northants<br />

and elsewhere (Matthew Oates et al.) and we<br />

may be in for a poor iris season next year. A<br />

stunning aberrant afflicta was photographed in<br />

Fermyn between 29 th June and 1 st July. The White<br />

Admiral had a poor year in 2011 though one<br />

obliterae specimen was seen in Fermyn Wood.<br />

Peacocks, Small Tortoiseshells and Commas<br />

were also in short supply in late summer. Matthew<br />

Oates photographed an aberration suffusa of<br />

the Comma in Fermyn Wood on 1 st July and I<br />

found another, obscura, at Stanwick Lakes on 25 th<br />

September.<br />

It was not a good year for migrants. Despite<br />

its early appearance, Painted Lady sightings<br />

were few and scattered, and it was not seen by<br />

many observers. Only three confirmed records<br />

of Clouded Yellows have been received to date.<br />

There was an influx of Red Admirals in late<br />

July, allowing local breeding and an increase in<br />

numbers seen on ivy blossom and in gardens<br />

through a warm October into November. The last<br />

record of the year came on 27th December in a<br />

Duston garden.<br />

A second successive warm <strong>Spring</strong> benefited some<br />

of our rarer and most threatened species, but<br />

the prolonged drought and cool summer may<br />

well have an detrimental impact on survival of<br />

the early stages and a decline in <strong>2012</strong>. Some<br />

multi-brooded species were able to build up their<br />

populations, but our more common ones which<br />

rely on grass growth for their caterpillars have<br />

declined for the second successive year and need<br />

to recover next time around. Overall, numbers of<br />

butterflies were low this year and it will go down<br />

as a poor one in general terms.


A Purple Hairstreak Summer Judith Barnard<br />

Ever since I started butterfly hunting, there have<br />

been some which have been more elusive than<br />

others. Take the Hairstreaks, for example. It’s not<br />

too difficult, if you know the right places, to find<br />

the Green and Black Hairstreaks as they tend to<br />

perform their daily business at human height.<br />

However there are two Hairstreaks, the Purple and<br />

White-letter, that spend much of their time high<br />

up in tree canopies, only coming down briefly to a<br />

height where we can see them.<br />

I hoped this year to spot<br />

one of these more elusive<br />

Hairstreaks as I had never<br />

seen a Purple or White-letter<br />

Hairstreak before.<br />

Near where we live in<br />

Northampton is Harlestone<br />

Woods and opposite it is the<br />

Wyevale garden centre. At the<br />

back of the garden centre is<br />

a smaller wood (which was<br />

possibly part of the main<br />

wood at some point in time).<br />

It contains many deciduous<br />

trees, including oak. Next to<br />

the wood is a filled-in quarry<br />

which is fenced off for safety<br />

reasons. However if you are<br />

careful you can climb the fence<br />

and walk down the outer edge<br />

of the wood. The previous year I had found an<br />

Elephant Hawk moth caterpillar here so I knew it<br />

was a good area for wildlife.<br />

Towards the end of July this year we decided to<br />

walk the edge of the wood, on the quarry side, to<br />

see if anything was around. We weren’t looking for<br />

anything in particular so was delighted when my<br />

eye caught something small fluttering about in the<br />

lower branches of a tree. It landed with its wings<br />

open and I saw a shimmering patch of purple<br />

Top: The Northampton Purple Hairstreak<br />

Below: Its French counterpart feeds on an<br />

apple. Photos J. Barnard<br />

10<br />

on its wings. At last, the Purple Hairstreak! We<br />

returned the same time on subsequent evenings<br />

(around 6pm) to get more photos; it was always<br />

quite windy but they clung on tight to the leaves!<br />

The Purple Hairstreak favours oak as its habitat<br />

and egg laying location. It is interesting to read<br />

that it lays its eggs on the branches of oak but<br />

at some point during their transformation they<br />

find themselves, in chrysalis<br />

form, deep within an ants<br />

nest under the ground. It<br />

appears that ants climb the<br />

trees and carry the caterpillar<br />

or chrysalis down to safety in<br />

their nest! Once the butterfly<br />

emerges from the chrysalis<br />

it flies back up into the oak<br />

canopy.<br />

That wasn’t the end of our<br />

Purple Hairstreak sightings.<br />

A few weeks later, at the<br />

end of August, we were off<br />

to the Dordogne in France,<br />

staying in a gîte known for<br />

its excellent butterfly habitat,<br />

right on its doorstep. It was<br />

good to see many species<br />

there which often proved too<br />

hard to find in the UK. So I<br />

was delighted to see my first<br />

Swallowtail, Clouded Yellow and Large Blue as<br />

well as discovering new species from that area such<br />

as the Weaver’s Fritillary, Sooty Copper and my<br />

favourite, the Dryad.<br />

Just metres form the gîte was a clump of apple<br />

trees bearing fruit. Here we spotted our second<br />

Purple Hairstreak habitat. This time they appeared<br />

to be feeding on rotten apples! They weren’t as<br />

brightly coloured as their UK counterparts; not<br />

surprising as it was over 40 C that week!


Butterflies in Kefalonia David Chandler<br />

In July 2011 Kathryn & I took our annual summer<br />

holiday in Kefalonia. The island is found in the<br />

Ionian Sea, further south down the Greek mainland<br />

from Corfu. A large number of tourists visit<br />

Kefalonia during the holiday season but, as one of<br />

the bigger Greek islands, its economy is geared to<br />

comfortably handle sun-seeking visitors.<br />

Most tourists stay in or around Lassi, a popular<br />

resort for Britons a few kilometres from Argostoli<br />

and in the villages Skala and Katelios to the south<br />

of the island where there are sandy beaches. Tourist<br />

numbers have increased since the best-seller,<br />

Captain Corelli’s Mandolin, was made into a film<br />

in 2001 and was shot on the island in and around<br />

the port of Sami. We enjoyed finding by chance<br />

some of the film’s locations.<br />

Many people from all over Greece and the world<br />

visit Kefalonia but most foreign tourists we saw<br />

came from Italy possibly because of its close<br />

proximity. We stayed at a hotel in the village of<br />

Karavomilos near Sami on the quieter, greener<br />

eastern side of the island, which proved a good<br />

choice for the variety of the butterflies I found.<br />

There were gardens full of flowers surrounding<br />

the pool in the Ionian Emerald, the hotel we were<br />

staying in, and, without too much effort after<br />

breakfast, I could find at least a dozen different<br />

species flying there at any one time. The most<br />

commonly found butterfly, inappropriately named<br />

in this case, was the Scarce Swallowtail.<br />

Also found around the pool were: European<br />

Swallowtail, Wall, Meadow Brown, Common Blue,<br />

Long-tailed Blue, Short-tailed Blue, Brown Argus,<br />

Chapman’s Blue, Idas Blue, Small Copper, Large<br />

White, Small White, Clouded Yellow, Painted Lady<br />

& Southern White Admiral.<br />

What was different from home in the UK,<br />

however, was the butterflies’ behaviour.<br />

11<br />

Perhaps it was a function of the heat for I’ve only<br />

seen this behaviour before in similar hot places<br />

like Qua-Zulu Natal in South Africa, because the<br />

butterflies were up and flying around at breakfast<br />

time but by lunch-time and into the heat of the<br />

afternoon many had disappeared for the rest of<br />

the day. By tea-time, in what I would call ideal<br />

conditions for your typical British butterfly, very<br />

few could be seen.<br />

We hired a car for a few days and toured the<br />

island, often on steep winding, twisting roads and<br />

found the island to be quiet for high season; one<br />

taverna owner said that business was slack because<br />

of the Greek financial crisis and pressure on the<br />

Euro. Different other species seen on our tours<br />

around the island were: Bath White, Cleopatra,<br />

Grass Jewell, Pale Clouded Yellow, Tufted/<br />

Marbled Skipper, Small Heath (Karavomilos). Ilex<br />

Hairstreak (Myrtos). Southern Comma, Two-tailed<br />

Pasha (Assos). Eastern Wood White, Large Wall<br />

Brown, Rock Grayling, (Moni Agrillo). Silver<br />

Washed Fritillary, Mountain Small White, Bergers<br />

Clouded Yellow (Mount Ainos). Langs Short-tailed<br />

Blue (Fiskardo). Holly Blue, Southern Gatekeeper<br />

(Poros).<br />

Kefalonia is a good island for butterflies and well<br />

worth the trouble of getting there.<br />

A European Swallowtail perched on David’s cap!


<strong>Spring</strong> Moths in Scotland Jan England<br />

Moths, Scotland & early April didn’t<br />

sound like an ideal combination at<br />

first glance. However, a friend and<br />

I set off by train to Pitlochry in an<br />

optimistic mood.<br />

Our course was held in the Field<br />

Studies Centre at Kindrogan, a<br />

former country mansion about<br />

ten miles outside Pitllochry. Set in<br />

extensive grounds with woods, river<br />

& moorland it offered a variety of<br />

habitats & spectacular scenery. We inspected<br />

the mothtraps after breakfast, had a coffee<br />

break halfway round the eight traps and set off<br />

before lunch to different sites to look for moths<br />

and butterflies. Each evening after slides and a<br />

discussion we tried to identify moths we had<br />

caught that morning. By the time that finished<br />

and the moths released we were all ready for a<br />

reviving drink in the bar!<br />

Target species for the week included Brindled<br />

Ochre, Rannoch Sprawler, Rannoch Brindled<br />

Beauty, Swordgrass & Orange Underwing.<br />

Finding these depended on the right weather<br />

conditions, no mean feat in a Scottish April.<br />

Despite some rain during one or two nights, each<br />

day was dry, sunny & unseasonably warm, 17-19<br />

degrees. Nights were mild too so<br />

this produced good results in the<br />

traps our tutor ran each night.<br />

By the end of the course we had<br />

recorded good catches of 26<br />

species in & around Kindrogan<br />

including Brindled Ochre, Early<br />

Toothed-striped, Oak Beauty,<br />

Swordgrass, Water Carpet, Satellite<br />

& Yellow Horned.<br />

Male Rannoch Brindled Beauty<br />

A female wingless Rannoch Brindled Beauty Photos by Jane Bowman<br />

12<br />

A trap was also run in birchwoods<br />

at Kincraig which produced 14<br />

species with the RDB moth Rannoch<br />

Sprawler found on birch trunks in<br />

the garden thanks to the diligent<br />

searching of 13 course members.<br />

The moth our tutor was most keen<br />

to find was the Rannoch Brindled<br />

Beauty a Nationally Scarce A moth<br />

which rests by day on fenceposts &<br />

walls.<br />

The male is small, has a black furry body with a<br />

line of orange dots along the abdomen,grey semitransparent<br />

wings marked with a dark curved<br />

outer cross line & central crescent.The female’s<br />

body is the same but she is wingless.These moths<br />

are usually found low down on fenceposts so our<br />

group presented a strange sight to passers-by as we<br />

peered, bent double, at dozens of posts along the<br />

road to Struan.The sharp-eyed amongst us finally<br />

found 8 males and 13 females after two days<br />

searching.Back to the bar again that night!<br />

Our final target species was a day-flying moth<br />

called Orange Underwing usually seen flying<br />

around the top branches of birch trees in<br />

sunshine.<br />

Fortunately the exceptionally warm sunny weather<br />

in Scotland meant we found Orange<br />

Underwings on three days with over 20<br />

being seen along the Old Military Road<br />

at Drumcroy Hill. Once more our group<br />

entertained passing traffic as we ran up &<br />

down desperately trying to net an Orange<br />

Underwing for detailed inspection.<br />

After a week of excellent mothing, good<br />

weather amid wonderful scenery we agreed<br />

our optimism had been well and truly<br />

rewarded.


Field Trips <strong>2012</strong> Northants<br />

Sunday, May 27 th Save our Butterflies Week/<strong>Spring</strong>watch Event Fineshade Wood, our book<br />

Butterflies of Northamptonshire will be on sale plus RSPB walk for butterflies (10.30 – 12.00), max. 20.<br />

Cost £3 adults, £1.50 children, half-price to RSPB and BC members. Meet at Top Lodge, Fineshade,<br />

in the centre courtyard SP976983. Car Park fee. To book, contact Chris Andrews, 07912 667734,<br />

email toplodge@rspb.org.uk<br />

Saturday, 9 th June Stanwick Lakes, General walk for butterflies and dragonflies, 10.30 – 12.30. Max.<br />

20, cost £1 (free to Stanwick Lakes members). Meet at the entrance to the Visitor Centre, SP973713,<br />

just off the A45 at the Stanwick/Raunds roundabout. Car parking fee. To book, contact rangers Luke<br />

Johns or Geoff Watton, 01933 625522.<br />

Sunday, 17 th June Glapthorn Cow Pastures Black Hairstreak Open Day, 10.00 – 1.00, continuing<br />

p.m. with the Wildlife Trust. Park in the lane opposite the wood entrance, Grid Reference TL006903.<br />

Sunday, 24 th June Twywell Hills and Dales, joint meeting with Desborough Wildlife Group to look for<br />

Marbled Whites and other grassland species. Meet in the main car park Grid Ref. SP938772 10.30 a.m.<br />

Tuesday, 17 th July Fermyn Wood, joint meeting with Desborough Wildlife Group to look for<br />

woodland species: Purple Emperor, White Admiral, Silver-washed Fritillary, Purple and White-letter<br />

Hairstreak. Meet at the entrance opposite the Welland Gliding Club 10.30 a.m. Grid Ref. SP964858<br />

Sunday, July 29 th Fineshade Wood, RSPB walk for butterflies (10.30 – 12.00), max. 20. Cost £4<br />

adults, £2 children, half-price to RSPB and BC members. Meet at Top Lodge, Fineshade, in the<br />

centre courtyard SP976983. Car Park fee.. To book, contact Chris Andrews, 07912 667734, email<br />

toplodge@rspb.org.uk<br />

Sunday, 5 th August Summer Leys, General walk for butterflies and dragonflies, 10.30 -12.30. Max.<br />

20, Suggested minimum donation £2.50, half of which goes to <strong>Butterfly</strong> <strong>Conservation</strong>, half to The<br />

Friends of Summer Leys. Meet in the reserve car park, Grid Ref. SP887634. To book, contact Jon<br />

Collings, Chairman of The Friends of Summer Leys, jon.p.collings@live.co.uk.<br />

For further information, contact Doug Goddard, who is leading all of the trips above.<br />

Branch funds were recently boosted by £450 from the Waitrose<br />

Community Matters scheme. The scheme allows shoppers to<br />

choose three charitable causes each month to receive up to a<br />

£1,000 donation from their store by voting for one of them at<br />

the branch check-out.<br />

Martin Izzard (left) and Ian Kimsey are seen receiving the cheque<br />

outside the Waitrose Rushden store.<br />

13


Field Trips <strong>2012</strong> Bedfordshire<br />

Saturday 5 th May Branch AGM, Photographic Competition & Members Day at the Forest<br />

Centre at Marston Vale in Bedfordshire. (see p15 for details)<br />

Sunday 13 th May Event title: For spring butterflies including Duke of Burgundy, Grizzled Skipper,<br />

and Green Hairstreak.<br />

Venue/Site Whipsnade Downs / Bison Hill near Whipsnade Beds.<br />

Grid reference approx. TL000185<br />

Meet in the NT public car park at 10.30am<br />

Saturday 9 th June Sewell Cutting 10.30am Meet at first bend in road, park in French’s Avenue. Grid<br />

Ref: TL009226. The walk is through Sewell Cutting and into the old quarries in the Totternhoe Area<br />

to see Small Blues and other late spring butterflies Leader Greg Herbert.<br />

Saturday 30 th June Event title: For early summer chalk downland butterflies especially Dark Green<br />

Fritillary.<br />

Venue/Site Sharpenhoe Clappers & Moleskin near Sharpenhoe Beds.<br />

Grid reference approx. TL064296<br />

Meet in the NT public car park at 10.30am<br />

Saturday14 th July, West Wood, Souldrop. Walk in West Wood for butterflies, White Admiral, Silverwashed<br />

Fritillary. Joint meeting with BNHS & <strong>Butterfly</strong> <strong>Conservation</strong>. Park along the track past<br />

Hurst Cottages, Grid Ref: SP992620, off the A6, at 10.30am. Probable visit to another site for the<br />

afternoon. Leader Tony Smith<br />

Friday 3 rd August Event title: For high summer butterflies including the elusive Wall.<br />

Venue/Site Benfleet Downs, nr Hadleigh Essex [adjacent to the Olympic mountain bike venue].<br />

Grid reference approx. TQ785858 - northern end of St Mary’s Road in South Benfleet.<br />

Meet at the top of the steps by the entrance to the park at 11.00am<br />

(NB subsequent impromptu afternoon Wall walk on Canvey Island if the butterfly is not found).<br />

(Meeting at the Lobster Smack Inn car park, Haven Road, Canvey Island after lunch).<br />

The History of <strong>Butterfly</strong> Recording<br />

in Northamptonshire<br />

1820-2011<br />

Martin J Izzard<br />

Out now and available to Branch Members price £6<br />

including post and packaging, non members £8.99 from<br />

the author, izzard.martin@yahoo.co.uk or 01933 355688<br />

or through www.bedsnorthants-butterflies.org.uk<br />

14


November 13 th<br />

2011<br />

Sunday, January<br />

15 th <strong>2012</strong><br />

Sunday,<br />

February 19 th<br />

<strong>2012</strong><br />

Sunday, March<br />

18 th Sunday,<br />

January 8<br />

<strong>2012</strong><br />

th<br />

<strong>2012</strong><br />

Sunday,<br />

February 12 th<br />

<strong>2012</strong><br />

Sunday,<br />

March 11 th<br />

4 p.m. To Scrub be Clearance confirmed on the Meet in the Goddard 408670<br />

See Transect branch website for main car park<br />

10 a.m. – updated Fermyn Woods details Country Park SP952848 Doug 01604<br />

4 10.30 p.m. Sharpenhoe Work on the Thicket for TL064296 Park behind the David Goddard 01923 408670<br />

a.m.<br />

10 a.m. –<br />

4 10.30 p.m.<br />

a.m.<br />

Black Hairstreaks<br />

Twywell Hills and Dales<br />

Toernhoe Scrub Clearance on the<br />

Transect<br />

Meet Skylark in Cafe the<br />

main SP938772 car park<br />

SP986224 Meet in the<br />

main car park<br />

Chandler<br />

Doug<br />

Greg Goddard<br />

Herbert<br />

253793<br />

01604<br />

01582 408670<br />

663784<br />

10 a.m. – Fermyn Woods Country Park SP952848 Doug 01604<br />

4 p.m. Scrub Clearance in the Main Park behind the Goddard 408670<br />

Park<br />

Skylark Cafe<br />

Winter Work Party Dates 2011/12<br />

Please ring before 9 a.m. on the day if weather conditions are looking unsuitable. If unable to attend all day, your participation<br />

for a morning or even a couple of hours would be welcome. Where car parking charges normally apply, free parking will be<br />

arranged with the wardens.<br />

Saturday 5 th May AGM & Member’s Day<br />

The branch AGM, Photographic Competition & Member’s Day this year will be held at the Forest Centre at<br />

Marston Vale in Bedfordshire. Proceedings will commence at 2.00pm with a guided walk (about an hour) in the<br />

vicinity of the venue to see <strong>Spring</strong> butterflies which will hopefully include Grizzled & Dingy Skippers and Green<br />

Hairstreaks. The AGM will start at 3.45pm followed by our guest speaker and the photographic competition,<br />

aiming to finish by 6.00pm. Refreshments will be available from the centre’s cafe.<br />

The Speakers this year will be Andy & Melissa Banthorpe who will be talking about recording day-flying<br />

moths and about a survey they have just completed in Maulden Wood which was part of a joint BC / Forestry<br />

Commission project.<br />

The venue is situated off the A421 at Marston Moretaine, from the M1, Junction 13, and along the A421 towards<br />

Bedford. From Bedford take the A421 towards Milton Keynes, the venue is signposted from the A421. Grid<br />

Ref:TL004417<br />

Entries for the photographic competition (prints only) may be submitted in advance to any committee member<br />

(see back page) or submitted on the day. Entry is open to all branch members.<br />

Could last years trophy winners please contact Stuart Pittman regarding return /engraving arrangements.<br />

There will be four categories:<br />

• The Chairman’s Shield The Best British <strong>Butterfly</strong> in the wild.<br />

• The Don Askew Memorial Shield This includes Branch Activities, Field Trips, Winter Work parties, Sales<br />

Events, Members etc.<br />

• The <strong>Butterfly</strong> <strong>Conservation</strong> Shield The Best Picture of a <strong>Butterfly</strong> or Moth in it’s early stages (egg,<br />

caterpillar, pupa etc)<br />

• Best British Moth Shield Best Picture of a British Moth.<br />

Rules for the photographic competition<br />

• No more than 6 entries per category per entrant.<br />

• All pictures to have been taken in the last year.<br />

• An entry fee of £0.50p will be charged per picture entered and no larger than A4 in size.<br />

• Every entry must show name/initials of entrant on the reverse.<br />

• Digital images must not be enhanced by computer manipulation.<br />

• Committee accepts no liability for loss or damage to entries.<br />

• Winning entries are to be available for publication on the branch website and in the Branch Newsletter.<br />

15


Butterflies<br />

of<br />

Northamptonshire<br />

Order your<br />

copy now!<br />

Details of content, publication<br />

date, price and how to order<br />

are given overleaf<br />

e buery habitats of Northamptonshire<br />

Details of ten important sites with public access to see the bueries of the county<br />

Descriptions, life cycles, trends and distribution maps of the 36 species resident in the county<br />

Historical summaries of rare migrants and extinct species<br />

300 photographs in full colour<br />

Features on the work of Buery <strong>Conservation</strong> and management for key species, Gardening<br />

for Bueries, ‘BB’ and the Purple Emperor<br />

UK Price £11.99<br />

ISBN 978-0-9520291-3-7<br />

Orange-tip<br />

Anthocharis cardamines<br />

Male (wingspan 46mm.)<br />

e Orange-tip is a well distributed and common buery in our area<br />

and its conspicuous markings and tendency to roam over a wide area<br />

mean that it is well recorded, though the vagaries of the s pring weather<br />

ensure that there are uctuations in the population of the adults and the<br />

number of observations from year to year. It would have been much more<br />

numerous in the past but the destruction of hedgerows, drainage of wet<br />

meadows, and intensive agricultural practices have changed the scale of<br />

abundance.<br />

Local Distribution and Status<br />

00<br />

90<br />

80<br />

70<br />

60<br />

50<br />

50<br />

40<br />

e delicate male Orange-tip cannot be confused with any other species,<br />

the orange tips to the forewings being visible from some distance when<br />

the species is in ight. On closer inspection these can be seen to have a<br />

black edge and a clear, black discal spot. e female can be confused with<br />

other Whites unless observed closely; it possesses similar markings to<br />

the male but lacks the orange markings. When at rest with wings closed<br />

both sexes have a moled green appearance on the hindwings created<br />

by an arrangement of yellow and black scales. Male Orange-tips are very<br />

photogenic when on Bluebells or Bugle owers.<br />

30<br />

50 60 70 80 90 00 10<br />

e appearance of the Orange-Tip in spring marks the true arrival of the<br />

buery season. Its principal habitats are lanes, hedgerows, river banks,<br />

damp meadows, roadside verges and woodland rides where its great<br />

mobility makes it a common species. May is the usual month to look<br />

for it though in recent years the rst specimens have begun to appear<br />

consistently in April. ere is a single generation and by June few are seen,<br />

except in late springs when it can be on the wing even into July. Breeding<br />

success is determined by the weather since the buery only ies in<br />

bright sunshine. If conditions are warm, it can still be on the wing into the<br />

evening. As soon as the sun disappears behind a cloud it closes its wings.<br />

Cow Parsley and Garlic Mustard are common roosts and the cryptic<br />

underside colouring creates an excellent camouage. As the sun returns,<br />

it slowly opens its wings before resuming the steady, undulating ight<br />

which takes this mobile lile buery over a wide area. Males will patrol<br />

endlessly up and down a set area looking for females. Days of intermient<br />

sun and cloud are ideal for photographing this prey insect.<br />

e beautiful underside markings of the male<br />

L i f e C y c l e<br />

<strong>Butterfly</strong><br />

<strong>Conservation</strong><br />

A number of foodplants of the crucifer family are used for egg-laying. By<br />

far the most successful is Garlic Mustard, but Hedge Mustard provides a<br />

good substitute while in damper areas and woodland rides Lady’s Smock<br />

is also utilised. All three of these are also readily accepted as nectar plants<br />

though the species will feed from a wide variety of owers. Caterpillars<br />

have also been found on Tower Mustard, Bastard Cabbage, Honesty,<br />

Garlic Mustard and even Oilseed Rape. Eggs have been recorded<br />

on Shepherd’s Purse, but without success. When rst laid, the egg is<br />

translucent but turns a bright orange within a few days and is the most<br />

conspicuous of any buery species as it is laid on the stalk of a plant just<br />

below the ower head. Several eggs found on the same plant stalk will<br />

be the product of dierent females. e caterpillars of the Orange-tip are<br />

renowned for their cannibalism when young.<br />

e caterpillar usually feeds on the seedpods of its chosen plant. When<br />

it rst hatches, it is orange with black spines and a black head. Later it<br />

becomes greener, until when fully grown it exhibits a ne example of<br />

counter-shading, lighter above and dark green below. is prevents it from<br />

casting a shadow which would betray its presence as it rests alongside<br />

the stalks or seedpods, a position which makes it quite dicult to spot.<br />

Even so, many are eaten by birds. e chrysalis is extremely dicult<br />

to nd in the wild and the buery spends around ten months in this<br />

stage, including the winter. e mustard oil which it has derived from the<br />

A mating pair, male above, female below<br />

foodplants of the caterpillar makes the adult buery unpalatable to birds<br />

and the bright orange of the male advertises this, an example of warning<br />

colouration.<br />

Over-enthusiastic trimming of roadside verges destroys the species in its<br />

early stages but cutbacks in Local Authority spending have arrested this<br />

trend and the buery has actually extended its range in Britain in recent<br />

years. A few more wild patches le here and there in parks and gardens<br />

would assist it further. Long may we continue to see this harbinger of<br />

spring.<br />

F e m a l e<br />

E g g<br />

Caterpillar<br />

Chrysalis<br />

<strong>Butterfly</strong><br />

Douglas Goddard & Andy Wyldes<br />

e egg is easy to nd on Lady’s Smock<br />

Butterflies of Northamptonshire<br />

e caterpillar feeds on the developing seed pods of its foodplant<br />

Jan F e b Mar Apr M a y Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec<br />

51<br />

Buerflies<br />

Northamptonshire<br />

Douglas Goddard & Andy Wyldes<br />

‘BB’ and the Purple Emperor<br />

Denys Watkins-Pitchford, who wrote under the pseudonym ‘BB’, was an eminent naturalist-writer who was born in<br />

Northamptonshire and spent his life here. His fascination for the Purple Emperor (Apatura iris) began when he was young<br />

-“I used to spend hours reading about it in my Frohawk’s British Bueries, looking longingly at the colour plate which<br />

showed the insect in all its regal purple sheen, and I used to think that the outside of its wings was even more beautiful,<br />

with its greenish whorls and marblings and the rich coloured eye on the forewing tips.” ‘BB’ began a persistent search for it,<br />

when he found that it was ‘most frequent in Northamptonshire and Lincolnshire.’<br />

Old sites for the buery were Barnwell Wold and the woods around<br />

In his book Ramblings of a Sportsman-Naturalist, ‘BB’ describes the life<br />

Polebrook, while in Geddington Chase in 1878, a man had captured over cycle of this beautiful insect in great detail and reveals what a marvellous<br />

a dozen in a single day. ‘BB’ also mentions newspaper cuings referring observer and entomologist he was. On hatching the caterpillar eats the<br />

to an Emperor being seen and captured at Yardley Chase. A well-known eggshell and then moves to the leaf tip where few predators explore and<br />

Victorian entomologist, the Rev. William Bree, rector of Polebrook, once where the moisture drains o to protect it. He describes the minute beetle<br />

caught a specimen in his hat down a riding in Ashton Wold. On a visit Anthocoris nemorum and its devouring of the tiny caterpillars. Much skill is<br />

to his church, ‘BB’ surmised that he must have preached on many a hot needed to protect them from other enemies, such as spiders and earwigs,<br />

summer aernoon, his mind no doubt wandering to the rides of the<br />

and to tend them so that they survive the winter.<br />

adjacent woods where the Purple Emperor was found. He tells us the<br />

buery was still at Ashton in 1943, but only as a rarity.<br />

In 1973, ‘BB’ tells us that he released 25 adult Purple Emperors into ‘the<br />

Chase’. It is not clear exactly where he means, but this was most probably<br />

‘BB’s early searches for the Purple Emperor found much of the habitat<br />

the ride in Fermyn Wood known as ‘Emperor Ride’, a few minutes’ walk<br />

unsuitable. In 1940 while wandering round Monk’s Wood, a former good from his home. e following year, he found eggs to conrm that they<br />

site for it, he describes meeting an entomologist of the old school with his had indeed bred there. On July 28th 1978 he found 18 eggs and a female<br />

Emperor net 15 high, and he was amused by his pretended ignorance, intent on laying. In 1980, he refers to them as, “the Purple Emperors of<br />

while ‘his sly thirst for information suggested he was a professional<br />

mine (they really were mine, of my own stocking, for as far as I know, iris<br />

collector.’ Aer a brief view of his long sought aer prize in Salcey Forest, did not occur in this forest in recent years).”<br />

‘BB’ nally ‘came face to antennae with iris’ properly for the rst time in<br />

1946. He accompanied Stuart Humfries, an eminent eye-surgeon, to a<br />

wood in Oxfordshire. Having seen a Purple Emperor sele high up on<br />

an oak leaf, he and Humfries seeing a timber truck with wheels nearby<br />

dragged it under the tree, so that ‘BB’ could reach with his net. He made<br />

a sweep for it but it had vanished into thin air. e same day a worn male<br />

circled twice round his head and seled on his knee.<br />

It is clear from his writing that oak woodland was ‘BB’s favourite habitat,<br />

and he extols the wide rides bathed in hot sunlight on a July aernoon,<br />

the cool shadows banding the rides, the sound of the turtle doves<br />

and bullnches, humming ies and the smell of the Meadowsweet.<br />

Subsequent visits to Salcey Forest brought many happy sightings of the<br />

Purple Emperor before spraying to eliminate Oak Tortrix moths led to<br />

its extinction in the 1960s. In 1948, he saw a female laying an egg and<br />

plunged into a ditch to pull down a sprig of Sallow to inspect it. Salcey<br />

also inspired his book Brendon Chase and here in a shady ride one day, he<br />

encountered John Phillips, a Keering surgeon who taught him how to<br />

nd the buery’s eggs successfully.<br />

Eggs can be found on the lower branches of large Sallows but climbing<br />

high into the upper branches may yield even more. One eminent<br />

entomologist, a very big and heavy man, fell and injured himself so badly<br />

that he died later. ‘BB’ regarded the death of a well-known collector, killed<br />

aer falling in a ditch while searching for eggs, as a ing end, and was<br />

prepared to take the risk on many occasions. Once able to gather eggs, he<br />

admied that the ‘iris bug’ had bien even deeper and he vowed to tend<br />

the caterpillars through the winter. It became his mission to reintroduce<br />

the Purple Emperor to its ancient stronghold.<br />

BB watches the release of his bueries into “Emperor Ride” in the mid 1980’s<br />

photographed by Jack Steward<br />

78<br />

of<br />

In the 1982 season, he only found two eggs as the vision in his right eye<br />

had become impaired to the extent that locating them was becoming<br />

too dicult. By then, however, his labours had begun to bear fruit.<br />

Ian Flinders’ survey of the bueries of Northamptonshire 1976-81<br />

had deemed the Purple Emperor extinct but subsequent to this, local<br />

enthusiasts had begun to nd it again in the woods around Brigstock.<br />

It could be seen only a few hundred yards from the Round House in<br />

Sudborough. During the 1990s it had begun to appear regularly and<br />

extended its range here so that it is now found throughout most of the<br />

old Rockingham Forest. In the current millennium Purple Emperors<br />

have been seen regularly in the Silverstone area, particularly Bucknell<br />

and Hazelborough Woods and, on one occasion, Whistley Wood. e<br />

species was recorded again in Yardley Chase from 2009 and a discovery of<br />

a caterpillar by a Northants Wildlife Trust worker conrmed its breeding<br />

there in 2011. is year also saw its return to Salcey Forest aer half a<br />

century with two separate sightings.<br />

Above: A male and female Emperor raised by ‘BB’ are released into ‘Emperor Ride’ in the mid 1980s. Photograph by Jack Steward<br />

Right: e Round House at Sudborough, ‘BB’s home for a number of years, right on Fermyn’s doorstep<br />

Below: ‘Emperor Ride’ in Fermyn as it is today<br />

As a result of climate change the Purple Emperor is extending its range<br />

nationally. It has become widespread in Oxfordshire, another old haunt,<br />

and has been recorded in Warwickshire, Suolk and Cambridgeshire in<br />

recent years. Sallow regenerates quickly on the clay soils of our county and<br />

Fermyn Wood has the perfect conditions for it, the habitat developing<br />

particularly aer ‘BB’s death in 1990. What role the writer played in its<br />

current expansion is dicult to establish. It may be that the buery was<br />

there all along and his intervention helped the population to reach the<br />

level where it began to be seen more readily. It is nonetheless a source<br />

of great pleasure to feel that current buery enthusiasts are treading in<br />

the same woodland rides into which he ventured and to reect that his<br />

cherished dream of seeing ‘His Imperial Majesty’ ying there again is now<br />

an ongoing success, a ing monument to this great naturalist.<br />

By Douglas Goddard & Andy Wyldes<br />

79


Butterflies<br />

of<br />

Northamptonshire<br />

The first book exclusively on the butterflies<br />

of the county, 112 pages, 300 photographs<br />

in full colour<br />

Descriptions of the butterfly habitats of<br />

Northamptonshire with details of ten<br />

important sites with public access to see<br />

the butterflies of the county<br />

Descriptions, life cycles, trends and<br />

distribution maps of the 36 species resident<br />

in the county plus historical summaries of<br />

rare migrants and extinct species<br />

Features on the work of <strong>Butterfly</strong><br />

<strong>Conservation</strong> and management for key<br />

species, Gardening for Butterflies,<br />

‘BB’ and the Purple Emperor<br />

Publication price is £9.99 plus £3.00 postage and packing<br />

e buery habitats of Northamptonshire<br />

Details of ten important sites with public access to see the bueries of the county<br />

Descriptions, life cycles, trends and distribution maps of the 36 species resident in the county<br />

Historical summaries of rare migrants and extinct species<br />

300 photographs in full colour<br />

Features on the work of Buery <strong>Conservation</strong> and management for key species, Gardening<br />

for Bueries, ‘BB’ and the Purple Emperor<br />

UK Price £11.99<br />

ISBN 978-0-9520291-4-4<br />

To order your copy now, send cheque (payable to ‘Beds and Northants<br />

Branch <strong>Butterfly</strong> <strong>Conservation</strong>’) with your name and address, contact<br />

details (phone and email) to Doug Goddard, 34 Ashley Way, Westone,<br />

Northampton NN3 3DZ or arrange to meet Doug to collect if within 15<br />

miles of Northampton. (Tel. 01604 408670, goddarddouglas@hotmail.com)<br />

<strong>Butterfly</strong><br />

<strong>Conservation</strong><br />

Douglas Goddard & Andy Wyldes<br />

Butterflies of Northamptonshire<br />

Bu<br />

No<br />

Dougl


B&N Branch Committee<br />

Chairman Stuart Pittman<br />

40 Plumtree Road<br />

Lower Stondon Beds SG16 6NE<br />

Branch Secretary<br />

&<br />

Branch Organiser<br />

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310C Newton Road<br />

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110 Norbury Avenue<br />

Watford Herts WD24 4PD<br />

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Recorders<br />

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6 Salcome Close<br />

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Branch Newsletter Andy Wyldes<br />

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01462 851309<br />

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org.uk<br />

Moths Vacant Contact the chairman for further details<br />

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