• ABOUT
  • BIRDING 2018
  • Birding 2019
  • BLOG POSTS
  • Butterflies 2018
  • Resources

earthstar

~ a celebration of nature

earthstar

Tag Archives: Comma

The punctuation mark

18 Tuesday Apr 2023

Posted by sconzani in insects

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

British butterflies, butterfly, Comma

This gorgeous Comma was showing particularly well the reason for its name.

230417 comma

Like this:

Like Loading...

I bl**dy love butterflies!

21 Tuesday Mar 2023

Posted by sconzani in insects

≈ 11 Comments

Tags

British butterflies, butterfly, Comma, Peacock

Sorry if my title offends some of you but it can be difficult to put into words how much I adore these stunning creatures.

When first the Peacock and then this Comma, within a few minutes of each other, flew across my path and settled in the sunshine for me to admire and photograph, I felt as if I might burst with happiness. The beauty of these creatures speaks to my soul!

Like this:

Like Loading...

Commas, again

30 Thursday Jun 2022

Posted by sconzani in insects

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

British butterflies, butterfly, Comma, Comma butterfly, Comma caterpillar, Comma larva

I saw my first Comma butterfly on 18 March and continued to spot them quite regularly until the end of April, by which time they were looking increasingly tatty. Although the adults then died off, the next generation was underway, and I saw my first ever Comma caterpillars on two consecutive days in mid May. Now, the pristine adults have begun to appear, floating along the hedgerows and woodland rides, trying very hard to convince me they’re really Silver-washed fritillaries. Their vibrant orange-and-black patterning is a joy to behold.

220630 comma

Like this:

Like Loading...

Tipsy Commas

22 Wednesday Sep 2021

Posted by sconzani in autumn, insects

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

blackberries, British butterflies, butterfly, Comma, Commas feeding on Bramble

Soon, these gorgeous Commas will be looking for places to hibernate.

210922 comma (1)

But first they need to stock up on nectar, to increase their energy reserves to help them survive the cold winter months.

210922 comma (2)

Brambles are perfect, their berries plentiful, widespread, easily accessible, juicy, delicious.

210922 comma (3)

And, when the berries are very ripe and begin to ferment, butterflies like these Commas can become more than a little tipsy as they drink.

210922 comma (4)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Raggedy wing

12 Thursday Aug 2021

Posted by sconzani in insects

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Adain garpiog, British butterflies, butterfly, C-falter, Comma, Comma butterfly, Robert-le-Diable

With the precision we can rely on from the Germans, the Comma is called the C-falter, the C butterfly. In France it is known as Robert-le-Diable, Robert the devil, which, according to a 2017 article in the Guardian newspaper, ‘is also the name of a favourite 19th-century Centifolia rose with a unique purple-cerise-scarlet-grey flower and a wonderful old rose fragrance; an 1831 opera by Giacomo Meyerbeer about the moral redemption of the son of a mortal and a demon; and the father of William the Conqueror, who was said to be the son of the Devil.’ Why the Comma also bears this name the Guardian writer does not specify. Here in Wales the Comma is appropriately named Adain garpiog, which translates as raggedy wing.

210812 comma (1)
210812 comma (2)
210812 comma (3)
210812 comma (4)
210812 comma (5)
210812 comma (6)
210812 comma (7)
210812 comma (8)
210812 comma (9)

Like this:

Like Loading...

265/366 Hutchinsoni

21 Monday Sep 2020

Posted by sconzani in insects

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

British butterflies, butterfly, Comma, Comma variation hutchinsoni, Polygonia c-album, Polygonia c-album var. hutchinsoni

If you happen to see a Comma butterfly on one of our fine autumnal days, have a good look at the colour of its wings. You may notice that both the upper and the undersides of its wings are quite dark, particularly when compared to some of the Commas you saw in the summer months. Why is that?

200921 comma (1)
200921 comma (2)

It may be that your paler summertime Comma was a hutchinsoni. The splendid Life Cycles of British & Irish Butterflies explains:

The Comma is known for a particular form named hutchinsoni that is much paler in appearance on both upperside and underside that the nominate form. This form is found throughout the butterfly’s range and is normally attributed to individuals that go on to produce a second brood in the same year. Its name is a tribute to Emma Hutchinson, a renowned Victorian entomologist … who ultimately discovered its double-brooded nature and the corresponding variation between broods. The name was announced by J.E. Robson in 1881 in The Young Naturalist: ‘The Summer form is so different, and so constant in its appearance, that it ought to have a distinctive name, and we suggest it be called var. Hutchinsoni, in compliment to the lady … whose knowledge of the species is not exceeded by that of any one living.’

200921 comma (3)
200921 comma (4)

In my photos, the Comma on the left, Polygonia c-album var. hutchinsoni, was photographed on 24 June, the Comma on the right on 17 September, both in the same location and on fine, sunny days. I think you can see how marked the difference in their colouring is.

Like this:

Like Loading...

244/366 Butterfly magic

31 Monday Aug 2020

Posted by sconzani in insects, nature

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

aberrant Meadow brown, British butterflies, butterfly, Comma, Green-veined white, Painted Lady, Red Admiral, Small copper, Small tortoiseshell

To celebrate – or, perhaps, to mourn – the last calendar day of summer, here’s a tribute to some of the beautiful butterflies I’ve seen in recent days, just because, when they’re gone, I’m really going to miss their magic.

200831 comma

A Comma doing what they do so well when their wings are closed – blending in.

200831 green-veined white

Most of the white butterflies I’ve seen lately have been Small whites so this Green-veined white stood out from the crowd.

200831 meadow brown

Here’s another that stood out – an aberrant Meadow brown. There always has to be one!

200831 painted lady

The heat wave a couple of weeks ago seems to have brought in a small influx of Painted ladies, though nothing like the numbers we had last year.

200831 red admiral

Have you ever noticed how much Red admirals like blackberries? And their colours blend in to this background rather well.

200831 small tortoiseshell

Small tortoiseshells have been having a good year locally, which has been a real treat. I even found two feeding on Red valerian right at the edge of one of the local beaches this morning.

200831 small copper

A delightful surprise from Saturday’s walk at Cosmeston, a pristine Small copper.

Like this:

Like Loading...

225/366 Battered & bird-pecked

12 Wednesday Aug 2020

Posted by sconzani in insects, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

battered butterflies, bird-pecked butterflies, British butterflies, Brown argus, Comma, Essex skipper, Gatekeeper, Painted Lady, Peacock, Ringlet, Small copper

Though second-brood butterflies are still looking pristine, many of the others are now well past their best, as life is tough for such fragile creatures. Some butterflies are so battered that I’m amazed they’re able to fly at all, yet this Gatekeeper and Ringlet were still moving from plant to plant.

200812 battered gatekeeper
200812 battered ringlet

Birds looking for an easy snack often attack butterflies and it’s easy to see the tell-tale signs of bird pecks on butterflies’ wings, like those on these: a Ringlet, Comma, Small copper and Peacock, and another Gatekeeper.

200812 birdpecked ringlet

200812 birdpecked 1 comma
200812 birdpecked 2 small copper
200812 birdpecked 3 peacock

200812 birdpecked gatekeeper

Is it the blazing sun that has caused this Essex skipper’s orange to fade so dramatically or has it lost most of its wing scales?

200812 faded essex skipper

I’m 99% sure this is the same Brown argus, seen first on 1 August and again on 10 August. It already had some bird pecks when I first saw it but, nine days later, it was looking rather faded and more than a little ragged around the edges.

200812 faded brown argus 0108
200812 faded brown argus 1008

This Painted lady is looking battered, bird-pecked, faded and jaded, perhaps the affects of a long migration journey, or simply a tough life well survived.

200812 jaded painted lady

Like this:

Like Loading...

184/366 Eggs-citing!

02 Thursday Jul 2020

Posted by sconzani in insects, nature

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

British butterflies, butterflies, butterfly egg, Comma, Comma butterfly, Comma egg, Polygonia c-album

Though I set off on yesterday’s walk clad in a rain jacket, the first day of July brightened up and turned into a day full of butterflies, with sightings of my first Gatekeepers of the year, a couple of second-brood Holly blues and more than 20 second-brood Small whites, as well as seven other species. But the highlight for me was watching two Commas egg-laying on nettles, and then taking a look at their tiny eggs, which I’d not seen previously.

200702 commas egglaying (1)

The butterflies were fluttering around, checking out nettle plants growing alongside the footpath I was walking and, when they found a plant to their liking, they would alight briefly on a leaf, lay a single egg, then flutter off again.

At less than 1mm tall, these eggs are tiny, and I would never have spotted them unless I’d seen them being laid. They’re pale green in colour, with 10 or 11 white ribs running vertically up the sides.

Comma egg one
Comma egg one
Comma egg two
Comma egg two

According to Peter Eeles’s Life Cycles of British & Irish Butterflies, each female Comma will lay about 250 eggs, usually on the upper side of a leaf, in a sheltered, sunny position. The eggs will gradually change colour to yellow and, in two or three weeks, to grey, before the little caterpillars hatch. Eggs-citing!

200702 commas egglaying (5)

Comma showing the distinctive marking that gave it its name

Like this:

Like Loading...

164/366 ‘Flowers that fly’

12 Friday Jun 2020

Posted by sconzani in insects, nature

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

British butterflies, butterfly, Comma, Green-veined white, Large skipper, Meadow Brown, Speckled wood

‘… flowers that fly and all but sing’
~  from ‘Blue-butterfly Day’, a poem by Robert Frost

These are some of the ‘flowers’ that have been flying around me this week, causing my heart to sing.

200612 comma

Comma, one of three seen on Tuesday’s walk

200612 green-veined white

Green-veined white

200612 large skipper

Large skipper, a butterfly with attitude

200612 meadow brown

Meadow brown, from a count of 54 in a single meadow

200612 speckled wood

Speckled wood

Like this:

Like Loading...
← Older posts

About me

sconzani

sconzani

I'm a writer and photographer; researcher and blogger; birder and nature lover; countryside rambler and city strider; volunteer and biodiversity recorder.

View Full Profile →

Follow earthstar on WordPress.com

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Recent blog posts

  • Canada goslings June 8, 2023
  • The beautiful couple June 7, 2023
  • Beauty and the beast June 6, 2023
  • An early Painted Lady June 5, 2023
  • Four orchid firsts June 4, 2023

From the archives

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

COPYRIGHT

Unless otherwise acknowledged, the text and photographs on this blog are my own and are subject to international copyright. Nothing may be downloaded or copied without my permission.

Fellow Earth Stars!

Blog at WordPress.com.

  • Follow Following
    • earthstar
    • Join 590 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • earthstar
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

You must be logged in to post a comment.

    %d bloggers like this: