Tag Archives: Holly blue butterfly

From garbage to glorious

09 Saturday Jun 2018

Posted by in birds, insects, nature, parks

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Day 9 of #30DaysWild saw me at Grangemoor Park, a place that used to be Cardiff’s rubbish dump: when it closed in 1994, it contained an estimated four million cubic metres of garbage, both commercial and household. Now, it’s not only a public park but also a SINC (Site of Importance for Nature Conservation), and is home to a wonderfully diverse range of flora and fauna. My photos show just some of what I discovered there today …

180609 1 Large skipper

Large skipper butterfly

180609 2 Meadow brown

One of seven Meadow brown butterflies seen today

180609 3 Common blue

Male Common blue butterfly

180609 4 Holly blue

Holly blue butterfly (and tiny friend)

180609 5 Brimstone

Brimstone butterfly (one of my favourites)

180609 6 Emperor dragonfly

Emperor dragonfly. There were many other dragonflies and damselflies at the pond but they were a bit distant for photos.

180609 7 Long-tailed tit fledgling

One of four newly fledged Long-tailed tits, foraging with their parents

180609 8 Blackcap female

Female Blackcap busy foraging for her family

180609 9 Pyramidal orchid

Pyramidal orchids

180609 10 Bee orchid

Bee orchid – love their ‘faces’!

180609 11 Southern marsh orchid

Southern marsh orchid (I think)

180609 12 Common spotted orchid

Common spotted orchids

Holly blues

20 Sunday May 2018

Posted by in insects, nature

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180520 Holly blue (2)

With clear blue skies and temps in the mid 20s, it was hot work chasing the Holly blue butterflies (Celastrina argiolus) around Lavernock last Monday. I think I saw five but they move so quickly along the scrub and up and over the trees that it was hard to be sure. Those fast fliers are mostly the males, I think, constantly sniffing for the female pheromones.

180520 Holly blue (1)

I know there were at least two Holly blues, as I managed to get a male and female together in one photo, and then was lucky enough to catch the female laying an egg on a Dogwood plant. Once she’d departed I carefully examined the plant but couldn’t find the egg. I think she must have tucked it well in amongst the flower buds, which I didn’t pry apart in case I damaged the newly laid egg. But I remember where it was so will try and go back in a week or so to check for a caterpillar.

180520 Holly blue (3)180520 Holly blue (5)

Holly blues are the first of Britain’s blue-coloured butterflies to emerge each year, which is one way to distinguish them from the many other blue butterflies. Another is their flight pattern – the other blues usually fly close to the ground. And the Holly blues are the only ones with small black dots on the undersides of their wings though, unless you see one perched, you’ll need to be quick to spot those dots ’cause these little beauties are speedy.

180520 Holly blue (4)

Fluttering butterflies, no.2

24 Friday Jun 2016

Posted by in insects, nature

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Though summer is well underway here in Britain, I’m not seeing a huge number of butterflies. Here are some I have seen fluttering by in recent weeks.

160624 Common Blue

There are several small blue butterflies in Britain and they can be difficult to tell apart but the Common blue (Polyommatus icarus) is, as its name implies, the most common. As is often the way with wildlife, the males are bright blue, whereas the females can be quite a drab brown.

160624 Holly blue

The Holly blue (Celastrina argiolus) looks quite similar to the Common Blue, especially in flight. The trick to identifying it is in the small black dots on the underwings. It is also the blue butterfly that emerges first from its winter hibernation so look for it near holly plants in early spring, then fluttering about ivy in the summertime.

160624 Orange tip

If this is an Orange-tip butterfly (Anthocharis cardamines), where’s the orange colour? Turns out this is a female and only the males have bright orange wing tips. Still, she’s a very pretty little thing, even if she did seem a bit shy and hid her head behind a leaf.

160624 Large Skipper

Though it’s called the Large skipper (Ochlodes sylvanus), this butterfly is relatively small, its wingspan just a couple of millimetres more than the Small skipper, so you need to look for the mottled brown markings on its upper wings to tell the two apart.