2nd August - Shipton Belinger and Fishlake Meadows, Hampshire

It is Friday, a week on from the last attempt at Shipton Belinger to find the Brown Hairstreak.  This time it was the first stop.  It was warm, but with some cloud that obscured the early morning sun.  I parked in the usual place and set off up the permissible bridleway.  

In a break in the hedge had a single poppy amongst the wheat.

The first butterfly I came across was a Speckled Wood, settled on the track.

When this one settled I thought it could possibly be a Wall Brown, but no, Speckled Wood.

Walking past the second crossroads a Wall flew past me but never settled, a good sign though.  On reaching the stretch of trees, blackthorn and wild parsnip there were the usual Meadow Brown and Gatekeeper in the bushes, plus a few Brimstone.  I walked up and down ands saw three hairstreaks above the bushes, one disappeared in the bushes while the other two flew out into the field and were lost from view.

I was beginning to think it was going to be another poor day, the sun was out now and it was hot.  I walked to the west end of the line of trees and spotted something orange in amongst the Wild Parsnip, a closer look and it was indeed a Brown Hairstreak and a female, immaculate condition, probably just emerged.

This is the largest hairstreak found in the British Isles. It is a local species that lives in self-contained colonies that breed in the same area year after year. This species can also prove elusive, since it spends much of its time resting and basking high up in tall shrubs and trees.

 

Adults emerge in the morning and males generally appear a few days before females. This is a warmth-loving butterfly and is rarely seen on overcast days. On sunny days the adults will rest with wings open, absorbing the sun's rays on their dark brown wings which gradually close as they warm up. In flight, the adults are easily mistaken for the Gatekeeper, which flies at the same time.

Both Sexes have a dark chocolate brown upper-side with orange "tails".  The female has a band of orange on the upper-wing, but was never visible on this individual.

The underside is a contrasting orange-yellow, this is much more intense in the female as can be seen here, the male having a more olive tinge.  The white hairstreak lines go across both wings.

The female is particularly beautiful, with forewings that contain large orange patches and the intense orange and red colouring on the underside.  The female was once considered to be a separate species known as the "Golden Hairstreak".

The female will crawl among the branches of the foodplant, commonly blackthorn, feeling the branches for appropriate sites, when egg-laying.  Eggs are laid at low density over large areas. The larva partially develops within the egg before entering hibernation for the winter. Overwintering eggs are particularly vulnerable to hedge-trimming since they are laid on the youngest growth of the foodplant.

This individual was quite still, neither moving or nectaring.  This was one of the reasons for considering this was a newly emerged individual.

Males adopt a master tree, normally ash which stands above the tree canopy.  Males onlt rarely descend to feed.

They are usually found in hedgerows, scrub and woodland edge, with abundant Blackthorn on clay soils.

A stunning butterfly.

A close up of the body.

A change of position.

Then a move to a branch of Blackthorn before flying off and away into the bushes beyond.

I decided to walk back down the track to look for the Wall Brown.  There were plenty of Brimstone about, both male and female.

A Green-veined White.

And a few Small Skipper.

At the crossroads a Wall flew past me again.  I decided to walk the parallel path, without any luck, but at the first crossroads I managed to find one grounded, wings closed unfortunately but the underside is quite beautiful.

The basking behaviour of this butterfly allows it to benefit from the full warmth of the sun whose rays shine directly on the butterfly, but also get reflected back onto the butterfly from whichever surface it is resting on. This habit allows the butterfly to raise its body temperature sufficiently high for it to fly. In particularly hot weather, however, such basking is avoided and the butterfly may even retreat to a suitably-shaded spot to avoid overheating.

This species was once found throughout England, Wales, Ireland and parts of Scotland. Today, however, is a very different picture, with this species suffering severe declines over the last several decades. It is now confined to primarily coastal regions and has been lost from many sites in central, eastern and south-east England. It is believed that polluted air is a factor, due to large losses in areas close to major roadways. The Wall Brown is found in relatively small colonies that are self-contained although some individuals will wander, allowing the species to quickly colonise suitable nearby sites.

The male Wall Brown is territorial and will inhabit a particular area, such as a path, hedgerow or roadside verge, waiting for a passing female. Males will typically perch in a favoured position but will, in sunny and warm conditions, adopt a strategy of patrolling in order to find a mate. All passing insects are investigated and rival males will fly high into the air before coming back to the ground a few seconds later.

I chased one around watching it settle on a dandelion, but flying off as I approached.  I eventually lost it as it flew over the hedge.  However as I walked along the footpath I noticed a butterfly on the flower of Wild Parsley.  As I got closer I realised it was another female Brown Hairstreak, the first time I had found one away from the usual spot.

This one was more mobile and was nectaring on the small flower heads.

A nice black background to contrast the beautiful orange of the underwing.

From Shipton Belinger it was a short drive to Fishlake Meadows, an Osprey had been reported earlier in the week.  From the car park I walked around to the roadside viewing point.  I scanned the dead tree tops but couldn't see any Osprey.  However there were Great Egrets at the back of the lake.  This one on its own.

Then three more flew past.  The other "white egret" in this photograph is a Little Egret.

Leaving the viewing point this Jersey Tiger Moth settled on a leaf next to me.

I walked the length of the canal path, then across the middle.  There were several Red Admiral about and this Comma.

I negotiated the, still flooded in places, centre path to the screens where there was a Great Crested Grebe and youngster along with Mallard Gadwall and Teal, but little else.  Coming back the highlight was a male Banded Demoiselle.

At the last viewing point before the car park a scan across the wetlands picked out the Osprey sitting in a dead tree, it looked as if it would be closer to the viewing point on the road, so I set off there.

It was closer, but not that much.

I watched it preen, but did very little else.

I stayed in the hope it would fly and maybe fish, but it just stayed stock still watching the action as birds flew around it.

In the end I decided to leave, walking back I checked from the second view point, it was still standing still. 

Not a bad day, I was really pleased with the Brown Hairstreak and the Wall was a bonus.