While walking at Well Bottom, Beddingham, East Sussex I spotted at least 10 individual Dark Green Fritillary and 1 Humming-bird Hawk-moth. (Jan Knowlson)

1 Humming-bird Hawk-moth seen in Pavilion Gardens, Brighton - TQ313 043. (Caroline Clarke)

Around 4pm I arrived at Hollingbury Park, I looked for White-letter Hairstreak, but as predicted even with the weather this is still too early for this site. Sadly Creeping Thistle is down in numbers this year and this is no doubt down to the overgrown mass of grass which has encroached the wild bays. Also brambles seem to have been reduced on site and the glades are starting to get overgrown and shaded out by unnecessary young trees which have been left to grow tall, potentially bad for adult Silver-washed Fritillary. Whilst there I saw three Speckled Wood, one Red Admiral, one Small White and one Comma. Also earlier seeing a single Red Admiral in my Hollingbury back garden. (Jamie Burston)

Lancing Ring yielded another Clouded Yellow today and a single Marbled White. (Lindsay Morris)

Yesterday I did my Mill Hill Transect and found plenty of Summer butterflies: Adonis Blue 1, Brimstone 1, Common Blue 1, Large Skipper 1, Marbled White 4, Meadow Brown 5, Painted Lady 2, Peacock 1, Red Admiral 1, Small Heath 14, Small Tortoiseshell 6, plus 2 moths: Yellow Shell and Treble-bar. Later at Steyning Downland Scheme I found Large Skippers, Common Nettle-taps and a Yellow-spot Twist. (Colin Knight www.seapic.com)

Recent news: Late sightings from Sunday 8th June at Washington Chalk Pits between 14:15-16:00 are; 1 Clouded Yellow, first Meadow Brown of the year, Brimstone, Large White, Small Tortoiseshell, Red Admiral, Peacock 1 very worn, Common Blue, Speckled Wood, Dingy Skipper, Grizzled Skipper, Small White, Small Heath and Green Hairstreak. Day-flying moths included; Cinnabar, Mother Skipton, Latticed Heath, Silver Y, Burnet Companion, Humming-bird Hawk-moth and Small purple and Gold.
Working at High and Over on Tuesday 10th were 12 Small Tortoiseshell, 8 Speckled Wood, Red Admiral, Wall Brown, Small Heath and Common Blue. On Wednesday 11th while strimming the car park at Birling Gap I noticed a large butterfly that at first glance I thought looked like a rather large Marbled White but as it past me, flying very quickly and purposefully I could just make out the tails. It never stopped and carried on towards Belle Tout so I am only 99% sure it was a Swallowtail. While working at Blackcap on Thursday 12th I noticed 7 Speckled Wood, at least 30 Meadow Brown, 6 Small Heath, roughly 20 Common Blue, 2 Brimstone, 1 Large White, 3 Red Admiral, 14 Small Tortoiseshell, 1 Dark Green Fritillary and 1 Small Blue. Day-flying moths were 1 Five-spot Burnet and Burnet Companion. (Lee Walther)

Thursday 12 June 2014

At Lancing Ring a Clouded Yellow. Between there and Steepdown, 28 Large Skipper, 2 Small/Essex Skipper, 40+ Small Tortoiseshell, 8 Small Heath, 7 Meadow Brown, 1 Speckled Wood, 2 Red Admiral, 30+ Common Blue, 2 male Brimstone, 5 Whites, 2 Holly Blue. Also, 11 Bee Orchids amongst the Common Spotted and Pyramidal. (Lindsay Morris)

A very productive walk on the Steyning Downland Scheme site today produced a good range of butterflies, especially on the Steyning Coombe where I saw 5 Large Skipper, 2 tatty Brimstone, 3 Common Blue, 2 Marbled White, 2 Small Tortoiseshell, 4 Meadow Brown, 1 Red Admiral, 3 Small Heath, but best of all, a pristine Dark Green Fritillary. Also a Humming-bird Hawk-moth June gap? (Pete Varkala)

Went for a hike up Windover Hill to Friston Forest today. Saw 3 Small Blues on my way up to Windover Hill and 3 freshly hatched Dark Green Fritillaries on my way from Windover Hill to Lullington Heath. During the hike I also saw an assortment of Small Tortoiseshells, Brimstones, Red Admirals, Meadow Brown, Common and Adonis Blues and Grizzled, Dingy and Large Skippers, and finally 1 freshly hatched Comma. (Gary Norman)

A exploration of Malling down,this afternoon gave me sightings of Meadow Browns, Small Tortoiseshells, Common Blues, one Adonis Blue, Small Heaths were numerous. But the what made my afternoon was of a single Clouded Yellow patrolling its length of path coming and going then returning to the small chalk pit then it flew of in a different direction. This was observed on the path back to the Mill road car park. (Alan Major)

Much better butterfly day today. Starting at the path by the houseboats on the south of the Adur, we walked across the new footbridge into Shoreham and then along the east bank of the river to the Downslink footpath. We followed this to just north of the old cement works and then back along the footway by the main road to the Dacre Gardens bus stop, where we caught a bus back to Shoreham. We saw a faded Small Tortoiseshell at the start of the walk (still there at the end, 5 hours later) and 2 Small Whites by the boats. As we joined the Downslink path, by the old railway buffers there were 2 Common Blues. (There has been a colony round here for a long time.) Spread out along the remainder of the walk we counted another 4 Common Blues, 11 Small Tortoiseshells, 4 Holly Blues, 2 Large Skippers, 2 Red Admirals, 4 Speckled Woods, 3 Meadow Browns, 31 Burnet Moths, 3 Burnet Companion moths, 2 Cinnabar moths, a possible Common Heath & 1 male demoiselle agrion damselfly (I know it doesn't count but it looks a bit like a black butterfly). From about the flyover onwards the walk is very good for pyramidal orchids with some common spotted near the cement works, but best of all, orchid wise, were 3 unexpected bee orchids just north of the flyover. The last butterfly seen, while we were waiting for the bus, is the battered old lady Holly Blue in the picture. She wasn't interested in any of the open flowers on the buddleia. Instead she sought out a number of undeveloped sprays of flower buds & laid eggs on them, which I was too slow to capture on the camera. I see from my books that they do lay on quite a wide variety of plants, but none of them mentions buddleia. (John & Val Heys)

The transect count today was Brimstone 11, Common Blue 18, Dark Green Fritillary 2, Large Skipper 6, Meadow Brown 6, Painted Lady 1, Red Admiral 2, Small Heath 9, Small Tortoiseshell 3, Speckled Wood 7.
I was surprised and delighted to see the DGF on a bramble flower near the patch where the Wild Oregano grows, and then another flew past me halfway round the west moat. (Peter Atkinson)

Today the 12th June I saw two Humming-bird Hawk-moths hovering around the wild valerian at 7 Whitemans Close Cuckfield. As I also have red valerian in the garden I'm hoping they might lay eggs. (Tim Newnham)

Today I went out covering a few areas, this being my only attempt to look for any local Swallowtails. On my walk I covered the whole of Hollingbury Golf Course of which I walked around the edge of two allotments, Hollingbury Hill Fort, the dew pond area of Wild Park and surrounding fields. Totals are two Speckled Wood, two Small Tortoiseshell, one Holly Blue, nine Common Blue, one Small Heath, six Large Skipper, two Large White and around 10 Meadow Brown. Continuing with Swallowtail Butterflies, I have a possible sighting, I put my Facebook account to use and alerted the Brighton and Hove allotment community, I got a response from BHAF's page, Donna Theresa potentially saw one on the 9th of June, she didn't provide the location but from what I can gather it may have been seen at the allotment in Bevendean located at (TQ327064).
News from the 10th June: I saw one Large Skipper and one Small Tortoiseshell at Hollingbury Hill Fort and three Small Tortoiseshell seen at (TQ32320813) and one Small Tortoiseshell around about (TQ32190830). (Jamie Burston)

Wednesday 11 June 2014

Swallowtail seen on Steepdown near Worthing on 8th June. (David Jefford)

I saw one (Swallowtail) fly by me yesterday while sitting in my garden at Warren Hill, The Bostal, Upper Beeding. (Peter Maasz)

At Friston Forest today we saw large numbers of Small Tortoiseshells, Small Heaths, Meadow Browns and Large Skippers, good numbers of Common Blues, Small Blues and Speckled Woods, a couple of Red Admirals and Grizzled Skippers and our first Dark Green Fritillary of the season. (Pauline Batchelor)

Dark Green Fritillary near Littlington today. (Nigel Kemp and Bob Eade)

This evening after work I ventured along the lower path on Mill Hill and saw Small Heath, Meadow Brown and Adonis Blue and alas no Swallowtails, but to my amazement on arriving home I found a Chequered Blencowe - a very rare and highly entertaining species! (tee hee hee) (Nick Linazasoro)

Despite the sunshine, the only butterflies at Nymans today were 6 Speckled Woods, all in the woodland walk to the north of the ornamental gardens. (John & Val Heys)

News for Tuesday 10 June: Just finishing my walk around Welches Cmmon on Tuesday after a bleak butterfly transect around Burton Mill Pond, when a Clouded Yellow nearly flew into me. Great way to finish! (John Knight)

Late afternoon yesterday I found several firsts for me at Rewell Wood: a stunning red Hazel Leaf-roller Weevil, a Red-fringed Conch, a tiny weevil (Cionus hortulanus), a Mirid bug (Grypocoris stysi), a pair of mating micromoths and the star prize  two Buff-tip moths. Pics on my blog (Colin Knight www.seapic.com)

News for Sunday 8 June: On 8th June, after the event at Rowland Wood I returned to 3 Ponds Holiday Park, South Heighton and as I drove in (slowly) I was preceded by a male Orange Tip. (Peter Atkinson)

Tuesday 10 June 2014

With the June Gap rendering the Downs very quiet for butterflies at the moment, today I turned my attention to the heathlands around Midhurst. Silver-studded Blue numbers are building rapidly now, with 17 counted on Stedham Common and 31 over a small part of adjacent Iping Common. There are a few females already laying eggs and eventually I found what I was looking for - a mating pair with both butterflies in perfect condition. Clouded Buff moths were seen quite regularly, including the less commonly observed female. I also found one of my favourite moth caterpillars, the very beautiful Beautiful Yellow Underwing. (Neil Hulme)

There was a Silver Y moth in my garden in Mytten Close, Cuckfield. yesterday. (Peter Lovett)

Monday 9 June 2014

I was pleased to see a female Brimstone visiting the two purging buckthorn bushes in my Bevendean Garden early this afternoon. Hope she laid eggs. (Geoff Stevens)

Today I visited Hollingbury Industrial Estate Reserve located at (TQ32270919) for the sole purpose to moniter how the Small Blue are fairing, the result was an increase from my last visit, totaling around 25, however hard to tell as they roam all over the site. This beats by best count from last year which was a poor record of 16 being seen on the 19th June 2013. I have planned another visit around the 20th of June to complete one last count, hopefully this will add to the bigger picture of how they have fared this year. Also seen on site was Common Blue, again around 25 seen. I interestingly observed new behavior, males would interact by circling each other using a slow gliding motion, resulting later in a change in speed gathering into larger groups of five or more. Also seen was a extremely fresh Small Tortoiseshell basking on clumps of chalk and my first Meadow Brown of the year, all before being caught in the rain. (Jamie Burston)

I have a colony of Peacock butterfly caterpillars at the edge of the garden absolutely mullering the nettles. Having checked them tonight I noticed one individual had just shed its skin giving a rather interesting appearance before it turns darker, like the sibling next to it. Spectacular in the macro world. About 20 minutes later this individual had actually changed colour to the normal caterpillar colour. Perhaps it's times like this, I admit, that a few grand on an SLR and a good lens may just be worth it, but not quite.
And on a different note...
Neil Hulme picked up on Red Admirals recently and also the reports of the arrival of Clouded Yellows and Silver Y confirm certain weather conditions have been conducive to immigration. It would be interesting to hear if anybody else running light traps have also caught any other migrant moths recently?(Richard Roebuck)
Not seen anything up here in Lindfield, not even a Silver Y or Diamond-back Moth. It's worth keeping an eye on the sightings page of The Sussex Moth Group (www.sussexmothgroup.org.uk/SMGsightings.php too. ed.

News for Sunday 8 June: In the afternoon I took a long walk along the top of the Downs between Chantry Hill and Amberley Mount, in the hope of locating another gorganus Swallowtail. I didn't find my target species but it was interesting to see how markedly the butterfly fauna has changed over the last ten days. Spring butterflies, which occurred in impressive numbers along these slopes, have all but disappeared now. I saw a few Common Blue (8), Speckled Wood (4) and a Brimstone, but nymphalids made most of the running. I counted 18 Red Admiral and 6 Painted Lady, all of which have probably arrived on our shores over the last couple of days. Amongst the 15 Small Tortoiseshell seen there were both aged, overwintered parents and their freshly emerged progeny. (Neil Hulme)

More news for Sunday 8 June: Today I went for a lovely walk around Friston Forest saw lots of butterflies. Spotted were Large Skipper, Dingy Skipper, Grizzled Skipper, Brimstone, Large White, Green Hairstreak, Small Copper, Brown Argus, Common Blue, Red Admiral, Painted Lady, Small Tortoiseshell, Speckled Wood, Meadow Brown, Small Heath, Mother Shipton, Six-spot Burnett and Cinnabar. (Nick Linazasoro)

And some more news for Sunday 8 June: After a Saturday of watching Brits triumph in world cup canoeing & kayaking at Lee Valley (never seen any live before and it was very enjoyable despite a rainstorm  even a few butterflies around), we opted for a local-ish walk on Sunday. Starting at Walpole Road, Brighton (TQ325041) we walked up a footpath to the ridge above Whitehawk and on as far as the north end of the Racecourse grandstand area (TQ333055). We saw 1 Red Admiral and 8 Speckled Woods along the wooded path at the start of the walk. At the top, near the allotments, we saw 2 more Speckled Woods. Then we found a reasonably flowery area on the east side of the top of the ridge, just north of the allotments, which was a Common Blue zone  about 8 of them including one definite female. There was also a single Holly Blue on some bushes nearby. In the Common Blue zone and over a wider area nearby were Burnet Companion moths, maybe as many as 20. Finally, starting from the allotments and extending as far as a nice patch of nettles at the south end of the Grandstand, we came across 8 Small Tortoiseshells. Theres a lack of wild flowers in a lot of the grassland up there, particularly once the grandstand is reached, which may explain why we saw no butterflies at all after the last 3 Tortoiseshells. We didnt see any whites at all up there, but did see 2 Small Whites in our garden in Hove, one in the morning and one in the evening. (John & Val Heys)

Sunday 8 June 2014

A very brief visit to Stedham and Iping Commons earlier today produced five male Silver-studded Blues. (Mark Colvin)

Single Clouded Yellow this morning on the South side of Room Bottom below the Truleigh Hill car park at 7.45am. (Chris Corrigan)

A Clouded Yellow flew fast and furiously past me today on Cradle Hill, never to be seen again!! The Humming-bird Hawk-moth also reappeared briefly in the garden again today. (Bob Eade, bobsbutterflies.blogspot.com)

During a walk around Steyning this afternoon I found a single Meadow Brown, Brown Argus and a still good looking Green Hairstreak. The Common Blues and Large Skippers were much more numerous. The only large yellow butterfly was a single Brimstone! (Tom Parker)

Just a quick note that I saw a perhaps rather late Grizzled Skipper for this season and also my first Silver Y moth of the year - most likely a migrant given the recent weather conditions, at Steyning rifle range. (Richard Roebuck)

Today I saw two Large White pass through the garden both around about (TQ31640846) and my usual Speckled Wood.
7th June 2014 : On my way to Hollingbury Hill Fort I saw the following along the golf course side of Ditchling Road, one male Common Blue (TQ31780811) , one Small Tortoiseshell and my first Large Skipper both feeding on Brambles within (TQ32230825)and five Drinker moth Caterpillars along the same overgrown, small path at (TQ32260826). At the Hill Fort I saw three roosting Common Blue at (TQ32230797), two Red Admiral at (TQ32160796) and two Small Tortoiseshell (TQ32140793 and TQ32220797). 5th June 2014: On a walk around the Hollingbury area I found five Common Blue seen at (TQ31670805 ,TQ31990815, TQ32230831 and TQ31700812 of which here was one male and one very blue female). Also three Speckled Wood seen at (TQ32380793 ,TQ32510778 and TQ32240831). Finally one Red Admiral at (TQ32530772) and one Small Tortoiseshell at (TQ32240830). (Jamie Burston)

Having seen Tessa Pawsey's notification about a sighting of a Humming-bird Hawk-moth on 4 June, and then having seen one in my garden on 7 June, it jogged my memory, and having checked my records I saw one in our East Dean garden (TV562984) on Friday 11th April.
I know that Chris and Mary Barnett saw one in their Seaford garden around the same time. (Carole Jode)

Saturday 7 June 2014

I had a beautiful walk today from Southease railway station, over Beddingham Hill into Glynde then up and over to Lewes. First sighting from Itford Hill was the steam train come to celebrate 150 years of the Seaford railway line. It was quite breezy on the tops but I saw a few Common Blues and my first Small Heath of the year. Coming down the track into Little Dene out of the wind I saw my first Small Blues, and lots of Purple Orchids, Yellowhammers and Stonechats. Masses of tadpoles in the dewpond at Oxteddle Bottom and the clash of male Broad-bodied Libellulas. Then lots of Pyramidal Orchids on the slope below the golf course and two Bee Orchids, much to my delight. Lastly on the golf course road down into Lewes a Marbled White, another first of the year for me. All this and only half a dozen people until I reached the seething masses of Lewes.
Sorry, forgot to say that there were also lots of bright Small Tortoiseshells out today too, and that I saw a Humming-bird Hawk-moth on my allotment on Whitehawk Hill in east Brighton on Wednesday TQ329046(Tessa Pawsey)

Butchershole, Friston Forest: about a week ago, I had seen 4 Small Blue on the lower slope of the gallops, so I stopped by there briefly yesterday to check on them and counted 5. Lots of horseshoe vetch but no kidney vetch nearby. Also saw 3 Large Skipper, one Dingy Skipper, several Common Blue and at least one Adonis; several Small Heath; 2 Red Admiral. I have not been able to find again the Small Blue I reported in my Tetrad (TQ5602) a couple weeks ago, but have lots of Common Blue, which seemed to have almost disappeared last year. (Susan Suleski)

Recent news: Walking in Friston Forest on 3rd June, I was busy checking Garlic Mustard tops for Orange-tip larvae when my wife Carol noticed this Four-spotted Footman larva resting on a lower leaf... a rare find in Sussex. (Carol and Nigel Kemp)

Friday 6 June 2014

After failing to relocate the gorganus Swallowtail at Steyning this morning, I headed to Heyshott Escarpment to say farewell to the Duke of Burgundy for another year. Over the years I have put so much effort in for this species that I feel quite sad at the end of each flight season. It seems such a long while before we'll be reacquainted again. That said, I feel incredibly proud of what we have achieved in Sussex; this year I have note of 1011 sightings, which is so much better than its nadir in 2003, when the total count for Sussex was just 8. In the end I found just 4 faded but still feisty males. This is one butterfly that always goes down fighting. They have no chance of meeting further females but still want to beat the living daylights out of anything which approaches too closely. Summer is now officially here by my own personal definition (first Meadow Brown on Thursday 5th June at Knepp) and the other spring species are also fading fast. Dingy Skippers were barely recognisable and I saw only a handful. Green Hairstreak was hanging on in reasonable numbers, but they've all lost their shine. Despite us now being in the 'June Gap', there were a couple of new kids on the block. There is a good emergence of Small Tortoiseshell underway and their numbers increased significantly throughout he day. The first (5) Large Skipper are now whizzing about over the slopes. Most of the Fly Orchids here have now gone over, along with the White Helleborine, but a few Greater Butterfly Orchids are still in stunning condition. On my way home, I noticed a Red Admiral fly across the road. Then another, and another. Although it was now after 7 pm I saw c.30 from the car between Clymping and Rustington. There has clearly been a significant influx today and they were behaving in that typical, frenetic manner that butterflies sometimes exhibit on landfall. It will be interesting to see how localised or otherwise this event is. (Neil Hulme)

I have recently started trying to find as many species as I can in my local 1km square - I've just reached 100. While shaking an Elder bush (in a deciduous wood near Cuckfield) on to a white sheet to find new insect species, a moth caterpillar landed on the sheet. I would greatly appreciate any help with identifying this to increase my count! I also had a small moth fall out of another bush which it would be wonderful to have identified too. (Eleanor Crabtree)
Not sure about the caterpillar (my hunch is it's a Pug of some sort), but the moth is White-barred Twist, Olindia schumacherana. ed.

Recent news: The good weather this week has kept me busy visiting different sites in West Sussex, with emphasis on searching for the emerging European Swallowtails. At a Chichester site I found plenty of Orange-tips in good condition, Common Blues, Brown Argus, Speckled Wood, Red Admiral, Small Tortoiseshell (adult and larvae) and a Lackey moth larva. The Adonis were still doing well at Mill Hill on Tuesday with some Green Hairstreaks, Common Blues, Small Heaths and the micromoth Straw-barred Pearl (Pyrausta despicata). Later at Woods Mill I found a Small Barred Long-horn, 2 Drinker larvae and a Common Sweep larva (Psyche casta) which carries a caddis-like case made of tiny twigs. It was on a huge nettle leaf a metre up and was on the same leaf when I spotted it two days later. There were smaller ones on Willow leaves near the car park. The highlight of the week was the fresh female European Swallowtail which eagle-eyed Neil spotted at Steyning Rifle Range. The fresh breeze made it a challenge to photograph. Swallowtails will feature on BBC's Springwatch next week. (Colin Knight www.seapic.com)

Thursday 5 June 2014

Ladies and gentlemen here's Sussex Swallowtail number 11. She was laid as an egg on August 11th 2013 - just moments before her mother met an untimely end at the claws of my favourite cat. After spending the summer of 2013 munching on a garden Fennel she dropped onto the lawn, did a few laps of the garden and chose a sheltered Rosemary bush as her pupation site. 9 months later and She has made it through the winter and yesterday she emerged in all her glory, dried her wings, flew over the fence and was gone.

The 2014 season continues to amaze and delight! This morning, while performing a survey at Steyning Rifle Range, I found a female gorganus Swallowtail on the northern flank of the coombe. There was probably a second individual present but I never saw them simultaneously. She hung around nectaring for several hours, allowing time for me to call a few friends along before she finally slipped away in the early afternoon. There must be a good chance shell stick around here and she was far more obliging than the male I found on the outskirts of Chichester last week. More at http://www.ukbutterflies.co.uk/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=4065&start=10000. (Neil Hulme)

Following an alert from Neil I was elated to see one of the British born European Swallowtails in Sussex. This beautiful female was found up on the downs near Steyning - we suspect there may be more out there. Here are just a few of the many shots I took. (Leigh Prevost)

After hearing reports of another Swallowtail on the Downs we took a hike this evening from Washington, through the chalk pits, to Chanctonbury Ring. When I got there I realised that I had never been to this famous Sussex location before. It wasn't really how I imagined it. Still, saw my first Painted Lady and Large Skipper of the year and there were Small Tortoiseshells all along the route. (Michael Blencowe)

This afternoon we walked up footpath behind the houses on the east side of the Benfield Valley (Hove) pay-as-you-play golf course from Pipers Close to the A27 bypass and saw 4 Speckled Woods, 1 Green-veined White and 1 Red Admiral. We then crossed the bypass and walked down the path towards West Hove Golf Course and on into the Benfield Valley nature reserve, doing a circuit of the reserve and back to the bypass bridge. Although it was sunny, there was a strong wind. We saw 10 Common Blues, 2 Small Tortoiseshells, 1 Speckled Wood and 1 Small Heath. We also came across our first 2 pyramidal orchids of the year, 1 twayblade, many common spotted orchids and a few small moths which vanished too quickly to be identified. (John & Val Heys)

Wednesday 4 June 2014

A near fully grown Marbled White larva on Frog Firle today. (Bob Eade)

Another Holly Blue at the County Cricket ground, Hove, this time not close to the gardens (and ivy) around the fringes, but venturing briefly on to the field of play and checking out the hanging baskets in front of the members' pavilion. Very quiet in butterfly terms here in central Hove. Not even any distant whites around  despite there being some quite warm spells today. (John & Val Heys)

News for Tuesday 3 June: I spent the afternoon showing 28 ecologists from the RSPB around Rewell Wood on the Norfolk Estate. The Estate has become well known for its wildlife-friendly management, particularly for the benefit of farmland birds (leading to a spectacular winter influx of raptors) and Estate Manager Peter Knight was a runner-up in the 2012 RSPB Telegraph Nature of Farming Award. However, we were here to see the work done by the Estate in improving woodland habitats for butterflies and moths. Of course the RSPB does a lot more than look after birds and this visit was to allow their ecologists to see whether any of these techniques might be transferred to some of their many reserves. We started off by looking at the sweet chestnut coppice cycle in the southern part of the wood, which supports a thriving population of Pearl-bordered Fritillary, a few Grizzled Skipper and provides nesting opportunities for Nightjar and Woodcock. We then visited some large clear-fell areas which, when replanted, will retain some relatively small but highly valuable open areas along sunny ride-sides. Finally, we looked at some permanent open glades which have been created, and some significant widening of rides within blocks of now towering beech. Duke of Burgundy, Pearl-bordered Fritillary, Grizzled and Dingy Skipper, Green Hairstreak, Brown Argus, Common Blue and a large number of moths, including the rare Drab Looper, have all benefitted from this work. It was nice to be able to point out a good example of Fly Orchid while on our travels; this species seems to have had a very good season. Our thanks go to the Norfolk Estate and its Head Forester Mark Aldridge for arranging access. (Neil Hulme)

News for Sunday 1 June: On Sunday morning I visited the Mill Hill Reserve behind Old Shoreham. I arrived at 9:30 when it was still quite cool and overcast. On walking down the steps to the lower slope we soon saw an Adonis Blue warming itself in the weak sunshine. As we walked further on we soon found many more Adonis Blue, mostly males, and in all, I consider that we saw over 25 males and 5 female Adonis Blue. Also seen on the reserve were a small number of Common Blue, 1 Small Heath, a newly emerged Peacock (very fresh!), Small White, and Brimstone. Not a butterfly, but a Red Kite flew over the hill, the first that I had seen around the Adur Valley. (Brian Lawrence, BC Lincolnshire)

News for Saturday 31 May: On Saturday I did my Mill Hill transect where the Adonis Blues are still doing well. A keen eyed young naturalist found a Heart and Dart moth larva on the grass and I saw a Pretty Chalk Carpet, a Yellow-spot Twist and a Chafer. Small Tortoiseshell larvae were feeding on nettle. I then visited Woods Mill where there were many tiny Common Nettle-tap moths fluttering over the nettle beds. Other moths seen were Dark Strawberry Tortrix, Clouded Border, Small Barred Long-horn, Meadow Grey and a Drinker caterpillar. Harlequin Beetles were everywhere in a variety of patterns, including mating pairs. Other interesting insects were a tiny Rove beetle and a stonefly - photos on my blog (Colin Knight www.seapic.com)

Tuesday 3 June 2014

We walked down the east side of Thorney Island this afternoon and saw our first Meadow Brown and Large Skipper of the year. There were also two Hairy Dragonflies on the wing at Thorney Deeps. (Barry and Margaret Collins)

News for Monday 2 June: At lunchtime on Monday I noticed the garden was a bit like a race track with several Small Tortoiseshells bombing around the garden beds. I then noticed one individual investigating a nettle growing out of the compost heap. She returned several times to exactly the same stem before eventually staying put and commencing egg laying. She stayed in the same spot about 2 feet off the ground for about 30 minutes and then departed leaving a big bunch of eggs all piled up on top of each other It was fascinating to watch. An added bonus was that that she was one of the particularly light individuals with distinct yellow borders to her wings. Having checked another 6 individuals, nectaring on brambles the other side of the hedge, none of these had this colouration. This must be in the local gene pool of this colony as the last time I saw this variant was June last year in virtually the same spot. Marvellous. (Richard Roebuck)

More news for Monday 2 June: My father, Roy Symonds reports the following sightings from Stansted Forest (SU754115). Holly Blue (1) Speckled Wood (2). A poor count on a day with sunny spells. I was going to visit the missing grid square at Stansted House, but cloud cover prevented me from attempting it. (Richard Symonds, Pendeen, Cornwall)

More news for Monday 2 June: Above is a photo of a Mother Shipton moth feeding on buttercup, taken in our wild-flower meadow today, first one this year. (Chris Page)

Monday 2 June 2014

Double figures folks! A tenth Sussex Swallowtail! This one was first seen in a garden as a caterpillar last August. It dropped off the fennel, wandered around the lawn and chose to pupate in a rosemary bush. We put a mesh sleeve around the rosemary to protect the chrysalis from a certain feline (name omitted for legal reasons) and have monitored its development over the past 9 months. He (it's a male) emerged this afternoon and was immediately released whereby he cleared the fence in a few flaps and was gone. He looked 'As happy as Larry' apparently.

Having caught a glimpse of an odd looking butterfly in the garden yesterday on a dandelion I had convinced myself I was seeing things and discounted it as an actual sighting. Today sat on a garden chair (and why not) was a Wall, sadly both hind wings were deformed. I wouldn't have thought it could have flown very far as it wasn't a strong flier. Although they are known to wander and perhaps it had emerged locally. So this is my 17th recorded species in the garden. TQ138171. (Richard Roebuck)

Holly Blue still flying in our Hove back garden (31/5) and at the county cricket ground Hove (1/6). Also a Small White at the cricket ground. (John & Val Heys)

Recent news: I have found more micromoths in Rewell Wood: the tiny (3mm) Cocksfoot Moth (Glyphipterix simpliciella), Common Drill (Dichrorampha petiverella), Common Slender (Caloptilia syringella), Triple-blotched Bell (Epiblema trimaculana), Vetch Piercer (Grapholita jungiella) plus a Yellow Shell in the Chichester area. Other microfauna may be viewed on my blog posts (Colin Knight www.seapic.com)

Sunday 1 June 2014

It'd be easy to think that the Swallowtail that Neil found (see below) was simply one of the garden Swallowtails we are monitoring not too far away. Indeed 'Swallowtail Number 3' (as we imaginitively called him) - had just left the garden on his maiden flight 2 hours before Neil's sighting. However if you look at this collage that I hastily cobbled together you can see that the pattern of 8 dots (and the pattern in cell R5, to the left of the second dot from the top) on the forewing of Neil's butterfly clearly identifies it as a completely different individual. (Michael "Miss Marple" Blencowe)

Had a Swallowtail fly from the south, dip low over my garden, and then power off northwards over the roof at approximately 1pm today when I was eating my lunch! Unmistakeably a Swallowtail! (Susie Milbank, Broadbridge Heath)

I finally lost my Duke of Burgundy virginity today and made it to the right place at the right time of year, Heyshott Down, and saw my first Duke (only one, and it was no spring chicken, but it was still a pretty little critter).
A bit of sunshine while there also meant I saw Green Hairstreak (1), Grizzled Skipper (1), Small Heath (25), Speckled Wood (3), Common Blue (16), Large White (3), Green-veined White (3), Unidentified Whites (15), Brimstone (5), and moths Mother Shipton (3), Burnet Companion (3). (Thyone Outram)

I took another day out between Artwork. Before I went out I saw a moth which came in through a window, it was an Angle Shades at (TQ31640847), it was then escorted to the window back into the garden. I first headed to the Hollingbury Industrial Estate Reserve, once there I saw six male and one female Common Blue all around (TQ32180909). Also moving to the main area of the reserve I saw ten male Common Blue, around 10 Small Blue and a fairly tatty Green Hairstreak seen to be laying eggs. The centre area for these is (TQ32270919). On the way to Hollingbury Hill Fort I saw one male Common Blue at (TQ32310917). At the edge of Ditchling road, half a meter from the road edge I was overjoyed and amazed to see a female Wall Brown, since 2011 I've been looking for a year after year area, hopefully this is it for them, seen at around about (TQ32360882). Moving towards Wild Park in a enclosure like area near a car park I found five male and one female Common Blue, seen in the following area (TQ32370849). Later on two Speckled Wood at (TQ32390790 and TQ32330789). Next to a stone shelter by the Hill Fort was a single fresh looking Small Tortoiseshell (TQ32320781). Finally around the Hill Fort I found a single Painted Lady, seen at (TQ32300792), this site never let me down, each year seeing at least one. One fresh Small Copper at (TQ32230798) and seven male Common Blue, mostly around (TQ32200798). (Jamie Burston)

3 Hawk-moth (Eyed (x2), Elephant and Poplar) species from yesterday night's trap of 46 macro, which Spectacle, Burnished Brass, Straw Dot, Angle Shades, Large Yellow Underwing, Scalloped Hazel, Common Footman, White-point (x5), Dark Arches, Garden Carpet, Small Waved Umber, Orange Swift (x2), Swallow Prominent, Pale Tussock, Light Brocade, Marbled Minor, Mottled Rustic, Pale Mottled Willow, Dark Brocade, Rustic Shoulder-knot, Green Pug and Lime-speck Pug.
This time, the Scalloped Hazel did not escape being photographed, but on release, managed to find the dirtiest most-cobwebbed corner of the room... a cunning beast. (John Luck)

News for Saturday 31 May:I had a walk on Wolstonbury Hill, Pyecombe side, on Saturday, Lots of lovely Common Blues and the Small Blue Colony still persists with 6 fresh individuals seen in a sheltered spot. In addition a few Dingy Skippers, Small Heaths, Brimstone, Red Admiral, Common Heath and Burnet Campion moths. There were hundreds of Orchids on the hillside making a splendid view. Also saw several Speckled Woods on the quagmire of the bridle track on the way up. (Richard Roebuck)

Saturday 31 May 2014

Apologies for the delay...

Found this immaculate ab. taras Grizzled Skipper today during a High Weald (East Sussex) butterfly survey, having first spotted it a week ago when it disappeared without trace before I could get the camera out. Perhaps there was more than one! Also in this species-rich meadow near Mayfield were a freshly emerged 2nd brood Small Tortoiseshell, Large Skipper, Dingy Skipper, Common Blue, Small Heath, Small Yellow Underwing, Yellow Shell, Burnet Companion, Mother Shipton, Straw Dot, several Silver-Y and what looks like micro-moth Crambus lathoniellus. (Mike Mullis)

Having seen your appeal for someone to visit OS square SU7804 at Nutbourne, West Sussex, I contacted my father, Roy Symonds who spent 2 hours walking the public footpaths in that grid area. Sadly he did not see any Orange Tips, but did recorded the following sightings with temperature of 18°C. Small White (7), Green-veined White (1), Large White (1), Speckled Wood (1) and Red Admiral (1). (Richard Symonds, Pendeen, Cornwall)

My first Meadow Brown of the year in the set-aside field north of Hollingdean Estate, Brighton, this morning. Also Burnet Companion and 3 Small Heath. (Peter Whitcomb)

Celebrating a recent family birthday I was at Washbrooks Farm near Hurstpierpoint. Whilst there I saw one Speckled Wood (TQ27581624) and one male Common Blue (TQ27451603). On the way back near home I saw a single Small White by Carden Primary School at (TQ31730865), finally in our Hollingbury back garden a pair of fresh looking Speckled Wood (TQ31640847). (Jamie Burston)

On Bevendean Down today 17 Common Blues, 2 Adonis, 1 Brown Argus, 1 Small Blue, 4 Small Whites, 2 Small Heath, 2 Speckled Woods, 2 Dingy Skippers and 1 Grizzled Skipper. (Geoff Stevens)

Friday 30 May 2014

I did a walk round the Bevendean Down site this morning with Graham Champion doing a breeding bird count on a mostly cloudy morning.There were plenty of day flying moths but few butterflies but we did see several Common Blues and 1 Small Blue 1 Small Heath 1 Brown Argus and a very fresh Large Skipper. There were 4 large caterpillars amongst the bramble and white bryony that Graham thought were Drinkers. Graham has been doing bird counts for us for the last 22 years and used to do Vert wood including P.C.H. amongst other sites in Sussex. (Geoff Stevens)

Thursday 29 May 2014

I normally put "firsts-for-the-year" at the top of the day's reports but in this case I have to make an exception... Swallowtail trumps Meadow Brown I'm afraid. ed.

The big story of 2014, which is still developing, is the emergence of gorganus (Continental subspecies) Swallowtails on British soil, following an influx of these magnificent insects during the summer of 2013. The discovery of resultant larvae and pupae in Sussex gardens and further afield has been well documented ('Supplement Three to A Complete History of the Butterflies and Moths of Sussex', Pratt (2014); 'The Sussex Butterfly Report 2013', Colvin et al. (2014); UK Butterflies website; BC Sussex website) and we waited with bated breath to see if gorganus would emerge in Sussex for the first time since 1948; it did! So far this year, Continental Swallowtails have been seen in Hampshire and along the Kent and East Sussex coasts, but most of the observations have focused on 9 pupae being monitored in a Chichester (West Sussex) garden, about half of which have now flown the coop, bringing the total of known adult specimens on the wing to about 10. In order to honour the privacy of the owners, access to these insects has been very restricted, leaving them tantalisingly out of reach. But common sense dictates that these butterflies must represent just 'the tip of the iceberg', and many more must be present in Southern England and particularly Sussex. Yesterday afternoon I made my third visit to a very promising looking area of semi-urban 'wasteland' (with a public right of way running across it), close to the superstores on the outskirts of Chichester. This was one of several areas around Chichester which I had earmarked using satellite imagery and then followed up on foot, confirming an abundance of food-plants in suitable habitat. As with the Long-tailed Blues last year, it is a great feeling when a hunch (and a lot of groundwork) pays off, so I was positively euphoric when I spotted this giant within ten minutes of arriving, just as the sun started to break through the cloud. At present I have no way of knowing, and perhaps never will, whether this is one of the insects which has emerged from the monitored garden, which lies just over 1 Km away. My gut feeling is that it isn't, and that more will appear here and elsewhere. (Neil Hulme)

Another day - another Swallowtail. This one was originally found as a caterpillar munching on carrot tops in a suburban Eastbourne garden in August 2013. It was taken indoors and put in a child's butterfly mesh cage where it pupated and, after contacting Sussex BC, the owner was advised to take it back outdoors. The garden owners were a bit concerned leaving the pupae outside during the storms of the 2013/4 but Sussex Swallowtails are made of tough stuff and yesterday lunchtime another great gorganus Swallowtail emerged, headed over the fence and was gone! The weather over the weekend looks more Spanish than Scottish and it could trigger more Swallowtail emergences anywhere along the Sussex coast. There's never been a more exciting time to get out and about in Sussex. And - everybody - plant as much carrot and fennel as you can in your back gardens!

My first Meadow Brown of the year at work today (Mount Harry TQ386126). Also 1 Painted Lady, 1 Red Admiral and 6 Common Blues. (Mark Cadey)

Having returned from a holiday in Wiltshire for our first look at Marsh Fritillaries (successful despite the gloomy weather), it was good to have a sunny afternoon which produced two Holly Blues, one in our back garden in Hove and a fragile but still whole female in Aldrington Recreation ground (alias Wish Park) just behind our house. Wiltshire's reporting system is a bit more complicated and a lot less chatty than ours  I'll have to gather my brains together and make an effort! (John & Val Heys)

This morning 3 Small Blues roosting in the 'wildflower meadow' in my Hollingbury, Brighton back garden. Cool overcast conditions resulted in their remaining motionless, although as the day warmed a fraction at lunch time they took to the wing and were joined by a single Common Blue. The first Small Blue this year was seen on Sunday 25th. (Philip Thompson)

A Painted Lady floated into our garden at 5.20pm today and headed for the Sweet Rockets, where it happily nectared until I got that bit too close. Are we in for another invasion? (John Luck)

Today I had a leisurely stroll around Friston Forest and saw Brimstone, Red Admiral, Common Blue, Large White and some caterpillars including a Scarlet Tiger. (Nick Linazasoro)

Imagine If a Butterfly migrated to the UK just to see you, well that's what it felt like when I was looking out of my lounge window enjoying the farm and downland view when a Painted Lady decided to pay me a visit (TQ31640848), my first one of the year, fantastic! (Jamie Burston)

News for Tuesday 27 May: Despite the grey skies and low temperatures another of the Swallowtails we are monitoring in Sussex gardens has emerged (the 6th Sussex Swallowtail reported so far this year). This individual was first discovered as a caterpillar feeding on fennel last summer and pupated in a warm spot in the garden in the Autumn. Because of the exposed pupation site he has been inside a mesh cage to protect him from predators over the winter. We wanted to prove that he could survive the British winter climate - getting eaten by a bird would have just proved he was unlucky! He emerged as an adult in the poor weather this week and is no doubt wondering why he's in Sussex and not Spain. With the temperature set to increase over the next few days this may be the trigger to encourage other swallowtails - and there must be more out there that we don't know about - to appear.

More news for Tuesday 27 May: My first Painted Lady of the summer on the Red Valerian here in the garden at Westfield on Tuesday. (Ralph Hobbs)

Recent news: I visit Rewell Wood frequently and always find fascinating microfauna to photograph. I have recently found 3 species of Longhorn moths there, including the tiny (3mm) Little Long-horn (Cauchas fibulella). Others were the small Micropterix aruncella and Large Long-horn (Nematopogon swammerdamella). Other interesting micromoths were Yellow-faced Bell (Epiblema cynosbatella), Common Slender (Caloptilia syringella) and a rare Eulamprotes species (E.unicolorella or E.immaculatella). Other insects can be viewed on my blog. (Colin Knight www.seapic.com)

Sunday 25 May 2014 (contd.)

For some time now I've been meaning to explore the south west section of Hollingbury golf course, today was my chance. It was great to look for new Butterfly habitat. I started near the club house, I counted ten male Common Blue from (TQ31800769 to TQ31720757). I then found a wild area at the edge of the course, maybe being the Butterfly glade of Burnstead Wood, here I found one Brown Argus (TQ31780732), two Small White (TQ31810732 and TQ31790731), two Large White (TQ31790731 and TQ31870735) and thirteen male Common Blue, mostly around (TQ31780733). Moving on I found three Small White, two at (TQ31960727) and the other one at (TQ31920745) and a single Speckled Wood at (TQ32110731). I then saw three Large White, all seen at (TQ32090729), one of which lead me off to a active Bees nest at (TQ32080725). Leaving the golf course, at the edge I found a single Small Heath around about (TQ32270746) as I was heading toward the dew pond. I also visited Hollingbury Hill Fort seeing eleven male Common Blue and two female Common Blue go to roost, the best numbers I've seen on site !, obviously a good year locally. All these Common Blues were seen on the northern side of the fort, this being a central point (TQ32220799). Lastly I saw two Small Copper, seen at (TQ32210798 and TQ32270779). (Jamie Burston)

News for Saturday 24 May: I had a walk along the top of Chantry Hill on Saturday in quite blustery conditions. I saw several Brown Argus amongst the Common Blues, one of which was flapping on the ground with quite soft wings, presumably newly emerged. So I placed it on grass stem, in a sheltered spot out of harm's way . Also noteworthy were good numbers of Red Admirals all nectaring high up on the flowers of Whitebeam Trees together with several very wornPainted Ladies. The Red Admirals and Painted Ladies had some quite energetic tussles with each other. (Richard Roebuck)

Recent news: On Thursday I found a small (21mm) Mullein Moth on the outer door of our home. On Friday I found a sunny window to complete my Mill Hill transect: Adonis Blue 27, Brimstone 3, Common Blue 3, Dingy Skipper 1, Green Hairstreak 2, Small Heath 1 plus a Common Heath. I then visited Woods Mill and saw Azure and Large Red Damselflies in a meadow and much microfauna on woodland nettle beds, including mating Green Dock Beetles, Dark Strawberry Tortrix and Grey Sailor Beetles. (Colin Knight www.seapic.com)

Sunday 25 May 2014

A walk in next doors very overgrown garden produced the first Large Skipper of the year, for me anyway (and for everyone else too, by the look of things! ed.). (Graham Parris, Isfield)

Today I conducted the first of three annual surveys I now perform at Fairmile Bottom, just to the north of Rewell Wood near Arundel. Nothing spectacular appeared during my search of the mixed habitats here, although it was encouraging to find both Grizzled and Dingy Skippers. Other species included Common Blue, Holly Blue, Small Heath, Speckled Wood, Red Admiral, Peacock, Brimstone and Green-veined White. Day-flying moths were quite common and I recorded Burnet Companion, Mother Shipton, Speckled Yellow, Silver Y, Fox and Pyrausta aurata. By far the most common species on site was the Five-spot Burnet ssp. palustrella, of which I counted more than 100. This is also a good area for orchids, supporting Fly, Southern Marsh and hybrids between the latter species and Common Spotted. (Neil Hulme)

Hope Gap: More than 10 Common Blues. One very fresh Painted Lady and three Red Admirals on a Guelder Rose. Small Heath by Harry's Bush. A male Orange Tip in my Rodmell Garden 18 April. (Sharifin Gardiner)

This morning a single Painted Lady was flying around the last of the Bluebells on the edge of one of the rides at RSPB Broadwater Warren. We also saw several Brimstone (male and female) and a Red Admiral. (Alan Loweth)

We walked around Thorney Island today and the number of butterflies sightings was quite low. Red Admiral 8, Speckled Wood 9, Holly Blue 1, Common Blue 3, Large White 1, Small Heath 7 and a Cream-spot Tiger on the wing at Pilsey Island.(Barry & Margaret Collins)

On 21st May my father, Roy Symonds reported the following sightings from Inham's Lane, West Stoke (SU835089) where the temperature was 16°C. Orange Tip (9M 4F), Small White (5), Speckled Wood (1), Common Blue (2M) and Red Admiral (1).
On 25th May he visited Kingley Vale National Nature Reserve (SU822106) where the temperature was 15°C. Brimstone (7M 4F), Small White (1), Common Blue (3M), Small Tortoiseshell (1) and Grizzled Skipper (1).
Also on 25th May he reported the following from Inham's Lane, West Stoke (SU835089) temperature 15°C. Brimstone (8M 2F), Small White (7), arge White (1), Orange Tip (5M 1F), Common Blue (4M), Speckled Wood (3) and Red Admiral (1). (Richard Symonds, Pendeen, Cornwall)

Saturday 24 May 2014

I was on the A27 near Hollingbury this afternoon when a big patch of blue sky appeared! So I took advantage and paid the industrial estate nature reserve a visit. Although fairly quiet, I did see a Green-veined White and a few Common Blues before finally tracking down my real quarry - 5 Small Blues. And then, just as I was leaving, I found a Brown Argus. A pleasant 20 minutes in warm sunshine! (Chris Hooker)

Friday 23 May 2014

Number 5 is alive! A fifth Sussex Swallowtail has emerged. Number 5 was originally found as a caterpillar in a garden near Eastbourne last August. However, it had been taken indoors for some time where it pupated and we feared that this warm and dry environment could have dessicated the pupae. It was moved back outdoors (in a kid's mesh butterfly cage) where the chrysalis enjoyed the lovely British winter. Yesterday we were thrilled to discover it had made it through OK!

In order of numbers rather than appearance, today at Mill Hill we saw 20 or so Adonis Blue (mostly male), about 15 Dingy Skippers, 5 Common Blues, 2 Small Heaths, 1 (possibly 2) male Brimstones, 1 Speckled Wood, 1 Wall butterfly, 1 Green Hairstreak, 1 Peacock, and 1 Red Admiral. There might have been more to see in the sun if the wind hadn't been so strong. Our little camera prefers the less reflective colour of the female Adonis blues to the males! (John & Val Heys)

News for Monday 19 May: On Monday I visited Brandy Hole Copse, a beautiful north Chichester woodland nature reserve, and found Speckled Woods, Brimstones, a Small Tortoiseshell, a Hook-streak Grass-veneer (Crambus lathoniellus), Large Red Damselflies and Common Blue Damselflies. (Colin Knight, photos at http://bit.ly/Tx0cIw)

Thursday 22 May 2014

Painted Lady near Herstmonceux: Spotted this one basking in the parking area at my wildlife plot (Wild Flower Barn) near Herstmonceux, East Sussex at lunchtime today about half an hour before the thunderstorm! Also saw two Red Admirals at Abbots Wood in the very warm weather on Tuesday (20th May) so assume these are all probably recent migrants... (Mike Mullis)

Apologies for the terrible photo - it just would not keep still! (no need to apologise, it's a great photo and I love the matching flowers, flowerpot and wellies! ed.) Humming-bird Hawk-moth seen in on the Pevensey Levels, Normans Bay, this afternoon, shortly before the thunder storm. It was around the red campion flowers for a long while and kept coming back even though we were sitting next to it. (J. Williams)

Wednesday 21 May 2014

A fourth Sussex Swallowtail is on the loose. This individual was one which we were monitoring at its chosen site in one of the private gardens which was lucky enough to be visited by egg laying females in 2013. So that's four Continental Swallowtails on the loose in Sussex. The most exciting thing is you're just as likely to see one flying across your patio in the middle of Worthing as you are to see one out in the middle of the South Downs.

This morning I met South Downs National Park Authority (SDNPA) Biodiversity Lead Emily Brennan, her mother, and SDNPA Ranger Simon Mockford for a tour of Heyshott Escarpment. The SDNPA and their predecessors the South Downs Joint Committee have always been great partners in projects which benefit butterflies and moths in Sussex and the neighbouring counties. Certainly in Sussex we would be lost without them. Simon does a huge amount of work to help the Duke of Burgundy in the Arundel and Storrington areas, but this was his first visit to Heyshott. As expected here, we saw a huge number of butterflies, along with White Helleborine, Greater Butterfly and Fly Orchid (all now fully in flower) and a large female Adder. Despite the overcast conditions we had already seen 45 Dukes before we completed our walk. I later returned to cover the rest of the ground under slightly improved conditions and ended up with a count of 88 Dukes. It appears that the emergence is all-but-over on this site, with only a few of the female butterflies being in really good condition. They've had a great season here already and, assuming we get some decent weather over the next ten days, there should be sufficient eggs laid to ensure a very bright future. Amongst the other species seen were Dingy and Grizzled Skipper, Green Hairstreak (including newly emerged females), Common Blue, Small Heath, Small Copper and Red Admiral. I saw half a dozen of the latter, including two laying eggs in the lowermost pit. (Neil Hulme)

This morning I went to Southwick Canal. The first butterfly I saw of the day was my first Painted Lady of the year. I also saw 3 Small Whites and 3 Common Blues. Another thing I saw was some interesting caterpillars with 2 red spots on their backs. Having done some googling I think they are Brown-Tail moth caterpillars which are apparently highly irritant if handled so be warned if you visit the site. Later on I went on for a quick stop in the Chantry Hill area of the Downs and saw 1 Wall Brown, 1 Painted Lady, 1 Green Hairstreak, 1 Brown Argus, 3 Small Heaths 4 Common Blues and 7 Dingy Skippers. I stopped at Mill Hill on the way home and saw a fox, 2 Red Admirals, a few Dingy Skippers and some Common Blues and Adonis Blues. (Katrina Watson)

I risked going out with a cold to Hollingbury industrial estate reserve, on the way walking past Carden School playing field, the colour blue caught my eye, I saw one male Common Blue on Bird's-foot Trefoil (TQ31940878), once at the reserve I only saw another single male Common Blue (TQ32270919). (Jamie Burston)

Wednesday was unrelentingly cloudy, but at, and north of, Steepdown were 24 Red Admiral, 8 Wall (including 2 mating) and a Small Blue. (Lindsay Morris)

Recent news: I made several visits to Rewell Wood recently and each time discovered moths and other insects which were new to me. A pair of Brimstones were courting and Common Blues were nectaring on another local meadow. Moths included Cocksfoot (Glyphipterix simpliciella), Dark Strawberry Tortrix (Celypha lacunana), Meadow Grey (Scoparia pyralella) and a possible Little Longhorn (Cauchas fibulella). Other insects were Garden Chafer, Grey Sailor Beetle, Black-tailed Skimmer, green Sawfly (Tenthredo mesomelas), Orchid Beetle, Dark Bush Cricket, Broad-bodied Chaser and Brassica Shieldbug which can all be viewed on my blog. (Colin Knight http://bit.ly/1o5Ubil)

Tuesday 20 May 2014

The weather wasn't quite good enough to continue my Duke of Burgundy surveys today, so I took time out to visit Mill Hill (Shoreham) and its beautiful Adonis Blues. There were plenty about and during the short spells of milky sunshine they became very active. Most of the time they just lay around in the grass looking pretty. Whenever the cloud thickened and the temperature dropped they closed up, showing off their equally lovely undersides. The first brood is probably at peak now and plenty of females were present, all keen to get on with the job of laying eggs. It would be advisable to visit this coming weekend if you wish to see any fresh ones. (Neil Hulme)

I have a Painted Lady in my garden, in Hove, TQ288052. Isn't it rather early? (Noranne Biddulph)
Not really, we've had quite a few Painted Lady reports so far this year, the first being back on 6 March. ed.

One Holly Blue and one Small White in my Hollingbury garden, both at (TQ31650847). (Jamie Burston)

Even though the weather was dull I thought I may find a few roosting butterflies by the road at Saddlescombe (TQ268117). Well there were more than a few. Mostly Common Blues (50+), with the occasional Brown Argus (12), and then inside the chalk pit 6 Adonis Blues, 6 Dingy Skipper and 1 Red Admiral on the way back to the car. (Mark Cadey)

News for Saturday 17 May: In general my trapping activity year to date has been pretty disappointing with the exception of a Dotted Chestnut in March and a Great Prominent on the night of the 17th of May so it was pleasing to find this Barred Red of the form prasinaria in my Hailsham garden Skinner trap this morning. Given the conditions the rest of the contents of my trap were unremarkable to say the least with 13 other macros comprising 7 species and 8 micros of 2 species. TQ590099 (Chris Ball)

News for Friday 16 May: On Friday, I had a phone call from my good friend Mark Gapper. He knew I had been unwell but this was the start of the recent good weather and he also knew that it would do me good to get out.
"Hello Dan" said Mark in his customary and incongruous, statement of fact kind of way. "You need to get out and see the Small Blues near Roedean" he insisted. "It's a wonderful day and it would do you the world of good to get out". I didn't need much more convincing. I quickly formulated a route to take in another local specialty and departed shortly afterwards.
My first stop was the south facing chalk slopes on the A27 between Lewes and Falmer (TQ 3731 0917) because I wanted to see the Adonis Blue colony that I had described on Monday 5 May. Much to my delight I saw between 50 to 70 adults. Many of the males were past their best but the females looked excellent and there were many of them to see. I found it best to walk the brow of the hill as the ground was easier to walk and there were many insects here that were easy to photograph. The males were very interested in the females and active courtship, as well as copulation was easily observed.
I was also pleased to see 5 to 6 Dingy Skippers and they made excellent subjects for photography. In addition, I was delighted to see a swift moving Wall Brown fly up the slope and into the adjacent pasture.
Having spent time here, the next stop was Mark's recommendation, a chalk grassland site at Roedean near Brighton (TQ 3406 0333). Along the seafront there are many patches of good quality grassland that Mark has been carefully managing, in his capacity as horticulturalist for the Brighton & Hove parks department. He had taken me to this particular site once before to show the orchids that were growing there but this was the first time that he had directed me to this location to see butterflies. I had been told that there was a lot of Kidney Vetch at the site but I did not really see as much as I had expected. The grass was quite long (on average 30cm high) and I've seen lekking Small Blues in similar habitat before and sure enough, within a few minutes they began to show themselves. I guess I saw between 10 to 15 individuals, along with some flighty Common Blues. I also saw another Wall Brown, a singleton, that like that previously encountered at the A27 site, was in transit, travelling well beyond the boarders of this site.
I was delighted to spend sometime at both locations and it was a great opportunity to test out my new Lumix FZ200 camera. I had been thinking of upgrading from my Lumix FZ45 and when Mark Colvin showed me that he had two cameras, one for landscape/habitat shots and one set up with an extension tube and close up lens - ready for action, I thought this guy is onto something. It's difficult to know if the images are any better than those I could have taken with my FZ45 but I hope that as time passes I will improve. (Dan Danahar)

Monday 19 May 2014

Two more Swallowtails reported in Sussex. The first at Peacehaven and the second, a female, up on Chanctonbury Ring and seen heading east. Our observations over the winter has proved that Continental Swallowtails can survive in Southern England so there may be many more emerging over the next few weeks in both the countryside and urban areas. If you,re lucky enough to see one please email in details of your sighting. And if you're feeling really lucky plant some carrots or fennel in a sunny spot in your garden - you may attract an egg laying female!

Tetrad TQ5602: a Small Blue! The first I have seen in the four plus years I have been looking for them in my Tetrad. I was watching 2 Common Blue fighting when suddenly this little 'grey butterfly' chased them off. It settled and I got a very clear view of a fresh Small Blue. I will return over the next few weeks to see if more emerge. No sign of their favourite kidney vetch anywhere nearby. Also finally saw a Dingy Skipper and over 20 male Common Blue and 4 female, several male and female Brimstone, 3 Green Hairstreak, 3 Red Admiral, 2 male Orange Tip and 1 female (?), several Small Whites, a Small Tortoiseshell, a Wall and a Brown Argus. Great day! (Susan Suleski)

At home (New Church Road, Hove) one Holly Blue. At Park Corner Heath (1pm to 2pm) 20+ Brimstones (male and female), 2 Speckled Woods, 1 Green Hairstreak, many Speckled Yellow moths, 6 or so Brown Silver-line moths (hope that's right - see picture) and one Crimson & Gold moth. At Malling Down north-eastern chalk pits (2.30pm to 3pm) 1 Small Heath, 1 Small White, 1 Orange Tip, 5 Common Blues, 1 female Brimstone, 3 Dingy Skippers and 1 Peacock. Not many orchids emerging - even common ones - from an area where I recall seeing very many 15 or 20 years ago. (John & Val Heys)

Today whilst waiting for a bus in Hollingbury I noticed a Butterfly in the bus shelter, looking closer I managed to narrow it down to a female blue as of seeing it flutter about. I found it to either be a Common or Adonis Blue, purely based on it's larger size I would have to guess Adonis Blue however it flew off before I got the chance to look at it's wing margins to confirm my opinion, seen at (TQ31850846). Then Later coming back from Brighton town centre I noticed a Holly Blue around a bush seen from the bus, this individual was seen near Fiveways at (TQ31370697). (Jamie Burston)

At work today (Mount Harry TQ386126) there were 3 Common Blue, a Brown Argus, 2 Speckled Woods and 2 Red Admirals. A short visit to Blackcap (TQ375128) gave me 1 Wall Brown, 3 Adonis Blue, 2 Small Blues, 6 Dingy Skippers, 3 Small Heaths, 3 Brown Argus, 4 Common Blue, 2 Red Admirals and a Mother Shipton. (Mark Cadey)

Sunday 18 May 2014 contd.

Shock horror!
For the first time ever the sun shone on the annual Sussex BC Mill Hill walk on Sunday 18 May! The lovely sun brought out 25 fabulous enthusiasts lead by Chris and Ellie Corrigan. Chris was too busy talking and distracted watching 2 lovely red kites which left everyone else to find the butterflies! That's the danger of having someone from the RSPB lead a butterfly walk! Mill Hill has to be one of the best butterfly sites in Sussex though so has plenty to see and within minutes a couple of Wall Browns were on the list quickly followed by heaps of other butterflies of a range of species.
Of course, just to demonstrate that the weather can never be right, it was actually too sunny! Everyone saw Common and Adonis Blues but they were hyperactive in the lovely weather so lots of fly pasts and few settled individuals to get close ups of the tell tale wing margins. There was a special request to see a Green Hairstreak (they were a demanding bunch!) and just as it looked as it would end in failure, right at the death a lovely Green Hairstreak perched obligingly on a horseshoe vetch for all to see.
The leaders failed to keep a list of what was seen but luckily two of the group were more organised so thanks to Rog and Mo Pendell for the following (the counts for common and Adonis Blue are the totals of the ones positively identified).
A spectacular Drinker moth caterpillar also seen (thanks to Penny Green for the identification advice!)
Orange-tip 1
Wall 6
Brimstone 6
Speckled Wood 3
Dingy Skipper 9
Common Blue 11
Adonis Blue 6
Green-veined White 1
Large White 1
Small Heath 2
Grizzled Skipper 2
Green Hairstreak 1
Thanks to everyone who came along for contributing to a friendly, sociable and enjoyable event. (Chris and Ellie Corrigan)

On Sunday I searched numerous sites along the Downs near Storrington, both with public access and on private estates. The news for the Duke of Burgundy is good and my composite count easily beat my best figures for the area, with an encouraging 119 seen. My running Sussex total for the species this year stands at just below 800, which compares very well with the entire 2003 Sussex count of just 8! Later in the day, when the counting was over, I took a walk through Rewell Wood. Most of the butterflies were already tucked up in bed, but I did notice a dragonfly which wasn't one of the resident Hairys. After carefully stalking it to get a better look, I was surprised to see it was an early Black-tailed Skimmer. I assumed it was a teneral male, but local dragonfly expert John Luck informed me it's a fully mature female. These things are far more confusing than butterflies! (Neil Hulme)

My father, Roy Symonds reports the following sightings on 18th May from the tracks near Treyford Hill (SU820178). Temperature was 19 degrees. Brimstone (2M 3F), Orange Tip (2F), Large White (2), Small White (4), Green-veined White (1) and Comma (1). (Richard Symonds, Pendeen, Cornwall)

I decided to dig out the mothtrap on Saturday and was surprised to find that my last one was almost 3 years ago. I was hoping to attract a hawkmoth or two without success, but managed to see 28 species including one new one, a Scalloped Hazel. I thought, this one's worth a photo so having cooled it down, decided to release it in the breakfast room. It shot off at a rate of knots on to the french windows, giving me a half a chance to catch it which I failed to accept, then disappeared under the settee. All attempts to locate it were sadly in vain.
Anyway, other species of interest were Peach Blossom, Common Marbled Carpet, Muslin Moth, Light Emerald, Common Swift, Spectacle, Shears, Light Brocade, Lychnis, Clouded Drab, Pebble Prominent and Small Quaker. (John Luck)

Astonished to find a Brimstone egg laying on Common Sorrel flowerheads today. Had to do a double check! Is this aberrant behaviour in the absence of Buckthorn, or something else? It will be interesting to see whether the caterpillars thrive or succumb. Will keep you posted... (David Harris, Newhaven)

First Dingy Skipper recorded from Buchan Park, Crawley. TQ242346. (Dave Browne)

News for Friday 16 May: White Admiral larva (final instar) in Rowland Wood on 16.5.14. The photos show the larva in resting, feeding and defence posture. (Nigel Kemp)

Sunday 18 May 2014

Something has survived... Last year's great summer weather encouraged Continental Swallowtails to cross The Channel and visit Sussex. Sussex Butterfly Conservation asked the people of Sussex to look out for these distinctive caterpillars in their gardens. We were amazed to discover that Swallowtails had laid eggs on carrots and fennel and their caterpillars (the first reported in the county since the 1940's) were munching away in gardens and allotments. With the kind co-operation of the gardeners we were able to track the caterpillar's progress and tracked them as they pupated in their chosen habitats - an unprecedented opportunity. We've monitored 13 pupae at sites across the county for the past 9 months. Sussex BC members will have read the full story in our 2013 Annual Report.
But the question was could we be able to prove that Continental Swallowtails can survive a Sussex winter? This weekend we were privileged to witness the first of these Swallowtails emerging - a truly magnificent sight as they took to the Sussex skies. Could this be the first step in the colonisation of Sussex by Continental Swallowtails? There must be many more pupae out there that we don't know about so keep your eyes peeled over the coming weeks and let us know if you see any of these beautiful butterflies in Sussex.

It's been a great few days for filling in more Orange-tip atlas squares. Adults were seen by Jonathan Simons near Petworth, Dan Danhar found an adult at Waterhall and I took a quick detour off the A27 to find eggs at Poling and Preston. 4 more squares off the list! (Michael Blencowe)

Late afternoon at Rowland Wood there were 2 Wall Brown patrolling at the top of the big open area, a Dingy Skipper, 10+ Small Heath, lots of Brimstones and some freshly emerged White-legged Damselflies. (Mark Cadey)

Gallops above Butchershole, 18th May: over 100 Common Blue butterflies, mostly male. I think there were Adonis amongst them but they were all very busy so hard to check for sure. Also lots of Small Heath, and 3 Brimstone, 2 Small Copper, a Brown Argus and a Green Hairstreak. I had hoped for Small Blue and Dingy Skippers but no luck. Re Orange Tips: when out walking I have seen them more often this year than last, including 2 males at Old Lodge yesterday, and another in Polegate CP on Friday. (Susan Suleski)

I woke up early this morning. With a hangover. In Eastbourne. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to fill in some more Orange-tip squares for the atlas. So at 06:45 we headed out onto the Pevensey Levels to attempt the impossible - trying to locate an Orange-tip egg in one of the few remaining squares- TQ6406. Over the past few years Keith Alexander has tried and tried with no luck and recently Mike Mullis has given it a go too. We hiked around the square (accompanied by plenty of warblers and a few cuckoos) but drew a blank - and then we saw a lone garlic mustard plant. We searched all over the plant for eggs or caterpillars (despite our eyesight being impaired by the previous night's tequila) but couldn't find anything. Could this square be one of the few OT free zones in Sussex? (Michael Blencowe & Liesel Wilkes)

Lovely walk this afternoon around the fields and woodlands to the west of Mayfield adding some new species into blank squares for the atlas. Nice to hear a few more cuckoos too and see my first broad-bodied chasers and beautiful demoiselles of the year. Beautiful weather, fantastic countryside, plenty of wildlife and we didn't see another soul for hours - perfect! (Michael & Clare Blencowe)

Yesterday (17/05/14) a Large White on the sea front near the King Alfred in Hove. Today (18/05/14) in our garden in Hove (BN3 4JD) Val saw 1 Small White, 1 Speckled Wood (happy flitting around by the holly bush & apple tree until the lawnmower got down there and took out most of the long grass) and 1 Holly Blue. Also, on the way to watch Sussex being thrashed by Sri Lanka in a 20/20 game, two more Holly Blues along towards the east end of New Church Road (John & Val Heys)

This morning I headed for Washington chalk pits TQ129123, the habitat management has really paid dividends here, with a wider variety and higher number of species seen, than on previous visits. Dingy Skippers where so numerous I gave up counting after 40, Common Blue 3, Wall Brown 1, Green Hairstreak 5, Grizzled Skipper 3, Brown Argus 3, Brimstone 2, Large White 2. Moths included Mother Shipton 1, Cinnabar 2, Burnet Companion 2. (Paul Day)