Anthocharis cardamines
When we see our first Orange-tips in early spring, we can but hope that the wintry weather is now behind us! The two main larval foodplants for this species are Cuckooflower and Garlic Mustard. As Cuckooflower is strongly-associated with damp meadows, that’s where we should look for the first sighting of the year.
With bright orange tips to the forewings, the male is an easy ID. In flight, the more elusive female can be confused with a Green-veined White or even a Small White, but when perched the green mottled undersides readily identify.
The first adults usually emerge in the last 10 days of March or the first few days of April. Peak numbers are generally recorded in late April or early May, and a few hang on until early June. If the spring is exceptionally early and very warm there may be a second brood in high summer.
This species is a wanderer, the males looking for females, and the females looking for suitable larval foodplants. The quiet country lanes between Billingshurst, Five Oaks, The Haven and Horsham, including Warnham Nature Reserve are good places to find this species.
The earliest to emerge are often in the river valleys and the North Stoke amphitheatre at TQ035106, never fails to deliver early records.
Male Orange-tip nectaring on Greater Stitchwort – photo by Patrick Moore
Male on Cuckooflower – photo by John Williams
Male on Cuckooflower - photo by Dave Brown
Female on Bluebells – photo by Patrick Moore
Male at rest – photo by Trevor Rapley
Female on Garlic Mustard - photo by Dave Brown
Butterfly Conservation Orange-tip
