Tuesday 1 June 2010

Rutland Water butterflies

This weekend we took a return trip to Rutland Water Nature Reserve, Leicestershire having visited for the first time last year. The rain and wind restricted our butterfly sightings, but Sunday's much improved weather provided us with some fine encounters. I was pleased to get a nice pic of this Orange Tip on a buttercup, especially as I find them so hyperactive and seldom willing to perch for longer than a second.



Following last weekend's sightings of my first Small Copper at Adel Churchyard in Leeds, I found five or six more today. Such a lovely small and delicate looking butterfly with a pleasingly relaxed habit of settling just long enough to photograph.




On the lower areas of the wildflower meadows we spotted an abundance of daytime flying black moths. Chimney Sweep Moth (Odezia atrata), small, elegant looking, sooty black moth with white fringes on the forewings, caterpillars feed on the flowers and seeds of Pignut.






In the same are we came across this Blue butterfly, possibly a female Common Blue?




5 comments:

  1. You have some beautiful butterfly and moth pictures here, Linda. The middle of your three Chimney Sweeper moths is outstanding.
    Congratulations too on capturing the Orange Tip. I'm determined to get one this year.

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  2. Those Chimney Sweepers are eyecatchers. Have never seen one.

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  3. Brill photos Linda, in this and the previous post.
    Female Common Blue it is.

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  4. Love that orange tip Linda! As you say, they are very flighty little blighters!

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  5. Hello Emma, thank you, I was delighted to see the Chimney Sweep moths, they have a very agreeable nature in terms of photography and seem to settle on grass stems for long periods. Can't resist trying to capture a snap of an Orange Tip!

    Hello Citybirding, thanks, they're very easy on the eye.

    Hello Dean, thank you, and double thanks for confirming the ID of the Common Blue.

    Hello Warren, thanks, happy to get anything near a decent pic of an Orange Tip.

    Best wishes, and thanks for all of your comments, Linda

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