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Butterflies Page 30

Image Taken on 20 Jun 2014 at 17:45    Image of day on 01 Sep 2014

Small Tortoiseshell butterflies 'courting'. We saw this behaviour again inside a blackberry tangle, but these were on the slate that keeps the rain off the camera window of a photo site. The brown fur beneath them includes some skin and is quite coarse - we think it might be from a badger skirmish we know nothing about.


Ref: 20140901_df2_20140620_1745_103 2 small tortoiseshell butterflies courting on slate over fb5 camera (crop)(r+mb id@576).jpg


Image Taken on 04 Apr 2021 at 12:08    Image of day on 03 May 2021

Our first sighting of a Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly this year - a species that hibernates through the winter. This one is remarkably pristine for 6 months old.


Ref: 20210503_d73_20210404_1208_081 small tortoiseshell butterfly (first sighting in 2021) feeding on blackthorn blossom(r+mb id@768).jpg


Image Taken on 08 Jul 2014 at 16:10    Image of day on 13 Sep 2014

This year we have a good number of Small Tortoiseshell Butterflies. Here one is feeding on a thistle flower, surrounded by 3 Red Soldier Beetles. While checking our IDs, we found the Beetles described as the 'Hogweed Bonking Beetle' - a name very appropriate to how we often see them!


Ref: 20140913_df2_20140708_1610_129 small tortoiseshell butterfly + 3 red soldier beetles on thistle heads (crop)(r+mb id@768).jpg


Image Taken on 05 Sep 2021 at 10:48    Image of day on 16 Oct 2021

Here on the Yellow Buddleia is a Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly.


Ref: 20211016_df3_20210905_1048_068 small tortoiseshell butterfly feeding from yellow buddleia flower(r+mb id@576).jpg


Image Taken on 30 Jun 2014 at 10:58    Image of day on 07 Sep 2014

A small Tortoiseshell butterfly feeding on Blackberry flowers. There seems to have been a resurgence of this butterfly this year.


Ref: 20140907_df2_20140630_1058_025 small tortoiseshell butterfly feeding on blackberry flower(r+mb id@768).jpg


Image Taken on 30 Jun 2021 at 15:28    Image of day on 05 Aug 2021

The Privet hedge along some of the access track has several butterflies enjoying the nectar. Here a Small Tortoiseshell.


Ref: 20210805_d73_20210630_1528_049 small tortoiseshell butterfly feeding on elderberry flower(r+mb id@768).jpg


Image Taken on 09 Jun 2020 at 12:55    Image of day on 11 Jul 2020

The underside of the wings of the Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly is quite different to the top of the wings, providing camouflage for the resting insect.


Ref: 20200711_df3_20200609_1255_047 small tortoiseshell butterfly feeding on privet flower(r+mb id@576).jpg


Image Taken on 22 Jun 2018 at 10:10    Image of day on 07 Aug 2018

The flowers on the Privet hedges barely last a couple of weeks. The Butterflies make the most of it. This is a Small Tortoiseshell probing a floret.


Ref: 20180807_d72_20180622_1010_168 small tortoiseshell butterfly feeding on privet flower(r+mb id@768).jpg


Image Taken on 15 Jun 2018 at 09:43    Image of day on 30 Jul 2018

The Privet Flowers are out, and this Small Tortoiseshell butterfly is making the most of the nectar.


Ref: 20180730_df3_20180615_0943_090 small tortoiseshell butterfly feeding on privet flower(r+mb id@768).jpg


Image Taken on 17 Jun 2014 at 16:31    Image of day on 22 Aug 2014

Years ago we saw these Small Tortoiseshell butterflies in hundreds down our young Hawthorn hedges. Nowadays we are delighted to see even one, and here it is feeding on some just opened Privet flowers.


Ref: 20140822_df2_20140617_1631_559 small tortoiseshell butterfly feeding on privet flowers (crop)(r+mb id@768).jpg


Image Taken on 29 Jun 2011 at 12:22    Image of day on 07 Aug 2011

A visitor in declining numbers is the Small Tortoiseshell butterfly. Here are 2 images of the top wing and underwing of the same insect on the same thistle flower although the lighting has changed a bit.


Ref: 20110807_df1_20110629_1222_017+1221_001 small tortoiseshell butterfly feeding on thistle flower (montage)(r+mb id@1024).jpg


Image Taken on 22 Aug 2015 at 13:06    Image of day on 24 Oct 2015

We have not seen many Tortoiseshell butterflies this year, but it was all we COULD find in the middle of this day. Here is a montage of two flights arranged to show both sides of the wings.


Ref: 20151024_da1_20150822_1306_332+1307_335+1331_356_ft1 small tortoiseshell butterfly in 2 flights + water mint (montage)(r+mb id@1024).jpg


Image Taken on 24 Jun 2009 at 16:04    Image of day on 27 Jul 2009

Just this one Small Tortoiseshell butterfly seen so far this year was fluttering from buttercup to buttercup. The hedges used to be awash with them. Instead we now have hundreds of Meadow Browns and still dozens of Speckled wood. We don't know whether the change is down to climate, our management, natural variation or chance.


Ref: 20090727_da1_20090624_1604_233+20090623_1513_171 ft1 small tortoiseshell butterfly in flight with buttercup (montage)(r+mb id@576).jpg


Image Taken on 10 Jul 2010 at 15:57    Image of day on 22 Aug 2010

Small Tortoiseshell butterflies used to be abundant here, but we now see 'a few'. The underwing is a completely different dark brown.


Ref: 20100822_da1_20100710_1557_163+1636_204_ft1 small tortoiseshell butterfly in flight with thistle flower heads (montage)(r+mb id@768).jpg


Image Taken on 14 Jul 2006 at 12:39    Image of day on 28 Jul 2006

You normally see the Small tortoiseshell butterfly with the orange yellow and black patterned upper wing. This is the underwing - good camouflage.


Ref: 20060728_d10_20060714_1239_857 small tortoiseshell butterfly on blackberry (underwing)(r+mb id@576).jpg


Image Taken on 12 Jul 2006 at 17:09    Image of day on 15 Jul 2006

A Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly on Blackberry flower. After a dearth of this insect for the last few years it is nice to see them again.


Ref: 20060715_d60_20060712_1709_749 small tortoiseshell butterfly on blackberry flower(r+mb id@576).jpg


Image Taken on 03 Sep 2018 at 12:16    Image of day on 26 Oct 2018

A Pristine Small Tortoiseshell butterfly perched on the ground level leaves of one of the few remaining flowering Dandelions. This species overwinters so we may (but probably wont) see this individual next Spring.


Ref: 20181026_df3_20180903_1216_006 small tortoiseshell butterfly on dandelion leaves(r+mb id@768).jpg


Image Taken on 09 Jun 2020 at 09:30    Image of day on 11 Jul 2020

A Small Tortoiseshell Butterfly warming in the sunshine on some dead grass along a crop border


Ref: 20200711_df3_20200609_0930_015 small tortoiseshell butterfly on dead grass(r+mb id@576).jpg


Image Taken on 02 Sep 2014 at 12:15    Image of day on 13 Nov 2014

A chance single tiny purple Buddleia flower in a patch growing through brambles by the garage attracted this pristine Small Tortoiseshell butterfly for a feed. This insect will hibernate for the winter and re-appear in the Spring to breed.


Ref: 20141113_df2_20140902_1215_100 small tortoiseshell butterfly on last purple buddleia flower (adjusted crop)(r+mb id@768).jpg


Image Taken on 04 Jul 2018 at 14:51    Image of day on 21 Aug 2018

A Small Tortoiseshell butterfly decorating one of hundreds of thistles in a 20m stretch along the side of the oil seed rape crop. We saw about 50 of mostly Small Tortoiseshell butterflies on this stretch - more than we have seen at once for many years.


Ref: 20180821_df3_20180704_1451_131 small tortoiseshell butterfly on thistle flowers at edge of crop(r+mb id@768).jpg


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