Yesterday I had the pleasure of accompanying the world's leading expert on White-letter Hairstreak's in Hereford (failed on those) This included my 3rd Clouded Yellow for the year and my 3rd ever sightings of Wood White & first Silver-washed of the year: Wood White x 56 (2 coupled)

Please object to this development that threatens a great White-letter and Purple Hairstreak site amongst other great wildlife #WyreForest #butterflies #developmentthreat

First Clouded Yellow record of the year… and didn’t leave my house. 2nd ever garden record #butterflies #butterfly #CloudedYellow @savebutterflies.bsky.social

Back in the very hot Uk after a weeks butterflying in Romania 🇷🇴

Last day butterflying in the wonderful country that is Romania… warning… butterfly pics imminent

Romanian butterfly hunts before the storms

A red weather warning has been issued for some parts of the country. We need the rules to keep us all safe at work. Please sign the petition for a maximum working temperature. www.megaphone.org.uk/petitions/we...

Bear's-breech (Acanthus dioscoridis)Turkey In the genus Acanthus, family Acanthaceae, commonly known as Dioscorides’ Bear’s Breech Native to wetlands from southern Turkey to western Iran It is an herbaceous perennial Listed by the IUCN as rare but not endangered #Turkey #Botany

Exciting news for Field Cow-wheat in Wiltshire! Here’s Dom to tell you more… @the-wildlifetrusts.bsky.social

Eastern Green Bush-cricket (Tettigonia caudata) (Charpentier 1842) Turkey Family Tettigoniidae, often called Katydids in America Found over most of Europe mainly in the East (it is absent from Britain, France and Spain) Inhabit tall and dense vegetation #EasternGreenBushcricket

Beautiful Orb Weaver (Neoscona adianta) (Walckenaer 1802) Turkey In the family Araneidae, North Africa and Europe to Central Asia A distinctively marked spider that spins its orb web on low vegetation such as heather/gorse/grasses in a range of open habitats #BeautifulOrbWeaver #Spider

Today's butterfly walk at NT Boundary Court Results Marbled White x 180 Large Skipper x 1 Small Skipper x 37 Small Tortoiseshell x 1 Meadow Brown x 95 Common Blue x 5 Ringlet x 5 Painted Lady x 2 Small White x 7 Speckled Wood x 1 Red Admiral x 4 Comma x 2 @savebutterflies.bsky.social

A warm but overcast trip to the Surrey common yesterday produced 145 Silver-studded Blues (119 males and 26 females) #butterflies #butterfly @savebutterflies.bsky.social

A week of rain in Fineshade Woods made finding the target species impossible (one of my last 3 butterflies to see), but I did see my second ever sightings of Wood Whites and Black Hairstreak #blackhairstreak #butterflies #butterfly #lepidoptera

First trap results -MV trap ran Saturday night at National Trust’s Tinkley Gate, Woodchester with Butterfly Conservation Gloucestershire 240 moths of 42 species (1 unidentified) 4 traps were run in total and so many interested visitors (estimated 119 people) #mothsmatter #moths #lepidoptera

Some moths from Saturday night #mothsmatter

Moth trap emptying tomorrow as well as butterflies afterwards #butterflies #butterfly #stroud #gloucestershire #nationaltrust

Butterfly walk in Stroud… come join us explore Boundary Court #butterflies #butterfly #stroud #selsley #gloucestershire #boundarycourt #nationaltrust

Good news! Ministers have finally given green light to new #NaturalHistory GCSE. We’ve campaigned so long for this! Big hats off to tireless advocate Mary Colwell 🙌 Now our young people will have a chance to get to know & love the natural world, to feel awe & wonder, & gain skills to protect it 🌷🌳🦡

Marsh Speedwell (Veronica scutellata) Found throughout the country, but is most common in the NW, the far SW, Norfolk and parts of the South Grows by ponds & marshes, bogs and wet grassland & is an indicator of sensitive, damp habitats and has suffered a sharp historical decline #MarshSpeedwell

Moth trapping / butterfly event with @savebutterflies.bsky.social & @nationaltrust.org.uk at Tinkley Gate, Woodchester nr Stroud #butterflies #moths #mothsmatter #TinkleyGate #nationaltrust #butterflyconservation

Badgeworth Buttercup (Ranunculus ophioglossifolius) Also known as Adder’s-Tongue Spearwort Schedule 8 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981. Listed as Vulnerable in the Red Data List It is a specialist of open wetland habitats, where it is dependent on poaching #BadgeworthButtercup

Tired of this dangerous nonsense.... ☢️

Mylabris variabilis (Pallas 1782) Turkey Variable Blister Beetle,family Meloidae Found in most of Southern Europe, from the Iberian Peninsula to S Russia, The Near & Middle East June to September, feeding on flowers. Larval stages feed on eggs & larvae of grasshoppers #BlisterBeetle #oilbeetle

Eastern Bath White (Pontia edusa) (Fabricius 1777) Turkey Found from the southeast of Europe up to central Europe and the Middle East in Iran and Iraq This species is found in any open grassy or flowery areas, in stony or rocky place Larvae feed on Resedaceae and other crucifer species #Turkey

Sooty Copper(Lycaena tityrus) (Poda 1761) Turkey Most of Europe but absent UK, Scandinavia & much of Spain Four specimens of this species have been found in the British Isles Habitats are flowery grassy meadows, woodland & light scrub Foodplants are Rumex acetosa and scutatus #SootyCopper

Scarce Copper (Lycaena virgaureae) (Linnaeus 1758) Turkey On the wing mid-July to mid-September and found throughout central Europe They prefer flower-rich, dry and damp meadows Larvae feed on Common Sorrel #ScarceCopperButterfly

A lovely tall Bee Orchid from today’s butterfly outing #orchids

Adonis Blue Female ab Krodeli from today #butterflies @savebutterflies.bsky.social

5 firsts of the year from today Large Blue Large Skipper Small Skipper Meadow Brown Marbled White @savebutterflies.bsky.social

A Spoonwing (Lertha palmonii) (Tjeder 1970) Turkey Larvae are predators feeding on small insects including ants Male nemopterids have a bulla on the wing usually along the margin/wing base that is used to disperse pheromones #Turkey #SuphanDagi #Lerthapalmonii #Spoonwing #Nemopteridae #Neuroptera

Alfalfa Beetle (Plagionotus floralis) Turkey A widely distributed Eurasian species Females lay eggs to soil at the base of herbaceous plants, young larvae find suitable roots, bore into them and feed on their internal structures Habitats include flower rich areas such as steppes #Beetle #Beetles

2 individual Painted Ladies in the garden yesterday. They seem to revisit over the last week but always after 6pm

Sunday nights moth trap at a organic farm. I now have a trap left here permanently so I can monitor the increase/ decrease in activity Elachista argentella, Buff-tip, Small Mottled Willow & The Shears #Moths #MothsMatter @savebutterflies.bsky.social

A few from a woodland moth trapping in Slad near Stroud Alder Moth, Scorched Wing, Mocha and Waved Umber #Moths #MothsMatter @savebutterflies.bsky.social

Lesser Horseshoe Bat roosting at Woodchester #bat #bats

Bird's Nest Orchid from a site I've not seen it on before One of our stranger orchids #orchid #orchids #birdsnestorchid

White Helleborine Orchid (Cephalanthera damasonium var. chloritica) A rare variety lacking chlorophyll #Orchids #Orchids #Whitehelleborine @bsbibotany.bsky.social

New for the garden form the trap last night - Small Marbled :-) #moths #Mothsmatter #smallmarbled

Come for a walk to see some wonderful butterflies #Rodborough #RodboroughCommon #Stroud @minchchloe.bsky.social

A Jewel Beetle (Julodella globithorax) (Steven, 1830) Suphan Dagi, Turkey In the beetle family Buprestidae (Jewel Beetle) First described by Christian von Steven in 1830. Julodella globithorax belongs to the genus Julodella Size: 15.5 mm Distributed through Asia Minor #Turkey #Beetle

Glaphyrus neglectus Turkey Family Glaphyridae Inhabit mountain clay/stony wormwood semi-deserts Adults are active from mid-June/end of July frequently visiting flowers and larvae live in the soil eating organic matter Found in Armenia, northeastern Turkey & northwestern Iran #Turkey #Beetle

Julodis andreae (Olivier 1790) Turkey In the family Buprestidae Colours of these metallic beetles are very variable, ranging from iridescent blue, green, yellowish green & copper Larvae dig into the soil & feed on the roots of plants Found in Armenia, Syria, Iran & Turkey #Turkey #Beetle

Coptocephala rubicunda Suphan Dagi, Turkey Family Chrysomelidae This genus are found in Eurasia and Africa Size: 5.3 mm (4.5 to 6.0 mm) Lives on Umbellifers, larvae have been observed feeding on decayed leaves and stems of Pimpinella saxifraga #Beetle

Spindle Ermine Moth (Yponomeuta cagnagella) Video- see previous post #moths #mothsmatter

Spindle Ermine (Yponomeuta cagnagella) This is a fairly common moth throughout Britain except in the far north, occupying chalk or limestone area Food-plant is Spindle as per name Larvae feed gregariously in a silken web as shown which often gets the passer-by’s attention #moths #mothsmatter

Clearwing Moth (Bembecia stiziformis) (Herrich-Schäffer 1851) Turkey In the family Sesiidae Found in Cyprus, Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan & Pakistan Larvae feed on the roots of Astragalus sp. & Tragacanthus sp. This wasp mimic wasp found flying in a gully with its wasp look alike #ClearwingMoth

Thelephassa Grayling (Pseudochazara thelephassa) (Geyer 1827) Turkey I nearly didn't include this pic on my posts as out of focus, but I think I have to for the camoflage Found in Turkey to Asia Minor across Iran, Iraq, Transcaucasia. Afghanistan & Pakistan #ThelephassaGrayling

Kurdistan Copper (Lycaena kurdistanica)Turkey Often considered a subsp of the Lesser Fiery, but is smaller & of a yellowish-gold colour with longer tails Host plants bird knotgrass (Polygonum aviculare), docks (Rumex spp.), knapweeds (Centaurea spp.) & brooms (Cytisus sp.) #KurdistanCopperButterfly