Every Spring I look forward to my first sightings of both the Orange-tip and the Green Hairstreak, as both these species to me really herald the butterfly season has started in earnest.
Exactly a week after my first Orange-tip of the year, I came across my first Green Hairstreak. It was along the valley on my patch, and strangely, on the same bush that has produced my first Green Hairstreak of the year before, back in 2010. It had almost certainly emerged that day, as I had checked that bush for the past 3 days without luck.
On Saturday I was very limited for time as I had already arranged to meet Phil in the early afternoon and all I managed was a couple of quick grab shots of the butterfly before I lost it to sight. However, on Sunday I returned to the bush in the morning. I have noticed before with this particular bush that the Green Hairstreaks show well on a sunny morning, generally keeping in the lower portion of the bush and staying in a smallish area. This was the case again on Sunday as for nearly an hour I spent watching and photographing him. He soon seemed to accept me too which meant I had time to concentrate on getting the best angles. It turned into one of the best sessions I have had with this species.
Green Hairstreak.
With both Wall Brown and Grizzled Skipper, seen on Sunday, and today a Small Heath my year total has now hit 15
No comments:
Post a Comment