Speckled Wood query (1 Viewer)

I'm attaching a photo of a Speckled Wood that I found this afternoon.

I saw someone report a sighting of one yesterday, along with an over-wintering Small White, they said it was an over-wintering one. As the one in the photo is so fresh, does the term over-wintering mean that it's hibernated over winter or that it's newly emerged, after winter?

Many thanks for any help.

Terry.

Speckled Woods can overwinter as larvae or pupae. Presumably this early one is freshly emerged fro a pupa. The common whites also normally overwinter as pupae.

Only the vanessids + Brimstones overwinter as adults (imagines).

It will be freshly emerged from a pupae, I have seen Speckled Woods on the wing as early as the 28th March, generally though first emergences are mid to late April.

SW

Yes, it must have emerged from a pupa. Here they are flying for over more than a week already. That is early, but we have had an exceptionaly mild winter. There has been a lot of research on how growth is regulated in this species. If the growing season is too short to reach the pupal stage the larvae have to slow down their growth because a small larva can survive winter better than a large one. In spring however, they have to grow quickly otherwise a second generation might not be possible that year. It turns out that it is the daylength that the larvae use as a cue. But not the simple daylength, if the days are shortening they slow down their growth, if the days are lengthening they speed up. So somehow they can keep track of the daylength.

Jack

Terry W said:

I'm attaching a photo of a Speckled Wood that I found this afternoon.

I saw someone report a sighting of one yesterday, along with an over-wintering Small White, they said it was an over-wintering one. As the one in the photo is so fresh, does the term over-wintering mean that it's hibernated over winter or that it's newly emerged, after winter?

Many thanks for any help.

Terry.

Click to expand...

Fine specimen of newly emerged Speckled Wood, Terry, very unlike the battered one I found on the tow path in Brittany on Easter Sunday! It was flying well, believe it or not. (Also saw many orange tips, peacocks and a red admiral.)

Nerine

Rame Head Cornwall

Saw a few yesterday and last week on the coast in South East Cornwall with lots of Peacocks and Holy Blues.

Hi everyone,

Apologies for not getting back to you all sooner but have not been too well.
Thank you all for the replies to my query and thank you all very much indeed for your kind help.

It's good to know just what a phrase means and I now know just what over wintering stands for, so many thanks to everybody, I'm very grateful.

Terry.