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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Painted Lady (1 Viewer)

Jane Turner

Well-known member
Just had my first of the year in the garden... seems earlier than usual


Edit Ah no,..... bang on usual timing, just checked my records - its just the near total lack of small torts that threw me off
 
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Haven't seen many Small Torties up here either...yet to see a Painted Lady though. We were at our friend's house in Northumberland (over by Alnwick way)last weekend over the Bank Holiday and he had a few Torties in his garden and one VERY tatty individual kept 'chasing' a Peacock and whenever the Peacock landed would land on top of it. When I first saw them, without my bins, I thought it was a mating pair but on closer examination realised that it was two seperate species. The Tortie looked as though it was trying to mate with the Peacock and kept following it around...didn't seem aggressive or defending it's territory! Ignored other Torties, Orange Tips, Red Admiral and Large and Green-veined Whites in the garden...any ideas Harry?

GILL
 
Had my first outside the office here back in February. Apparently there was quite a little influx at that time: they came around the same time as those early House Martins.
 
Gill Osborne said:
Haven't seen many Small Torties up here either...yet to see a Painted Lady though. We were at our friend's house in Northumberland (over by Alnwick way)last weekend over the Bank Holiday and he had a few Torties in his garden and one VERY tatty individual kept 'chasing' a Peacock and whenever the Peacock landed would land on top of it. When I first saw them, without my bins, I thought it was a mating pair but on closer examination realised that it was two seperate species. The Tortie looked as though it was trying to mate with the Peacock and kept following it around...didn't seem aggressive or defending it's territory! Ignored other Torties, Orange Tips, Red Admiral and Large and Green-veined Whites in the garden...any ideas Harry?

GILL

Hi Gill,
It sounds like your 'tatty torti' was suffering from myopia. lol. This sort of behaviour occasionally happens, there was a post recently showing a mating between a Painted Lady and a Hedge Brown if I remember the species correctly. It certainly sounds like yours was a little sexually frustrated.

There seems to be a shortage of hibernating Vanessid butterflies aound the NE this spring, at least I haven't seen many. There has been a small influx of Painted Ladies over the past week and I have seen several still flushed in that beautiful salmon pink. So we may have another good P Lady season.

For other local residents it's been a good start to the year with large numbers of Orange Tips, Green-v Whites, Small Whites, Small Coppers, Green Hairstreaks and I had one count of 42 Dingy Skipper on a site at the end of my village. Keep looking and recording.

Harry
 
Seems to have been a large influx of Painted Lady to Ireland during past 3 days, and in particular to SE. I'm in Wicklow (30 miles south of Dublin)

first Painted Lady seen on June 5th and again on 6th. More around on 7th (yesterday) Went down to coast, one mile awy and counted 38 along half mile stretch.
Today they're fairly pbvious around farm, and counted about 10, and at least a further 9 greeted me in garden when I got back home at 10am. The number in garden has risen to about 15 now.

Other migrant lep are
a single Rush Veneer seen today.
2 Silver Y and 3 Dark Sword-grass in trap last night.
At least 3 Red Admiral seen today as well. (none before today)
 
Many thanks Harry...contact lenses for butterflies LOL

I'm sure I once read somewhere that the male Small Tortie gets the female into the mood by bashing her with his front legs so that's what drew my attention to the two butterflies. They landed in front of me,about ten feet or so, so hoping to see some mating behaviour I got my bins onto them. That's when I realised they were two different species! Perhaps the male Tortie just preferred big ladies!!! LOL
Will certainly be keeping an even sharper eye on them from now on!

GILL
 
Have hardly seen any butterflies so far this year when our garden is usually full of them, especially whites and tortoiseshells. Are they declining, or are they just more likely to be a bit late? The only butterfly I've had so far in the garden is Speckled Wood and my cat nearly ate that!
 
Ben Dickinson said:
Have hardly seen any butterflies so far this year when our garden is usually full of them, especially whites and tortoiseshells. Are they declining, or are they just more likely to be a bit late? The only butterfly I've had so far in the garden is Speckled Wood and my cat nearly ate that!

Hi Ben,
I agree that Vanessids have been scarce this spring but most will have mated and laid eggs, and possibly died off. There is no shortage of other butterfly species about, at least in my area.

Harry.
 
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