After a season with virtually no butterflies, suddenly there are white
(cabbage white?) butterflies everywhere.
Not so many other varieties, though.
Is this country wide or just East Anglia?

Cheers

Dave R

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David <wibble@btinternet.com> wrote:
> After a season with virtually no butterflies, suddenly there are white
> (cabbage white?) butterflies everywhere.
> Not so many other varieties, though.
> Is this country wide or just East Anglia?
>
Not our recent experience, this year has been particularly good for
Red Admirals with a fair smattering of Peacocks and Small
Tortoiseshells. Whites and the occasional blue are at about the same
level as previous years.

We're in south Suffolk, near Woodbridge.

--
Chris Green
·

On 03/09/2021 11:35, David wrote:
> After a season with virtually no butterflies, suddenly there are white
> (cabbage white?) butterflies everywhere.
> Not so many other varieties, though.
> Is this country wide or just East Anglia?
>
I've seen masses of red admirals and peacocks on the Buddleia, and the
odd painted lady. Not seen any cabbage whites or indeed peacocks]

One year a patch of nettles was covered in one species - forget what it
was. Meadow brown? Never before or since.

Butterflies like many insects show massive annual variation

Cabbage whites like brassicas including oil seed rape. If you have a
field of that, or some wild escapeess from a field nearby that would
explain it

--
"It is an established fact to 97% confidence limits that left wing
conspirators see right wing conspiracies everywhere"

On 03/09/2021 11:35, David wrote:
> After a season with virtually no butterflies, suddenly there are white
> (cabbage white?) butterflies everywhere.
> Not so many other varieties, though.
> Is this country wide or just East Anglia?

Lots of Large Whites, Peacocks, and particularly Red Admirals here in
south central Hampshire. Also the odd Brimstone and Gatekeeper or two. I
have seen a blue, but they seem very rare this year.

--

Jeff

In article <ipec4dF6g0mU8@mid.individual.net>,
David <wibble@btinternet.com> wrote:
>After a season with virtually no butterflies, suddenly there are white
>(cabbage white?) butterflies everywhere.
>Not so many other varieties, though.
>Is this country wide or just East Anglia?

I have had that for some time, and my brassicas are in very sorry
shape. Not merely are there too many cabbage whites (i.e. large),
there are not enough wasps :-(

Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

On 03/09/2021 11:35, David wrote:
> After a season with virtually no butterflies, suddenly there are white
> (cabbage white?) butterflies everywhere.
> Not so many other varieties, though.
> Is this country wide or just East Anglia?

Not many flowers here so not usually many butterflies of any
description, but this year I have 2 cabbages in a pot and have seen
numerous white butterflies.

--
Jenny M Benson
Wrexham, UK

On 03/09/2021 11:35, David wrote:
> After a season with virtually no butterflies, suddenly there are white
> (cabbage white?) butterflies everywhere.
> Not so many other varieties, though.
> Is this country wide or just East Anglia?
>
>
> Cheers
>
>
>
> Dave R
>

It seems to be a Southern thing as there are no butterflies of any
colour up here in West Yorkshire. Not in my locality at least.

On Fri, 03 Sep 2021 12:15:48 +0100, Chris Green wrote:

> David <wibble@btinternet.com> wrote:
>> After a season with virtually no butterflies, suddenly there are white
>> (cabbage white?) butterflies everywhere.
>> Not so many other varieties, though.
>> Is this country wide or just East Anglia?
>>
> Not our recent experience, this year has been particularly good for Red
> Admirals with a fair smattering of Peacocks and Small Tortoiseshells.
> Whites and the occasional blue are at about the same level as previous
> years.
>
> We're in south Suffolk, near Woodbridge.

We are in the same general area, but perhaps a bit further towards the
coast.

Cheers

Dave R

--
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On 03/09/2021 11:35, David wrote:
> After a season with virtually no butterflies, suddenly there are white
> (cabbage white?) butterflies everywhere.
> Not so many other varieties, though.
> Is this country wide or just East Anglia?
>
>
> Cheers
>
>
>
> Dave R
>
I've seen loads of Cabbage Whites in the last few weeks but the
Hummingbird hawk-moth hasn't been seen this year.

I'm in the South West.

--
I'm a sew and sow!

On 03/09/2021 11:35, David wrote:
> After a season with virtually no butterflies, suddenly there are white
> (cabbage white?) butterflies everywhere.
> Not so many other varieties, though.
> Is this country wide or just East Anglia?
>

I've seen plenty of cabbage whites recently in Essex but throughout this
year plenty of other varieties.

--
mailto : news {at} admac {dot} myzen {dot} co {dot} uk

On 03/09/2021 11:35, David wrote:
> After a season with virtually no butterflies, suddenly there are white
> (cabbage white?) butterflies everywhere.
> Not so many other varieties, though.

It seems quite typical at least in the NE and NW that I have sampled.

Interesting butterflies were decimated in the late frosts. The only
survivors were the cabbage whites but they have been flying since May.

> Is this country wide or just East Anglia?

We have mostly cabbage whites this year. A handful of tortoise shells,
peacocks and red admirals and that is about it. In a normal year by now
I would expect to be seeing mostly the colourful ones and in a good year
hummingbird hawk moths. I have plants chosen to bring them in.

Butterfly numbers are down here by a factor of 3-5x.

What few there are flying right now are all boring ones.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

On 03/09/2021 21:09, Martin Brown wrote:
> Butterfly numbers are down here by a factor of 3-5x.
>
> What few there are flying right now are all boring ones.

What few people realises is that this is entirely normal. I once
attended some local classes on ornithology. Wrens, apparently, will die
off almost completely in a hard winter with no bugs. Then come the
spring they will breed like rabbits until they exhaust their food
supply, and stabilise.

Hardly seen any swallows or swifts

Now being essentially cat free for hundreds of meters around, I have
been amazed at how much wildlife has moved into the garden. Dismembered
birds courtesy of owls hawks and foxes abound...

....badgers have got all the hedgehogs, but the winter didn't get the
moles...

But its all different. This year I have a solo chinese water deer
munching at expensive plantings. £30 gone in a mouthful. So fucking tame
I could stroke it. Similar for foxes.

Lockdown has made them completely unafraid

--
“Progress is precisely that which rules and regulations did not foresee,”

– Ludwig von Mises

The Natural Philosopher wrote:

> Hardly seen any swallows or swifts

Quite a few of them for me

On 04/09/2021 07:42, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
> On 03/09/2021 21:09, Martin Brown wrote:
>> Butterfly numbers are down here by a factor of 3-5x.
>>
>> What few there are flying right now are all boring ones.
>
> What few people realises is that this is entirely normal. I once
> attended some local classes on ornithology. Wrens, apparently, will die
> off almost completely in a hard winter with no bugs. Then come the
> spring they will breed like rabbits until they exhaust their food
> supply, and stabilise.

Although it happens in bad years this year has been more than a bit
peculiar. In all the years that I have lived here the apple crop has
never failed completely before.
>
> Hardly seen any swallows or swifts

They were very late here - following the insects I suppose (and they
were set back enormously by the series of late frosts). Seemed to do OK
once they arrived but it has been a very short summer. Leaves are
already turning on my acers and blueberry bushes (although I'm not aware
of any proper frosts it must have got close to freezing one night).
>
> Now being essentially cat free for hundreds of meters around, I have
> been amazed at how much wildlife has moved into the garden. Dismembered
> birds courtesy of owls hawks and foxes abound...

A surprising number of racing pigeons have become peregrine fodder after
stuffing themselves silly on spilled harvest grain round here.

> ...badgers have got all the hedgehogs, but the winter didn't get the
> moles...
>
> But its all different. This year I have a solo chinese water deer
> munching at expensive plantings. £30 gone in a mouthful. So fucking tame
> I could stroke it. Similar for foxes.
>
> Lockdown has made them completely unafraid

Indeed. During the first proper lockdown I was seeing deer on the road
even during daylight hours. Something that previously only ever happened
occasionally at the Xmas holidays. The roads were so quiet.

Been a surprisingly good year for hares here.

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

On 04/09/2021 11:37, Martin Brown wrote:
> On 04/09/2021 07:42, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
>> On 03/09/2021 21:09, Martin Brown wrote:
>>> Butterfly numbers are down here by a factor of 3-5x.
>>>
>>> What few there are flying right now are all boring ones.
>>
>> What few people realises is that this is entirely normal. I once
>> attended some local classes on ornithology. Wrens, apparently, will
>> die off almost completely in a hard winter with no bugs. Then come the
>> spring they will breed like rabbits until they exhaust their food
>> supply, and stabilise.
>
> Although it happens in bad years this year has been more than a bit
> peculiar. In all the years that I have lived here the apple crop has
> never failed completely before.

OTOH mine is first rate

>>
>> Hardly seen any swallows or swifts
>
> They were very late here - following the insects I suppose (and they
> were set back enormously by the series of late frosts). Seemed to do OK
> once they arrived but it has been a very short summer. Leaves are
> already turning on my acers and blueberry bushes (although I'm not aware
> of any proper frosts it must have got close to freezing one night).
>>
>> Now being essentially cat free for hundreds of meters around, I have
>> been amazed at how much wildlife has moved into the garden.
>> Dismembered birds courtesy of owls hawks and foxes abound...
>
> A surprising number of racing pigeons have become peregrine fodder after
> stuffing themselves silly on spilled harvest grain round here.
>
>> ...badgers have got all the hedgehogs, but the winter didn't get the
>> moles...
>>
>> But its all different. This year I have a solo chinese water deer
>> munching at expensive plantings. £30 gone in a mouthful. So fucking
>> tame I could stroke it. Similar for foxes.
>>
>> Lockdown has made them completely unafraid
>
> Indeed. During the first proper lockdown I was seeing deer on the road
> even during daylight hours. Something that previously only ever happened
> occasionally at the Xmas holidays. The roads were so quiet.
>
> Been a surprisingly good year for hares here.
>
yes. I shot one and the crows ate it

--
Truth welcomes investigation because truth knows investigation will lead
to converts. It is deception that uses all the other techniques.