Tag: butterflies

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Nature Notes – Andy Smith

Signs of Autumn


The long awaited break in the drought at last arrived in mid-August, with the cooler showery weather much appreciated. Warblers including Blackcap, Whitethroat, Garden Warbler and Chiffchaff were all seen busy feeding before they depart to the south.
On August 17th a family group of eight Mistle Thrush were noted and also a flock of twelve Long Tailed Tits was a good total. On the 19th a Brown Argus visited the garden and two Common Sandpipers were on the dam.
On the following day a Tree Pipit was found along the hedgerow to Browns Wood. This species breeds on Charnwood and likes rough grassland with scattered trees. It remained in the area and seemed content descending to feed in the surrounding unharvested cereal crops.
On August 21st while scything the meadow another Grass Snake was seen, indicating that there is now a good population locally. On the 23rd a White Wagtail was on the dam and 20 House Martins were over the reservoir.
After a short visit to the Knepp Wilding project in West Sussex, I returned to a more verdant Thornton, having avoided heavy local down pours. On the 30th a Green Sandpiper was at the Top End, but it had departed by the following day. Other species seen at the end of the month included 9 Shoveler, 3 Gadwall, 3 Ravens, 35 Rooks and a Cetti’s Warbler.
September has commenced with more showery weather, as the avian change over gains momentum. A single Greenshank headed west on the 1st and large flocks of hirundines started to congregate over the reservoir.
On September 4th I estimated 450 Swallows, 50 House Martins and 30 Sand Martins. Two Hobbys and a Swift were also recorded. Geese numbers have also increased with 200 Canadas and a similar number of Greylags frequenting the fields and reservoir.
On the following day two Great White Egrets flew low over the carpark before heading off west. Also on this sunny day another Humming Bird Hawk Moth was in the garden and my fifth Clouded Yellow was nectaring on the lawn. It has certainly been a record year for both these species, more likely to be encountered on a trip to France or Iberia.
My first Webs count is to be completed on September 13th and it will be a daunting task to count the geese and especially the growing numbers of Mallard. I am however anticipating some bird highlights over the peak migration season, and look forward to reporting on them in the next edition.

Great egrets
Hirundines preparing for departure
Clouded yellow
Green sandpiper
White wagtail
Tree pipit


Andy Smith 08/09/2026

Hummingbird Hawkmoth in Thornton..very partial to perennial Salvia plants.

Copyright Gillatphotography

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Nature Notes

Heat Wave Summer.

The warm and sunny weather continued through mid-June encouraging Painted Ladies, Meadow Browns and Large Skippers to be on the wing. My first Spotted Flycatcher of the year was seen on June 15th and it was pleasing to see it feeding a juvenile.

On the 16th an Osprey flew south and on the same date a single Curlew headed west. My first Humming Bird Hawk Moth was seen on June 21st. Hobby and two Red Kites were also recorded.

Very hot weather at the end of June, with temperatures reaching 34C, encouraged more butterfly species to appear. Small Heath, Marbled White, Gatekeeper and Essex Skipper were all recorded before the months end.

July 2nd was a highlight with two great wildlife encounters. The first was a male Grass Snake in the pond, which had sloughed off its skin and an afternoon trip to Bagworth Heath, resulted in some good views of Purple Emperor.

The following day continued to deliver with three Common Sandpipers on the dam and a young Stoat in the garden. My 23rd butterfly species of the year was a Brown Argus on the meadow, and four Common Terns were seen on the 10th.

July 12th was another red letter day with a group of six Black Necked Grebes on the reservoir. This included one juvenile, and is one of the highest totals recorded in Leicestershire. 

A single Purple Hairstreak was seen on the 19th. The following day two Redshank were on the dam and on the 25th two Peregrines flew low over the house.

A group of 41 Swifts were heading west on July 26th and an adult Arctic Tern flew through in the same direction.

On July 27th I decided to survey the number of Great Crested Grebes on the reservoir. In total I counted 44 adult birds. This included 12 pairs with 29 chicks.

On the same date it was a real treat to see a Clouded Yellow in the garden, and my 25th Patch butterfly of the year.

August has commenced with more scorching weather and an unrelenting drought. Humming Bird Hawk moths are being seen daily with often two on the Buddleia. A first winter male Redstart was at Bagworth Heath on August 4th, and a flock of 6 Mistle Thrush were seen on the 5th.

Redstart
Hummingbird Hawkmoth
Clouded Yellow
Brown Argus
Mistlethrush
Black Necked Grebe
Black Necked Grebe
Redshank
Purple Emperor
Spotted Flycatcher

As we enter the peak autumn migration period and mud is exposed around the reservoir margins, I am hoping for some waders to drop in. However, in reality I would be very pleased for the drought to break.

Andy Smith 08/08/2026.

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Not all Moths Fly at Night!

That’s right, many species of moths fly in the day, often in bright sunlight just as butterflies do. Probably the most familiar day flying moth to people is the Cinnabar. This smallish black and red moth is often seen in gardens. It lays its eggs on Ragwort plants and the “very hungry” black and yellow striped caterpillars do a fine job of keeping it in check. You can spot the plants later in the summer that have the caterpillars on, because they can be completely defoliated!

A fairly recent arrival to Leicestershire is the striking Scarlet Tiger moth and you have a good chance of seeing this beautiful moth flying in late afternoon and early evening sunshine, particularly in June. I have a thriving colony in my garden, but I am getting ahead of myself.

The story begins on a pleasant June evening in 2019 having a beer in the garden with a friend when a brightly coloured (we assumed butterfly) flew swiftly over our heads, that we couldn’t recognise. You could certainly be forgiven for thinking it must be a butterfly such as a Red Admiral, if you aren’t aware that it exists in our area.

But the next year I noted hairy, black and yellow caterpillars, feeding on the Comfrey plants in my garden in the spring. With the help of an online app I identified these as Scarlet Tiger caterpillars, and the penny dropped as to what we had seen the year before, which was probably an egg laden female searching for new areas.

My moth books (which are 25 years old) state that this species is found only in the south west of England, but I knew a few others had been seen in south Leicestershire recently.

In June 2020 we were treated to the first adults, some of which even adorned us as jewellery whist sitting in the garden………………………..

Since then, they have bred every year with numbers building incrementally until 2025, when they dropped a little; it will be interesting to see what 2026 brings?

If anyone notices adult or caterpillars of Scarlet Tiger this year, I’d be interested to know your address, the date and a rough count of numbers seen, so I can chart the spread of this species locally. Email me on   wrig361@gmail.com

Other day flying moths are, I must admit harder to see. But this year I had the joy of seeing my first adult Emperor moth (and not one, but two!).

Despite being quite widespread across the country, the adults are rarely seen. The females fly very little, but give off a strong scent that attracts males from some distance away. It is these searching males that occasionally get seen. The development of synthetic pheromone lures in the last few years, has meant seeing these has become more possible.

On the 8th of April, after an unsuccessful search for them in the Soar valley on a unseasonable hot day, I returned home and decided to hang the lure on my washing line, whilst I had a much needed cup of tea.

And yo, within 10 minutes this male had approached and ultimately landed on the lure!

This was repeated again on the 25th April, with a different male appearing in my garden. After that I haven’t used the lure again, not wanting to disturb any males again in my vicinity this year.

Article by Thornton Resident – Dave Wright May 2026