I’ve already covered the bumblebees in separate post

Butterflies

common blue butterfly  – first seen on 27th may feeding on the cut-leaved cranesbill. (see the yellow rattle post for more about common blues)

meadow brown on rattle pods – ink pen – A6 sketchbook

Meadow brown & Ringlet – didn’t keep much record of numbers but I think there were a lot more around than the previous year. First meadow brown on 12th june. first ringlet on 16th june
Gatekeeper – plenty around, I think of them as mainly on brambles and marjoram June/July but no good records of numbers or dates.
Peacock
Small tortoiseshell – steadily more of them around it seems, no caterpillars seen despite our neighbouring nettle beds.  Maybe I need to do some cutting back of nettles to encourage fresh growth which is what I think they like.
Red Admiral – plenty seen but no particular records kept
Comma – seen regularly but no records, usually basking on bare soil.
Large skipper –  on 22/24 june
Small skipper – First seen 12 june.  I don’t think there were as many as previous year… I’d guess at maximum count of 10 or so (but this is just on the 4 x 4 metre mini meadow).. often nectaring or sunning  (or establishing territory?) on ragwort.

small skipper on bristly oxtongue – ink pen – A6 sketchbook

small skipper on rattle seedpods – 2014-06-26

small skipper on rattle pods 2014-06-26

Brimstone – only really noticed in the early days of spring.
Whites – no serious notes made… there is that time in august/september when they seem to floating around like blown paper scraps…
Speckled wood – first of year on 15th april…

Moths –
No moth trapping this year and only really paying any attention to the more showy species.
Seemed like a lot more cinnabar moths including some egg laying on the ragwort. I’ve a note on them for the first time on 14th June… and garden tigers the same day (lots around the 22nd june). We seem to have lots of the tigers … whizzing frenetically around quite high on summer evenings… last year I managed to see one gradually narrow its orbit until it found a female resting on an elder leaf, presumably transmitting pheromones that he was locking on to.
Only one or two burnet moths and no sign of egg laying.

burnet moth – 2014-06-22

Dragonflies –

broad-bodied chaser – allotment bristol – 2014-06-12 18.35

2 female broad-bodied chasers on 12 june.

Lots of southern hawkers emerged from the pond along with azure and large red damsels as well as common darters. These don’t really feature on the ‘meadow’. Migrant hawkers  are over the allotments from august (?) on.

large red damselfy emergence – gouache – A4 sketchbook

large red damselfy emergence – ink pen – A4 sketchbook