Heatwave conditions over much of The Purple Empire today.
At Knepp, where the temperature reached 30C and it was almost totally calm, males were fairly quiescent - heat-suppressed - from 2pm, which is unusually early for them to conk out. Apparently, only one was recorded feeding from the ground today. They probably came out to play again from 5.30 till about 7pm, but I finished early.
Elsewhere, news of an acute aberration (of the ab. lugenda type) has reached us, from Chiddingfold Forest yesterday. Neil Hulme went there today to try to hunt it down... The photo I saw on social media, shows just about the most extreme underside ab. specimen I've ever seen - and I've toured the museums...
This may prove to be a good year for PE aberrations? These seem to be determined by temperature-shock on newly formed pupae (according to Dr Carl Bailey who has bred them). This year, there was a series of cold nights in early June - RAF Benson in SE Oxon recorded minimums of +2C and +1C on June 2nd, 9th and 11th. Fermyn Woods, Northants, has been the place of PE aberrations this century, and may well produce a few this year...
Wiltshire has kicked off - a number of sightings, including groundings, from Bentley Wood today. That means Savernake must have started too - they're in sync.
More sightings around the Greater London area today, but I don't think He's started in Herts yet.
No sightings yet from the northern counties - Leics, Notts and Lincs, but good to report that 3 pupae were found in an East Leics site last night by scanning for flourescing pupae with UV torches (top work!).
Note that in heatwave conditions PEs (both sexes) sit in deep shade, like this male -
No comments:
Post a Comment