Big butterfly count

Yeah the fields have some sort of wild flower mix in them this year instead of crops. 
I might do another count in the woods next.

Yes, I remember hearing a statistic of how many each need, it's an incredible number!

(You wonder how there are any left but I suppose nature must balance it somehow!)

Oh they are so fast, I've been trying to use my binoculars to identify as quite often you can't get that close before they fly away fast again. The number of times I've been standing there willing them to land and they've just flown off!

We've had quite a few red admirals this year which has surprising!

Cinnabar_wing said:

Ohh that's fun to raise some and use your set up to help wild ones too!

Yes. 

Last year there were loads of small caterpillars eating the nasturtiums and the next day they had gone.

Birds eat loads when they can. 

Ohh that's fun to raise some and use your set up to help wild ones too!

That's a good number, and some ringlets and a small copper how exciting! 

We've been seeing a good number of whites too!

I saw a large white earlier and there have been a few of them around over the last few weeks. I tried to take a photograph but it was flitting about too quickly to snap. I think the persistent winds are putting them off.

Weeks ago, there was a red admiral in the garden. It was ridiculously early in the season but there have been very few since. 

Hey! I've just counted 14 butterflies using the Big Butterfly Count app and I thought you'd be interested!

Marianne72 said:

Having said this, yesterday I saw a red admiral, a peacock and painted lady! Also, several that flew off before I could identify them.

It's been a very good month for me in the garden.

I have had all my usual plus ones not seen before as well as lots of daytime moths.

We are also bringing up some cabbage caterpillars which we saved from being eaten.

They are in a butterfly net and doing well. 

There were butterflies mating on my lavender yesterday too.

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Having said this, yesterday I saw a red admiral, a peacock and painted lady! Also, several that flew off before I could identify them. I'll have to keep my Collins Insect guide on the coffee table.

Ohh, yes I got into them from birding with a simple id sheet of the most common ones. I'd love it if you posted here, different country butterflies would be amazing to hear!

That sounds like a brilliant place to do it! Will be fun to see what you get!

Last year I forgot you could do it more than once, and ended up only doing it on the last day! 

I saw a small blue today which was very exciting as I've not seen one in the garden before! Sadly I couldn't do a count at that time as I was getting things ready before my mum's visit! But still wonderful to see!

No results are just as important! It shows the dip in numbers. Also you can submit multiple times (same place different day or going out different places). 

I did this a few years ago but as there have been so few I didn't participate, as I didn't want to skew the figures. I will look at the results, though.

I shall try to do it this year.

Thank you for the reminder 

Butterflies were mating on my lavender yesterday. 

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Cool post Cinnabar_wing I felt excited when I read this

Where I walk the fields are just full of wild flowers this year instead of crops and I see lots of butterflies so it’s perfect 

I would love to get into butterfly spotting as much as I am into birdwatching... we get loads of them (pollinator friendly garden) and I would like to learn their names. I can't participate in this as I'm not in the UK but maybe I will do my own just for fun.