Oldt1mer - Keith's photos with the keyword: Butterfly

The lovely Comma Butterfly – Polygonia c-album – is very interesting because the colouring and scalloped edges help it to hide amongst dead leaves as it hibernates whilst the larvae are flecked with brown and white markings, making them look like bird droppings, very clever. This one, being quite pale is, I think, a first generation. Seen on a Buddleia (or Buddleja) bush at Martin Mere. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The beautiful Red Admiral – Vanessa atalanta – is a medium to large butterfly which can be seen feeding on flowers all year round but only on warmer days during winter months. The adults particularly like the Buddleia but will feed on most flowers whilst the caterpillars feed on Common Nettles. This shot shows the underwing as well as some of the top of the wing. Seen at Martin Mere. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The Common Brimstone - Gonepteryx rhamni – can be found across Europe, Asia and North Africa. Being the only species of its genus, it is generally known as simply the Brimstone. A medium to large Butterfly with a wingspan up to 6cm, the female has pale yellow/green wings whilst the male are much brighter yellow/green, both have a small orange spot on each wing. Often one of the first Butterflies to be seen each year, adults feed on nectar from preferably blue and purple flowers such as teasel and bluebells whilst the caterpillars feed on the leaves of their host plant which is Buckthorn and Alder Buckthorn. This female was seen feeding at Martin Mere. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The lovely Speckled Wood - Pararge aegeria – is a small butterfly which is normally, and commonly, found in or near woodland areas across the whole of Eurasia. An early flyer in Britain it can be seen from the end of March and then on through to October. This one was spotted having a rest in the sunshine on a path at Martin Mere. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The lovely European Peacock Butterfly – Aglais io – can be found across Europe and temperate Asia as far east as Japan. It is not to be confused with the American Peacock which, although belonging to the same family are not close relatives of the European species. This was an early appearance and was seen at Martin Mere Wetlands. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The Green-Veined White Butterfly - Pieris napi - (thank you @Peter Schmidt for correcting my identification) is a common butterfly which likes damp grassland, pathways etc. and is often mistaken for its cousin the Small White. This female was seen near Martin Mere Wetlands. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The beautiful Red Admiral butterfly - Vanessa atalanta - was previously known as the Red Admirable and is widely distributed across North Africa, the Americas, Caribbean, Europe and Asia. Preferring warmer areas, it does migrate north in spring. The adult butterfly drinks from flowering plants like the Buddleja (Butterfly Bush) and also overripe fruit whilst the caterpillars main host plant is the stinging nettle and sometimes the false nettle. This one was seen enjoying Buddlleja flowers at Martin Mere Wetlands. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The Gatekeeper - Pyronia tithonus - is a European species of butterfly and is also known as the Hedge Brown, both names are very apt because it is often seen around gateways and hedgerows where clumps of flowers and weeds grow. It is very similar to the Meadow Brown and it can be difficult to distinguish between the two when their wings are closed. (The Meadow Brown rests with its wings closed but luckily the Gatekeeper tends to rest with its wings open). This one was seen at Martin Mere Wetlands, Burscough. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The Green-Veined White - Pieris napi - is a common butterfly in Britain which can be found in hedgerows, damp meadows, and near ditches, river banks, lakes and ponds, in fact any area which is damp with good vegetation. The 'green veins' (there are great variations in this from green to black) which you can see on the underside of the adults wings are, in fact, an illusion created by a subtle combination of yellow and black scales, this does help us to distinguish it from its cousin the Small White for which it is often mistaken. This one was seen at Pennington Flash, Leigh, Lancashire. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

The lovely and very clever Comma - Polygonia c-album - butterfly is also commonly referred to as an 'Anglewing' butterfly because of the angular notches on the edges of the forewing. Clever because, to reduce predation, the larvae mimics a bird dropping whilst the adult, when its wings are folded, looks like a fallen leaf. Common in Europe, North Africa and Asia there are several subspecies and all are strong fliers. This one was seen at Three Sisters, Wigan. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.

This shows the underwing of the lovely Gulf Fritillary - Agraulis vanillae - butterfly, also known as the 'Passion Butterfly' because of its liking for passion flower nectar and the fact that it lays its eggs on passion flower vines, although it does also love the lantana as can be seen here. They can be found in Central America, the West Indies, Mexico, and the southern United States but they will also wander north to the central United States. The scientific name was given based on a 1705 painting showing the adult and caterpillar of the species on a vanilla orchid but it has since been found that they do not use vanilla plants. This one seen near Los Melones, Dominican Republic. This Picture is fully © Copyrighted. None of my images may be copied, reproduced or altered in any form or manner or placed on the internet or any other social media, or in any form of publication either print or otherwise, in any form or manner without my written permission.