North Wales in search of two endemic butterflies.
Dec 23, 2014 18:21:48 GMT
daveuk, deliasfanatic, and 4 more like this
Post by nomad on Dec 23, 2014 18:21:48 GMT
Elsewhere I have recently written on the lepidoptera section a thread regarding British endemics subspecies. Here is my account in search of two of them with my accompanying images.
The Great Ormes Head is a limestone promontory stretching out into the North Sea off the coast of North Wales. It dominates and shelters the Victorian buildings of the holiday town of Llandudno lying below its massive cliffs. The headland which is now a local nature reserve is home to a number of rare plants and insects. The limestone here supports colonies of two subspecies of butterflies which occur nowhere else. These two endemic dwarf races of British butterflies are Plebejus argus caernensis and Hipparchia semele thyone. The populations of both these species were cut off from others on the mainland for around 4000 years when as a result of rising sea levels their limestone habitat became Islands.
P. argus caernensis is a highly distinctive subspecies. Both sexes are smaller than in the typical race. The male has a paler underside with the upper wing dark borders narrower or absent. The female has lovely blue flashes which spreads across much of the forewing. Typically those females from heathland sites are mainly brown. The foodplant at this site is the Common Rock Rose - Helianthemum nummularium.
H. semele thyone is quite smaller than in the other British races. The underside has the pale areas tinged with ochreous and the forewing spots are smaller with the lower of the two often absent. This race flies several weeks earlier than those elsewhere, often at the beginning of June. The larvae feed on different grasses, here they utilize Sheep's fescue, Festuca ovina.
I have been to the Great Ormes a number of years ago mainly for botany, but then I only saw a few males of caernensis which were mostly resting in the grass due to the dull weather. Finally, this year I decided to go back. The Great Ormes lies about 390 kilometers from where I live and it is a four and half hour train journey. I visited in early June during a weekend of glorious sunshine with perfect blue skies. I arrived late on the Friday and began my search in the well named Happy Valley.
P. argus caernensis, it must be said, is a beautiful little blue and because of abundance of rock-rose which turn the rocky slopes yellow there were good numbers of this butterfly. The females especially were a delight to photograph because there was quite a bit of variation among them. They were on the wing in hot sunshine from early in the morning until late in the evening when they delight to bask with wings fully open on the grass and on the patches of brambles and other herbage. Later in the day, both sexes fly low just above the slopes. As dusk approaches they begin to gather in the long grass to communally rest. This was the favourite time of many British Lycaenidae collectors who used to visit the blue colonies of different species to seek out verso aberrations to add to their collections.
H. semele thyone also is fairly frequent but prefers to inhabit the rock faces of the cliffs and steeper bare rocky slopes. This butterfly is very difficult to approach, sensing any movement and will then lope off along the cliffs. Once at rest the forewings with their eye spots are quickly hidden and the insect is perfectly camouflaged. At rest they have a curious habit of tilting sideways towards the sun. The butterfly seems to rarely visit flowers and only once in two days did I see an individual visiting purple Thymus vulgaris.
Among the Rock Roses were the local day flying metallic green Cistus Forester Moth ,Adscita geryon. I followed an immigrant Hummingbird hawk- Moth, Macroglossum stellatarum female searching out and egg laying on bedstraw. Up on the plateau the Dark Green Fritillaries, Argynnis aglaja even at this early date were flying at their usual high speed over the more acidic limestone heath. The limestone flora was wonderful and I spent much time admiring its beauty. In two places I found two small colonies of the stunning blue Spiked Speedwell , Veronica spicata.
Below. The Great Ormes Head, Llandudno.
Below. Plebejus argus caernensis females.
Below. Plebejus argus caernensis Males.
Below. Plebejus argus caernensis females communally resting.
Below. Plebejus argus caernensis Mating Pair.
Below The habitat of Plebejus argus caernensis, steep limestone Rock Rose covered slopes.
Below. Hipparchia semele thyone.
Below. The steep slopes and cliffs of the Great Ormes Head habitat of Hipparchia semele thyone.
Below. Cable car and train to the top..
Below. Spiked Speedwell, Adscita geryon.
Below. Great Orme flora.
Below. Bloody Cranesbill, Geranium sanguineum.
The Great Ormes Head is a limestone promontory stretching out into the North Sea off the coast of North Wales. It dominates and shelters the Victorian buildings of the holiday town of Llandudno lying below its massive cliffs. The headland which is now a local nature reserve is home to a number of rare plants and insects. The limestone here supports colonies of two subspecies of butterflies which occur nowhere else. These two endemic dwarf races of British butterflies are Plebejus argus caernensis and Hipparchia semele thyone. The populations of both these species were cut off from others on the mainland for around 4000 years when as a result of rising sea levels their limestone habitat became Islands.
P. argus caernensis is a highly distinctive subspecies. Both sexes are smaller than in the typical race. The male has a paler underside with the upper wing dark borders narrower or absent. The female has lovely blue flashes which spreads across much of the forewing. Typically those females from heathland sites are mainly brown. The foodplant at this site is the Common Rock Rose - Helianthemum nummularium.
H. semele thyone is quite smaller than in the other British races. The underside has the pale areas tinged with ochreous and the forewing spots are smaller with the lower of the two often absent. This race flies several weeks earlier than those elsewhere, often at the beginning of June. The larvae feed on different grasses, here they utilize Sheep's fescue, Festuca ovina.
I have been to the Great Ormes a number of years ago mainly for botany, but then I only saw a few males of caernensis which were mostly resting in the grass due to the dull weather. Finally, this year I decided to go back. The Great Ormes lies about 390 kilometers from where I live and it is a four and half hour train journey. I visited in early June during a weekend of glorious sunshine with perfect blue skies. I arrived late on the Friday and began my search in the well named Happy Valley.
P. argus caernensis, it must be said, is a beautiful little blue and because of abundance of rock-rose which turn the rocky slopes yellow there were good numbers of this butterfly. The females especially were a delight to photograph because there was quite a bit of variation among them. They were on the wing in hot sunshine from early in the morning until late in the evening when they delight to bask with wings fully open on the grass and on the patches of brambles and other herbage. Later in the day, both sexes fly low just above the slopes. As dusk approaches they begin to gather in the long grass to communally rest. This was the favourite time of many British Lycaenidae collectors who used to visit the blue colonies of different species to seek out verso aberrations to add to their collections.
H. semele thyone also is fairly frequent but prefers to inhabit the rock faces of the cliffs and steeper bare rocky slopes. This butterfly is very difficult to approach, sensing any movement and will then lope off along the cliffs. Once at rest the forewings with their eye spots are quickly hidden and the insect is perfectly camouflaged. At rest they have a curious habit of tilting sideways towards the sun. The butterfly seems to rarely visit flowers and only once in two days did I see an individual visiting purple Thymus vulgaris.
Among the Rock Roses were the local day flying metallic green Cistus Forester Moth ,Adscita geryon. I followed an immigrant Hummingbird hawk- Moth, Macroglossum stellatarum female searching out and egg laying on bedstraw. Up on the plateau the Dark Green Fritillaries, Argynnis aglaja even at this early date were flying at their usual high speed over the more acidic limestone heath. The limestone flora was wonderful and I spent much time admiring its beauty. In two places I found two small colonies of the stunning blue Spiked Speedwell , Veronica spicata.
Below. The Great Ormes Head, Llandudno.
Below. Plebejus argus caernensis females.
Below. Plebejus argus caernensis Males.
Below. Plebejus argus caernensis females communally resting.
Below. Plebejus argus caernensis Mating Pair.
Below The habitat of Plebejus argus caernensis, steep limestone Rock Rose covered slopes.
Below. Hipparchia semele thyone.
Below. The steep slopes and cliffs of the Great Ormes Head habitat of Hipparchia semele thyone.
Below. Cable car and train to the top..
Below. Spiked Speedwell, Adscita geryon.
Below. Great Orme flora.
Below. Bloody Cranesbill, Geranium sanguineum.
