Butterfly bonus

by Richard Stewart County Butterfly Recorder

Whatever happens for the rest of 1998, the period of about three weeks spanning the end of December 1997 and the first two weeks of 1998 will be remembered as exceptional for butterfly sightings.

Traditionally there have occasionally been December and January records from previous years but not the eighteen observed during this time. It is difficult to explain the reason for this warm mild weather which interrupted hibernation, other than to see it as yet another manifestation of changes in climate that have also affected other wildlife. After the first reports I contacted the EADT with the result that a feature titled 'An Early Take-Off For Mother Nature' appeared on January 13th. This, as I had hoped, produced more records. Nick Bowles, the national co-ordinator for Butterfly Conservation, gave me details of all the national records received for this period and these are added in brackets after the Suffolk sightings:

Peacock by Douglas Hammersley

December 28th: Small Tortoiseshell at Baylham TM 1051 -Mrs Frost December 30th: Peacock, Tuddenham Road, Ipswich TM 171457 - Peter Steggall (Small White in Northern Ireland, Peacock Llandudno) December 31st: Peacock near Lavenham TL 9134 98 - Peter Hobbs (Red Admiral Sussex and North London, Peacock Surrey) The first 13 days of January produced an incredible 15 records:

January 6th: Peacock at Alton Water TM 139372 - Fred and Bea Elliston and another Peacock at Mutford Big Wood TM 485894 - John Warnes (Red Admiral Hampshire) January 7th: Red Admiral in Rush mere Road, Ipswich TM 191456 - Neil Sherman (Red Admiral Surrey) January 9th: Small Tortoiseshell in Christchurch Street, Ipswich TM 168451 Wilfred George Peacock at Y axley TM 121739 - Tony Feavearyear (Painted Lady Sussex; Red Admiral Sussex, Surrey; Peacock Kent, Norfolk; Brimstone Cornwall(2), Bucks; Small Tortoiseshell Sussex, Berkshire) January 10th: Peacock at Monk's Eleigh TL 964477 - John and Sheila Dolman Peacock at Monk's Eleigh TL 965474 Keith Morris

Peacock at Ingham TL 8470 - Mr and Mrs Hobbs

Peacock at Y axley TM 121739 - Tony Feavearyear - probably the same one Small Tortoiseshell at Baylham - TM I 051 -Mrs Frost

Small Tortoiseshell (2) at Horham TM 215719- David Mitchell

Red Admiral at Newton Park TL 8661 G. Clarke Red Admiral at Tuddenham Road, Ipswich TM 1746 - Kenneth McPherson (Red Admiral Surrey(2), Berkshire, North London, Avon, Devon; Brimstone Bucks; Peacock(3) Avon, I Devon; Small Tortoiseshell Oxfordshire, Devon, Kent; Comma Essex)

I have no further national records but Mrs Frost completed her hat-trick at Baylham on the 11 th and the Ingham Peacock was seen again on the 13th. The Red Admiral sightings reinforce the evidence for overwintering though a very early influx from the Continent cannot completely be ruled out. No Brimstone was reported though four were reported nationally. Also there was no sighting of an early Comma, with just one nationally.

Red Admiral by Douglas Hammersley