THE
SUFFOLK BRANCH CONT ACTS
SUFFOLK
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED Any of our memberswho feel they would like to contributeto the growingwork of the committee,in howeversmall a way. If you feel you could coordinateour show programme,run a small sales operation, producethe newsletter,keep the books or just help out now and then,
WAR6US
contact Andrew Phillips on 0206 322908
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CONSERVATION
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MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY Ron Bridle, Brook Hall Cottage, Grays Lane, Wissett, Halesworth, Suffolk IP19 0JT (0986 781392) NEWSLETTER EDITOR Steve Goddard, 47 Colchester Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP4 3BT (0473 252598) PRESS OFFICER (OPERATION BUTTERFLY) Diane Firmin, 11 Rowan Close, Stanway, Colchester, Essex CO3 5QJ (0206 331183) CONSERVATION OFFICER (MOTHS) Roger Kendrick, c/o BSc Conservation Mgt, Otley College, Otley, Suffolk (0473 785543) CONSERVATION OFFICER & COUNTY RECORDER (BUTTERFLIES) Richard Stewart, 63 Belstead Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP2 8BD (0473 688725) COMMITTEE MEMBERS Adrian Hart, Wood Cottage, High Corner, Butley, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP4 SAQ (0394 450994) Alan Johnson, 28 Medway Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP3 0QH (0473 715701) Michael & Jenny Kelsey, 25 Prospect Place, Leiston, Suffolk IP16 4AL (0728 830975) Janice Pritchard, 89 Leopold Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP4 4RN (0473 718137) CHAIRMAN Andrew Phillips, Swallow House, Long Road West, Dedham, Essex CO7 6ES (0206 322908) PRESIDENT Howard Mendel, c/o Ipswich Museum, High St, Ipswich, Suffolk IPI 3QH (0473 213761) COUNTY RECORDF:R (MOTHS) Arthur Watchman, Onchan, Back Lane, Monks Eleigh, Suffolk IP7 7BA Published by the Suffolk Branch of Butterfly Conservation (The British Butterfly Conservation Society Ltd ). Reg. No. 2206468. Registered address: Tudor House, Quorn, Loughborough, Leics LE12 8AD. Reg. Charity No. 254937. Head Office PO Box 222, Dedham, Essex CO7 6EY. Tel. (0206) 322342. Edited by Steve Goddard. Printed by Greg Herbert & Sons. Logo Silver-studded Blue by Doug Hammersley. Designed and produced by Andrew Phillips. © 1994 All rights reserved.
I'Tfi.e¾ewsfetter oftlie Sufjo[l (Branchof(ButterflyConservation I however was a seminar on Recording, and 1994AGM the essential basis it provides for conservation work. Dr Paul Waring, Butterfly Conservation's newly-appointed Moth Conservation Officer, told us about his work in developing the National Moth Recording network (p. 7 inside) and this was followed by Dr Jim Asher talking about the Millennium Atlas project for butterflies (to be reported in our next edition). Afteiwards we enjoyed a personal ~-look at the moths of Suffolk from local lepidopterist Rafe Ely, and an overview of the county's butterflies from Steve Piotrowski. All in all , the talks provided a fascinating grounding for our work to help conserve Suffolk's butterflies and moths, and we will be developing the theme with further articles, talks and events.
Our first Annual General Meeting was held, appropriately enough, in the Suffolk Room of the Butterfly Hotel at Bury St Edmw1ds, which latter generously sponsored the event. If that wasn't already good news enough, the meeting was full, the speakers were excellent, and everyone who came seemed to get something from the day, experts and lay persons alike. The business of the meeting was dealt with very quickly - but not for any lack of substance. The Chairman's report on 1993 covered a surprising amount of activity, and with even more planned in 1994, we shall have to allow more time next year. Branch membership has already broken the hundred mark and finances too are healthy, although in order to / achieve goals already set, we are going to have to set about some serious fundraising. Above all we need more volunteers, especially to help with local shows where demand already has us at full stretch.
nSI.de. . .
Garden Survey Butterfly Watching Suffolk Hawk Moths
The real substance of the day
Volume 2
p3 p4 p9
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May 1994
Prize 'Winner ~97
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Jfigfi<Brown <Fritiffaries a6outyou wouuf wotu:ferwfiataff tliefuss was a6out concemingtlieirsurvival LargeJfeatfisj[y just acrosstlie riveran.1" up in tlie <Feffs are:Mountain(Rjngfets.
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ongratulations to Suffolk Branch member Russell Edwards on being awarded First Prize in the UK Moths section in the 1993 Butterfly Photographer of the Year competition organised by Butterfly Conservation. Russell's winning picture was of a Poplar Hawk-moth taken in his own garden. His award was presented to him by Gordon Beningfield, President of the Society, at this year's National AGM.
Target species for1994 Just to remind you all of the appeal made in the first issue of the SUFFOLKAR6US for us all to make a special effort to look for and take note of six particular species when recording our observations this year. These are (in alphabetical order): Brown Argus, Dingy Slcipper,Grizzled Slcipper,Silver-studded Blue, White Admiral and White-letter Hairstreak. Whilst we should all be aware of the status of our mascot, the Silver-studded Blue, the others are no less vulnerable. As I said before, it may already be too late for the Grizzled Slcipper which was last positively recorded in 1979. This latter species is in serious decline in many parts of central and southern England and is the subft:ct of a three-year research project at the University of East London. The aim is to generate recommendations on how this little-studied butterfly may be most effectively conserved. Therefore, any observations will not only be of help to us but will also be forwarded on to support this major study. As you read this, Grizzled Skippers could well be on the wing somewhere in Suffolk. Their flight period is usually mid-May to end Jw1e. lt was last recorded on 19th May 1979, at Felshamhall (Bradfield) Woods. Could it still be here in the woodland edges? Elsewhere in this issue, Steve Doyle talks (see p.12) of seeing it in Thetford forest. Who knows, you could go down in local history as the finder of the first colony since the 1970's. We will ce11ainlybe printing any such news in the SUFFOLKARGUS. Records of all butterfly sightings should be sent to Richard Stewart, who is deputising for Steve Piotrowski as County Recorder until further notice (see back cover). The season's just getting under way - have a lovely summer - look forward to hearing about your adventures for the autumn edition. SteveGoadard THF SUFFOLK ARGUS Vo! 2
I spenamucfiof my time now doingconservationworli_,in Cum6riawitfi tlie:Nortfzof
<Eng [a.,u[CBrancli. 'Weareon[yjust 18 montfisoU 6ut afreatfynave4 major6utteif[y conservation projectsunderway. 'Wearefocusing on tlie:Marsfz<Fritiffary (my specia[interest)and fzopeto expandtliepresentnum6erof 4 sites. Otliermajor projectsongoingarein respectof tfie<DuR.§ of <Burgundy anaJ{igfz<Brown <Fritiffaries and tlie:MountainCJ?j:ngfet. 'Wecfesperate[y want to work,ontliefast declining <PearC-6ortferea <Friti«ary and tlie(])ark,green <Friti«ary afongwitfz tlieSmaff<B[ue 6ut fack,ofliumanresourcesrestrictsourprogress.
If any mem6ersstray up to Cum6ria,I wiff 6eon[yto pfeaseato giveyou news of sigfztingsor sitesfor someof ourspeciafi.ties e~eptfor tlie:Marsli<Fritiffary wfiicliis so tlireatenedtfiat we try to ~ep its presenceunderwraps. Jfave a good1994 season,I for oneam foofjngforward to it ( as tliestrongwina and rain6attermy window on tliisdank,6f.eak,'.M.arcli day!). Steve (J)oyfe
Where might you expect to find around two-thirds of the County's butterflies on one site? Wolves Wood? Maybe the King's Forest? Minsmere? Almost certainly. But how about a small site which is not even an SSSI, let alone a well known Nature Reserve? The place to which I refer is a small part of Rushmere Heath known as Bixley Fann, situated between Ipswich and Kesgrave. It is a well-walked area of rough grassland. gorse and mixed hedgerow (including both Oak and Elm) close to residential development. As the list below shows, personally I have encountered 21 of the 31 species we may see in Suffolk in an average year. My records consist of: Small, Essex and Large Skippers; Large, Small and Green- veined Whites; Green, Purple and White-letter Hairstreaks; Small Copper; Common and Holly Blues;. Red Admiral, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock & Comma; Grayling, Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown, Sm11IIHeath & Ringlet. Perhaps surprisingly, I have yet to record Orange Tip, Wall or Painted Lady. In a good year, I might even see Clouded Yellow and could expect the count to increase still further. This could mean a remark.able 25 of the potential 31 species on one small suburban site, which clearly reflects the im:>artance of this magical little spot. It is perhaps worth noting the 6 species one would not expect to see: Dingy Skipper. Brimstone. Silver-studded Blue. Brown Argus, White Admiral or Speckled Wood. Fortunately, Suffolk Coastal District Council, who have recently taken possession of this land as Public Open Space, are drawing up a management plan to conserve the natural interest whilst allowing continued use for informal recreation. We have been in touch with them about the site and its management. and look forward to helping with it in future. Why not pop along yourself or come and see the area with other members of the Group on 23rd July ? It should be well worth it. (See Events List). In the meantime, tell us abou: your own favourite spot and we will be delighted to include your observations in a future issuP.of the SUFFOLKAR6US. Steve Goddard
THE SUFFOLK ARGUS Vo/ 2
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Speck_fetf Woods. Soon I was travellitl{J tlie fetl{Jtfianti 6reatftliof Sujfof/i.;,(joinino tlie(B(JJCS as it was tlien) anti tlieSuffo[k,'Wi[d[ife'Trust. <Tliis was a6out 1977 wlien tlierewas no effectiveSuffo(k,<Brancli of <Butterfly Conservation.Later I started to ventureout a 6itfurtlierinto tlie surrounai111J countiesanti u[timate[ya[[ overtlie VJ( anti 6eyontf.
CONTENTS
BUTTERRY
CONSERVATION
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DE DIC ATEO TO SAVING WI LO BUTTER F l I ES
1994AGM So, wliereinSuffo[{tfo I reca[[as 6eitl{Jmyfavourite 6utteif[y liaunts? <Tlie (J)evi['s (J)itcfiin :Newmarl<gt (SeeEventsList. Ed.) liasto 6e top of my fut, not 6ecauseof its profusionof 6utte,jfies 6ut 6ecauseI was cfrawnto it li.k.§a magnet. It is of great 6otanicafinterest6ut liassucfi6utteif[yspeciesas <Brown }trgus, (JreenJfairstreat Comma,Watr<Brown af.ongwitfi a[[tfie morecommonspecies.I reca[[seei111J 13 aifferent insectstfiereon a good tfay. It was pfeasinoto reatftliat we liaverecent[y fount£ tlie Cliaff_,fii[[ <B{ue aoaintfiere. rrlietford(forestis a&owe[[up on my fut offavoured sites. }t[tfiou.gfimain[y conifers,enou.gli. oufer6roatf-Ceavecf wootffantilias 6eenCeftto 6e of interest anti tfiere aremany witfe ritfesanti cfeari711Js. Speciessucfias (Jrizz{ec{ SR;jppercertain[yused to 6e tliere,afotl{Jwitli.(J)i711Jy SR;jpper, Sma[[,<Essex.anti LargeSR;jppers.(Jrayli.111J anti Comma,Speck,fedWoods 6y tfie fiuntiretf,Smaff Coppersanti qreenJfairstreaf?J. CavenhamJfeatli.was tfiepfucefor (Jrayli.nos fiowever,antiit afsoCook.§d goodfor Sifver-studaed<B{ue tfiou.glinone_. wereeverfount£,anti norliavetliey 6eentliereasfar as I k,now. }t li.igfiftgfit of everyseasonli.owever,was tfieannua{tret or tref?Jacross to <EastSuffo{{to see tfieSifver-studson :M.artfesliam Jfeatli.. %ere were not many fiousestfienanti tlierewere<Bf ues 6y tfie fiuntfrecfafo711J witli.great num6ersof otfier species. I fast visited:M.artfesliam in 1992wli.ifstin tfieareaon 6usinessanti managedto see tfie fastfew Si{ver-studaed<B{ues of tfieseason. It Cooi<gd to me as if tfie fwuse 6uiufi.1llJ liasnow 6eencurtaif.ed6ut not witfiout seriousf.ossof quali.ty lia6itat. It now remainsto 6e seenwfietfiertlieycan survivetfiegreaterpresenceof li.umans,clogs,6il<gs et a[ ff'rom:M.artfesliam I a{wayswent up to <Rstuffesliam anti 'Tunstaff(6eforetfiegafes 6few tfiemclown)in tfie fiopeof seei711J Wli.ite}tdmira[in Suffo[li.:,I neverauf seeone. I returnee[to five in Soutli.Lal<gfunti fierein Cum6riain 1989anti I 6rou.gfitwitfi me my Coveof 6utte,jfieswli.icli. liasgrown even stronoerO'Ver tfieyears. It is a tfeligli.tto 6e a6fe to see37 speciesnow in Cum6riaantf 29 of tfiemwitliin afew mifesof my fiome. Speciessucfias Scotcli.}trgus,<DarfiJ}reen ff'ritiffaryantf tfiereareso many 13
THE SUFFOLK ARGUS Vo! 2
ANOTHE ·,RHAB!T AT S
Front Cover
Prize Winner
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Target Species for 1994
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Contents
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Suffolk Garden Butterfly Survey - Richard Stewart
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Butterfly Watching - Jenny Kelsey
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The National Moth Conservation Project - Paul Waring
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Suffolk Hawk Moths - Mervyn Crawford
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A Northerner in Suffolk - Steve Doyle
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Favourite Spots - Steve Goddard
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Contacts
Back Cover
THESUFFOLKARGUS Vo/2 HEAD OFFICE: P.O.BOX222,DEDHAM, COLCHESTER, ESSEX, C076EY. TELEPHONE 0206322342 THEBRITISH BUTTERFLY CONSERVATION SOCIETY LTD. Rl:GISUREO OFFICETIJOOR HOUSE. OUOHN. LEICtSTERSHIRf, LE12SAO AEGISTEREO IN(NGLANO No 22064611 R[GISHREOCHARITY lfo ™937
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SUFFOLK GARDEN BUTTERFLY SURVEY 1994 Enclosedwith this issue of the SUFFOLKARGUS is a double-sided questionnairerelating to garden butterfliesin Suffolk. This is an area of recordingwithin the county that has not received separate, specific considerationand I have been given a Bursaryby the Suffolk Naturalists' Society (SNS)to conduct this survey during 1994. Obviously,I am hoping for as many returns as possible so that a meaningful report can be prepared. It is also importantto cover all areas of Suffoik and different locations,types and sizes of gardens. Can I emphasise that returns from town centre and suburban locations are particularlywelcome; our own suburbangarden in Ipswich has, as an example,so far been visited by 18 different species,which is nearly one third of the national total. it is hoped that all of the questionnairescan be completed but part returns will also be welcome. Of particularinterestwill be sightings of SpeckledWood and White-letter Hairstreak. The survey should also prove interestingto note 1994 numbers of Holly Blue and Painted Lady. There is a section devoted to butterfly-attracting plants and another to predators,plus an opportunityto make a comparison with previousseasons. The questionnairewill be distributedto membersof SNS and the Ipswich and District Natural History Society as well as Suffolk Branch of Butterfly Conservation. This will provide a potentialreturn of 900 forms. For any of you who may be wonderingabout the Butterfly Conservation national garden survey, I would like to make it clear that this survey will not conflict with its aims. The prime objective of my survey is to record, during one year, the butterfliesvisiting Suffolk gardens,whereas the aim of the national garden survey is to discover the 'perfect butterfly garden' through countrywideobservationsover a longer period. For this year only, existing and new participantswiil be asked to recordtheir garden observations on two forms; one for Margaret Vickery and one for me. I hope the questionnaire is self-explanatorybut please contact me if further clarification is needed. Richard Stewart
Suffolk Branch strongly supports this local initiative as an extension to the national survey. Jt is interesting to see that Richard has extended the return deadline to allow for late sightings, in view of his article on late butterflies in the.first issue! One thing's/or sure, we can't get enough information about Suffolk's butterflies so please do all that you can to help ensure the success of Richard's survey. Ed. 3
THE SUfFOI.K ARGUS Vo/ 2
MV lamp and about to retire early, since half an hours watching had only produced two Angle Shades and a few of the inevitable late Silver Y's and Yellow Underwings, when a large moth landed on the shoulder of my white Tee-shirt with quite a thump. I literally pinched myself to see if I was dreaming, because it was a perfect example of a Silver-striped Hawk - a very rare visitor indeed. It seemed quite mesmerised by the light and tamely settled down in a large cardboard box until I could photograph it next morning. In the evening it almost seemed reluctant to leave! I hope the foregoing may indicate that our Hawk Moths have fared quite well in Suffolk over the years. Certainly the
Privet, Poplar and Eyed Hawks are often abundant at the caterpillar stage this in spite of the comment from one livestock price list that these are 'seldom found in the wild now'. I hope one day to see the Spurge and the Striped Hawk Moths in this country but the beautiful Oleander Hawk might come my way during a Mediterranean holiday. However, I am trying to record the life - cycle of these fascinating insects on video tape, to watch during the long winter evenings. This year, 1994, I hpoe to carry out a similar survey of the Lasiocampidae the Lackeys, Lappets, Drinker and Eggars etc. and would be pleased to hear from other readers concerning both groups of moths. Mervyn Crawford
Jl_{tfiou/Jfi. I am a tlirougliand tliroug!iCum6rian,I liavea specia( fondnessfor Sujfo(l 'My Coveof 6utterjfusfirst suifacetftliereand two of my cliiUrenwere6om in <Bury St. <Etfmurufs. I first remem6er tliepfacefrom way 6aci.)ntlie 1960'swlienI went to see my nativeCarfisfep(aya Cup- tie at <Portman <I(oatf an.aI we((remem6er tliinfjng tfiat <East )1.ngfiawas a worufaway. £ittfe aufI f._,now tlien tliat my fwme for 13yearswouU 6ein Cfure,West Sujfo(l Jl_nyway,6ac{to 6utterjftesandwliereit aff 6egan.I was watcfiinlJa qreen 'Wooapecfisr in a Suffo({ woocffandand infact was waitingfor it to reappearwlien two 6utte,fftescaU[Jfit my eyein a sliaft of sunf1f}fit in a cCeari.ng. I watclied'tliem spira(up and aownfor severa(minutesa6so(ute{y fascinatetf 6y tliem. Pinaffy,tliey settfeaaruf6eganto d'owliat natureintended'.<[fieWooapecfisrwas soonforgotten and tlie/off.owingd'ayI 6oU[Jfit a 6utte,j[yidentificationguufe. rrfieywere 6utteif[tesI liad'neverseen6efore;mindyou a([6utterjftest<> a fuymansucfias I was.,wereaff Ca66age'Wfiitesor <Rja Jl_amiraCs. I quiclijyiaentifad'tliemas 7HE SUfFOLK ARGUS Vo/ 2
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The Pine Hawks also seem to favour the drier Breckland areas in this county. One adult briefly visited my MV lamp but I noted them in the West Stow/Barton Mills/Mildenhall area sitting, sometimes in pairs, on pine tnmks during the day, usually at about eye-level. Those who operate portable moth traps in the King's Forest area, tell me that Pine Hawks often arrive in large numbers on a suitable night. Our two remaining residents, the Broad- and Narrow-Bordered Bee Hawk-moths are both now regarded as threatened species. I have never found the latter but in previous years I had seen adult Broad-Bordered Hawks in Bradfield Woods, Haughley Park and at Fritton Lake, so I had assumed that this was largely a woodland species. However this year, on a day visit to Dunwich Heath, I was watching male Oak Eggar and Fox ' Moths dashing erratically over the heather close to the toilets and Coastguards Cottage. One plummeted into low honeysuckle growth and quite by accident, I found four Bee Hawk larvae feeding in a very exposed way on this same bush. A further wide search revealed others, very conspicuous because of their bright green overall colouring and reddish-brown undersides. I took a few home and like the Puss Moth caterpillar they turned into a dull maroon colour before pupating. Just a comment or two on the mif,rrantHawk Moths. One or two Bedstraw Hawks have visited the light in my garden but that was in 1992. The day-flying Hummingbird Hawk came to Buddleia and Jasmine even when it was raining hard ! Last year my wife planted Nicotiana (Tobacco Plant) and we were duly rewarded by a visiting Convoivulus Hawk-moth feeding whilst hovering at dusk. At that time of day, the erratic movement of the long white flowers in the still evening and the sound of rapid wing beats gave away its presence. However, I got too close and the moth just seemed to vanish in an instant. The Death's-head Hawk seems to be absent in some years, then reappears in moderate numbers. This was the case in 1992 but I did not see it last year. Finally, I must just mention the highlight of all my moth-watching years which occurred in September, 1992. I was kneeling on the white sheet under a suspended 11
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••BUTTERFLY WATCHING•• A BEGINNER IN SUFFOLK GOES ON LEARNING ... 1990 was the year of the Hairstreak. After three years of Butterfly watching I had actually heard of Hairstreaks. They certainly live up to part of their name 'streak' for speed of movement! We were told of a kical site for Green Hairstreak at North Warren and went to investigate. A large area of gorse and broom was an ideal site. Careful searching of likely-looking bushes proved fruitless. Then a sudden dark flash of wings led us to a thistle 1 And to our first Green Hairstreak. It really is bright green on its underside, the only green British butterfly. This one had a broken line of white dots across the lower wing It was tiny, and so much like the green foliage that it was very difficult to see until it moved. We discovered that they rest with folded wings and that the dark brown upper side is only glimpsed in flight. We later learnt, and saw, that the males position themselves on gorse or broom flowers at the outer edges of their breeding territory and dart out to investigate passing insects, to do battle with other males,· or to court the females. About six weeks later, in July, in the Kenton Hills woodland, we suddenly saw about a dozen small butterflies dart at speed across a path at the srnmy edge of the wood. They flew up into surrounding trees and through binoculars we were able to identify the white line, a bit like a lightning flash, on the underside of the mid-brown wings. TffJ,; S(!Ff,CJ/,K ARGUS Vu/ 2
They were White-letter Hairstreaks. Last year one conveniently came down to nectar on a bramble just be~ide us and Michael was able to take a really clear photograph which is one of the highlights of our special album. (Strymonidia w-a/buml - Ed).
f-L
·\;=~ White-letter Hairstreak.t. Sntyrimn (S11)?110llidin)11>·t1lb11m
Purple Hairstreaks eluded us, though we scanned the upper canopies of many oak trees, until a visit to Minsmere. On a warm July evening we at last saw eight or ten high up in the oak trees, enjoying snacks of sticky aphid honeydew from the leaves, or basking in the sunshine with their wings wide open. Like the other Hairstreaks, when they moved they moved at speed. We were surprised to see how pale the w1derside of their wings is - a pale greyish-buff, in contrast to the dark black/brown and purple of the upper wings. Binoculars were again an asset. But beware stiff necks! Purple Hairstreaks prefer the tops of oak trees and although they are reputed to come down to brambles to nectar we have never seen one do so. 4
It was i.nthe third year of butterfly watching that we learnt to distinguish between the Small and Essex Skippers. These small pale golden-brown butterflies dart at speed through tall grasses and can fly sideways as easily as forwards! To a learner they look more moths than butterflies because of the way they hold their wings when at rest; the two forcwings point upwards in a V, while the hindwings are held parallel to the ground. We learnt that the only obvious difference between them is that the Essex Skipper has glossy black tips to the underside of its antennae while the Small Skipper has brown or orange. If you are adept at crawling through grass so skilfully that you can catch the Skipper head on then you will be able to identify them without any difficulty!
It was a relief when walking along a path woods and the high cornfield, we saw a butterfly gliding ahead settling on a bramble at brightly coloured with black and brown see how ragged the were. In my butterflies had smoothComma", said Michael. Comma?" "Look! Can shaped white mark wings?" And sure The Comma promptly favourite butterflies.
later the same day, between conifer hedge boundary of a large bright orange of us and then eye levelI Its wings were mot1led and l was amazed to edges of the wmgs experience edged wings. "It's a "Why is it called a you see the c01mnawhen it closes its enough, I could. became one of my
Living in coastal Suffolk we quickly discovered that this area has only two species of hlue butterflies; Common Blue and Holly Blue. But there is an exception. There are still a few sites where the Silver-studded Blue is managing to hold on and we made a special journey to Martlesham Heath to look for it. There were plenty of Common Blues but we suddenly realised that among them were some smaller blue butterflies. When one of the smaller ones settled on the purple bell-heather flowers we could see that it had deep brown bands across the top of the upperside of its hind wings and inside the white edges of all four wings. It dawned on me that the Common Blue male butterflies don't have the brown markings. The silver studs were much harder to find. In fact they seemed more like a band of white inside the band of orange on the underside of the lower wings, contrasting with the white star-like flash of the Common Blues. The females of both species are brown not blue, and are very similar, but I am gradually learning to sort them out from their undersides. To our joy, in succeeding
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In September, these same bushes became host to Poplar Hawk caterpillars which, although superficially similar in appearance, are much plumper and often adorned with reddish-brown patches along their backs. Both these species have very rough skin, almost like coarse sandpaper to touch. Other Poplar Hawks were foW1don a weeping willow which overhangs a concrete area and their presence was betrayed by their droppings on the floor! Shrubby grovvths of Ash in the hedgerows seem to be the prefexrnd food plant of the Privet Hawk in this area. Of the seventy or so caterpillars that I noted this year, only three were on Privet, three on Lilac and one each on Holly, Lonicera Nitida and Snowberry. I kept one or two caterpillars from each site and all twenty are still alive and healthy as pupae in March. Privet Hawk-moth This is quite different to those 1 kept as a schoolboy when many had been 'stung' by parasites. I had a quick look early in the season arow1d the growth surrounding the stems of the avenue of Lime trees in Nowton Park. Small holes in the leaves usually meant a tiny Lime Hawk caterpillar was lying on the midrib underneath the leaf. They were in their dozens but tragically, on return to the site when the larvae should have been fully grown, I found all this growth had been completely cleared away. One wonders how many Lime Hawks perished in the interests of tidiness. However, I did find a few at the base of Lime trees at the approach to Sudbury Railway Station and a solitary specimen feeding on Birch on the disused Railway line walk in Great Whelnetham. The same walk appears to be a good site for many moth larvae and here, I found three Large Elephant Hawk larvae on willowherb. I received reports of these being commonly fow1d, even in gardens in the middle of Sudbury, feeding on fuschia or grapevine. Strangely, these are caterpillars found most easily at night as they are very conspicuous in torchlight. Its ~ near relative, the Small Elephant Hawk, I Elephant 1-lawk-moth did not find in this area but in drier _ Breckland areas they are often quite common. This last species incidentally, will often feign death if handled and will hang limply over its food plant for up to an hour before resuming feeding lm,· SUFFOIX ARGUS Vo! 2
JO
years, we have found five other sites nearer to Minsmere where there are Silverstudded Blues.
Last summer, I carried out a survey of the Hawk moths of West Suffolk to the south of Bury St. Edmunds. My objective was to see if our resident Hawk-moths had suffered the same decline in numbers as butterflies since my schooldays in the late fifties. In those days, our garden shed and even my bedroom, was filled with sweet - jars and shoe boxes in which thrived several types of Hawk-moth caterpillars. In the midsixties, my long-suffering wife, then my fiancee, often had to endure sudden emergency stops in our old Ford Prefect simply because I had spotted a denuded twig in the hedgerow which betrayed the presence of a large Hawk-moth caterpillar. I considered that a fairly regular and intensive search for caterpillars would give the best idea of population densities and secondarily, to record those adult species which visited my mercury vapour lamp in the garden. Of necessity, the former had to be limited to the stretch of the Al34 road to Sudbury, where I work, with the occasional detour through the villages ofLawshall, Cockfield and Stanningfield. A start was made in mid-July. This is when one would expect to find the first follygrown caterpillars of both Poplar and Eyed Hawk-moths. Most years, these species are double-brooded, when the second generation of caterpillars are easy to find from early- to mid-September. When very small, most Hawk-moth larvae can be obtained easily by beating but later, they cling so tightly to their food plant that to dislodge them is impossible. The first searches were somewhat disappointing; the only incident of note was that eighteen Eyed Hawk larvae were seen on one sallow bush next to the lay-by between Alpheton and Bridge Street. This was probably caused by a crippled female as most Hawk-moths lay their eggs singly or in pairs. Later in the summer, most Sallow bushes on this route yielded an Eyed-Hawk caterpillar or two. In spite of their good camouflage on this foliage, they are easy to find because of the large amount of leaves they consume although Lappet, Puss Moth and companies of Buff Tip larvae create the same effect. 9
One of the main lessons we have learnt about butterfly watching is to expect the unexpected. Nearly every time we go out something happens which makes us say "That's a bonus!" Like the day at Kenton Hills when, totally unexpectedly, our first White Admiral sat on a bramble at knee level and stayed there to let us see it. We didn't even know there were White Admirals in our part of Suffolk. Or the day when clouds of Graylings flew up between the gorse bushes at North Warren and some kept settling on my blue dress. Then there was the red-letter day, again at Kenton hills when we saw our first and only Humming-bird Hawk-moth nectaring on the red campion just next to us. It was hovering close to the campion flowers, as humming birds do, but not settling, with extremely rapid wing movements that made the wings almost invisible. Each butterfly season we seem to learn a lot more. We hope you get as much delight from your butterfly watching as we do. JennyKelsey
,-
SUFFOLK SHOW 1-2 June 1994 The Branch will be attending the County Show. Running a stall at these events needs as many helpers as possible the more literally the merrier_ Come along, help out and have some fun selling wildtlowers and membership !
Contact Richard Stewart on 0473 68872_ 5 (before 29 May) Eyed l la\\'k-moth
THE SUFflJJX
ARGUS Vo/ 2
IHI~ SUFFOLK ARGUS Vo/ 2
6
THE NATIONALMOTH CONSERVATIONPROJECT Moths have always been part of the remit of Butterfly Conservation but it is fair to say that little has been achieved during the first 25 years. The National Moth Conservation Project is project was developed by myself with the fonner Nature Conservancy Council (NCC). Since 1987 the Joint Nature Conservancy Committee (JNCC) has funded the work and now Butterfly Conservation has entered the frame, my position as National Moth Conservation Officer is providing an excellent opportunity to put moths finnly on the conservation map.
Wonnwood Cucullia absinthii 0
Before.1980
f• J1
•
1980 Onwarlh
• •
lat"V;IItc00rd Several &dullrecords
•
Single adulttroord
We have some 2,500 species of moth in Britain compared with 200,000 worldwide and it is our nature reserves, both local and national, which offer the best means of conservation study. With so many species and limited conservation funds it has been necessary to focus our attention closely on what we have identified as the 250 rarest species oflarger moths. National distribution maps have been developed and will soon be published in the fonn of an atlas. Our infonnation is supplied by a national network of dedicated county moth recorders and is entered onto our computer database. Infonnation is also provided by the larger organisations such as the JNCC, the Biolo!,11calRecords Centre, Monks Wood and the Rothamsted Insect survey. At the moment, details are entered manually. The aim over the next few years is to transfer this activity to county level and to exchange data on disk which should enable more efficient manipulation of data for all.
I
I. I
Roger Kendrick is your Moth Conservation Officer, and if you want to get involved, contact him. He has an overview of all Branch moth-related activities and how they fit in with those of the other local conservation organisations. All moth records collected by Branch members should however, be sent to the County Recorder, Arthur Watchman (see back cover-Ed) . Suffolk Branch can play a vital part in support of the pn:-.jectparticularly as.the county is home to the following 'Nationally Scarce' and 'Red Data' 1 species: Barberry Carpet, Bright Wave, Four-spotted Moth, Forester Moth, Grey Carpet, Wonnwood, Goat Moth, Small Eggar, Marsh Moth as well as various Clcarwings. The endangered Barberry Carpet in particular, could be a good figurehead for moth work within the Branch. It is k11ownfrom only three sites in Britain, one of which is in Suffolk where even here survival is in doubt due to serious habitat damage caused by stubble burning in August, 1991. English Nature will be supporting work this year to assess its current status and development of a close working relationship can only enhance its conservation.
The Marsh Moth, sadly, has not been recorded since 1968 when a singleton was recorded at Redgrave Fen, but who knows, organised field trips using the special location techniques which this species requires may yet reveal a lost colony!
1
Red Data Book (RDB) species are found in fewer than IS 10 km squares in Britain. Nationallyscarce species are those which can be found in 16-100 of these grid squares 7
lHl~ SUFF()f,K ARGUS Vo/ 2
Good luck withmoths as well as butterflies in 1994. THE SUFFOLKARGUS Vo!2
Paul Waring 8
THE NATIONALMOTH CONSERVATIONPROJECT Moths have always been part of the remit of Butterfly Conservation but it is fair to say that little has been achieved during the first 25 years. The National Moth Conservation Project is project was developed by myself with the fonner Nature Conservancy Council (NCC). Since 1987 the Joint Nature Conservancy Committee (JNCC) has funded the work and now Butterfly Conservation has entered the frame, my position as National Moth Conservation Officer is providing an excellent opportunity to put moths finnly on the conservation map.
Wonnwood Cucullia absinthii 0
Before.1980
f• J1
•
1980 Onwarlh
• •
lat"V;IItc00rd Several &dullrecords
•
Single adulttroord
We have some 2,500 species of moth in Britain compared with 200,000 worldwide and it is our nature reserves, both local and national, which offer the best means of conservation study. With so many species and limited conservation funds it has been necessary to focus our attention closely on what we have identified as the 250 rarest species oflarger moths. National distribution maps have been developed and will soon be published in the fonn of an atlas. Our infonnation is supplied by a national network of dedicated county moth recorders and is entered onto our computer database. Infonnation is also provided by the larger organisations such as the JNCC, the Biolo!,11calRecords Centre, Monks Wood and the Rothamsted Insect survey. At the moment, details are entered manually. The aim over the next few years is to transfer this activity to county level and to exchange data on disk which should enable more efficient manipulation of data for all.
I
I. I
Roger Kendrick is your Moth Conservation Officer, and if you want to get involved, contact him. He has an overview of all Branch moth-related activities and how they fit in with those of the other local conservation organisations. All moth records collected by Branch members should however, be sent to the County Recorder, Arthur Watchman (see back cover-Ed) . Suffolk Branch can play a vital part in support of the pn:-.jectparticularly as.the county is home to the following 'Nationally Scarce' and 'Red Data' 1 species: Barberry Carpet, Bright Wave, Four-spotted Moth, Forester Moth, Grey Carpet, Wonnwood, Goat Moth, Small Eggar, Marsh Moth as well as various Clcarwings. The endangered Barberry Carpet in particular, could be a good figurehead for moth work within the Branch. It is k11ownfrom only three sites in Britain, one of which is in Suffolk where even here survival is in doubt due to serious habitat damage caused by stubble burning in August, 1991. English Nature will be supporting work this year to assess its current status and development of a close working relationship can only enhance its conservation.
The Marsh Moth, sadly, has not been recorded since 1968 when a singleton was recorded at Redgrave Fen, but who knows, organised field trips using the special location techniques which this species requires may yet reveal a lost colony!
1
Red Data Book (RDB) species are found in fewer than IS 10 km squares in Britain. Nationallyscarce species are those which can be found in 16-100 of these grid squares 7
lHl~ SUFF()f,K ARGUS Vo/ 2
Good luck withmoths as well as butterflies in 1994. THE SUFFOLKARGUS Vo!2
Paul Waring 8
years, we have found five other sites nearer to Minsmere where there are Silverstudded Blues.
Last summer, I carried out a survey of the Hawk moths of West Suffolk to the south of Bury St. Edmunds. My objective was to see if our resident Hawk-moths had suffered the same decline in numbers as butterflies since my schooldays in the late fifties. In those days, our garden shed and even my bedroom, was filled with sweet - jars and shoe boxes in which thrived several types of Hawk-moth caterpillars. In the midsixties, my long-suffering wife, then my fiancee, often had to endure sudden emergency stops in our old Ford Prefect simply because I had spotted a denuded twig in the hedgerow which betrayed the presence of a large Hawk-moth caterpillar. I considered that a fairly regular and intensive search for caterpillars would give the best idea of population densities and secondarily, to record those adult species which visited my mercury vapour lamp in the garden. Of necessity, the former had to be limited to the stretch of the Al34 road to Sudbury, where I work, with the occasional detour through the villages ofLawshall, Cockfield and Stanningfield. A start was made in mid-July. This is when one would expect to find the first follygrown caterpillars of both Poplar and Eyed Hawk-moths. Most years, these species are double-brooded, when the second generation of caterpillars are easy to find from early- to mid-September. When very small, most Hawk-moth larvae can be obtained easily by beating but later, they cling so tightly to their food plant that to dislodge them is impossible. The first searches were somewhat disappointing; the only incident of note was that eighteen Eyed Hawk larvae were seen on one sallow bush next to the lay-by between Alpheton and Bridge Street. This was probably caused by a crippled female as most Hawk-moths lay their eggs singly or in pairs. Later in the summer, most Sallow bushes on this route yielded an Eyed-Hawk caterpillar or two. In spite of their good camouflage on this foliage, they are easy to find because of the large amount of leaves they consume although Lappet, Puss Moth and companies of Buff Tip larvae create the same effect. 9
One of the main lessons we have learnt about butterfly watching is to expect the unexpected. Nearly every time we go out something happens which makes us say "That's a bonus!" Like the day at Kenton Hills when, totally unexpectedly, our first White Admiral sat on a bramble at knee level and stayed there to let us see it. We didn't even know there were White Admirals in our part of Suffolk. Or the day when clouds of Graylings flew up between the gorse bushes at North Warren and some kept settling on my blue dress. Then there was the red-letter day, again at Kenton hills when we saw our first and only Humming-bird Hawk-moth nectaring on the red campion just next to us. It was hovering close to the campion flowers, as humming birds do, but not settling, with extremely rapid wing movements that made the wings almost invisible. Each butterfly season we seem to learn a lot more. We hope you get as much delight from your butterfly watching as we do. JennyKelsey
,-
SUFFOLK SHOW 1-2 June 1994 The Branch will be attending the County Show. Running a stall at these events needs as many helpers as possible the more literally the merrier_ Come along, help out and have some fun selling wildtlowers and membership !
Contact Richard Stewart on 0473 68872_ 5 (before 29 May) Eyed l la\\'k-moth
THE SUFflJJX
ARGUS Vo/ 2
IHI~ SUFFOLK ARGUS Vo/ 2
6
It was i.nthe third year of butterfly watching that we learnt to distinguish between the Small and Essex Skippers. These small pale golden-brown butterflies dart at speed through tall grasses and can fly sideways as easily as forwards! To a learner they look more moths than butterflies because of the way they hold their wings when at rest; the two forcwings point upwards in a V, while the hindwings are held parallel to the ground. We learnt that the only obvious difference between them is that the Essex Skipper has glossy black tips to the underside of its antennae while the Small Skipper has brown or orange. If you are adept at crawling through grass so skilfully that you can catch the Skipper head on then you will be able to identify them without any difficulty!
It was a relief when walking along a path woods and the high cornfield, we saw a butterfly gliding ahead settling on a bramble at brightly coloured with black and brown see how ragged the were. In my butterflies had smoothComma", said Michael. Comma?" "Look! Can shaped white mark wings?" And sure The Comma promptly favourite butterflies.
later the same day, between conifer hedge boundary of a large bright orange of us and then eye levelI Its wings were mot1led and l was amazed to edges of the wmgs experience edged wings. "It's a "Why is it called a you see the c01mnawhen it closes its enough, I could. became one of my
Living in coastal Suffolk we quickly discovered that this area has only two species of hlue butterflies; Common Blue and Holly Blue. But there is an exception. There are still a few sites where the Silver-studded Blue is managing to hold on and we made a special journey to Martlesham Heath to look for it. There were plenty of Common Blues but we suddenly realised that among them were some smaller blue butterflies. When one of the smaller ones settled on the purple bell-heather flowers we could see that it had deep brown bands across the top of the upperside of its hind wings and inside the white edges of all four wings. It dawned on me that the Common Blue male butterflies don't have the brown markings. The silver studs were much harder to find. In fact they seemed more like a band of white inside the band of orange on the underside of the lower wings, contrasting with the white star-like flash of the Common Blues. The females of both species are brown not blue, and are very similar, but I am gradually learning to sort them out from their undersides. To our joy, in succeeding
s
lH!, SUFNJI.K ARGUS Vo! 2
In September, these same bushes became host to Poplar Hawk caterpillars which, although superficially similar in appearance, are much plumper and often adorned with reddish-brown patches along their backs. Both these species have very rough skin, almost like coarse sandpaper to touch. Other Poplar Hawks were foW1don a weeping willow which overhangs a concrete area and their presence was betrayed by their droppings on the floor! Shrubby grovvths of Ash in the hedgerows seem to be the prefexrnd food plant of the Privet Hawk in this area. Of the seventy or so caterpillars that I noted this year, only three were on Privet, three on Lilac and one each on Holly, Lonicera Nitida and Snowberry. I kept one or two caterpillars from each site and all twenty are still alive and healthy as pupae in March. Privet Hawk-moth This is quite different to those 1 kept as a schoolboy when many had been 'stung' by parasites. I had a quick look early in the season arow1d the growth surrounding the stems of the avenue of Lime trees in Nowton Park. Small holes in the leaves usually meant a tiny Lime Hawk caterpillar was lying on the midrib underneath the leaf. They were in their dozens but tragically, on return to the site when the larvae should have been fully grown, I found all this growth had been completely cleared away. One wonders how many Lime Hawks perished in the interests of tidiness. However, I did find a few at the base of Lime trees at the approach to Sudbury Railway Station and a solitary specimen feeding on Birch on the disused Railway line walk in Great Whelnetham. The same walk appears to be a good site for many moth larvae and here, I found three Large Elephant Hawk larvae on willowherb. I received reports of these being commonly fow1d, even in gardens in the middle of Sudbury, feeding on fuschia or grapevine. Strangely, these are caterpillars found most easily at night as they are very conspicuous in torchlight. Its ~ near relative, the Small Elephant Hawk, I Elephant 1-lawk-moth did not find in this area but in drier _ Breckland areas they are often quite common. This last species incidentally, will often feign death if handled and will hang limply over its food plant for up to an hour before resuming feeding lm,· SUFFOIX ARGUS Vo! 2
JO
The Pine Hawks also seem to favour the drier Breckland areas in this county. One adult briefly visited my MV lamp but I noted them in the West Stow/Barton Mills/Mildenhall area sitting, sometimes in pairs, on pine tnmks during the day, usually at about eye-level. Those who operate portable moth traps in the King's Forest area, tell me that Pine Hawks often arrive in large numbers on a suitable night. Our two remaining residents, the Broad- and Narrow-Bordered Bee Hawk-moths are both now regarded as threatened species. I have never found the latter but in previous years I had seen adult Broad-Bordered Hawks in Bradfield Woods, Haughley Park and at Fritton Lake, so I had assumed that this was largely a woodland species. However this year, on a day visit to Dunwich Heath, I was watching male Oak Eggar and Fox ' Moths dashing erratically over the heather close to the toilets and Coastguards Cottage. One plummeted into low honeysuckle growth and quite by accident, I found four Bee Hawk larvae feeding in a very exposed way on this same bush. A further wide search revealed others, very conspicuous because of their bright green overall colouring and reddish-brown undersides. I took a few home and like the Puss Moth caterpillar they turned into a dull maroon colour before pupating. Just a comment or two on the mif,rrantHawk Moths. One or two Bedstraw Hawks have visited the light in my garden but that was in 1992. The day-flying Hummingbird Hawk came to Buddleia and Jasmine even when it was raining hard ! Last year my wife planted Nicotiana (Tobacco Plant) and we were duly rewarded by a visiting Convoivulus Hawk-moth feeding whilst hovering at dusk. At that time of day, the erratic movement of the long white flowers in the still evening and the sound of rapid wing beats gave away its presence. However, I got too close and the moth just seemed to vanish in an instant. The Death's-head Hawk seems to be absent in some years, then reappears in moderate numbers. This was the case in 1992 but I did not see it last year. Finally, I must just mention the highlight of all my moth-watching years which occurred in September, 1992. I was kneeling on the white sheet under a suspended 11
!HJ,; SUFFOIX ARGUS Vo/ 2
••BUTTERFLY WATCHING•• A BEGINNER IN SUFFOLK GOES ON LEARNING ... 1990 was the year of the Hairstreak. After three years of Butterfly watching I had actually heard of Hairstreaks. They certainly live up to part of their name 'streak' for speed of movement! We were told of a kical site for Green Hairstreak at North Warren and went to investigate. A large area of gorse and broom was an ideal site. Careful searching of likely-looking bushes proved fruitless. Then a sudden dark flash of wings led us to a thistle 1 And to our first Green Hairstreak. It really is bright green on its underside, the only green British butterfly. This one had a broken line of white dots across the lower wing It was tiny, and so much like the green foliage that it was very difficult to see until it moved. We discovered that they rest with folded wings and that the dark brown upper side is only glimpsed in flight. We later learnt, and saw, that the males position themselves on gorse or broom flowers at the outer edges of their breeding territory and dart out to investigate passing insects, to do battle with other males,· or to court the females. About six weeks later, in July, in the Kenton Hills woodland, we suddenly saw about a dozen small butterflies dart at speed across a path at the srnmy edge of the wood. They flew up into surrounding trees and through binoculars we were able to identify the white line, a bit like a lightning flash, on the underside of the mid-brown wings. TffJ,; S(!Ff,CJ/,K ARGUS Vu/ 2
They were White-letter Hairstreaks. Last year one conveniently came down to nectar on a bramble just be~ide us and Michael was able to take a really clear photograph which is one of the highlights of our special album. (Strymonidia w-a/buml - Ed).
f-L
·\;=~ White-letter Hairstreak.t. Sntyrimn (S11)?110llidin)11>·t1lb11m
Purple Hairstreaks eluded us, though we scanned the upper canopies of many oak trees, until a visit to Minsmere. On a warm July evening we at last saw eight or ten high up in the oak trees, enjoying snacks of sticky aphid honeydew from the leaves, or basking in the sunshine with their wings wide open. Like the other Hairstreaks, when they moved they moved at speed. We were surprised to see how pale the w1derside of their wings is - a pale greyish-buff, in contrast to the dark black/brown and purple of the upper wings. Binoculars were again an asset. But beware stiff necks! Purple Hairstreaks prefer the tops of oak trees and although they are reputed to come down to brambles to nectar we have never seen one do so. 4
SUFFOLK GARDEN BUTTERFLY SURVEY 1994 Enclosedwith this issue of the SUFFOLKARGUS is a double-sided questionnairerelating to garden butterfliesin Suffolk. This is an area of recordingwithin the county that has not received separate, specific considerationand I have been given a Bursaryby the Suffolk Naturalists' Society (SNS)to conduct this survey during 1994. Obviously,I am hoping for as many returns as possible so that a meaningful report can be prepared. It is also importantto cover all areas of Suffoik and different locations,types and sizes of gardens. Can I emphasise that returns from town centre and suburban locations are particularlywelcome; our own suburbangarden in Ipswich has, as an example,so far been visited by 18 different species,which is nearly one third of the national total. it is hoped that all of the questionnairescan be completed but part returns will also be welcome. Of particularinterestwill be sightings of SpeckledWood and White-letter Hairstreak. The survey should also prove interestingto note 1994 numbers of Holly Blue and Painted Lady. There is a section devoted to butterfly-attracting plants and another to predators,plus an opportunityto make a comparison with previousseasons. The questionnairewill be distributedto membersof SNS and the Ipswich and District Natural History Society as well as Suffolk Branch of Butterfly Conservation. This will provide a potentialreturn of 900 forms. For any of you who may be wonderingabout the Butterfly Conservation national garden survey, I would like to make it clear that this survey will not conflict with its aims. The prime objective of my survey is to record, during one year, the butterfliesvisiting Suffolk gardens,whereas the aim of the national garden survey is to discover the 'perfect butterfly garden' through countrywideobservationsover a longer period. For this year only, existing and new participantswiil be asked to recordtheir garden observations on two forms; one for Margaret Vickery and one for me. I hope the questionnaire is self-explanatorybut please contact me if further clarification is needed. Richard Stewart
Suffolk Branch strongly supports this local initiative as an extension to the national survey. Jt is interesting to see that Richard has extended the return deadline to allow for late sightings, in view of his article on late butterflies in the.first issue! One thing's/or sure, we can't get enough information about Suffolk's butterflies so please do all that you can to help ensure the success of Richard's survey. Ed. 3
THE SUfFOI.K ARGUS Vo/ 2
MV lamp and about to retire early, since half an hours watching had only produced two Angle Shades and a few of the inevitable late Silver Y's and Yellow Underwings, when a large moth landed on the shoulder of my white Tee-shirt with quite a thump. I literally pinched myself to see if I was dreaming, because it was a perfect example of a Silver-striped Hawk - a very rare visitor indeed. It seemed quite mesmerised by the light and tamely settled down in a large cardboard box until I could photograph it next morning. In the evening it almost seemed reluctant to leave! I hope the foregoing may indicate that our Hawk Moths have fared quite well in Suffolk over the years. Certainly the
Privet, Poplar and Eyed Hawks are often abundant at the caterpillar stage this in spite of the comment from one livestock price list that these are 'seldom found in the wild now'. I hope one day to see the Spurge and the Striped Hawk Moths in this country but the beautiful Oleander Hawk might come my way during a Mediterranean holiday. However, I am trying to record the life - cycle of these fascinating insects on video tape, to watch during the long winter evenings. This year, 1994, I hpoe to carry out a similar survey of the Lasiocampidae the Lackeys, Lappets, Drinker and Eggars etc. and would be pleased to hear from other readers concerning both groups of moths. Mervyn Crawford
Jl_{tfiou/Jfi. I am a tlirougliand tliroug!iCum6rian,I liavea specia( fondnessfor Sujfo(l 'My Coveof 6utterjfusfirst suifacetftliereand two of my cliiUrenwere6om in <Bury St. <Etfmurufs. I first remem6er tliepfacefrom way 6aci.)ntlie 1960'swlienI went to see my nativeCarfisfep(aya Cup- tie at <Portman <I(oatf an.aI we((remem6er tliinfjng tfiat <East )1.ngfiawas a worufaway. £ittfe aufI f._,now tlien tliat my fwme for 13yearswouU 6ein Cfure,West Sujfo(l Jl_nyway,6ac{to 6utterjftesandwliereit aff 6egan.I was watcfiinlJa qreen 'Wooapecfisr in a Suffo({ woocffandand infact was waitingfor it to reappearwlien two 6utte,fftescaU[Jfit my eyein a sliaft of sunf1f}fit in a cCeari.ng. I watclied'tliem spira(up and aownfor severa(minutesa6so(ute{y fascinatetf 6y tliem. Pinaffy,tliey settfeaaruf6eganto d'owliat natureintended'.<[fieWooapecfisrwas soonforgotten and tlie/off.owingd'ayI 6oU[Jfit a 6utte,j[yidentificationguufe. rrfieywere 6utteif[tesI liad'neverseen6efore;mindyou a([6utterjftest<> a fuymansucfias I was.,wereaff Ca66age'Wfiitesor <Rja Jl_amiraCs. I quiclijyiaentifad'tliemas 7HE SUfFOLK ARGUS Vo/ 2
12
w
I
Speck_fetf Woods. Soon I was travellitl{J tlie fetl{Jtfianti 6reatftliof Sujfof/i.;,(joinino tlie(B(JJCS as it was tlien) anti tlieSuffo[k,'Wi[d[ife'Trust. <Tliis was a6out 1977 wlien tlierewas no effectiveSuffo(k,<Brancli of <Butterfly Conservation.Later I started to ventureout a 6itfurtlierinto tlie surrounai111J countiesanti u[timate[ya[[ overtlie VJ( anti 6eyontf.
CONTENTS
BUTTERRY
CONSERVATION
------
--·--•-------
DE DIC ATEO TO SAVING WI LO BUTTER F l I ES
1994AGM So, wliereinSuffo[{tfo I reca[[as 6eitl{Jmyfavourite 6utteif[y liaunts? <Tlie (J)evi['s (J)itcfiin :Newmarl<gt (SeeEventsList. Ed.) liasto 6e top of my fut, not 6ecauseof its profusionof 6utte,jfies 6ut 6ecauseI was cfrawnto it li.k.§a magnet. It is of great 6otanicafinterest6ut liassucfi6utteif[yspeciesas <Brown }trgus, (JreenJfairstreat Comma,Watr<Brown af.ongwitfi a[[tfie morecommonspecies.I reca[[seei111J 13 aifferent insectstfiereon a good tfay. It was pfeasinoto reatftliat we liaverecent[y fount£ tlie Cliaff_,fii[[ <B{ue aoaintfiere. rrlietford(forestis a&owe[[up on my fut offavoured sites. }t[tfiou.gfimain[y conifers,enou.gli. oufer6roatf-Ceavecf wootffantilias 6eenCeftto 6e of interest anti tfiere aremany witfe ritfesanti cfeari711Js. Speciessucfias (Jrizz{ec{ SR;jppercertain[yused to 6e tliere,afotl{Jwitli.(J)i711Jy SR;jpper, Sma[[,<Essex.anti LargeSR;jppers.(Jrayli.111J anti Comma,Speck,fedWoods 6y tfie fiuntiretf,Smaff Coppersanti qreenJfairstreaf?J. CavenhamJfeatli.was tfiepfucefor (Jrayli.nos fiowever,antiit afsoCook.§d goodfor Sifver-studaed<B{ue tfiou.glinone_. wereeverfount£,anti norliavetliey 6eentliereasfar as I k,now. }t li.igfiftgfit of everyseasonli.owever,was tfieannua{tret or tref?Jacross to <EastSuffo{{to see tfieSifver-studson :M.artfesliam Jfeatli.. %ere were not many fiousestfienanti tlierewere<Bf ues 6y tfie fiuntfrecfafo711J witli.great num6ersof otfier species. I fast visited:M.artfesliam in 1992wli.ifstin tfieareaon 6usinessanti managedto see tfie fastfew Si{ver-studaed<B{ues of tfieseason. It Cooi<gd to me as if tfie fwuse 6uiufi.1llJ liasnow 6eencurtaif.ed6ut not witfiout seriousf.ossof quali.ty lia6itat. It now remainsto 6e seenwfietfiertlieycan survivetfiegreaterpresenceof li.umans,clogs,6il<gs et a[ ff'rom:M.artfesliam I a{wayswent up to <Rstuffesliam anti 'Tunstaff(6eforetfiegafes 6few tfiemclown)in tfie fiopeof seei711J Wli.ite}tdmira[in Suffo[li.:,I neverauf seeone. I returnee[to five in Soutli.Lal<gfunti fierein Cum6riain 1989anti I 6rou.gfitwitfi me my Coveof 6utte,jfieswli.icli. liasgrown even stronoerO'Ver tfieyears. It is a tfeligli.tto 6e a6fe to see37 speciesnow in Cum6riaantf 29 of tfiemwitliin afew mifesof my fiome. Speciessucfias Scotcli.}trgus,<DarfiJ}reen ff'ritiffaryantf tfiereareso many 13
THE SUFFOLK ARGUS Vo! 2
ANOTHE ·,RHAB!T AT S
Front Cover
Prize Winner
1
Target Species for 1994
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Contents
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Suffolk Garden Butterfly Survey - Richard Stewart
3
Butterfly Watching - Jenny Kelsey
4
The National Moth Conservation Project - Paul Waring
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Suffolk Hawk Moths - Mervyn Crawford
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A Northerner in Suffolk - Steve Doyle
12
Favourite Spots - Steve Goddard
14
Contacts
Back Cover
THESUFFOLKARGUS Vo/2 HEAD OFFICE: P.O.BOX222,DEDHAM, COLCHESTER, ESSEX, C076EY. TELEPHONE 0206322342 THEBRITISH BUTTERFLY CONSERVATION SOCIETY LTD. Rl:GISUREO OFFICETIJOOR HOUSE. OUOHN. LEICtSTERSHIRf, LE12SAO AEGISTEREO IN(NGLANO No 22064611 R[GISHREOCHARITY lfo ™937
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Prize 'Winner ~97
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Jfigfi<Brown <Fritiffaries a6outyou wouuf wotu:ferwfiataff tliefuss was a6out concemingtlieirsurvival LargeJfeatfisj[y just acrosstlie riveran.1" up in tlie <Feffs are:Mountain(Rjngfets.
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ongratulations to Suffolk Branch member Russell Edwards on being awarded First Prize in the UK Moths section in the 1993 Butterfly Photographer of the Year competition organised by Butterfly Conservation. Russell's winning picture was of a Poplar Hawk-moth taken in his own garden. His award was presented to him by Gordon Beningfield, President of the Society, at this year's National AGM.
Target species for1994 Just to remind you all of the appeal made in the first issue of the SUFFOLKAR6US for us all to make a special effort to look for and take note of six particular species when recording our observations this year. These are (in alphabetical order): Brown Argus, Dingy Slcipper,Grizzled Slcipper,Silver-studded Blue, White Admiral and White-letter Hairstreak. Whilst we should all be aware of the status of our mascot, the Silver-studded Blue, the others are no less vulnerable. As I said before, it may already be too late for the Grizzled Slcipper which was last positively recorded in 1979. This latter species is in serious decline in many parts of central and southern England and is the subft:ct of a three-year research project at the University of East London. The aim is to generate recommendations on how this little-studied butterfly may be most effectively conserved. Therefore, any observations will not only be of help to us but will also be forwarded on to support this major study. As you read this, Grizzled Skippers could well be on the wing somewhere in Suffolk. Their flight period is usually mid-May to end Jw1e. lt was last recorded on 19th May 1979, at Felshamhall (Bradfield) Woods. Could it still be here in the woodland edges? Elsewhere in this issue, Steve Doyle talks (see p.12) of seeing it in Thetford forest. Who knows, you could go down in local history as the finder of the first colony since the 1970's. We will ce11ainlybe printing any such news in the SUFFOLKARGUS. Records of all butterfly sightings should be sent to Richard Stewart, who is deputising for Steve Piotrowski as County Recorder until further notice (see back cover). The season's just getting under way - have a lovely summer - look forward to hearing about your adventures for the autumn edition. SteveGoadard THF SUFFOLK ARGUS Vo! 2
I spenamucfiof my time now doingconservationworli_,in Cum6riawitfi tlie:Nortfzof
<Eng [a.,u[CBrancli. 'Weareon[yjust 18 montfisoU 6ut afreatfynave4 major6utteif[y conservation projectsunderway. 'Wearefocusing on tlie:Marsfz<Fritiffary (my specia[interest)and fzopeto expandtliepresentnum6erof 4 sites. Otliermajor projectsongoingarein respectof tfie<DuR.§ of <Burgundy anaJ{igfz<Brown <Fritiffaries and tlie:MountainCJ?j:ngfet. 'Wecfesperate[y want to work,ontliefast declining <PearC-6ortferea <Friti«ary and tlie(])ark,green <Friti«ary afongwitfz tlieSmaff<B[ue 6ut fack,ofliumanresourcesrestrictsourprogress.
If any mem6ersstray up to Cum6ria,I wiff 6eon[yto pfeaseato giveyou news of sigfztingsor sitesfor someof ourspeciafi.ties e~eptfor tlie:Marsli<Fritiffary wfiicliis so tlireatenedtfiat we try to ~ep its presenceunderwraps. Jfave a good1994 season,I for oneam foofjngforward to it ( as tliestrongwina and rain6attermy window on tliisdank,6f.eak,'.M.arcli day!). Steve (J)oyfe
Where might you expect to find around two-thirds of the County's butterflies on one site? Wolves Wood? Maybe the King's Forest? Minsmere? Almost certainly. But how about a small site which is not even an SSSI, let alone a well known Nature Reserve? The place to which I refer is a small part of Rushmere Heath known as Bixley Fann, situated between Ipswich and Kesgrave. It is a well-walked area of rough grassland. gorse and mixed hedgerow (including both Oak and Elm) close to residential development. As the list below shows, personally I have encountered 21 of the 31 species we may see in Suffolk in an average year. My records consist of: Small, Essex and Large Skippers; Large, Small and Green- veined Whites; Green, Purple and White-letter Hairstreaks; Small Copper; Common and Holly Blues;. Red Admiral, Small Tortoiseshell, Peacock & Comma; Grayling, Gatekeeper, Meadow Brown, Sm11IIHeath & Ringlet. Perhaps surprisingly, I have yet to record Orange Tip, Wall or Painted Lady. In a good year, I might even see Clouded Yellow and could expect the count to increase still further. This could mean a remark.able 25 of the potential 31 species on one small suburban site, which clearly reflects the im:>artance of this magical little spot. It is perhaps worth noting the 6 species one would not expect to see: Dingy Skipper. Brimstone. Silver-studded Blue. Brown Argus, White Admiral or Speckled Wood. Fortunately, Suffolk Coastal District Council, who have recently taken possession of this land as Public Open Space, are drawing up a management plan to conserve the natural interest whilst allowing continued use for informal recreation. We have been in touch with them about the site and its management. and look forward to helping with it in future. Why not pop along yourself or come and see the area with other members of the Group on 23rd July ? It should be well worth it. (See Events List). In the meantime, tell us abou: your own favourite spot and we will be delighted to include your observations in a future issuP.of the SUFFOLKAR6US. Steve Goddard
THE SUFFOLK ARGUS Vo/ 2
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THE
SUFFOLK BRANCH CONT ACTS
SUFFOLK
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED Any of our memberswho feel they would like to contributeto the growingwork of the committee,in howeversmall a way. If you feel you could coordinateour show programme,run a small sales operation, producethe newsletter,keep the books or just help out now and then,
WAR6US
contact Andrew Phillips on 0206 322908
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CONSERVATION
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MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY Ron Bridle, Brook Hall Cottage, Grays Lane, Wissett, Halesworth, Suffolk IP19 0JT (0986 781392) NEWSLETTER EDITOR Steve Goddard, 47 Colchester Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP4 3BT (0473 252598) PRESS OFFICER (OPERATION BUTTERFLY) Diane Firmin, 11 Rowan Close, Stanway, Colchester, Essex CO3 5QJ (0206 331183) CONSERVATION OFFICER (MOTHS) Roger Kendrick, c/o BSc Conservation Mgt, Otley College, Otley, Suffolk (0473 785543) CONSERVATION OFFICER & COUNTY RECORDER (BUTTERFLIES) Richard Stewart, 63 Belstead Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP2 8BD (0473 688725) COMMITTEE MEMBERS Adrian Hart, Wood Cottage, High Corner, Butley, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP4 SAQ (0394 450994) Alan Johnson, 28 Medway Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP3 0QH (0473 715701) Michael & Jenny Kelsey, 25 Prospect Place, Leiston, Suffolk IP16 4AL (0728 830975) Janice Pritchard, 89 Leopold Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP4 4RN (0473 718137) CHAIRMAN Andrew Phillips, Swallow House, Long Road West, Dedham, Essex CO7 6ES (0206 322908) PRESIDENT Howard Mendel, c/o Ipswich Museum, High St, Ipswich, Suffolk IPI 3QH (0473 213761) COUNTY RECORDF:R (MOTHS) Arthur Watchman, Onchan, Back Lane, Monks Eleigh, Suffolk IP7 7BA Published by the Suffolk Branch of Butterfly Conservation (The British Butterfly Conservation Society Ltd ). Reg. No. 2206468. Registered address: Tudor House, Quorn, Loughborough, Leics LE12 8AD. Reg. Charity No. 254937. Head Office PO Box 222, Dedham, Essex CO7 6EY. Tel. (0206) 322342. Edited by Steve Goddard. Printed by Greg Herbert & Sons. Logo Silver-studded Blue by Doug Hammersley. Designed and produced by Andrew Phillips. © 1994 All rights reserved.
I'Tfi.e¾ewsfetter oftlie Sufjo[l (Branchof(ButterflyConservation I however was a seminar on Recording, and 1994AGM the essential basis it provides for conservation work. Dr Paul Waring, Butterfly Conservation's newly-appointed Moth Conservation Officer, told us about his work in developing the National Moth Recording network (p. 7 inside) and this was followed by Dr Jim Asher talking about the Millennium Atlas project for butterflies (to be reported in our next edition). Afteiwards we enjoyed a personal ~-look at the moths of Suffolk from local lepidopterist Rafe Ely, and an overview of the county's butterflies from Steve Piotrowski. All in all , the talks provided a fascinating grounding for our work to help conserve Suffolk's butterflies and moths, and we will be developing the theme with further articles, talks and events.
Our first Annual General Meeting was held, appropriately enough, in the Suffolk Room of the Butterfly Hotel at Bury St Edmw1ds, which latter generously sponsored the event. If that wasn't already good news enough, the meeting was full, the speakers were excellent, and everyone who came seemed to get something from the day, experts and lay persons alike. The business of the meeting was dealt with very quickly - but not for any lack of substance. The Chairman's report on 1993 covered a surprising amount of activity, and with even more planned in 1994, we shall have to allow more time next year. Branch membership has already broken the hundred mark and finances too are healthy, although in order to / achieve goals already set, we are going to have to set about some serious fundraising. Above all we need more volunteers, especially to help with local shows where demand already has us at full stretch.
nSI.de. . .
Garden Survey Butterfly Watching Suffolk Hawk Moths
The real substance of the day
Volume 2
p3 p4 p9
I
May 1994
