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Rare Butterflies in Suffolk- 1995
by Richard Stewart
According to our president, Howard Mendel, it has been the best ever recorded year for rare butterflies in Suffolk. In the first year of the Millennium survey there were 5 records of Queen of Spain Fritillary (Argynnis lathonia) from 5 different tetrads. This compares with just one definite specimen since 1900. The five were, in order: Minsmere (David Fairhurst - warden) on 6th August; Holbrook on the Shotley peninsula (Mark Steer), August 12th; Bradfield Woods (Stephen Hunt warden) on August 21st; Westwood Marshes near Walberswick (Mark Curley and Shelia Davie from London) on 10th September; the final one, found in a pittrap at Minsmere's nonh easr corner could have been their a fortnight before its discovery on September 16th. This specimen was_ mounted by Roger Kendrick and displayed some weeks ago at the British En. Soc. meeting in London, with full details of other sightings as above. All 5 were recorded in detail on the rare butterfly forms quickly devised by me, with many comments in panicular on the remarkable underside of the wing, described by Mark Curley as 'clear, silvery white pearls, larger and more numerous than on any other Fritillary found in the U.K' The Camberwell Beauty ' (Nymphalis antiopa) has occasionally been recorded in Suffolk, the last being a single specimen in 1994 at Rickinghall inferior. This butterfly's 'migration' is often a question of whether an ®isted passage'has occurred as a consequence of its dose association with sightings from ports. L. Hugh Newman in 'The complete British butterflies in colour' (Pub. 1968 Ebuty press and Michael Joseph) notes:
'there is a theory that most of the specimens seen here are brought over in the holds of timber ships crossing the Norrh sea and when the pit props are unloaded at Hull, Harwich and other east coast ports the butterflies fly inland'. Howard Mendel duplicated all previous records for me and there is on record from 1969 of a 'specimen seen flying ftom the hold of a Norwegian timber ship discharging at Felixstowe docks' (D.Young). However, Lliese were almost certainly genuine migraints, coinciding with waves of rare moths and dragonflies, as noted in several local papers and on local television. For the record there were 38 records from 32 different tetrads, in some cases 3 separate reports from different parts of the county on the same day. Locations varied from nature reserves to gardens and industrial sites and several were fortunately seen by many people, especially those at Hopton garden centre and Languard. Many recorders, who again gave details on the special forms, noted the attraction to plums, though softening apples were also a target in several instances. The 'Mourning Cloak' as the Americans call it is, though rare, vety easy to identify and records came from seasoned naturalists and those just fortunat_e to be in the right place at the time. I am particularly thankful to all those who sent me slides and prints. Finally, the locations; spanning 3rd August to 23rd September 1995: Minsmere (4), Ipswich (2), Aldeburgh (2), Eriswell, Dunwich, Eye, Herringswell, Little Bealings, Barsham (2), Rushmere, Theberton, Stowmarket, Halesworth, Barham, Languard (2), North Warren, Fagbury, Hundon, Bungay, Conyers Green, East Bergholt, Great Barton, Mildenhall, Hopton (2), Corton, Pakefield, Bucklesham, T angham, Long Melford and Bury St. Edmunds.
It is being suggested that relatively low numbers ofCamberwell Beauty in Scandinavian countries in the spring of 1995 could mean that summer insects in Britain may have come ftom much farther east, possibly Poland or even Russia where there had been good breeding seasons. (Nick Bowles, Butterfly Conservation, Wildlife Reports. British Wildlife, Volume 7 Number 2 December 1995, page 119).
Prolonged easterly winds during the first days of August which also saw the immigration of scarce dragonflies add strength to this sur,gestion - Ed.
