Wildlife is a-flutter in Eccleshall W

2022 has been an interesting year for butterflies in Eccleshall, partly because of some unusual climatic conditions but the perception of many people that it has been a poor year for butterflies is not borne out by the observations on the ground. However, 2022 was significant in its dryness until the late Autumn and mild temperatures until December.

What has been a feature is that some of our common coloured butterflies that we see in our gardens fared less well than usual whilst many species of butterfly found in the fields have had their best showing for some years.

Looking at the year as a whole, as normal nothing was seen in January but a surprise took place on February 1 when a Red Admiral was found basking in the sun on a house wall in Redhills, Eccleshall. Another sighting was made two days later at the other end of the Town but February was notable for three named storms coming in close succession just after the middle of the month so no more butterflies were seen until the penultimate day of the month when two Small Tortoiseshells were seen.

A few more Small Tortoiseshells were seen on fine days in March and then in the last week of the month we saw more of the species than at any time later in the year whilst out of hibernation came a few Commas, Peacocks and an odd Brimstone. April was a quiet month but a Speckled Wood was noted two months earlier than in 2021 along with the usual Orange Tips, Holly Blues, Small Whites and an early Large White and Green Veined White on the last day of the month. However, numbers were relatively low on all species.

May was another quiet month for butterflies and the only excitement was the recording of an early Painted Lady.

June is nearly always a quiet month for butterflies found in our gardens, but in the fields, especially later in June, Small skippers, Meadow Browns and Ringlets all appeared and all of which had a much improved showing over recent years. The occasional sighting of a Common Blue also occurred in June and they were to be seen through to the second half of August but only in penny numbers.

July and August are normally the peak months for butterflies on the wing and the remaining common butterfly to be found mainly in the fields, Gatekeeper, appeared in mid-July, and again the species did well over the next month but the other butterflies to be seen in this period were Small Copper which had a poor year and on August 1, I saw a Brown Argus – the first for three years. It is also worth noting that July 19 was the hottest day ever recorded in the UK.

As autumn approached in September there were large numbers of Small and Large Whites on the wing – actually Large Whites had an exceptional year – and Red Admirals were to be seen in encouraging numbers. October was obviously a month of decline but in the middle of the month, which was very mild, I saw at least one butterfly on 14 consecutive days which was exceptional. We then moved into November which for over half the month was mild and the last butterfly seen was a Red Admiral on the 20. However a week earlier in Holy Trinity Churchyard I saw a very late Speckled Wood.

Finally, although this is a report on butterflies, I remember in 1955 in Bournemouth my father pointing out to me a Humming Bird Hawk Moth – something that belonged to the South of England and certainly not in our experience to North Staffordshire. This Summer several have been observed in Eccleshall between June 11 and October 18. How times change.

So the year was mixed with some of our more familiar coloured butterflies having a disappointing season but at the same time the butterflies in the fields did rather well.

Here’s just some of what’s coming up in Stone, Eccleshall and surrounding areas. Please note that the information in this feature was correct at the time of print but all events are subject to change. Please check with the venues/organisers for updates.