|
Kent Butterflies Butterflies in Kingston, Kent |
Last updated 5 September 2009
|
Species |
Seen |
2008 |
Days |
|
Brimstone (Gonepteryx rhamni) |
15 March |
10 February |
+33 |
|
Peacock (Inachis io) |
15 March |
30 March |
-15 |
|
Comma (Polygonia c-album) |
15 March |
23 April |
-39 |
|
Orange Tip (Anthocharis cardamines) |
4 April |
10 April |
-6 |
|
Holly Blue (Celastrina argiolus) |
12 April |
23 April |
-11 |
|
Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria) |
13 April |
26 April |
-13 |
|
Small Tortoiseshell (Aglais urtica) |
25 April |
4 April |
+21 |
|
Painted Lady (Cynthia cardui) |
17 May |
none seen |
- |
|
Small White (Pieris rapae) |
17 May |
13 July |
-57 |
|
Green-veined White (Pieris napi) |
23 May |
8 July |
-46 |
|
Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus) |
24 May |
none seen |
- |
|
Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) |
30 May |
3 June |
-4 |
|
Small Skipper (Thymelicus sylvestris) |
11 June |
11 July |
-30 |
|
Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina) |
12 June |
22 June |
-10 |
|
Large Skipper (Ochlodes venata) |
18 June |
29 June |
-11 |
|
Marbled White (Melanargia galathea) |
25 June |
8 July |
-13 |
|
Gatekeeper (Pyronia thithonus) |
5 July |
20 July |
-15 |
|
Large White (Pieris brassicae) |
5 July |
20 July |
-15 |
|
Ringlet (Aphantopus hyperantus) |
5 July |
13 July |
-8 |
|
White Admiral (Lodoga camilla) (note) |
20 July (note 1) |
none seen |
- |
|
Small Copper (Lycaena phlaeas) |
5 September (note 2) |
none seen |
- |
|
Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus) |
|
none seen |
|
|
Essex Skipper (Thymelicus lineola) |
|
none seen |
|
|
Small Heath (Coenonympha pamphilus) |
|
none seen |
|
|
Wall Brown (Lasiommata megera) |
|
none seen |
|
Notes:
1.Seen by a near-neighbour, Margaret Smith. Previously I had seen a White Admiral on 7th July
2007, the first ever sighting by me in Kingston, though there is a possibility of another some years previously. The latest sighting suggests that there might
be a small colony in the vicinity.
2. The last one seen in Kingston by me was in 2004, though one has been reported since.
The above represents the list of all butterfly species I have previously seen in Kingston
2008 was a particularly poor year for butterflies, with much lower numbers than normal, mostly due to the weather.
The summer
was very cool, with hardly a hot day all summer and masses of rain. The fact that the first sightings for nearly every butterfly seen this year are anything from
a week to 8 weeks earlier than last year is not, therefore, remarkable (see first sightings for earlier years for a better comparison).