James CBR

A Jersey Tiger moth (Euphlagia quadripunctaria) feeding on a purple scabious flower. Annotations around the moth read: "Wingspan range: 52-65mm. Jet black wings streaked with white tiger stripes. In flight it reveals dramatic red-orange hindwing flashes." Photo credit Luigi Sebastian

Be on the lookout for Tigers! 🐯

The Jersey Tiger appears to be doing well in this year's #BigButterflyCount, with citizen scientists already having recorded 5,300 of these beautiful insects compared to a total of 3,496 for the whole of last summer’s Count.

A close-up of a Common carder bumblebee flying in the air on a dark green background.

Let's fill this feed with bumblebees – drop a 🐝 in the comments if you saw a bumblebee this weekend🩵

🚨 UK bumblebees are struggling to recover following their worst year on record 🚨

Please donate to our urgent cash appeal: www.bumblebeeconservation.org/give

That's a bit too small a gap to be another brood. I suspect a later emergence individual of the second brood which can last several weeks.

Sea Kale leaves

Sea Holly setting seed

Bird's-foot Trefoil growing in the dunes

Marram grass

Sea Holly, Sea Kale, Bird's-foot Trefoil and Marram grass growing on the beach north of Lowestoft.
The blue attracts white butterflies to lay eggs (Crucifers). The UK's first ever Southern Small White was recorded today just down the coast in Felixstowe.
#wildflowerhour @wildflowerhour.bsky.social

Yes, and with 100,000s of whites streaming in since June there could be others. Migrants often don't mate until they arrive so I hope some males made the journey too.

Congratulations to William Brame @landguardbirder.bsky.social for realising this was a different white butterfly. Now confirmed by @chrisvanswaay.bsky.social as a Southern Small White - the first seen in England. As it is a female let's hope it has been laying eggs. @matthewberry.bsky.social

Perhaps records received so far, I'm aware of three BH seen in Belstead Brook Park on 7th July. I have also heard they were seen (2?) in Piper's Vale at a similar time.

Reported just now to BC Head Office contact for consideration.

@martinswarren.bsky.social @richardfoxbc.bsky.social @djhbutterflies.bsky.social

The black forewing marks are inconclusive to me but I am not an expert on this species which can vary and look very much like the Small White, particularly the spring brood. I am interested in knowing what our European experts think after some years of experience in the field with SSW.

A difficult question to answer! Potentially. There have been a few candidates photographed already on the south coast which is 20+ miles from Calais. We are 100 miles from Holland. 100,000s of white butterflies have arrived recently so it's good migration conditions. Contd

Hands up if you knew this already. 🦋
#BigButterflyCount

Not a bee expert but I would say that a difficult job usually gets harder when they are a bit worn.

Butterfly Conservation's Butterflies and Moths to see in August: Gatekeeper, Jersey Tiger moth, Large White, Green Carpet, Clouded Yellow, Red Underwing, White-letter Hairstreak, Magpie moth, Small Copper

New month, new butterflies and moths to look out for in your gardens and local green spaces! 🦋🌻

See how many you can spot in the #BigButterflyCount, which runs until 10 August 👉 buff.ly/4pAZzyX

Beautiful lighting.

Butterfly Conservation's Big Butterfly Count guide to identifying Gatekeeper and Meadow Brown butterflies. Cut-out image of Meadow Brown with wings open. Annotation next to it reads: "Mostly brown with patches of orange around the eyespots on the forewings". Cut-out image of a Gatekeeper underneath with annotation: "Generally smaller and mostly orange"

Butterfly Conservation's Big Butterfly Count guide to identifying Gatekeeper and Meadow Brown butterflies. Cut-out image of Meadow Brown with wings closed. Annotation reads: "Plain hindwings with no white dots". Cut-out image of a Gatekeeper with wings closed underneath with annotation: "Tiny white dots on the hindwings"

With the #BigButterflyCount well underway, keep your eyes open when spotting differences between species 👀

Tiny white dots on underside hindwing means you've spotted a Gatekeeper - there are none on Meadow Brown!

Get out for the Count 👉 buff.ly/BmYCIGA

Clouded Yellow at Hazlewood Marshes SWT today. @bc-suffolk.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social

I'm no expert but this looks like a male Eupeodes species of hoverfly. They're pollinators so it's probably just warming itself or sucking up honeydew.

Congratulations. That can't be an easy feat.

Could be, a few are in Suffolk around Cavenham Heath. Could also be transported accidentally or dispersed. So many butterflies on the move in the recent hot weather.

Off to Christchurch Park in Ipswich for the #BigButterflyCount on this Hare. One of many on the Hop to it! art trail for charity St Elizabeth Hospice with Wild In Art. This one painted by Woodbridge artist Ian Last.

Get well soon, full recovery 🙏🏻🤗

Thank you.

Thanks ☺️

An old and distinguished Ringlet butterfly bathed in golden evening sunshine among the golden grass stems.

I stopped to consider this aged Ringlet butterfly as it basked in evening light that faded towards the day's end.
@bc-suffolk.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social

A male Common Blue butterfly perches on a shaded grass stem with out of focus sunlit grasses behind. Copyright James Corton 2025.

A Common Blue starts thinking about bedtime as the evening sun sinks below a line of trees, leaving the background grasses glowing in warm light.
@savebutterflies.bsky.social @bc-suffolk.bsky.social @suffolk-nats1929.bsky.social

A very good start this year in Suffolk. Widely reported. Perhaps more on the coastal side. Best year for many years. Concerned about next generation though, many nettles look drought stricken and Sturmia bella is very active in the summer warm weather. I just enjoy good years now in a bad trend.

One week left for these *two* Peatland Project Officer jobs with @savebutterflies.bsky.social ! Please share to help someone find their new role helping save the Large Heath

Unfortunately over the last week I have felt the need to reject quite of lot of butterfly records that have come to me that had been submitted via BirdTrack.
This is not because I doubted the id, but because they come with only a Hectad location reference (e.g TL52), ie a 10km x 10km box. 1/3

Yes! 🤩🐛🦋