Heading home ...

Isles of Scilly, 25 August to 1 September 2012 – Part 3

Thursday

A pristine Red Admiral was the first butterfly to greet us as we arrived at Carn Near Quay on Tresco earlier today. Proceeding past Abbey Pool, five Red Admiral and a single Small Tortoiseshell were recorded nectaring nearby. A Hummingbird Hawk-moth was briefly seen. Pool Road, located to the north of Great Pool, proved productive for Speckled Wood and I was able to get several shots of my target. Racket Town Lane provided our first Meadow Brown and a single female Small White; though the small sheltered quarry did not produce the Comma I was hoping for. As we headed along the edge of Castle Down towards Cromwell's and King Charles' Castles good numbers of Common Blue, including a mating pair, were observed; all females, once again, being strongly marked with blue. A male Large White bid us farewell as we left the island late in the afternoon.



Friday

Friday morning, the day before we are due to leave for home, and the winds finally decide to relent.  We wake to the best day of the week with gorgeous blue sky and golden sunshine shimmering in the calm, turquoise blue sea below. A Red Admiral, that had unwisely ventured into the conservatory where we were having breakfast was, not surprisingly, the first butterfly seen today.

Our destination for our final day on Scilly was the beautiful island of St Martin's. Located on the north eastern limit of Scilly, St Martin's could easily hold the title of the most picturesque of all the islands; it is certainly one of my favourites. Arriving in Lower Town and taking a slow walk through the sheltered centre of the island towards Middle Town, Red Admiral, Speckled Wood, Large White and Common Blue were soon found. Just before the Fire Station and on the approach to Higher Town there is a small quarry on the left of the track and here we found large numbers of Small White egg-laying on nasturtiums. After a brief stop for refreshments we headed along the track past North Farm where we found a Small Tortoiseshell, further Speckled Wood and a surprisingly obliging female Holly Blue (pictured below). Heading past Culver Hole towards Chapel Down and its fabulous views, we found a single Painted Lady nectaring on heather. With time pressing on and our boat (bus) due to depart at 2.30pm, we took a short cut across Carn Wethers towards John Batty's Hill; and I'm glad we did as here we found a small isolated colony of Small Copper. 

According to, The State of Butterflies in Britain and Ireland (2006), the Isles of Scilly have sixteen species of butterflies that are regularly recorded. These include, in addition to the eleven species seen this visit, Ringlet, Peacock, Comma, Clouded Yellow and Monarch. Whole groups or families of butterflies are absent from the islands. For example, there are no species of Skipper, Swallowtail, Hairstreak, Metalmark or Fritillary despite conditions being favourable for a number of species.

Recorded this visit:

Small Tortoiseshell
Common Blue
Small Copper
Holly Blue
Red Admiral
Painted Lady
Small White
Large White
Green-veined White
Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria ssp. insula)
Meadow Brown (Maniola jurtina ssp. cassiteridum)

Scilly sights …

Isles of Scilly, 25 August to 1 September 2012 – Part 2

Monday

The predicted, heavy rain and strong southwesterly wind arrived overnight with vengeance and forced an urgent rethink of plans this morning. As a sea crossing was unadvisable we headed to the heathland of Halangy Down, located just to the north of Hugh Town; the site of a former Iron Age settlement and Bant’s Carn Burial Chamber (c. 5th BC - 1st AD). Here we found some welcome shelter and several adventurous Meadow Brown and a single female Speckled Wood. It wasn't until 6.30pm that the sun finally managed to push through the heavy grey cloud, though the wind was still to relent ...

Tuesday

With the storms of yesterday having subsided and with a brighter though blustery day forecast, the beautiful island of St Agnes was our destination for today. We spent the morning investigating Porth Killier through to Periglis and Lower Town, located to the north of the island; in the afternoon we concentrated our efforts to the south over the beautiful heather coated granite that forms Wingletang Down. The morning produced our first of six Painted Ladies, my first this season, three Small Tortoiseshell and numerous pristine Red Admiral, many seen coming in over the sea. Two Pied Flycatchers and several juvenile White Wagtail were also seen. In addition to those already mentioned, six other species of butterfly were found. These included Large White, Small White, Meadow Brown, Speckled Wood, a single Holly Blue and numerous Common Blue.



Wednesday

Following an overnight storm, we woke to a leaden sky and strong westerly winds. As island hopping was out of the question, my son and I decided to hire mountain bikes and cycle to some of the less accessible areas of St Mary's; particularly as a glint of blue sky could be seen on the horizon. A female Green-veined White, my first of the trip, was a good start to the day as we headed north towards Telegraph Hill. After stopping for lunch at Carn Vean we headed out towards Porth Hellick Point and its Neolithic / Bronze Age Entrance Graves (c. 25th - 5th BC). Here we found Common Blue, Meadow Brown and Speckled Wood. A visit to Higher Moors and Porth Hellick Pool Nature Trail, managed by The Isles of Scilly Wildlife Trust, provided some welcome shelter from the wind and an opportunity to photograph a pristine male Speckled Wood (ssp. insula). Red Admiral were once again seen in very good numbers, including an individual sheltering from the strong wind blowing across Peninnis Head. A single Small Tortoiseshell was seen nectaring on flowering ivy by the roadside at Carn Friars.

At 4pm, as I sit and write my diary, storm force winds and heavy rain are once again hitting St Mary's.

To be continued ...