first of many

 

19-07-26 First of many refers to this amazing peacock as well as the first trip up the back trail at Saltoun Big Wood, slightly ahead of the annual butterfly festival that will be kicking off end of July into August, just as soon as the devil's bit scabious appears - the purple flowers that bring all the butterflies out of the surrounding woods. These peacocks (just 2) were amazing and were the first of a newly emerged batch that will take us into the butterfly end-of-year game with some of them heading into hibernation-like stasis once the warm weather finishes, to over-Winter into next Spring.
I cycled up to Saltoun, mainly to see the dragonflies.

After padlocking my bike in the woods, oddly I didn't recognise the usual tree and parked under a different one, I was keen to get along to the first pond. However there were flowering thistles opposite the old car park and a new peacock there, keen to have its photo taken. 

When I turned off the main road with my bike and rumbled along the rough track I saw a dude standing in front of the wheat(?) field. Then I saw his girlfriend a small distance away taking photos of the scene. It was such an impressive visual I nearly jumped off my bike and went over to see if I could get in on the act and steal a photo! I really was swithering, but I didn't have my camera out and not everyone is super-friendly about intrusive paparazzi!

Back at the old car park a moment later, and the couple appeared while I was photo-ing butterflies and we got chatting - I confessed I nearly came over to steal photos of their set-up and we chatted about butterflies and dragonflies. We agreed it was a propitious day for being out in such lovely weather. We exchanged names and went on our seperate ways after I stood back 20 yards (due to the zoom) and took their photo. I mentioned my blog and that they'd appear in it in a week or 2, and hopefully they are reading this now!

Urška and Joé

Up to the first pond and who should I bump into but Colin R. Great minds think alike! He had arrived considerably earlier and gave me an update: the emperor was still bossing the lower pond and the broad-bodied chasers had left the upper pond. There were quite a few butterfly species about but the scabious hadn't flowered yet and things were still fairly moderate up the back trail. We stood about the lower pond for quite some while quietly cursing the emperor as he went up and down the sides, rarely, if ever hovering for a photo and occasionally landing on the reeds halfway along the left side.

I struggled through the trees and jaggies to reach the miniature beach there and got some pics of the emperor perched on reeds. I used the trees as cover and tried not to scuff or scratch the front of my lens as I clambered through the undergrowth. It seems worse this year than the last few and I never made a complete circuit. I also got some wet toes stepping on ground less firm than I had estimated. Colin made to come round the pond to join me (the emperor would regularly land nearby) but after a quick recce decided against it - I had warned him it wasn't pleasant and the bushes and trees are really tricky to push through. Previously there was a usable path a metre back from the edge.

emperor (m)

I stood there for a while and Colin stood at the small inlet at the North corner. It was a perfect moment with only the quiet curses mumbled from the photographers as the unrelenting emperor changed direction yet again and left the frame just as the shutter release was pressed. Equal amounts of fun and frustration.

I should have taken a proper photo of Colin. I only realised I had taken this one afterwards. It was likely the result of the camera focussing on the background and finding Colin when the emperor flew in front of where he was standing.

emperor on reeds

with more background and foreground

a common hawker or 2 also joined in

The pecking order was regulated by size, from largest to smallest. with emperors calling the shots, chasing whatever they liked. Next in the hierarchy, the common hawkers would see off the four-spot chasers, which could bully the damselflies. Sometimes the order was broken and a chaser would tail the emperor for a second or two until Anax imperator turned around, then saw it off across and out the pond area. 

I was suprised there weren't more common darters. I saw only about three or four over the day but forgot to make an effort to photo any and only realised afterwards I had zero pics of them. (Nearly the same with emerald damselflies another lovely, but easy to miss, insect. It's normal for the black darters to only appear here a bit later (mid August) than they show up elsewhere. Last year they were very late (and maybe lower in numbers) and I wondered if they were going to appear at all.

four-spot chaser

emerald damselfly

This was an odd sequence at the upper pond. We had come up to see if the BBCs were still hear - Colin reckoned they had disappeared and this was indeed the case. While we waited for a common hawker to appear, a pair of damselflies had tried to do some egglaying on water surface objects and I think they mistakenly used a soporific newt, who woke up and grabbed the female, unsure whether she was good eating or not. While he was swimming off with her, the male gallantly flew over and re-attached his claspers behind her head and towed her out of danger, leaving the newt bemused. I think that is what went down, I wasn't really paying much attention until I saw the newt grab the damselfly. 

meadow brown - these teasels near the lower pond are 
very popular with butterflies around now

back trail looking fantastic

Colin returned to the lower pond while I went via the logpile to the back trail. It is just fantastic there and the trailside grasses, bracken and flowers are shooting up to match the density they were reaching before the scalping they got from forestry machinery 2 years ago. No sign of the scabious yet but hopefully that will all kick off shortly and next trip there (next sunny day!) should be hoaching with butterflies. Best show in town by miles, although it is 16 miles out of town.

pretty green-veined white

another

There was just one peacock, at these white flowers, and I shot video of it while going up the trail and on the way back  down. It was in perfect condition within a day of emerging I'd guess, and shimmering in the sunlight. Not bothered about me standing very close by. A magical few moments. See video at bottom of page.

tons of small skippers

meadow brown

small skipper

small white

there was also a stray common hawker patrolling up and down the trail

and the occasional cyclist
I stood to one side and he said something unheard but cheerful as he went past

an occasional speckled wood

GVW paired

This very wrecked painted lady forgot to give up and die, and was still flying and swooping about the place remarkably well, despite almost no hind wings and quite cropped forewings. I thought it was some kind of moth until I got closer.

newt

I thought this one looked a little too light and spotty
but obsidentify says Palmate newt

common hawker

4-spot chaser

emperor (again)

I ended up at the lower pond again and saw the same as I'd already seen. Colin must have headed home by now. Wise move. I squeezed through the sticks and branches that were trying to hold onto me and scrape and stab me, and visited the tiny beach again but apart from some bokeh backgrounds on these 4-spotter photos, there was nothing new to report. I had to choose my angles on the 4-spotter carefully as its top left wing was partly shredded. Taking pics from the right line would disguise this, or minimise the coverage. Shooting with as large an aperture as possible made for big bokeh balls. 

Back past the peacock opposite the old car park. Now, when I went to collect my bike I was a bit tired and blissed out from all the lovelies and then suddenly I was faced with an empty space where my bike usually is. Not up against that tree! YIKES! 5 seconds of panic and heart palpitations before I remembered on the way in I couldn't find the usual tree and put it under the next one along. Wake up you dick! You have 16 miles to cycle so let's pull up those socks and pay attention. Whew! Nobody stole my bike I just forgot where I left it. 

this to remind me there were ringlets today as well

an admiral with a missing antennae

dazzling peacock in afternoon sunshine
soundtrack: Light Up by nimino

Fab day!
Sad that it is all coming to an end but a month of ace Saltoun butterflies before that.
more here soon.