Despite a relatively mild start to 2023 with the odd day of bright sunshine, there has been only 1 outdoor butterfly sighting in the County so far this year – Chris Thirtle saw a Small Tortoiseshell flying across his Great Longstone garden on the 7th of January 2023. Elsewhere in the UK there have already been sightings this month of the Peacock in both Northants and Northumberland, the Brimstone in Suffolk and the Red Admiral in Northants. As usual, the Comma seems to be the last species to get disturbed out of its hibernation as it normally spends the winter in thickets of ivy or inside crevices within trees in woodlands.
So what is 2023 likely to bring to us in respect of new butterfly species and movement of species northwards? Well the Essex Skipper is poised to get into the Buxton area which fortunately gets a good coverage of both transects and casual sightings from its keen residents – see the attached distribution for the species in 2021. The Silver Washed Fritillary is likely to also extend its distribution in the County as it had a good year in 2022 due to the fact that it’s preferred habitat of semi shaded woodland was not too badly affected by the sizzling temperatures of last summer and the Dark Green Fritillary is also extending its range this time into the Dark Peak area of the County. The Wall Brown appears to be trying to regain some of its former sites in both the Peak Fringe areas and also in North East Derbyshire whilst the Migrating Brown Argus is making a determined effort to join up with the Peak District version, especially in the Cromford Hill and Wirksworth areas of the County. The real hope is that another new species will be added to the Derbyshire list with the Purple Emperor making striking advances in nearby Notts and Leics (see the attached distribution map) so the oak woodlands of South Derbyshire, particularly around the Calke Estate, are likely locations for its first appearance in the County as there is a known colony in Cloud Wood, Leics, which is only 2km from the Derbyshire boundary!
Finally a couple of dates for your 2023 diary :-
Sunday the 19th of March 2023 – Pat and I will be doing a transect training and butterfly I D Presentation – the Evergreen Club, Allestree from Noon to 2.30 pm including results of the 2022 transect season. Please send me an email if you are interested or are thinking of setting up a new transect for 2023 – I see that the RSPB have acknowledged the fact that enjoying wildlife in the countryside is a great way to help with stress, mental health issues and general wellbeing by taking time to be with nature – this is something that we in the East Midlands have been doing for some time with some excellent results from the 500 or so volunteers who carry out surveys and email their casual sightings over the butterfly season!
Sunday the 2nd of July 2023 – The highly successful Open Day at Hoe Grange Quarry (courtesy of Longcliffe Quarries) will be held again including the usual guided walks around the site, drinks, food and a free ice cream van to enjoy in the heat of the day! (see the attached leaflet for details). We hope to see friends old and new at this friendly social event which should not be missed!