Skippers, Whites and a Peacock

In the absence of rain we spent the middle part of the day en famille and aboard les bicyclettes. The formed intention was a ride via the country park to the shop at the top of the hill for a couple of essentials and then back again, but it was necessary to make a halt at the children's playground.


While the others mucked about on things that go up and down and round and round I wandered through the grass that's flourishing in the vicinity in the hope that one among the cloud of white butterflies might rest briefly and near enough for me to get a few shots off.


Sure enough I was eventually lucky. Since the mob were still happily occupied I wandered a bit further afield hoping to get a shot or at least a better look at the other species abundant on the embankment. They didn't come close enough but I did get a glimpse of a lizard sunning itself on some fallen wood.



We cycled on, past a newly-minted sign warning that adders have been seen in the park, through the nature reserve and up the hill above the marina. After shopping we back-tracked; the others went ahead, I hoped to get more shots since I was convinced I was seeing at least two different whites, plus another much smaller butterfly as well as the darker one from earlier on in abundance.



The skippers (Small Skipper, thymelicus sylvestris or more probably Essex Skipper thymelicus lineola) were plentiful and one eventually settled quite close and stayed a while for me. More Whites of one sort or other so I took more shots. I didn't expect anything but what was about in large numbers and for that my reward ws a a single Peacock that hove into view and settled long enough for me to get a couple of shots off. I lost sight of it when the banshee on the pink bicyclette distracted me, demanding to know what's taking me so long.



With her about there was no risk whatsoever of a painful encounter with an adder, or anything else of a mildly timid disposition. With no prospect of any more photos I gathered up my bike and we cycled back through the wetland. Crossing the bridge I spotted another lizzard - similar in appearance though slightly smaller. The family tolerated another stop by the embankment near the playground but the dark butterflies continued to play hard to get.