*Clouded Yellow | Colias crocea f.helice - Longridge Fell 17 August 2025 (Mike Watson)*

f.helice! How could I possibly follow yesterday’s butterflies? This is how! The first Clouded Yellow near the junction was a white one of the form helice this morning. I had thought why not try and find a helice, as I saw one had been seen in the northeast yesterday? But almost immediately I heard from John Wright that Pete Kinsella had already seen one the day before on Longridge Fell, presumably after we left, so I was hoping it would still be around. I didn’t imagine it would be so easy to find though. Sadly it did not hang around, it disappeared into the plantation to the north at 0955 and was not seen again, despite much searching. There were still at least four other Clouded Yellows present today but there were generally fewer butterflies. However, it was impressive nevertheless with tens of Painted Ladies on the Longridge Riviera. Another fabulous local butterfly watching day!

The only species missing today was Small White. Joined by Phil Larkin and Lee Parnell, my old Ribchester pals, we saw some interesting other things, included a Small Copper probably of an aberration that we haven’t managed to pigeonhole yet as well as the Furry Peat Hoverfly | Sericomyia superbiens (briefly on the same knapweed). There was also a male Black Darter | Sympetrum danae of note, the first I have seen here. There were also a few Tree Pipits around today and other hoverflies included Common Batman Fly | Myathropa florea and Yellow-barred Pond Fly | Sericomyia silentis, two species I am familar with from Grindleton Fell, a few miles to the east.

*Clouded Yellow | Colias crocea - Longridge Fell (Mike Watson)*

*Small Copper | Lycaena phlaeas ab.? - Longridge Fell (Mike Watson)*

*Comma | Polygonia c-album - Longridge Fell (Mike Watson)*

*Southern Hawker (male) | Aeshna cyanea - Longridge Fell (Mike Watson)*

*Black Darter | Sympetrum danae - Longridge Fell (Mike Watson)*

*Furry Peat Hoverfly | Sericomyia superbiens - Longridge Fell (Mike Watson)*

*Yellow-barred Pond Fly | Sericomyia silentis - Longridge Fell (Mike Watson)*

*Common Batman Fly | Myathropa florea - Longridge Fell (Mike Watson)*

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*Clouded Yellow | Colias crocea - Longridge Fell - 16 August 2025 (Mike Watson)*

HILLTOPPING! I knew this was a thing from the continent, associated with mate location and wondered if it might be connected to migration too. Well, I am pretty sure it is. My lunchtime walks up Longridge Fell have regularly included migrant nymphalids like Painted Ladies and whites moving uphill along the forestry tracks but today was something really special. I was hoping to find a Clouded Yellow, with so many reported moving north through the UK at the moment and a late report of one on the fell on 12 August but I wasn’t expecting it to be quite as good as it was on the top of the fell today. The morning started slowly at Salthills Quarry - only two Red Admirals and then at Barrow Lower Lodge - a Small Copper of note, so I wasn’t very hopeful. Walking up the Seven Bends at Longridge Fell was quieter than usual but maybe things had not got going yet as it had been quite cloudy so far. A faded Wall Brown livened things up and then BAM! Clouded Yellow!

I like them because they are very easy to spot! There’s no other butterfly that bright orange-yellow colour in our landscape. It was very mobile flying up and down a very flowery ride between young forestry plantations, the borders of the sandy track rammed with knapweed. After a while following it back and forth it landed a few times, FAB-U-LOUS! The crazy big green eyes, pink legs and the figure of eight on its hindwing! Ooh! There’s another! There were three more and when I retraced my steps back to the spot of the first sighting with Ribchester pal Phil Larkin, we had three together, so that’s six in total at least!

There were so many other butterflies along the quiet forestry tracks today, at one point I counted 50 nymphalids on a 20m stretch of knapweed alone. Lots of Red Admirals and Small Tortoiseshell and smaller numbers of Painted Ladies, Large and Small Whites. There were also residents of the Fell: a single Comma, Green-veined Whites, two Small Coppers, Common Blue, a single Meadow Brown and Speckled Wood and three more lovely Wall Browns! Easily my most exciting day butterflying in East Lancs. 10 species is my benchmark for a good walk and I think 14 must be my highest so far. There were some other good insects today. My first Migrant Hawker of the year was at Barrow Lower Lodge, where there were still at least four Small Red-eyed Damselflies, a late Broad-bodied Chaser, as well as three Brown Hawkers, a couple of Emperors and lots of Common Blue Damselflies. On the fell we saw several Southern Hawkers, including some lovely lime-green females, a Common Darter and a couple of Common Hawkers. However, the best sighting was probably one of the last, Furry Peat Hoverfly | Sericomyia superbiens - an uncommon late-flying carder bee mimic. Thanks to Pete Kinsella for pointing this out to us. What a day today was!

*Wall Brown | Lasiommata megera - Longridge Fell - 16 August 2025 (Mike Watson)*

*Painted Lady | Vanessa cardui - Longridge Fell - 16 August 2025 (Mike Watson)*

*Forest track, Longridge Fell (Mike Watson)*

*Southern Hawker (female) | Aeshna cyanea, Longridge Fell (Mike Watson)*

*Furry Peat Hoverfly | Sericomyia superbiens - a late-flying carder bee mimic (Mike Watson)*

*Migrant Hawker | Aeshna mixta - Barrow Lower Lodge (Mike Watson)*

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f.helice!

HILLTOPPING!