Another Foreign Introduction

[speckled wood]

I have just been reading about the Geranium Bronze Butterfly, a South African Species that has been found breeding new Lewes in Sussex, unlikely to survive our winters at present but doubtless there are other species waiting in the "wings" that might just suceed. So it is worth keeping a lookpout just in case. In the case of the Geranium Bronze it has managed to establish a foothold in South-Eastern Europe.

UK Butterflies - Geranium Bronze - Cacyreus marshalli

[Oy]

Monarch sightings in Kent this year too.

Global warming seems to be puching things North.

[aeshna5]

There were some records of Geranium Bronze in UK a few years back, but they seemed to disappear. I know they are continuously brooded + at present could probably only persist with aid of Pelargoniums in greenhouse over winter; though possibly survive in most sheltered parts of UK such as Scilly or IOW. I remember seeing them in Ferryport in Bilbao when I was there in September - pretty demure on upperwing, but pretty marbling on underwing.

It's been an amazing year for unusual butterflies- not only hoardes of common migrants, but quite a few Camberwell Beauties, handful of Monarchs, Long-tailed Blue, Queen of spain Fritillaries, continental Swallowtails, an American Painted Lady on Scilly + rarest of all a Scarce Swallowtail on Islay.