The White-letter Hairstreak, Satyrium w-album

A scarce species, partly due to many of its larval food plant, Elm trees, being lost to Dutch Elm disease. It spends much its time in the trees, feeding from honey-dew on the leaf surfaces. It is not very noticeable when it occasionaly descends to take nectar - and likely to be under-reported. Untrimmed Privet flowers in time for the first flights of the season.

The Elms in the spinney next to the paddock and in the neighbouring hedges have grown from suckers, and are usually fairly short lived.

Females have paler undersides and longer more curved wing-tails. White-letter Hairstreaks produce just one brood per year and over-winter as eggs.

Weather notes:
2011. July - early August very wet.
2012. April - mid July very wet. August to mid September dry.
2013. Winter wet, March and early April, very cold. The rest of the spring was mostly cold. July, mostly very warm. August, warm.
2014. Winter very wet, mild. Spring was early, colder in mid April. Summer to early August, warm without a drought.
2015. Winter normal, March, April - May mostly cold. Sallow flowers opened on March 28 - 29th. Summer, fairly normal.
2016. Winter normal. Sallow flowers opened on April 2 - 3rd. Spring mostly cool and breezy. For a few weeks in late spring there was heavy rainfall and saturated soil and vegetation. Late summer with hot, dry periods.
2017. Winter mildish, hardly any frost. Sallow flowers opened on March 14 - 15th. Warm spells in March. April mostly dry and chilly. First Creeping Thistle flowers open on June 13th, followed by about 7 days of heat wave. Early July was very warm, excellent for counting butterflies. Late summer, autumn normal.
2018. Winter normal with a few days of settled snow. Sallow flowers open on March 26th. March, April mostly cold and wet, May warm. June 11, Bramble flowers opening to greet first Large Skippers. Mid June to early August, very hot and dry. Autumn mostly dry.
2019. Winter normal. Hardly any frost. Sallow flowers seen on March 10th. Spring mostly cool apart from Easter heatwave. May 31, Bramble flowers starting to open. June 1, Buckthorn in full bloom. Dryish summer with some heatwaves.
2020. Mildish winter. Sallow flowers open March 10th. Spring mostly cool. Several warm days in early April and through May. May 28 Bramble flowers opening. Record dry May. June nectar sources mostly Buttercups in the unmown paths, and Brambles.
2021.Winter normal. Very wet, early spring then cold. Sallow flowers opened on March 23rd. Summer with a few hot spells and moderate rain.
2022. Winter, normal. Sallow flowers open on March 18th. Bramble flowers open May 28. Summer, mostly very dry with long hot spells.
2023. Winter normal, some frost. Feb very dry, March very wet. Sallow flowers open on March 21st. Cold wet spring followed by hottest May on record, warm June and wet July. Autumn, mild and wet.
2024. Winter mild and wet. Feb very wet. Sallow flowers open on March 13th.

Personal sightings:

18 July 2010. 1 at Roseland House.
28 July 2010. 1 at Roseland House.
1 Aug 2012. 1 at Roseland House.
3 Aug 2012. 1 at Roseland House.
5 Aug 2012. 1 at Roseland House.
14 July 2014. 1 at Roseland House. On a thistle close to the spinney, perhaps taking refuge from the strong breeze in the tree tops.
16 July 2015. 1 at Roseland House. On a thistle, about 3 pm. Mint condition.
30 June 2018. 1 at Roseland House.
2019 at Roseland House: 29 June on a Privet flower, also sightings on 11, 12 July, and 3 August very worn, on Hemp Agrimony.
2021. 1 on the driveway of Mill Cottage, Tilbury Road. Landing on damp patches - possibly surface probing on a hot day.