Last of the Summer........ Nectar !

A late summer break on the north coast of Cornwall gave me some unexpected Butterfly action, which would probably be the last of the year, now that autumn is just around the corner.

We were staying in an old converted stone cottage on a farm in the middle of nowhere, a Buddleia still in flower on the corner of an old derelict farm building, catching the late evening sunshine had attracted a Hummingbird Hawk moth, only the second I have managed to see, I was torn between watching the Hawk moth moving from bloom to bloom or rushing back to the cottage for my camera and the chance of a photograph, unfortunately I chose the latter, and on my return the Hawk moth had moved on.

The next morning with the sun still shining I decided to check out the Buddleia, in the hope that the Hawk Moth might have returned, but no such luck,  to my amazement the small Buddleia was covered in Butterflies, amongst them not one, but five Painted Ladies, a single Red Admiral, and several Small Tortoiseshell Butterflies.

A surprise sighting of a migrant Silver Y moth also taking in some nectar gave a few photo opportunities along with a few Carder Bees.

Painted Lady & Small Tortoiseshell

Silver Y Moth

Silver Y Moth and Carder Bee sharing the " Amber Nectar"

Apparently not that surprising, as the Silver Y moth is often seen nectaring in daylight hours, still the first I have seen, apart from those captured in my moth trap.

But the star of the show was the beautiful Painted Ladies, a nice way to end the Butterfly season.

Painted Ladies

Small Tortoiseshell

It will be a longtime before I see that many Painted Ladies together, more than made up for the missed Hummingbird Hawk Moth, which is still on my "most wanted" list.