I’ve occasionally seen new butterfly species abroad – Scarce and Yellow Swallowtail, various blues, Cleopatra, and one or two others. But, we took a trip to northern Greece in June 2024 that was all about butterflies and birds and my world “tick list” expanded by quite a bit. Here’s the gallery of butterfly species we saw and of which I got photographs. There were several other species we saw between us that I don’t think I got photos, including Dark Green Fritillary, Essex and Small Skippers, possibly Anomolous Blue, and one or two others.
Working my way through far too many photos from our Greenwings trip to Greece in June 2024. The first two batches are here and here. My moth photos from the tour are here. I had a couple of good years with finding butterfly species in the UK that I’d not seen before. But, that dried up a little in 2023 because of acute mobility issues. So, in 2024, we headed to Greece and saw around 40+ species we’d never seen in the UK, 30 or so more that are of varied rarity in the UK but also present across Europe.
Wood White, Leptidea sinapisWoodland Ringlet, Erebia medusaEastern Bath White, Pontia edusa (gen det needed vs P. daplidice)Common Yellow Swallowtail, Papilio machaon from more than 100 metres!Eastern Rock Grayling, Hipparchia syriacaGrizzled Skipper, Pyrgus malvaeNorthern Wall Brown, Lasiommata petropolitanaSpotted Fritillary, Melitaea didymaWall Brown, Lasiommata megera
Wood White, Leptidea sinapis Woodland Ringlet, Erebia medusa Eastern Bath White, Pontia edusa (gen det needed vs P. daplidice)
Common Yellow Swallowtail, Papilio machaon Eastern Rock Grayling, Hipparchia syriaca Grizzled Skipper, Pyrgus malvae Large Wall Brown, Lasiommata maera Wall Brown, Lasiommata megera Spotted Fritillary, Melitaea didyma
We went on an expertly guided trip to Northern Greece in June 2024. To see the local butterflies and birds, as well as a few moths, and any other wildlife that came into view. Of my far-too-many photos, I selected out the best and have sorted and processed into birds, butterflies, and moths. We saw more than 70 species of butterfly on the trip. Only a handful of those are seen in the UK. Although in this batch of photos Large Skipper, Meadow Brown, Ringlet, Green Hairstreak, and Brown Argus are on the British List, so the majority were knew to us with one or two exceptions.
We took a guided trip to Northern Greece in June 2024. It was a butterflying and birding holiday, although there were also plenty of moths, the odd lizard and a jackal. I took a lot of photos but have finally sorted and processed the butterflies. It was too hot and dry much of the time, but we still managed to see at least 70 species of the possible 120 or so that are present in the region. Compare this to the mere 60 we have in the UK, many of which are rarely seen.
Some of the butterflies we saw in Greece. Of this small collection, only the Wall Brown and the Clouded Yellow are seen in the UK. The latter usually only as a rare migrant or occasionally in larger numbers in a so-called irruption year.
We were in Northern Greece near Lake Kerkini, staying in a village called Chrisochorafa and trekking the mountains and lakes, of what was known as Macedonia in ancient times. We were touched the border of present-day North Macedonia at one point and on another day were not too far from Bulgaria.
I recorded some 43 moths on our trip to Greece this year, and perhaps saw a few more micros of which I didn’t get photos. I’ve tabulated the full list as it stands in a separate post entitled Moths Matter in Macedonia.
As well chasing the obvious on our Greenwings butterflying and birding trip to Greece, there was also time for a few moths. Some during the day, some that overnighted in the stairwell of our little hotel, and some from fellow amateur Lepidopterist, Martine’s field trips around the village of Chrisochorafa. Thanks to Martine and Michael for IDs on the local species and for Mrs Sciencebase’s eagle eyes in spotting much of the wildlife.
Pyropteron minianiformis
Spotted my one and only clearwing moth of the trip, Pyropteron minianiformis, on our first day trekking through the disused Vironia Quarry. This was also where we saw our first Little Tiger Blue, Ilex Hairstreak, Clouded Yellow, and Nettle-tree butterflies, Masked Shrike, Levant Sparrowhawk and overhead Ravens too.
Closeup of one of the tiniest, but perhaps showiest, moths we saw in Greece. This is a Balkan species known as Euplocamus ophisa (Tineidae), which feeds on bracket fungi and rotten wood. The male’s antennae are almost as long its wings!
We also saw our first tortoise of the trip. We had seen our first Bee-eaters, White Stork, and Honey Buzzard en route, and heard our first frogs. There will be more about the birds and other wildlife in a subsequent post, once I have processed those photos.
Euplocamus ophisa
The yellow and black micro moth with large, feathery antennae is a male Euplocamus ophisa (Tineidae). Spotted several of these in the stream-side woodland where the Glider butterflies were seen. No ID for the arachnid.
Speckled Yellow, Pseudopanthera macularia
Mrs Sciencebase spotted the first Speckled Yellow (Pseudopanthera macularia, Geometridae) of the trip, at the Lailias Ski Centre, I think it was.
Catocala nymphaea
I spotted this large moth, Catocala nymphaea (Erebidae), which was roosting on a derelict building near a barely used dirt track we butterflied. It is related to Red Underwing, Crimson Underwing, Clifden Nonpareil, but, while it has orange on its hindwings, it is not an orange underwing.
The Geometrician, Grammodes stolida
The Geometrician, Grammodes stolida (Erebidae). Potted by Martine on her late-night field trip not far from Chrisochorafa.
Knot-grass, Acronicta rumicis, larva
Knot-grass (Acronicta rumicis, Noctuidae) larva feeding on spurge, I believe, Vironia Quarry
Riband Wave, Idaea aversata
The filled band on this Riband Wave, Idaea aversata (Geometridae), is rather more pink than I have seen before.
We were watching lots of butterflies and the nectaring Hummingbird Hawk-moths on a purple patch of vetch at the side of the road up towards the Lailias Ski Centre when a couple of Broad-bordered Bee Hawk-moth, (Hemaris fuciformis, Sphingidae) put in a timely appearance.
Michael spotted a couple of Spurge Hawk-moth (Hyles euphorbiae, Sphingidae) larvae feeding on some roadside spurge, like they do.
Euclasta splendidalis
Early-morning phone snap of a long-legged moth which was roosting at dawn at our accommodation. Euclasta splendidalis (Crambidae) is restricted to SE Europe onwards to Turkey and the Middle East. The food plant is a vine called Periploca graeca (Asclepiadaceae – Milkweed family).
Nine-spotted Moth, Amata phegea
There were lots of Nine-spotted Moth around on our wanderings. They are also known as the Yellow-belted Burnet (Amata phegea, Erebidae) or in Michael’s parlance, the “lazy moth” on account of their general indolence.
Wood Tiger, Parasemia plantaginis
Wood Tiger (Parasemia plantaginis, Erebidae) spotted and potted by Martine before being released back on site for a photo or two.
The Passenger, Dysgonia algira
The Passenger (Dysgonia algira, Noctuidae) was fluttering around the hotel stairwell with several micros when we returned from our evening meal with the Little Owls.
Black-veined Moth, Siona lineata
Black-veined Moth (Siona lineata, Geometridae), not to be confused with the Black-veined White butterfly, which we also saw.
Hummingbird Hawk-moth, Macroglossum stellatarumBright Wave, Idaea ochrataThe Forester being consumed by an arachnid
The Handmaid
Treble-barDotted Border WaveSlender Scotch BurnetSix-spot BurnetTransparent BurnetRhagades pruniPurple-barred YellowCommon HeathMother ShiptonChrysocrambus cassentiniellusSmall Fan-footed Wave, Idaea biselata – Not 100% on the ideaPyrausta purpuralisFemale Gypsy Moth, phone snapSpotted Sulphur, phone snapBrown China-mark, Elophila nymphaeata (wobbly shot on the boat, too big a lens). Several on the boat, the larvae feed on aquatic plants.Not a great photo of Chequered Wave
The Macedonia of my blog headline refers to the ancient Greek region which coincides with the area of modern, northern Greece where we were staying and exploring. North Macedonia was west of us, just over the border. At one point, we were within a few metres of the North Macedonian border patrol as we headed for a known site – the woodland and scrub around the Doiran Memorial – seeking, unsuccessfully as it turned out, the Tessellated Skipper butterfly.
Mrs Sciencebase and I spent a week in the beautiful wilds of northern Greece not far from the Bulgarian and North Macedonian borders in early June. At first glance, it was a holiday, but it was more realistically a fascinating international biology field trip with lots of butterflies, moths, birds, and plants to photograph and record. The list of butterflies we saw and recorded can be found below.
Nemoptera sinuata, not a butterfly, not a moth, not a bird, a spoonwinged lacewing
We had 6:30am starts most days except the 5am on Lake Kerkini boat-trip day, expertly piloted by Niko. It was certainly not the usual lounging-by-the-pool-all-day type holiday with lingering lie-ins et cetera. There was, however, all those butterflies and birds. Delicious Greek food and quaffable Greek beer every evening certainly felt holiday-like!
Mrs Sciencebase in Dora the Explorer mode, photographing a chicory plant
We were staying in a small town called Chrisochorafa, which isn’t far from the beautiful Lake Kerkini with its hundreds of pelicans (Dalmation and Great White), tens of thousands of Great Cormorant, numerous Spoonbill, various heron and egret species, and on and on!
Our balcony view of the “twin towers” in Chrysochorafa – church and water. Chrysochorafa, meaning “golden fields”.
Our expert eco-guide, Michael, kindly drove us all over the region. We swung way west to the border with North Macedonia, but also east and north almost to Bulgaria too. Michael, is a diptera and lepidoptera expert and did a bit of independent flycatching in between identifying butterflies and birds for his research. He hopes to identify the groups that may well have been lost to regions ravaged by forest fires in northeastern Greece in recent years.
Our expert guide, driver, and now good friend, Michael “D”
We also had one other travelling companion, Martine – a modestly expert amateur lepidopterist who was a great help to us in spotting and identifying the novel species of Lepidoptera. We hiked several km most days even when it was sometimes 38 degrees Celsius in the shade.
Martine, butterflying, coffee in hand
Somehow, I managed to take more than 11000 photos. Too much of the time I had my camera in rapid-burst mode. I’ve plucked more than 500 from the SD cards. I will pull out and process what I think are the best to share here on the Sciencebase blog and on my social media. I may be some time. You Have Been Warned.
European Green Lizard
I now have photographs of dozens of species of butterfly that I’d not seen before, and we saw well over 73 species in total. Lots of birds and more than 40 moth species, more than a couple of dozen of which aren’t present in the UK and I’d not seen before. 90+ birds seen and/or heard.
Balkan Copper butterfly, Lycaena candens
I didn’t do a lot of handheld focus stacking, but I did try with the above Balkan Copper photo. It was on the ski slope at Lailias, no snow, obviously. There were quite a few other butterflies and day-flying moths here.
Wild Strawberry
It’s worth noting that contractors were strimming the lovely meadow at the foot of the ski slope for some unknown reason. This will inevitably have destroyed thousands of blooms, sending the invertebrates that were thriving there into oblivion. There was presumably a good reason for the strimming, but it put paid to our butterflying on that patch.
Bladetail dragonfly, Lindenia tetraphylla with prey
Overall, we had a fabulous trip although some of our target species were entirely absent from even the most likely sites. Tessellated Skipper, for instance. Indeed, its larval food plant was absent from the site too. Temperatures were too high for June in this region for the whole week. This may well have contributed to the much lower than anticipated numbers and diversity of Lepidoptera, although we still saw plenty.
A bristly fly of dry, grassland, ID to be confirmedLion detail from The Doiran Memorial
Schmidt’s Marbled Bush Cricket, Eupholidoptera schmidtiBalkan Pond Turtle, Balkan Terrapin or Western Caspian Terrapin – Mauremys rivulataBalkan Frog, Pelophylax kurtmuelleriThere were unseeing eyes watching the couple in their low-slung hammockWhy isn’t the Eastern Green Lizard called the Balkan Blue-throated Lizard?White-faced Bush-Cricket, Decticus albifronsSpeckled Bush-cricket, Leptophyes punctatissimaGolden-bloomed Longhorn Beetle, Agapanthia villosoviridescens, in copRobber Fly, Neoitamus cyanurus or a close relativeBlack-striped Longhorn Beetle, Stenurella melanura, in copHotel Limnaio, Chrysochórafa, northern Greece (Central Macedonia)Hermann’s Tortoise, Testudo hermanniSpotted Orbweaver spRed Shield-bug, Carpocoris mediterraneus, in copMediterranean house gecko, Hemidactylus turcicusGrape Wood Borer, Chlorophorus variusThe MinibusBridge under which I think I saw a Camberwell BeautyThe Azure and White – national flag of Greece against the dusk
June 2024 Greek butterfly tick-list
Here is the complete list of butterfly species of which I have now published photographs on Sciencebase. There were several others that we saw that I didn’t get photos of or that didn’t warrant sharing – Essex Skipper, Small Skipper, Dark Green Fritillary etc. I think the total count for the trip for me and Mrs Sciencebase was 73+ butterfly species.
Blue, Amanda’s (Polyommatus amandus)
Blue, Eastern Baton (Pseudophilotes vicrama)
Blue, European Common (Polyommatus icarus)
Blue, Green-underside (Glaucopsyche alexis)
Blue, Iolas (Iolana iolas)
Blue, Lang’s Short-tailed (Leptotes pirithous)
Blue, Large (Phengaris arion)
Blue, Little Tiger (Tarucus balkanicus)
Blue, Mazarine (Cyaniris semiargus,)
Blue, Small (Cupido minimus)
Brown Argus (Aricia agestis)
Brown, Large Wall (Lasiommata maera)
Brown, Lattice (Kirinia roxelana)
Brown, Meadow (Maniola jurtina)
Brown, Northern Wall (Lasiommata petropolitana)
Brown, Wall (Lasiommata megera)
Cardinal (Argynnis Pandora)
Clouded Apollo (Parnassius mnemosyne)
Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus)
Common Yellow Swallowtail (Papilio machaon)
Copper, Balkan (Lycaena candens)
Copper, Lesser Fiery (Lycaena thersamon)
Copper, Purple-shot (Lycaena alciphron)
Copper, Sooty (Lycaena tityrus)
Eastern Festoon (Allancastria cerisyi)
Fritillary, Heath (Melitaea athalia)
Fritillary, Knapweed (Melitaea phoebe)
Fritillary, Lesser Marbled (Brenthis ino)
Fritillary, Lesser Spotted (Melitaea trivia)
Fritillary, Marbled (Brenthis daphne)
Fritillary, Niobe (Fabriciana niobe)
Fritillary, Pearl-bordered (Boloria euphrosyne)
Fritillary, Queen of Spain (Issoria lathonia)
Fritillary, Silver-washed (Argynnis paphia)
Fritillary, Spotted (Melitaea didyma)
Grayling, Eastern Rock (Hipparchia syriaca)
Grayling, Great Banded (Brintesia circe)
Hairstreak, Blue-spot (Satyrium spini)
Hairstreak, Green (Callophrys rubi)
Hairstreak, Ilex (Satyrium ilicis)
Hairstreak, Sloe (Satyrium acacia)
Hairstreak, White-letter (Satyrium w-album)
Heath, Pearly (Coenonympha arcania)
Heath, Small (Coenonympha pamphilus)
Hermit (Chazara briseis)
Nettle-tree Butterfly (Libythea celtis)
Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui)
Scarce Swallowtail (Iphiclides podalirius)
Skipper, Dingy (Erynnis tages)
Skipper, Grizzled (Pyrgus malvae)
Skipper, Large (Ochlodes sylvanus)
Skipper, Mallow (Carcharodus alceae)
Skipper, Yellow-banded (Pyrgus sidae)
Southern White Admiral (Limenitis reducta)
Tortoiseshell, Large (Nymphalis polychloros)
Tortoiseshell, Small (Aglais urticae)
White, Balkan Marbled (Melanargia larissa)
White, Black-veined (Aporia crataegi)
White, Eastern Bath (Pontia edusa)
White, Marbled (Melanargia galathea)
White, Small (Pieris rapae)
White, Wood (Leptidea sinapis)
Woodland Ringlet (Erebia medusa)
Technical footnotes
I took rather a lot of photos on this week-long trip (well over 10,000) and then spent the weekend pulling out what I think are the best. I’ve got about 500 that I need to work through and do a second-line purge.
I will process the select few from the camera RAW files using DxO PureRaw4, which I’ve mentioned previously. This software carries out corrections to the photos you take based on the known distortions associated with your camera and lens combination. Its main purpose however is to remove noise from an image without removing detail. It does this very well, improving any photo you feed it to the tune of 3 or so full stops of ISO. This can make all the difference with photos shot in the limited light of a woodland or at twilight.
Some of the photos need a different kind of processing and I’ll use Topaz Sharpen for the ones that could do with a bit more tightening up to remove motion blur, for instance.
This year’s crop of the rather rare Black Hairstreak began emerging at Brampton Wood on 29th May. I didn’t get a chance to visit the site until the 5th June. Intermittent sun meant they butterflies would appear, flit about a bit, and then disappear when the clouds moved across the sun again. There are lots on this site and several other woodlands that dot the landscape between Huntingdonshire and Oxfordshire.
Black Hairstreak butterflies. One in flight, one on an oak leaf
The species is on the wing for a couple of weeks at this time of year mating in and around the old Blackthorn bushes in these woodlands, with that plant being the larval food plant. Unfortunately, unlike some other species, the Black Hairstreak is not a colonialist and it is common that the adults will fly no more than a few metres from the site where they first emerged from their pupae.
Newly emerged Black Hairstreak butterfly
A couple of years ago, the transect count for the site was 2000 or so Black Hairstreak. Given the expanse of this woodland, it’s possible that that there were tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of adult butterflies on the site that summer. It’s nationally rare, and like I say, there are very few places where you will see them, but if you know the right spot…
Black Hairstreak in flight
Incidentally, had a chat with Alice from GreenWings and Steve from Butterfly Conservation. He pointed out a Lackey Moth larva on a tree as we walked from the first BH site to the second site.
I had reason to be in the vicinity of Trumpington Meadows today and although the wildflowers are coming on, very little is in bloom relative to what we see there at the summer peak. There was some Red Campion, Bladder Campion, some Common Vetch, Oxeye Daisy, Red Clover, a tiny bit of early Field Scabious and a few other bits and bobs. I didn’t have high hopes for seeing an early Marbled White or the Small Blues which enjoy the Kidney Vetch there. And, indeed, there were no Marbled Whites on show, but there was a mating pair of Small Blue!
Small Blue butterflies in copulo
There were numerous Brimstone, Orange Tip, and Peacock, and we had a solitary sighting of Red Admiral. There was a lone Holly Blue at the car park and just one Common Blue (first of the year for me) on the area close to Byron’s Pool. A single Silver Y moth put in an appearance too and a single Green-veined White.
Record shot of Grass Rivulet, saw them here first in 2022
It was over the M11 foot and cycle bridge where there are often more Small Blue in the flying season that we saw half a dozen or so Small Heath (first ones of the year) and then caught sight of the in copulo pair of Small Blue. Dancing among them numerous Grass Rivulet moths, which I’d first seen here in 2022.
It’s been an odd year so far for us moth-ers. There was an odd burst of numbers and diversity back in mid-March but that was followed by some very lean lighting-ups in April when it was generally cold and wet forever. It was only on the 8th May that there was a sudden up-tick. We had warmer evenings and on the night of 12th May, I recorded 36 moths of 25 species. 14 of those were new for the year (NFY) and one of them, Grey Pine Carpet, was new for my garden (NFM).
Pale Tussock
Next session, wasn’t quite as rich, but there were still seven species NFY, including a couple of Pale Tussock, a Maiden’s Blush, Pebble Hook-tip, The Spectacle, and a White Point. Moth names are just as diverse as the moths themselves.
The SpectacleThe Spectacle (sideview)
So, as of 13th May, that’s 84 lighting-up sessions mainly with a 15W Wemlite UV fluorescent tube on a Robinson trap. The next few weeks will hopefully see diversity and numbers rising still further.
Willow BeautyPebble Hook-tip
I’ve written about the industrial evolution of the Peppered Moth on numerous occasions. It’s held up as an example of evolution in action. Here’s the non-melanic, “clean air” form that turned up on the night of 14th May.
Peppered Moth
The Silver Y is a migrant species turning up in their thousands some years if conditions are right. It is found all over the UK, but seen most commonly, and obviously, at coastal watch points. Its name comes from the silvery Y shaped marking on its wings. The scientific name is Autographa gamma, which suggests that the marking might also be the third letter of the Greek alphabet, gamma. Often to be seen nectaring on wildflowers and garden flowers during the day, at dusk, and at night.
Silver YPoplar GreyCochylis dubitana
I usually see well over 300 species in the garden over the course of the year and a few dozen of those are NFM (see definition above). I’ve been mothing since late July 2018 and at last count garden “list” stands at well over 500 species.
An update at this point in the year when it seems to be turning seemed timely.
All moths are released unharmed back into the wild well away from the trap after logging and any photography I do. All my records are sent annually to the County Moth Recorder for logging on the county and national databases so adding to our understanding of distribution of different species at the local and national level. Such scientific information can help inform those involved in conservation, agriculture, development, and other activities on which the presence or absence of moths has an impact.
