A great August garden list, John - especially with 2 Wall Brown. The worrying downward trend this summer is the Small Tortoiseshell e.g. with just your singleton, yet good numbers of Peacocks (35) and Red Admirals (7).
We've had this up and down in numbers of ST for some years now with experts emphasizing the presence of adverse spring weather and also parasitic wasps. It is virtually a rarity around Lincoln so far this summer. For example, at Chambers Farm Wood this August there was one trip report of 21 species including 130 Peacocks, 65 Ringlet, 43 Purple Hairstreaks, 6 White Admirals, etc, etc, BUT not a single Small Tortoiseshell. Other Lincs Branch BC reports have mirrored this species' absence.
Let's hope for a 'reasonable' second emergence in late August and September but I'm not holding my breath.
Meanwhile, Ed is still managing to find good numbers of Painted Ladies on his trips out and about in Lincs.
Freddy
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