White Admiral Butterfly

[Olybirder]

I had been trying to find some White Admirals to photograph for a whole day at Strumpshaw Fen last week. Eventually I located three of them feeding on a large clump of brambles in the early evening. They didn't come very close, so I had to shoot them through the intervening foliage, which explains the blurred patches in the images.

E-M1 and 74-300 II.

Ron

[Chevvyf1]

Re: White Admiral Butterfly

Nice images Ron, not a butterfly I have seen about here

is it pretty uncommon ?

[Olybirder]

Re: White Admiral Butterfly

Thanks Chevvy. They are not rare but they are not especially common either. You have to go and look for them in their preferred habitat as you are unlikely to find one in your garden. They were smaller than I remembered them - much smaller than the Red Admiral.

Ron

[brian1208]

Re: White Admiral Butterfly

Beautiful work again Ron, #3 is the star shot for me, I love to get these "up the nostrils" shots of butterflies, especially when the are feeding as here

[Chevvyf1]

Re: White Admiral Butterfly

Thanks Chevvy. They are not rare but they are not especially common either. You have to go and look for them in their preferred habitat as you are unlikely to find one in your garden. They were smaller than I remembered them - much smaller than the Red Admiral.

Ron

OK I shall have to go on walk about the woods/streams then

[Olybirder]

Re: White Admiral Butterfly

OK I shall have to go on walk about the woods/streams then

Yes, I have been reading about them and these ones were in absolutely typical habitat. They were feeding on brambles which were beside a drainage channel in the woods. There was even some honeysuckle nearby, which is used by the females to lay their eggs on. Good luck with your search Chevvy.

Ron

[brian1208]

Re: White Admiral Butterfly

Chevvy, there are supposed to be White Admirals down the old railway line walk at Holmesley, see here http://www.butterfliesinmylife.com/

Mind you, I've never been lucky enough to spot them, maybe next year

[Mickg]

Re: White Admiral Butterfly

Lovely shots. Never seen one.

[banjukes]

Re: White Admiral Butterfly

Likewise, I've never seen one.

[David M]

Re: White Admiral Butterfly

Looks very similar to the North American White Admiral. It's been a good summer for the North American species around here.

[Wee man]

Re: White Admiral Butterfly

Thanks for showing did not know a white one existed.

[Phill D]

Re: White Admiral Butterfly

Lovely shots, I've never seen one either. No3 is my favourite. Although it's not a macro lens the 75-300 mk2 is doing pretty well with those close ups. What sort of distances away were you?

[Olybirder]

Re: White Admiral Butterfly

Although it's not a macro lens the 75-300 mk2 is doing pretty well with those close ups. What sort of distances away were you?

Thanks for the kind comments. The butterflies didn't come closer than 2-3 metres, so they wouldn't have been close enough for my 60mm macro, which I didn't have with me anyway. I think the 75-300 is an incredibly versatile lens, even if it doesn't provide true macro.

Ron