Addendum

This page contains insights or other information since the book’s publication, following the sequence used in the book that is taken from Checklist of the Lepidoptera of the British Isles (Agassiz, Beavan & Heckford, 2013).

Swallowtail

“William Petiver named it ‘The Royal William’ in 1695”. No he didn’t – this was James Petiver!

The GB Red List category has changed from Near Threatened (NT) to Vulnerable (VU) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Dingy Skipper

The GB Red List category has changed from Vulnerable (VU) to Least Concern (LC) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Chequered Skipper

In his book ‘Butterflies’, Martin Warren suggests that some larvae do not create notches in grass blades to retain nutrients at the top of the blade, but to prevent toxins from reaching the top of the blade.

The GB Red List category has changed from Endangered (EN) to Least Concern (LC) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Essex Skipper

When describing the differences in appearance with the Small Skipper, the species description reads “… it is usually necessary to resort to looking at the underside of the tips of the antennae, which have an orange- brown tint in the Small Skipper, but are jet black in the Essex Skipper“. A study by Barry Henwood, documented in A Small Skipper, Thymelicus sylvestnis (Poda) with Black Undersides of the Antennal Tips and published in Atropos in 2014, gives an example of a Small Skipper that contradicts this ‘rule’.

Silver-spotted Skipper

The GB Red List category has changed from Near Threatened (NT) to Vulnerable (VU) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Green-veined White

In his book ‘Butterflies’, Martin Warren states that the Green-veined White female requires at least two matings to reach her full egg-laying potential.

Wall

The GB Red List category has changed from Near Threatened (NT) to Endangered (EN) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Large Heath

The GB Red List category has changed from Vulnerable (VU) to Endangered (EN) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Small Heath

The GB Red List category has changed from Near Threatened (NT) to Vulnerable (VU) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Scotch Argus

The GB Red List category has changed from Least Concern (LC) to Vulnerable (VU) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Grayling

The GB Red List category has changed from Vulnerable (VU) to Endangered (EN) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Pearl-bordered Fritillary

The GB Red List category has changed from Endangered (EN) to Vulnerable (VU) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary

The GB Red List category has changed from Near Threatened (NT) to Vulnerable (VU) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Silver-washed Fritillary

It is suggested that we should see more females of the valesina form than we do and various explanations are given to explain why we do not. In addition, some have suggested that valesina eggs are less viable (including the great E.B. Ford in his book ‘Butterflies’).

Dark Green Fritillary

The third update to ‘Checklist of the Lepidoptera of the British Isles’, published in the Entomologist’s Record and Journal of Variation, changes the genus of the Dark Green Fritillary to Speyeria.

The GB Red List category has changed from Least Concern (LC) to Near Threatened (NT) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

High Brown Fritillary

The third update to ‘Checklist of the Lepidoptera of the British Isles’, published in the Entomologist’s Record and Journal of Variation, changes the genus of the High Brown Fritillary to Fabriciana.

The GB Red List category has changed from Critically Endangered (CR) to Endangered (EN) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Purple Emperor

The description states “The larva adopts one of three positions when overwintering – next to an unopened sallow bud, in the fork of a branch or in a crevice in the bark“. Thanks to some excellent monitoring in Sussex by Ben Greenaway, I was shown an overwintering larva that was using a leaf (of Grey Willow Salix cinerea) that had been attached to the stem with silk to stop it falling away.

The GB Red List category has changed from Near Threatened (NT) to Least Concern (LC) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Painted Lady

The description states that “The most recent ‘cardui’ year was in 2009“. While not on a par with 2009, the 2019 influx also resulted in a ‘cardui’ year.

Lycaenidae

In his book ‘Butterflies’, Martin Warren suggests that the bright colours often seen in male butterflies are primarily a mechanism to ward off rivals, rather than attract females, with females responding far more to scent.

Duke of Burgundy

The GB Red List category has changed from Endangered (EN) to Vulnerable (VU) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

White-letter Hairstreak

The GB Red List category has changed from Endangered (EN) to Vulnerable (VU) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Brown Argus

In his book ‘Butterflies’, Martin Warren suggests that the Brown Argus selects plants that are noticeably more green, indicating their nitrogen content.

Large Blue

The GB Red List category has changed from Critically Endangered (CR) to Near Threatened (NT) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Silver-studded Blue

The mobility of the Silver-studded Blue is stated as “Adults are also highly sedentary, and rarely move more than 50 m during their lifetime, with most moving less than 20 m“. Personal observations by Harry Clarke suggest that adults are more mobile than this, as summarised in his article Observations on the Mobility of the Silver-studded Blue Plebejus argus.

Adonis Blue

The GB Red List category has changed from Near Threatened (NT) to Vulnerable (VU) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).

Chalk Hill Blue

The GB Red List category has changed from Near Threatened (NT) to Vulnerable (VU) (Fox & Dennis, 2021).