Author: bartvanhoof

Local Hotspots – Canteras de Cuchía

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No post last Tuesday because I ended up quite a few days in bed with fever. I had expected to head off to a small village in the north of Palencia to put out a moth trap for the night and then, upon returning home I’d write up a piece on how it had gone. Friday I already felt terrible shambling about the place and by the next day I couldn’t move … last Wednesday I ended up running some errands but still in a groggy state … ah well.

Introduction

So, no moth report, but I did end up going to the Canteras de Cuchía on the Thursday, and again the past Sunday. This is one of my favourite local spots to go check out wildlife. It is an old quarry (cantera) site for a local chemical plant (Solvay) near Torrelavega. I think they used the carbonate rocks. The site is situated across the river from Suances, and it is where the Saja River meets the Cantabrian Sea. Basically, a whole hill was quarried away and what is left is a dip in the landscape. The site was granted to SEO BirdLife, and they’ve been custodians for quite some time. One of the biggest issues has been invasive species that have come to completely dominate the site, or until recently. The main culprit has been pampas grass, which was just everywhere, and it grew to massive proportions. An organisation was set up … http://stopcortaderia.org/language/en/news/ … and slowly the site is starting to win the struggle against the pampas grass. Below is a Google Maps screen capture of the area, with the large lake in the middle of the site.

Fig. 1 – Google Maps screen capture of the area. The main dark rectangle in the middle is the large lake. Cuchia (Miengo, Cantabria – 30TVP10)

The site is characterised by the cliff faces that surround a fairly unique habitat here in Cantabria, lots of wet, marshy areas (temporary lakes – critical for amphibians and insects) and many little microclimate zones that can be really warm compared with the surrounding area. They are using livestock to keep the areas clear of pampas grass, with horses and donkeys being key to keep it at bay (see Fig. 2). I always figured that this area would be great for Mossy Earth (https://www.mossy.earth – see the quarry project in northern Portugal) to be a part of the project here and really take it to the next level where the whole area is fenced off to let the livestock really roam about the area. I know that in The Netherlands there have been similar projects that have had great success (the ENCI groeve near Maastricht is stunning – https://www.amazingplaces.com/netherlands/enci-groeve-nature-park/).

These wet zones are a haven for bird and insect life, and you can even spot larger mammals like badgers (Meles meles), otters (Lutra lutra), foxes and others from the weasel family. Hares have also recently taken a spot in some of the cleared areas.

Fig. 2 – Some of the area to the right (southeast) of the main lake that has been cleared and is maintained by horses.

Getting Around

The best spot for parking is on the north side (centre top of Fig. 1). Towards the beach there’s a wet/reedy area that has a couple of board walks running through it, the dune area is quite nice, but it does need better management. However, it gets a lot better once you make your way up and over the hill in a southward direction and head down into the quarry. Most of the area to the west of the main lake is closed off and you must stick to the paths. However, everything to the east of the lake is open, although you might have to pass over some makeshift fences that are there to keep the horses in, that leads you to the likes of Fig. 2. You are surrounded by cliff faces and on a sunny day with little wind it can get really hot down there. It is a bit wild there, no real set paths to follow, or signpost to help navigate you around the area. You have to just go for a small adventure.

If you want, beforehand you can walk from the car park to the lookout point and get an overview of where you’ll be walking later, but that area around the car park is not the nicest spot. But when you are down there between the willows and reeds you might lose your orientation, so it might help you set some bearings for when you go down.

I should also note that there’s a parking near the small port in the southern area, but I never go there. Lots of pampas grass and not the best spot (garbage about etc.).

Conclusion

Take a hat for the sun, some snacks and some water and you’re set for 3-4 hours at least. I like getting there around 9 AM at the latest. Highlights are birds and insects (dragonflies!). Visits are interesting all year round, with lots of migratory birds passing through.

There is still a lot of work to do to keep invasive species in check, but if they keep it up this will be amazing in 5-10 years’ time. I personally hope they get rid of some of the eucalyptus and plant birch instead.

Local Hotspots – Canteras de Cuchía

Book Club – Books on Dragonflies & Damselflies

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Another post in the same veis as the previous Book Club posts, which focussed on the books I use to help me ID species or general reference books I use. This time on Odonata … although each book states dragonflies, they all include damselflies too.

General

  • Askew, R.R. – The Dragonflies of Europe – revised edition – 2004 – Harley Books – 308 pp. – Although older than the Dijkstra books (and you can tell – it was first publised in 1987(?)) it is often used as a reference citing in scientific papers because it is a touch more in-depth in the information given. Richly illustrated (not as good as Lewington – see below – though) some of the detailed illustrations are excellent. Out of print.
  • Bos, Frank, Marcel Wasscher & Weia Reinboud – Veldgids Libellen – herzine editie, 10e druk – 2022 (1st edition 1997) – KNNV Publishing – 290 pp. – Really nice field guide. In Dutch with a focus on the Benelux (Belgium, the Netherlands. and Luxembourg) region it does cover some southern European species. A recent addition to by “library”. I still prefer Dijkstra for IDing because the illustrations are just so good. However, there’s a lot of excellent information (maps, bibliography etc.) in this book, which includes Red List data. A great addition for anyone who lives in the Benelux and those who can read Dutch.
  • Boudot, Jean-Pierre & Vincent J. Kalkman (eds.) – Atlas of the European dragonflies and damselflies – 2015 – KNNV Publishing – 382 pp. – A bit more of a scientific overview where there is a large list of scientists who describe specific individual species, including notes on conservation. Has a massive bibliography at the end to really help you dig deeper into specific countries/regions etc. if you’d like. Some photos (by Fons Peels) of each species, but not really meant to help you ID. While intersting and in-depth, I’d say more for the completionist. Out of print. Hardcover, in English.
  • Dijkstra, Klaas-Douwe B. & Richard Lewington – Field Guide to the Dragonflies of Britain and Europe – 2014 reprint (2006) – British Wildlife Publishing – 320 pp. – The modern reference work on Odonata … now available in a second edition (see below) … the copy I own of this book is all beat up and heavily used. Stunning, with Lewington illustrations of all species and some photos.
  • Dijkstra, Klaas-Douwe B., Asmus Schröter & Richard Lewington – Field Guide to the Dragonflies of Britain and Europe – second edition – 2020 – Bloomsbury – 336 pp. – An updated version of the above. I havn’t really checked what the updates are. A must buy for any dragonfly enthusiast, as it is absolutely amazing. In my opinion, hands down the best book available to help ID species.
  • …
  • Brochard, Christophe, Dick Groenendijk, Ewoud van der Ploeg & Tim Termaat – Fotogids van Larvenhuidjes van Libellen – tweede druk – 2016 (1st edition 2014) – KNNV Publishing – 320 pp. – Companion piece to the previous book. Another stunning photo book on the skins that dragonflies leave behind after they’ve emerged from their larval state. Again, does not cover all of southern Europe’s species, but essential for reference and ID if you want to get deep into Odonata. Hey their skins are quite easy to find, and you can take them with you without harming anything. I’d get this book (or something similar in a different language) over the previous one, if you need to choose between the two, because of that. Out of print. Hardcover.
  • Brochard, Christophe & Ewoud van der Ploeg – Fotogids Larven van Libellen – 2014 – KNNV Publishing – 242 pp. – In Dutch … but oh man … a bit specialist, but essential if you want to get a bit deeper into dragonflies. Stunning photos and amazing, in-depth information on dragonflies in their larval stage. Does not include all species in southern Europe. There are English (and French, German and 1 Spanish) books available on the subject, but if you can read Dutch this is excellent. Out of print. Hardcover.
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Spain

  • …

Specific Regions in the Cantabrian Mountains (my area of interest)

  • Gainzarain, José Antonio – Atlas de las Libélulas de Álava – 2a edición – 2018 – Diputación Foral de Álava – 166 pp. – In Spanish. This on dragonflies in one of the provinces in País Vasco (the Basque country) by one of the Spanish experts on dragonflies. The ecology is slightly different to where I live, many more dry/hot areas in Álava. However, the book is very well written and given a great overview of what you can potentially find here. The great thing about regional books is that you get a better feeling of where on the scale of common to rare a species is. There’s also better information on the types of habitats that you might find the species in. Not really required if you are just visiting the region, as some of the general books (i.e. Dijkstra) do a good job already. So, more for the completionist.
  • …

Comments

The other books I’m keen on getting are one (or two) by Corbet …
Again, the out of print books can be costly to get a hold of these days.

So … it should be obvious that for Spain there is no book easily available that is not a translation of one of the above. Also, the above are all so good that I’ve not seen the benefit of picking up anything related to Spain in general. There are PDFs for specific regions (e.g. Pais Vasco, Extremadura, Andalucía) you can find on the internet. I do think these regional reports hold value due to the specific requirements habitats need to have for certain species and so a regional overview can really zoom in on suitable locations.

Again, I’ll try and keep this list evergreen …

Final Note

My list of non-reference works includes: Dragonflight and The Dragonfly Diaries … but they are not that great (spoiler if I get around to discussing them).

Book Club – Books on Dragonflies & Damselflies

Book Club – Books on Moths

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I’ve decided to move the Book Club posts to Fridays … they might not drop each week, as there is only so much I can read. This will allow me to highlight species and excursions etc. on Tuesdays each week, there is a lot more I want to cover there.

Just like the other Book Club entry where I discuss reference books on butterflies, this one is on moths (Lepidoptera). Now, I have nowhere near the same number of books on moths as I do on butterflies, but still I think it might be interesting none-the-less … so without further ado …

General

  • Sterling, Phil, Mark Parsons & Richard Lewington (illus.) – Field Guide to the Micro Moths of Great Britain and Ireland – 2012 (reprint 2015) – Bloomsbury – 416 pp. – Great companion piece to the above below, they go together really. Again, this will cover a lot of what you can find in Cantabria, but because these moths are so much more difficult/complex to ID, care does need to be taken when doing so. A must-buy for those interested in moths. Just excellent.
  • Waring, Paul, Martin Townsend & Richard Lewington (illus.) – Field Guide to the Moths of Great Britain and Ireland – 2nd edition – 2009 (reprint 2015) – Bloomsbury – 444 pp. – An excellent guide for macro moths (the “larger” species) and even in Cantabria it covers most of what you’ll find here (we have a similar climate to the UK). The more south you go and the higher the altitude (e.g., Picos de Europa) is where you’ll find the most gaps. Still, great to have and a must-buy if you want to start an interest in moths. Stunning book.
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Spain

  • Redondo, Víctor, Javier Gastón & Juan Carlos Vicente – Las Mariposas de España Peninsular: Manual ilustrado de la especies diurnas y nocturnas – 3a edición – 2019 – Prames – 464 pp. – In Spanish and it includes butterflies, but it does not include micro moths. All pictures are of collection specimens with their wings spread, which makes it a bit weird because that is not how living specimens usually rest (wings open etc.), although some families do. Very basic distribution information. However, it does a decent job of covering most, if not all, the species present in peninsular Spain. This means that it has some of the warmer climate species that my other books do not mention. Okay I guess but only really needed if you are going south of the area I live (Cantabrian mountains).
  • Sesma, José Manuel, Juan Ramón Córdoba, Luis Carlos Herrero, Óscar Ventura & Diego Gil Tapetado – Guía de indentificación de las gitanillas (Zygaena) ibéricas – 2019 – Asociación Fotografía y Biodiversidad – 84 pp. – This thin book covers the distribution etc. of the 22 Burnet species found in Spain. Pretty informative with lots of photos, but still makes identification of some species difficult without dissection etc. Much of the distribution data is based on citizen science websites. I’d classify this book under nice-to-have for the completionist.
    However, it is also a bit (understatement) frustrating because the book is labelled as “Volume 1” on the cover … so you’d think there would be more publications on other families etc. by the publisher … but so far no. Also, the publisher’s website is not good, or up-to-date and the main source of observations (biodiversidadvirtual.org – the publisher runs this site) is massively frustrating to use … so were this the business world this would fail spectacularly … If I owned a citizen science website/company (or was a millionaire with a passion for nature), I’d buy up the site, and everything associated with it, and consolidate all the data into a decent repository (e.g., Observation.org), a merger as it were … not to detract from the amazing work done by the publisher/site (volunteers, experts, etc. etc.) but it basically ticks all the boxes of what you can do wrong … if you want the general public to care, and be interested in nature, it needs to be a lot, and I mean a lot, more accessible (modern phone app etc.) … in 2023 it has to be much better and it should be with all the innovative technology at hand (using AI to help with IDing species, detailed mapping of species in Spain (i.e., where spieces have been recorded and where they might be found if we take ecosystem requirements into consideration) etc. etc.) … rant over.
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Specific Regions in the Cantabrian Mountains (my area of interest)

  • Sanz Román, Pablo & Juan Manuel Marcos Gómez – Mariposas y Ecosistemas Cántabros – 2004 – Cantabria Tradicional S.L. – 196 pp. – I’ve not had this book too long, but I’ve read parts of it many times. It is in Spanish, has photos and maps of some moth (and most butterfly) species in Cantabria. Long since out of print (the publisher went bankrupt years ago) and hard to get. The selection of moths is strange, some are day-flying but not all are covered in the book. Then there are some night-flying moths, but only a select few. There is also extensive information on larval host plants (LHP) for the species in the book, Yes, interesting species (some mistakes there), but all quite random. Not really useful for moths, a bit of an oddity. Only for completionists.
  • …

Comments

Now … the moth book publishing world is massive … you can get huge, expensive tomes in multiple volumes on one moth family of in Europe (Palearctic region). I do not have the space or money for these at present, but boy can you go down the rabbit hole in this area. I’ve also noticed that people interested in moths are a bit special/weird but in a good way. Once you start with this hobby it can get quite carried away, you need a special light trap etc. etc. With the above list I’ve only just grazed the surface.

For information on specific regions in Spain you’ll have to consult scientific publications. There are extensive lists of moths for Palencia and other regions in the north.

However, the best source to help ID your moth pictures is through Facebook groups. There is a specific one for Spanish moths (in english) that is great and really helpful … sorta (some people there can be a bit … scientific, lets say).

Book Club – Books on Moths

Moth Matters – Valeria jaspidea (Villers, 1789)

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Introduction

So, I’ve set out the moth trap on the balcony a couple of nights so far in 2023 … zero, zilch, no luck. As I stated in a previous post, the street lighting has been changed to LED … great for the environment when it concerns energy usage but poor when it comes to light polution. Unfortunately, I’ve not had to time to set the trap in a friend’s garden, so the best thing I can do, for the moment, is to write up on some interesting species I’ve managed to see.

However, if all goes well I will set up the trap this evening at a friend’s house and then this weekend I will do it again in Salinas de Pisuerga, Palencia, where another friend lives. I’ve identified a number of species (moths, butterflies and dragonflies) I’d like to see this year, which includes Valeria jaspidea, and put all related data into an Excel sheet. Below is a screenshot of the moth section to give you an indication of what I’ve done. Will add to it as I come across other interesting species.

Overview of interesting moth species to try and see during 2023.
Fig. 1 – Overview of moth species in the Cantabrian mountains that I’d like to see over 2023.

Valeria jaspidea

Valeria jaspidea falls under the Noctuidae family of moths and is quite similar to Valeria oleagina ([Denis & Schiffermüller], 1775). I cannot find the paper that details the difference and if it is widely accepted or not, but Lepiforum (see links below) has them as different, so I’ll keep it at that too. Apparently,Valeria jaspidea occurs in the western part of southern Europe, whereas Valeria oleagina in the eastern part. I also cannot find a map of where the split would be, and if they overlap.

(Ugh … getting used to using this tool again and lost half of the post in trying to update it … oops) The moth can be found throughout the Iberian peninsula, but it is rare. To be honest, with the continual growth of eucalyptus plantations in Cantabria (which dry out suitable habitats) this species looks to need to be ready for a struggle to continue surviving in the region. Also, with the changes in landscape management (farming techniques) this will only add to the struggle they already face.

The caterpillars of Valeria jaspidea feed on Prunus spinosa (blackthorn) and also Crataegus sp. (hawthorns). The moths fly from March to May and can often be found at rest at the bottoms of walls and stones. They have these stunning streaks of green that make them look like a moss that might grow on a blackthorn.

A photo of Valeria jaspidea.
Fig. 2 – Valeria jaspidea, 19.iv.16 – Casar de Periedo (Cabezón de la Sal), Cantabria, 30TVN09.

Further Reading

  • I have written a blog post about the moth resource books I use. It will be published on Friday (30.iii.23) after which you can find it here(will add link).
  • This is a link to a great site called Pyrgus.de that I reference a lot. Excellent information and photos. He hasn’t updated or added Valeria jaspidea yet (not sure why) but the info can be found here under Valeria oleagina.
  • No moth reference list is complete without a link to Lepiforum, an incredibly in-depth site. Here is a link to the moth’s page.
  • All sightings in my region of Spain as recorded through Proyecto Lepides.
  • I actually wrote a blog about walking the transect when I saw this species, see here.
Moth Matters – Valeria jaspidea (Villers, 1789)

Bee-news – Shrill Carder Bee – Bombus sylvarum (Linnaeus, 1761)

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Introduction

Hymenoptera (or wasps, bees, and ants as some might call them) can be really difficult to identify. Not only due to their small size but also due to the similarities between the species. Bumblebees (which fall under bees) are no different. Add to that fact that documentation of bumblebee species in Spain, and as always in this area of Spain, is spotty at best. As well as the fact that bumblebee species look differently here, as they do in other parts of Europe (differences in band colouration can be striking due to the multitude of subspecies present). Ugh, why did I start looking into this group of insects then if they only bring headache when trying to identify them? Long story for another day, but this site is named after a species of bumblebee (Bombus cullumanus) …

Bombus sylvarum (female), 24.vii.2016 - Cabezón de la Sal, Cantabria.
Bombus sylvarum (female) on Mentha sp. (a mint), 24.vii.2016 – Cabezón de la Sal, Cantabria.

Shrill Carder Bee

So its English name comes down to the high-pitched sound it makes while flying around flowers, it really is distinctive. The species usually flies a bit later in the year/season than other bumblebees, I usually see them in August to October, but have seen them flying earlier.
They are quite common around the village where I live, as they need “rough” farmland with lots of different types of flowers … therefore, due to agricultural changes, across most of Europe Bombus sylvarum is struggling a bit. In Spain, the occur in the northern stretch along the Cantabrian Mountains and in some higher altitude areas along the east coast and towards Madrid. Apart from near my village I’ve also seen them along the coast (Cuchía), in the mountains (Alto Campoo ski resort) and in Palencia.

There aren’t any big differences between males and females. The most distinguishing characteristic is the black band between where the wings attach to the thorax. However, as previously stated, depending on where you live IDing the species can be difficult. For example, it gets more complicated here at higher altitudes, as there are other bumblebee species that might look similar. At lower altitudes it is reasonably certain, especially if you can hear the bee flying around too.

Bombus sylvarum (female) on Trifolium sp. (a clover), 10.v.2020 – Cabezón de la Sal, Cantabria.

Very Rare Form

Sometimes you can spot an unusual variation of a species (called forma – abbreviated as f.), which will have a specific name. Some variations can be fairly common, as they might occur due to climactic variation, but others can be very rare. I’ve been lucky to spot a Bombus sylvarum f. nigrescens. Initially I had no idea what it was because the coloration did not fit with anything that I might find in this area. The only reason I found out the species was because I got into contact with Leopoldo Castro, the bumblebee expert in Spain, and he was able to ID it for me, not 100% certain but highly probable.
In the picture below you can see the thin light-yellowish bands that it has (running along the edges of the tergites) within the mass of black hairs on the abdomen, with a bit more around the connection between thorax and abdomen.

Bombus sylvarum (male) on Centaurea sp. (a knapweed), 10.ix.2016 – Mazcuerras, Cantabria.

Further Reading

  • The IUCN Red List page – general information about the status of the species in Europe.
  • Atlas Hymenoptera – the best site on information and distribution of Hymenoptera species in Europe. Run by Pierre Rasmont, Belgian expert.
  • Bumblebee Conservation Trust – page on the trust’s site dedicated to the species in the United Kingdom, where it is a rare bee.
  • Steven Falk’s Flickr page – he wrote the field guide for bees in the UK. Awesome photos, great resource.
  • Observation.org – citizen science website that would benefit from your contributions. You can find all my observations there.
Bee-news – Shrill Carder Bee – Bombus sylvarum (Linnaeus, 1761)

Book Club – Books on Butterflies

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So, for this, and the following Book Club posts, I think I’ll just concentrate on the books I use to help me ID species or general reference books I use. I won’t go into any scientific papers, or PDF documents, as that would make each post massive. The idea here is to get an idea of the books you might like to look into getting if you are interested. I’ll make sure to start from a general overview to a more Spain/regional specific base.
Also, this list will now be used as a reference when I post on butterflies, saves me having to list the books each time around.

Oh, and I’ve got books like Nabokov’s Blues, the ones by Dave Goulson, and many more but I’ll discuss those seperatly … this really is only reference books.

General

  • Haahtela, Tari, Kimmo Saarinen, Pekka Ojalainen & Hannu Aarnio – Butterflies of Britain and Europe: A photographic Guide – 2011 – A&C Black – 384 pp. – Pretty decent, more modern than the two listed here. I had this an the Tolman as my only books for ages. I liked the idea of having one illustrated and one photo book (this one also has living butterflies). This was an accidental buy, but it turned out to be worth it (it also was not expensive at all). There is a new edition out (2019 – Bloomsbury Wildlife – great publisher) and it has been translated in French and English. Unless Tolman comes with a new edition soon, this might be a better buy (it is less than 10 GBP on Amazon), as the photos really are good.
  • Lafranchis, Tristan – Butterflies of Europe – 2004 – Diatheo – 352 pp. – This book has an ID key in it that can be really helpful if you like to use those … based on photos of living buterflies … good companion to Tolman. There’s a French and Dutch version of this book. The Dutch version was published by the KNNV in 2009 and is expensive (currently one for sale for €75), as it is now out of print.
  • Tolman, Tom & Richard Lewington (illus.) – Collins Butterfly Guide – 2009 – William Collins Books – 384 pp. – Pretty much the reference book on everything to do with butterflies in Europe. A must have, stunning illustrations, maps, excellent info on each species … needs an update though (due to taxon changes etc.). I cannot think of a better book to own if you are interested in butterflies. You can also get it in Spanish and, probably, other languages.
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Spain

  • Redondo, Víctor, Javier Gastón & Juan Carlos Vicente – Las Mariposas de España Peninsular: Manual ilustrado de la especies diurnas y nocturnas – 3rd edition – 2019 – Prames – 464 pp. – In Spanish and it includes moths (not micro moths). It is okay, not really worth it for the butterflies though. I got it for the moths. The pictures are of collection specimens so it looks really unnatural and the colours are not very vivid. No maps, very basic info on distribution. Basically a book for those who have already read a lot and just want to have something new for their butterfly library. Still in print and will probably remain so with a new edition coming out every once in a while.
  • There’s a better book on Spain, but I only have it as a PDF … written by E. García-Barros, and others, in 2004. It is good, though is only based around distribution, has no photos or illustrations, because it is based on scientific papers you can really pinpoint species in specific regions. You can probably find this on the internet. It has both Spanish and English text! I used it a lot in the early days.
  • …

Specific Regions in the Cantabrian Mountains (my area of interest)

  • Sánchez, Juan Manuel, Rafael Obregón & Tomás Sanz – Mariposas diurnas de Somiedo – Asturias: Pequeña guia para senderistas – 2018 – Ayuntamiento de Somiedo – 96 pp. Small, informative, handy, and in Spanish … so, great if you are going to visit this stunning national park (I haven’t yet but one of the authors was associated with Proyecto Lepides so I got this book). Maybe you can pick up a copy on a visit to the park, it cost me €5, so why not. There’s a new version (2022) out (without Tomás Sanz) that is double the page number. No idea what the difference is, but I’m sure it is pretty decent
  • Sanz Román, Pablo & Juan Manuel Marcos Gómez – Mariposas y Ecosistemas Cántabros – 2004 – Cantabria Tradicional S.L. – 196 pp. – I’ve not had this book too long, but I’ve read parts of it many times. It is in Spanish, has photos and maps of butterfly (and some moth) species in Cantabria. A good place to start to get an indication where you might find certain species of butterfly in this ecologically diverse province … but websites are better these days because they are more current. There is also a whole section on larval host plants (LHP). Mistakes do occur in this book, the names are really far behind regarding taxon (Lafranchis, from the same year, is way more up to date), so my copy is full of pencil corrections. It is like you’re reading a book from the 1980s. You can get by without this book when you visit Cantabria, for the completionist, as it shows its age and needs a refresh/update for sure. Long since out of print (the publisher went bankrupt years ago) and hard to get.
  • Verhulst, Georges, Joseph Verhulst & Hugo Mortera – Mariposas dirunas del Parque Nacional de los Picos de Europa – 2005 – Organismo Autónomo Parqeus Naturales Ministerio de Medio Ambiente – 184 pp. – Book in Spanish written by two Belgian brothers and an expert on butterflies in Asturias (I have Mortera’s book on butterflies in Asturias in PDF format – also excellent and available on the internet). A bit old, but quite cool and quirky (has common names in 4 different languages), as it also includes some pictures of caterpillars and pupae. The photos are okay, both of living and collection specimens. There are some mistakes but those aren’t really an issue. You’ll need to buy this online, with the best/cheapest option being Oryx in Barcelona (how I got it). Take care because this book can be very expeinsive on other sites, and it probably isn’t worth that unless you are a completionist.
  • …

Comments

The region-specific books can be really hard to get a hold of. If you want to pick them up for a vacation to Spain it is best to do so well in advance. Most of them are out of print. For example, the Lafranchis I’ve seen with quite a high price-tag (e.g. there’s currently one for sale for €40 online – I got mine for €10 – but there’s one on Amazon for GBP 155!). If you want to get a good overview of butterflies in a specific region in Spain then the García-Barros PDF is an excellent place to start and get a checklist going. You’ll need something like Tolman for IDing the butterflies you see though (even though it desperatly needs a refresh).
Also, I have a lot of PDFs for other regions outside of the Cantabrian Mountain range, I’m sure you can find those PDFs on the internet.

Do take care when picking up any odd butterfly book. I once got one as a present that had a ton of mistakes and wasn’t really helpful in any way (terrible photos), so just gave it away again (should have had the foresight to keep it and give it a negative review here – cannot remember the author or title). Also, many of the multi-insect guides are not that great, just get one that is specific to butterflies. Tolman is not expensive.

I’m always looking for new books, and on my travels to regions in Spain I do keep an eye open for region-specific books. There are quite a few. This means that I’ll try and keep this list evergreen …

Final Note

My list of non-reference works includes: Nabokov’s Blues, The Butterfly Isles (already discussed), Fine Lines, In Pursuit of Butterflies, The Jungle Garden, Rainbow Dust, The Collector, A Buzz in the Meadow (also discussed), and some that I am probably forgetting.

Book Club – Books on Butterflies

Odonata Update – Orange-spotted Emerald – Oxygastra curtisii (Dale, 1834)

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Introduction

The year was 2015 and it was one of those chance meetings. Something flew by, landed on a desiccated bracken leaf for a few seconds and then flew off. In those split seconds I was able to wrestle with a camera I was not familiar with (my partner’s) aim it where I thought that something had landed and take one, single, photo. I didn’t really know how to use the camera, so it was not until I’d uploaded the picture to my computer that I could see I’d taken a reasonable picture of a dragonfly … back in 2015 I was new to all of this so had no idea which species it might be and with no books on the subject searched internet … with little success. I posted the picture to Observation.org and then went to the Dutch forum the site has to ask is anyone might know what I’d taken a picture of. They quickly helped me out there, as it was quite easy to identify … if you know what to look for … but it still did not dawn on me just what it meant.

Oxygastra curtisii (male), 27.vi,15 – Río Saja, Cantabria.

I had slowly been scouring the internet on PDFs, articles, etc. for species on insect and animal that were present in either Cantabria or the general region of northern Spain. I’d also check the IUCN Red List to see if I could find anything there.

A little over a year later, during a visit to one of my favourite parks to spot wildlife, I was walking back to the car with my partner and our kids, and something zipped by us and landed in front of us on the path. I took my (new) camera and we all stood very still while I took a few pictures, as we inched closer it flew off. Again, I had a hunch it was something interesting … back at home I saw that it was a female of the same species I’d seen a year earlier …

Orange-spotted Emerald

The family affiliation of Oxygastra curtisii (Dale, 1834) – Orange-Spotted Emerald in English – is uncertain but it does fall under Anisoptera, which is a suborder of Odonata that includes all true dragonflies (as opposed to damselflies – Zygoptera). So, it is a bit of a unique species, although it does look a bit like Somatochlora (Striped Emeralds) and Cordulia (Downy Emeralds) – both of which do not really occur here on the Iberian Peninsula. On top of that, the Orange-Spotted Emerald is only found in south-western Europe and small populations in Morocco (Northern Africa).

Oxygastra curtisii (female), 10.vii,16 – Cuchía, Cantabria.

It needs slow moving rivers to breed in, which does fit this area of Cantabria where the rivers have calmed down a bit on their way to the Cantabrian Sea after having rushed down the mountains nearby. But the waters need to be really, really clean for it to have a chance to survive and until the early 2000s the factories were not always focused on dumping clean water into the rivers here. This has changed and improvements have been monitored by local organisations here, so who knows, we might start seeing an increase in sightings. It still remains incredibly rare here in Cantabria and I have tried to spot another, but to no avail so far …

However, the IUCN Red List classifies the species as Near Threatened NT and that assessment is probably right on the money. It is also listed as a protected species in Spain.

Our Article

So, the observations were so interesting we, when I was still part of Proyecto Lepides (organisation now defunct), decided to send a scientific article to a reputable publication here in Spain, the Boletin Sociedad de Entomologia de Aragon (or SEA). Jorge Garzón wrote it in Spanish after I sent him an English version of the events. He dressed the text up a bit so that it was all a bit more official, as I’d never done something like it before. I’m still super proud of it and I see it as part of the foundation to help justify all the time I’ve spent out in nature, observing, having fun … there’s nothing like a little recognition for your work … now if I could only publish more articles … hmm … (stay tuned).

Further Reading

  • Klass-Douwe B. Dijkstra, Asmus Schröter & Richard Lweington (illus.). Field Guide to the Dragonflies of Britain & Europe – 2nd edition. 2020. Bloomsbury, 336 pp. – Pretty much the go-to guide at the moment. Pretty stunning book.
  • Christophe Brochard, Dick Groenendijk, Ewoud van der Ploeg, Tim Termaat. Fotogids van Larvenhuidjes van Libellen – 2e druk. 2016. KNNV Uitgeverij. 320 pp. – In Dutch but great pictures of the skins (exuvie) Odonata leave behind.
  • Christophe Brochard, Ewoud van der Ploeg. Fotogids Larven van Libellen. 2014. KNNV Uitgeverij. 236 pp. – Same as the above, also in Dutch, but then of living larva of Odonata. Again, stunning photos.
  • My SEA article that I wrote together with Jorge Garzón.
  • A list of sightings in our area on our (now defunct) project page of Proyecto Lepides on Observation.org.

Odonata Update – Orange-spotted Emerald – Oxygastra curtisii (Dale, 1834)

Intermezzo part 2 – The Second … or Third … Coming

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So, there I was, back in late 2017 with ambition to get back on track and thinking I’d have plenty of time over the winter to write some pieces for this blog … and here we are, over 5 years later with not a single (published) post to show for it.

Will it be any different this time around? Who knows, but I’m going to give it another go. A lot has happened, not only in my life, but in general. There are some excellent new methods to get content out to those interested, such as Substack, and there is even development around AI writing with tools like ChatGPT. However, the goal is to restart the blog simple … not fill my plate up with too much, I can add more content as it comes. This means I’ll stick with the following:

  • Bee-News – all things related to Hymenoptera, so also wasps and ants. Posts in this category will probably be fairly regular, maybe once a month or so.
  • Book Club – books on nature or related topics. Infrequent, but I’ve read some great books since the last one and so will be a bit more common at first. One of the books I’m considering is The Collector by John Fowles. I have half a draft ready but was never sure it fit … we’ll see.
  • Butterfly Bulletin – the name describes it fairly well. Again, expect to see regular posts on this.
  • Flower Fields Forever – plants of all types really. This category will be irregular because I’m least knowledgeable about this topic, though I do have some interesting orchids etc. I want to highlight.
  • Odonata Update – all things dragonfly and damselfly. A regular that covers an area I’m really interested in.
  • RAm Report – reptiles and amphibians will be covered here. I do not expect to be posting on a regular basis in this category, but I do have some great observations I want to highlight.

Will I be leaving anything behind? Well, yes:

  • Proyecto Lepides – I was part of an organisation here that tracked butterfly, moth, dragonfly, and damselfly populations in Cantabria but unfortunately it has ceased to exist. It was actually one of the reasons I stopped posting here. A job, family & young kids, and then learning something new in such an in-depth manner (reading, taking time to walk set routes or investigate new areas, sifting and IDing 1000s of photos, carefully recording each observation etc. etc. etc.) was exhausting and did not always align well. I did not want to disappoint the organisation, to which I feel I was one of the key contributors … I am still 4th on the ranking list for number of species of butterflies (92, #1 has 129) seen, 1st for moths (264, #2 has 221) and 1st for dragonflies (34, #2 has 32) all within our defined area (https://proyectolepides.observation.org/) even after little activity on my part over the past 2 years … so I did as much as I could until the founder wrapped it up.
    I am happy to have been a part of it all and if there is ever another similar organisation in the area I’ll be one of the first to join. Thanks to all who I met through this organisation … I’ve kept in touch with a couple, more on that in the future.

Is there anything I might consider adding going forward? (i.e., stuff to add to my plate.)

  • Routes/Excursions – this would basically take over the stuff covered under Proyecto Lepides where I give an overview of any (day) trips I make in the area. I usually set out to go see butterflies or dragonflies in certain locations so this would be an account of those occasions. We’ll see, these take a ton of time and effort to write up. Maybe only the memorable ones with the others being a footnote in a post in one of the 6 topics above.
  • Moth Matters – I own a moth trap these days and a frequent activity I’ve done over the past few years is just to put it out on our balcony and see what comes by. I’ve also IDed a few other locations where I’ve placed the trap with great results. One of the problems has been that in 2022 they replaced the street lighting from old bulbs to LED lights (great for energy efficiency but …) and man are those new LED lights ever bright! Since they’ve been in place then number of moths on our balcony has been next to none, so I’ve had to go out now, where in the past a trap on the balcony was so little effort. I’ll probably start with this topic once I get trapping again …
  • Various other topics – then there are Diptera (flies – Horde of the Flies), Orthoptera (grasshoppers and crickets – ??) and Coleoptera (beetles – Beetlemania) that all really deserve their own topic … and I’ve seen some great species that would make excellent subjects for a post. We’ll see …

Where do we go from here?

I plan to post once a week (oh boy, hopefully I don’t shoot myself in the foot here) on a Tuesday with the first post being in March (on the 7th), which gives me time to finalise some of the draft posts I have planned. My goal is to keep the posts short and to the point. I’ll continue to include some links at the bottom of the post, and I might add a heading for Random Comments at the end of posts so I can jot down some things I’ve been busy with outside of stuff to do with nature etc.

Random Comment of the Post – We now drive a fully electric vehicle (BEV) … I have to say, life-changing really. Hopefully you have the chance/opportunity to switch too, it’s great.

Intermezzo part 2 – The Second … or Third … Coming

Proyecto Ledipdes – Recorrido A, 30TVN09, Casar de Periedo – 25.04.16

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Introduction
With one day of good weather suddenly upon me I decided to head out. There was the occasional gust of wind, but the sun was fully out and the temperature was around 15C. The forecast said rainy periods over the days after. So … out I went …

Recorrido A – 25.04.16 – 30TVN09, Casar de Periedo
There was not much going on at the start of the walk until I noticed a little white butterfly flittering along the edge of the field and road. It was clear that it was a Wood White (Leptidea sinapis) but it was acting strange and it was in a spot where I’d not seen many before … quite far from any woods! 🙂 Anyway, I looked closely and it seemed to be laying eggs individually in a plant that hung over a small dirt edge along the dirt track. In my quest to see if I can find out which Wood White it is I took some pictures, but, as I’m very poor with plants I’ve not made much headway in that department. Furthermore, the plant does not look like any that are listed in the books I have … Will go into it in a post specific on Wood Whites in the (hopefully near) future …

Oak Eggar (caterpillar) in Cantabria, Spain. 25.04.16
Oak Eggar (caterpillar) in Cantabria, Spain. 25.04.16

As I was marveling at this funny lone white, I looked down and at my feet was a hairy caterpillar … Lasiocampa quercus (Oak Egger), a moth … have read that you shouldn’t really handle hairy caterpillars due to skin irritation, so lifted the stick onto the dirt track to get a better angle for a picture. Noticed that it seemed to just have shed its skin, had not seen this before.

On I went … in the first really interesting field that I like to take a closer look in I spotted quite a number of Small Heaths (Coenonympha pamphilus), they were starting to come out in large numbers! I also spotted a dark little thing … this time I was able to get it on camera in a decent manner … a Dingy Skipper (Erynnis tages). Later in the walk I’d spot a second. This was starting well, it isn’t every day I see a Dingy Skipper. I thought I saw another close by, but the Burnet Companion (Euclidia glyphica), a day-flying moth, that it turned out to be was a bit of a let-down. This species and other day-flying moths will become a feature in the months to come. An inexperienced eye will think “hey butterfly” and that’s what I did … but through endless frustration last year I was slowly learning. However, now for Proyecto Lepides we also record moths we see … so, hey, this is an easy one (i.e. don’t have to go out at night to see it)!

Dingy Skipper in Cantabria, Spain. 25.04.16
Dingy Skipper in Cantabria, Spain. 25.04.16

For most of the rest of the walk there was more standard stuff, always good to see, but after a while those species become a touch boring.

Sooty Copper (male) in Cantabria, Spain. 25.04.16
Sooty Copper (male) in Cantabria, Spain. 25.04.16

I did see my first Sooty Copper (Lycaena tityrus) of the year, a male. I quite like this butterfly, and it is reasonably common around here during the summer months. The females have a spectacular mix of orange and brown. The males are more “drab” dark blackish brown (sooty is a fitting name for the males). But when they thus fly you see flashed from their white underside wings … so for males you get a neat black/white strobe-action going. They aren’t the greatest of flyers, so do not go far if you disturb them and hence are easy to follow. One of my goals this year is to see as many Copper species as possible. There are 6 species in this area of Spain, but three are rare and one of those is really extremely rare … and apparently the most common I cannot seem to come across here (just once last year)!

Orange-tip (male) in Cantabria, Spain. 25.04.16
Orange-tip (male) in Cantabria, Spain. 25.04.16

Towards the end of my walk I saw another year-first … an Orange-tip (Anthocharis cardamines). Again apparently a common sort that I do not come across much here … I’d actually seen a female earlier in April during a stroll, and those are difficult to spot … but males should be easy with their flashy orange wing-tips. Usually, I just seen them flying up and down a path, relentlessly, never seeming to stop for a drink of nectar. I was thus very happy to see one drinking away, and quickly took a picture before it zipped off again.

During the walk I’d also seen three butterflies I had not been able to ID, one was probably a moth and the other two were darkish-looking in flight (one a Small Tortoiseshell?!). Still again, even though I was a touch disappointed with my daily haul, I had some hope for if the weather should turn good for a more extended period.

(I wrote the above but did not finish the post … it is now just into May and we’ve got a couple of excellent days of sun ahead … will go out this Wednesday for my monthly walk, it is looking to be amazing weather … keeping my fingers crossed for some real dazzle!)

Jan. to April Summary
The month of April is almost at a close and it has been a mixed bag … both of butterflies, and of hopes and expectations … for the year.
With regards to 2015, I’m at the exact same numbers, for the year till the end of April I had seen 19 species, of which I’d seen 17 in April. I should also note that of the April species, 3 (of the 17) were not in 30TVN09 (I was not a volunteer yet either), and for the year that number was at 4 (of the 19).

The species I’d seen in 2015 but not so far this year are; Carcharodus alceae, Papilio machaon*, Pieris brassicae, Callophrys rubi*, Cupido argriades, Vanessa cardui* and Aglais urticae. The ones with a * are non-30TVN09.
I realise that some of these are pure luck due to the migratory nature of the species (Pm, Vc, and Au) and the others will surely be seen in May – the one exception to all being Callophyrs rubi, I cannot understand why I have not seen this species in 30TVN09 yet. It is apparently very common but I’ve only seen this butterfly once – however, I cannot but feel slight disappointment with how the sightings have gone this year. Especially seeing as the first months (Jan. and Feb.) looked to be building up quite well. I thought that with a bit more knowledge and experience I’d be able to ID more butterflies, but that has not been the case. Most I’ve seen I’ve been able to ID this year, but I’ve not seen many new species. I assume this has to do with:
– Habitat.
– Weather.
– Luck.
And it is with the last two categories that frustration comes in …

But it is thus also with a bit of luck that I’ve seen two new excellent species so far this year … Boloria dia and the Pyrgus spec. … both not the most common of butterflies in these parts.
I guess what I should take from this is that I should focus more on the positives of 2016 so far … there’s still a lot to go in the year and May looks to be exciting with a friend coming over and the possibility to explore some new areas!

Summary
– Lasiocampa quercus (a moth – caterpillar).
– Leptidea sinapis – a few, around 5-8.
– Pararge aegeria – reasonable amount 10-15.
– Gonepteryx rhamni – a small number, around 5 in total.
– Coenonympha pamphilus – around 20.
– Colias croceus – quite a few, maybe 10.
– Erynnis tages – 2 in total.
– Euclidia glyphica (a moth) – 2 in total.
– Pieris napi.
– Lycaena tityrus – first of the year, 2 in total.
– Anthocharis cardamines – first of the year.

Species year total — 19 (2015 – 45). 16 species seen in April.
Notes:
– Only species of butterflies are counted, I really have no knowledge of moths, but they are part of Proyecto Lepides goals and results so, I mention them in write-ups.

Further Reading
– My sightings for the walk on Observation.org.
– Overview of what has been happening with Proyecto Lepides and butterfly sightings all over Spain. Note the lack of “action” in the north.

Proyecto Ledipdes – Recorrido A, 30TVN09, Casar de Periedo – 25.04.16