Speckled Wood (Pararge aegeria)

Look for it on Helsby Hill top and shady verges on roadside Hill Road North.

Speckled Wood is a genuine woodland butterfly preferring to stay in the dappled shade provided by light canopy woodland. There are usually two broods, one in spring and one in summer. It is unique in Britain in that it can over-winter both as a caterpillar (larva) and as a pupa. In the south of England the whie spots are replaced by orange spots.

Orange Tip male (Anthocharis cardamines)

Look for it on roadside verges where the larval foodplants: Garlic Mustard and Cuckooflower grow. (See Plants for more details)

The Orange Tip has only brood per year in Spring around April and May. Like all butterflies it will be seeking nectar on flowering plants in order to survive. The male gives the species its name because there are vivid orange tips to the upper wings.

Orange Tip female (Anthocharis cardamines)

Look for it on roadside verges where the larval foodplants: Garlic Mustard and Cuckooflower grow. (See Plants for more details)

The female Orange Tip does not have orange tips to the upper wings and when flying looks a bit like a small white butterfly. The underside however is similar to the male but the beautiful green mottled pattern is what tells you that it is not one of the three common white butterflies which can start flying about the same time. The female will seek nectar to survive but also look for larval (caterpillar) food plants like Garlic Mustard or Cuckooflower. Unlike some butterflies which will lay eggs in clusters, the Orange Tip female only lays one egg on one plant.

Small Tortoiseshell (Aglais urtica)

Look for it in summer on roadside plants such as Common Ragwort and in your garden on Buddeia or Ice Plant.

Usually one of our commonest butterflies, the Small Tortoaisshell has suffered a drastic reduction in numbers over the past few years. It is a hibernating butterfly and the ones which have over-wintered look a bit faded and fly in the early spring sunshine after typically emerging from a garden shed or garage. The underwing of the Small Tortoiseshell is dark brown in contrast to the coloured upper wings. The larval food plant is usually Stinging Nettles.

Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta)

Look for it in summer on roadside plants such as Common Ragwort and in your garden on Buddeia or Ice Plant.

Often seen in late summer, this is usually a migrant species of butterfly so can be seen anywhere in Britain throughout the summer. A few are now thought to overwinter in the southern counties of the British isles and so it is considered a resident butterfly now. It is attracted to garden plants liike Buddelia, Ice plants and is often seen in good numbers in early autumn of the flowers of Ivy. They lay their eggs on Stinging Nettles.

Gatekeeper or Hedge Brown (Pyronia tithonus)

Look for it in summer on roadside shrubs such as Bramble (Blackberry) flowers and in your garden on Marjoram.

The Gatekeeper has a short flight time from the end of July to the beginning of September. The adult butterfly seeks nectar from various wild plants but white Blackberry flowers and yellow Ragwort are favourites. The larval (caterpillar) food plants are different kinds of grasses such as Bents (Agrostis sp), Fescues (Festuca sp) and Meadow grasses (Poa sp). The caterpillars hibernate and emerge the following spring to continue the life cycle.

Large White (Pieris brassicae)

Look for it in summer on roadside plants and shrubs such as Thistles or Bramble (Blackberry) and in your garden on Buddleia.

This is one of the vegetable gardener's enemies who know it (plus the small White) as Cabbage Whites. They often seem to be able to get into protected enclosures so they can lay their eggs on young members of the Brassica (cabbage) genus. It is the largest of the white butterflies. The male has no spots on the upper wings just dark wing tips and the and female has one or two black spots.

Small White (Pieris rapae)

Look for it in summer on roadside plants and shrubs such as Thistles, Ragwort or Bramble (Blackberry) and in your garden on Buddleia.

This is second of the vegetable gardener's enemies who know it (plus the Large White) as "Cabbage Whites". There is no single species of butterfly called the "Cabbage White" though. It is quite distictly smaller than the Large White with greenish tinges to the white underside. It is one of our commonest butterflies.

Green-veined White (Pieris napi)

Look for it in summer on roadside plants and shrubs such as Thistles, Ragwort or Bramble (Blackberry) and in your garden on Buddleia, Ice Plant or Marjoram.

Often confused with the Small White because it is has similar white upper wings and is about the same size, this species is not a voracious cabbage eater like the other two common white butterflies. It still gets blamed for damage by allotment holders all the same. The under wing appaers to have veins but this is an effect caused by the juxtaposition of coloured scales on the wings. It doesn't really have veins in those positions.