Richard Evans

@richardev

#Butterflies, wildflower meadow restoration in Lancaster and the Lune valley. More information on our restoration of Hermitage Field at #wildflowers #rewilding

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Richard Evans @richardev· 10d

1/2 Fantastic to find a female Common Blue #butterfly in our tiny garden mini-meadow yesterday. She must have been egg-laying, as today I spotted what I take to be several of her eggs on Bird’s-foot Trefoil. Now I have a dilemma... @ukbutterflies.bsky.social @savebutterflies.bsky.social

A female Common Blue butterfly with underwings mottled with flecks of brown and orange, sitting on the yellow flower of Bird's-foot Trefoil against a background of green grass stems and the dried seedpods of Yellow Rattle.

Two tiny white eggs of the Common Blue butterfly attached to the green leaves of Bird's-foot Trefoil.

Close-up of the white egg of the Common Blue butterfly on a fresh green leaf of Bird's-foot Trefoil.

Richard Evans @richardev· 28d

Small Tortoiseshell and Dark Green Fritillary feeding on scabious on Holme Park Fell in Cumbria today. #butterflies @savebutterflies.bsky.social

Two butterflies feeding on lilac-coloured scabious flowers. At the top is a Small Tortoiseshell with wings of bright orange, with black and yellow spots at the top of the forewing and small blue spots along the bottom of the wing. At the bottom is a Dark Green Fritillary – also an orange butterfly, but with many black spots and dashes on its wings.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jun 30

A rare #butterfly visitor to our garden this afternoon: White-letter Hairstreak. Stayed for 45 minutes on the one flower head, feeding on nectar even during persistent drizzle. #SaveButterflies #Lancaster

A White-letter Hairstreak (Satyrium w-album). It's a small brown butterfly with ragged black wing tips, a scarlet zig-zag line just inside the black, and two thin white lines crossing the undersides of the wings, resembling a letter 'w'. It's perched on the silvery-blue flower head of Eryngium × olivierianum 'Big Blue'.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jun 10

#Orchids looking resplendent today despite wind and rain in Miss Whalley's Field in #Lancaster. This little patch (with some hybridisation between Common Spotted and Southern Marsh perhaps?) is flowering much earlier than usual for here. @ukorchids.bsky.social #wildflowers

Pink spikes of Common Spotted-orchid, perhaps showing signs of hybridisation with Southern Marsh Orchid, growing through bright green grasses with a scattering of yellow Meadow Buttercups. In the background is a block of flats, some urban woodland, a group of Victorian houses and the distant dome of the Ashton Memorial in Lancaster's Williamson Park. The grey sky threatens rain.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jun 9

Russet and green: love the colour of this Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary #butterfly resting among the sphagnum and sundews in a #Lancashire bog. @savebutterflies.bsky.social

An orange and black Small Pearl-bordered Fritillary butterfly resting on the surface of a peat bog, with green and russet bog vegetation, including sphagnum mosses and insectivorous sundew plants.

Richard Evans @richardev· May 29

A beautiful new #butterfly for me. One of several Marsh Fritillaries disputing territory with Small Pearl-bordered Frits in the Lake District yesterday.

A fresh Marsh Fritillary butterfly with a chequer-board wing pattern of orange, brown and cream perched on a the pale-green bud of an unfurling bracken leaf.

Richard Evans @richardev· Sep 9

My first walk into the field for 5 weeks and there's a Clouded Yellow right by the path. First I've seen for around 20 years. #ukbutterflies #ukwildlife

A Clouded Yellow butterfly showing its underwings of soft greenish-yellow dotted with brown and white spots is nectaring on Red Clover against a background of green grasses.

Richard Evans @richardev· Aug 16

Long time since we've seen multiple Small Tortoiseshell #butterflies in the garden. A joy to see 5 of them on a self-sown buddleia between us and our neighbour. #ukwildlife

4 orange and black Small Tortoiseshell butterflies nectaring on the purple flowers of a buddleia growing between some rusty iron railings.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jul 21

10 #butterfly species in the garden today, including this male Brimstone – not common round here, and first time we've had one in the garden in summer. #ukwildlife

A male Brimstone butterfly showing the yellow/green undersides of its wings taking nectar from pale lilac-coloured buddleia flowers.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jul 20

The Marmalade Hoverfly, Episyrphus balteatus, might be one of the commonest hoverflies, but I love seeing them – think it one of the prettiest. #ukwildlife #insects

A small orange, yellow and black hoverfly taking nectar from a white verbascum plant with purple anthers.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jul 20

Eryngium 'Big blue' has been anincredible magnate for pollinators this year, even in overcast conditions.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jul 16

A curious fly on the garden scabious. Apparently this is Physocephala rufipes, the Waisted beegrabber, and not seen much in our area. It parasitizes bumblebees. Thanks to Rob Zloch for confirming ID. #ukwildlife #insects #diptera

A black, brown and yellow fly with large yellow blobs on its head, a narrow waist and long, slightly bulbous, curved thorax. It's taking nectar from a pale mauve Field Scabious.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jul 16

Large White #butterflies making lots more Large White butterflies in the garden. #ukwildlife

2 copulating white butterflies, showing the very pale creamy yellow undersides to their wings, against a background of garden flowers in creams, pinks and mauves.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jun 23

3/3 Bonus points for spotting the burnet moth perched on a Ribwort Plantain seedhead. 🌱 #wildflowers

Pink spires of Common Spotted-orchids against a green, grassy backdrop. There is a black and red burnet moth (Narrow-bordered 5-spot Burnet Moth) perched on the seedhead of Ribwort Plantain.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jun 23

2/3 Another bit of the meadow. Great Burnet fighting for attention with the orchids. 🌱 #wildflowers

Pink spires of Common Spotted-orchids against a background of green and yellow, from grasses, buttercups and rattle, with the small crimson flowers of Great Burnet above the sward.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jun 23

1/3 Common Spotted-orchids just coming into their own in Miss Whalley's Field in Lancaster. 🌱 #wildflowers

Pink spires of Common Spotted-orchids against a background of green and yellow, from grasses, buttercups and rattle.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jun 23

Found what I think is a Snout moth (?) on the bathroom window sill this morning. Crawled on to my finger very willingly to be released outside. @mothiduk.bsky.social #ukmoths

A Snout moth, with open triangular-looking wings. Very dark-looking from a distance, but up close you can see a prominent brown bar across the forewings.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jun 20

Melancholy Thistle, flowering with Meadow Crane's-bill, Meadow Buttercup, Oxeye Daisy, Rattle and Sorrel. Miss Whalley's Field in Lancaster. 🌱#wildflowers

A wildflower meadow with the purple flowerheads of Melancholy Thistle, a russet spike of Common Sorrel, the soft blues of Meadow Crane's-bill and the yellow of Meadow Buttercup and Rattle.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jun 19

Large Skippers abundant in the field just now. Love the dappled golden light on their wings. #nature #butterflies #ukwildlife 🌱

A Large Skipper butterfly showing its half-open wings with a chequerboard pattern of brown and gold, sitting on a yellow butterfly flower.

Richard Evans @richardev· Apr 20

Simnel cake for Easter.

A large round fruit cake with two rings of marzipan and 6 small speckled chocolate eggs in the middle – sitting on a red cake tray.

Richard Evans @richardev· Apr 13

🌱 Here's another for early-season #wildflower sward nerds. Melancholy Thistle spreading nicely. This is in the same bit of the meadow where we are operating a 'mow once every 3 years' cycle. Not much Yellow Rattle in evidence here.

An early-season green sward in a wildflower meadow, showing the prominent leaf rosettes of Melancholy Thistle.

Richard Evans @richardev· Apr 13

Stonking germination of Yellow Rattle in the field this year. Had been concerned the Rattle would have disappeared following our intermittent mowing regime: 2021: mow and sow Rattle 2022: not mown 2023: not mown 2024: mown 🌱 #wildflowers

Close-up photo of a green sward with a very large number of Yellow Rattle seedlings, intermixed with Ribwort Plantain, Meadow Buttercup, Red Clover and Bird's-foot Trefoil.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jan 11

Saturday coffee-time treats: Chocolate and Hazelnut Crinkles (Mine and C's contribution – on the right) and Hazelnut Shortbread (Anne's contribution – on the left).

Three slices of Hazelnut Shortbread on a blue plate sitting on a wooden table-top.

Six small circular cookies – Chocolate and Hazelnut Crinkles – covered in white icing sugar with dark chocolate-brown cracks showing through the white, sitting on a blue plate on a wooden table-top.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jan 10

Top work from Tessa Moore – here on the right – and her Public Realm team. The Council is always so responsive and genuinely interested in doing more for nature in Lancaster and Morecambe. You can just see the dome of the Ashton Memorial in Williamson Park poking up on the left side of the pic. 3/3

Three council workers wearing yellow high-viz jackets and orange safety helmets coppicing willow in Miss Whalley's Field in Lancaster, UK. The ground is thick with frost, the sky is blue and you can just the dome of the Ashton Memorial in Williamson Park poking up on the left side of the image.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jan 10

They’re coppicing willow and taking out invasive Rosa rugosa to allow more light into the community orchard and adjacent wildflower meadow, taking care to leave blackthorn, guelder rose, hazel, yew and birch. 2/3

A council worker wearing a yellow high-viz jacket and orange safety helmet operating an orange brashing machine during willow coppicing work in Miss Whalley's Field in Lancaster, UK. The ground is thick with frost, the sky is blue.

Richard Evans @richardev· Jan 10

Ages ago we asked Lancaster City Council if they could coppice some willow on the field. ‘Only when there’s a prolonged hard frost’, they said – ground needs to be frozen to stop kit sinking into wet ground. 2 years on, the temperature is -6C, and here they are first thing this morning! 1/3 🧵

Three council workers wearing yellow high-viz jackets and orange safety helmets operating an orange brashing machine during willow coppicing work in Miss Whalley's Field in Lancaster, UK. The ground is thick with frost, the sky is blue and you can just see the tower of Lancaster's Priory Church on the skyline.

Richard Evans @richardev· Dec 24

In our house, #Christmas Eve means it's time for spiced Christmas bread for breakfast. Wheat/rye enriched dough with raisins, pistachio, crystallised ginger and mixed peel. Spice is clove, cinnamon, mace and allspice. Delicious toasted with butter or marmalade!

A loaf of bread with two slices, showing raisins, green pistachios, ginger and citrus peel.

Richard Evans @richardev· Dec 11

If only that were the case here. Steep bank outside some flats near us, often covered in Bee Orchid rosettes. All of which are mown off every spring. Just now and again they leave off mowing for a couple of weeks in summer, and a lovely carpet of Trefoil, Selfheal and Clover appears.

A steep grassy bank with a carpet of yellow Bird's-foot Trefoil, purple Selfheal and White Clover.

The same steep grassy bank in winter, with a prominent Bee Orchid leaf rosette.

Richard Evans @richardev· Dec 10

Stuck inside with thick cold, and as usual, day-dreaming of spring. Here are 'The Lots' at Silverdale, with thousands of orchids – Green-winged and Early Purple. 🌱#wildlife #ukwildlife #nature #wildflowers

'The Lots', Silverdale in Lancashire. A grassy field covered in the purple spikes of Green-winged and Early Purple Orchids, with the pink flowers of Red Clover and yellow of Mouse-ear Hawkweed. In the background is Morecambe Bay.

Richard Evans @richardev· Dec 1

Fabulous. We got a very similar display in Lancaster just after 10PM that night. Looks strikingly similar to yours!