Sussex Branch

What could be better in early October than a fresh, pristine Painted Lady. Herstmonceux Castle, 5/6th October. (Trevor Rapley, Hailsham)

A walk between my garden and the footpath through Applesham Farm was warm and occasionally sunny. 20 Clouded Yellow (2 helice), 12 Small White, Painted Lady (very fresh), Wall, Small Copper, Speckled Wood, Humming-bird Hawk-moth. Yesterday a fresh Long-tailed Blue in my garden and a third brood Holly Blue. (Lindsay Morris, North Lancing area)

It warmed up nicely today while we were out and about mostly in Goring. Frustratingly we didn't see a single butterfly despite there being plenty of good nectar sources around. The weather is due to turn wetter and colder overnight. Looks like the butterfly season, locally at least, is about to end. (John Heys, Goring)

A GENTLE REMINDER THAT THE DEADLINE FOR THE PHOTOGRAPHIC COMPETITION IS OCTOBER 24TH. YOUR ENTRIES CAN BE PHOTOS THAT YOU HAVE ALREADY SENT TO THE WEBSITE. IF YOU HAVE TAKEN A PHOTOGRAPH THIS YEAR, IT IS ADMISSIBLE. I AM CURRENTLY PREPARING/WRITING THE ANNUAL REPORT (I KNOW IT IS ONLY OCTOBER BUT IT'S A LONG PROCESS), AND AS I LOOK THROUGH EVERY SINGLE POST FOR THIS YEAR, I CAN SEE THERE ARE 50+ OUTSTANDING IMAGES. I WOULD LIKE ALL THOSE MEMBERS WHO HAVE SENT IN YOUR WONDERFUL PHOTOS (YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE) TO FORMALLY SEND THEM TO ROY. IF THIS YEAR'S COMPETITION IS TO BE MEANINGFUL WE NEED YOUR ENTRIES. AS MY GRANDCHILDREN MIGHT SAY, "LET'S DO IT"!   (Martin Kalaher, Website Editor)

Clouded Yellow

Small White on Rough Hawkbit

Female Wall Brown

Sphaerophoria species (a male)

JC and myself went back to Stoke Bottom and Medley Bottom, for 3-4 hours, but the sun refused to break through until we were heading back to our cars! It just wasn't the weather to see butterflies. A couple of orange brown butterflies flew past, and went to ground, and defied identification. I disturbed a Clouded Yellow that eventually settled for a photograph. Otherwise a Small White feeding on Rough Hawkbit and a female Wall Brown (my first on the Amberley Downs this year). The highlight was the repeated calls of a couple of Red Kites. They were very noisy! My garden Michaelmas Daisies have yet attract to any butterflies but there have been several hoverfly and bee species. The hoverfly shown is a male Sphaerophoria species. It is a male as we can see the genital capsule (the bulge at the end of the abdomen). It is not often that we can see this feature, quite so clearly. The Clouded Yellow count in my garden stands at 64, for the season. Amazing numbers. (Martin Kalaher, Amberley Downs) - TQ045120

Clouded Yellow

Small Copper

Going to and from my flu jab took me along the sea front and on the way back enabled me to have a nice chat with Dave Broxham who lives on the Goring side of George V Avenue. In the end we saw much the same. My count was 1 Red Admiral behind the Sailing Club, 3 Clouded Yellows on the shingle, 2 Small Coppers between George V and Wallace Avenues, and 2 Small Whites in the Lansdowne Road area. It is noticeable that the number of Small Whites has greatly diminished in the last 5 days and no butterflies at all flitted through my garden at lunch time. (John Heys, West Worthing)

Single Clouded Yellow and Small Copper enjoying the sunshine here this afternoon. 10 days earlier, on 26th Sept, there had also been a single Clouded Yellow here. (Robin Harris, Mountfield Church) - TQ735203

A late female Brown Hairstreak

Brimstone topping up on reserves ahead of winter

Autumnal colours of the Small Copper

Clouded Yellow - my 'Butterfly of the Year' award winner

The most surprising sighting in the Greenway Bank area of the Downs behind Seaford yesterday was a female Brown Hairstreak; this is remarkable, given that my first 2026 sighting of this species was way back on 29 June - a flight season of more than three months. Typically, for very warm and sunny days at this time of year, a couple of Brimstone were roused from their slumber to stock up on reserves, as aestivation transitions to hibernation. Small Coppers were enjoying the last of the summer wine, although the numbers of most species are now dropping off rapidly. That doesn't, of course, apply to the Clouded Yellow, which is still flying in remarkable numbers. In celebration of this winner of my 'Butterfly of the Year' award, I've appended an image taken here a few weeks back. (Neil Hulme, Greenway area, Seaford)

LTB (m) (1) 10.39am SOUTH CLIFF

LTB (m) (1) 10.43am SOUTH CLIFF

PART OF GARDEN AT RAVENS COURT, SOUTH CLIFF, EASTBOURNE

LTB (m) (2) 3.05pm SOUTH CLIFF

sun 04/10/2026 Ravens Court, South Cliff, Eastbourne, E,Sx. After an absents of three years the Long-tailed Blue butterflies are back at Ravens Court, South Cliff (TV 608 978) I managed four, three males and one female, (my first ever female) could had been more?, feeding on verbena flowers or the males chasing over a lawn area, this is someone's garden, also seen here were 3x Wall (m), 4x Common Blues, 1x Small White, 1x Clouded Yellow and 1x Humming-bird Hawkmoth resting on a rock, and masses of gone to seed Autumn ladies Tresses (last year I counted over two hundred plants) (PETER FARRANT, SOUTH CLIFF, EASTBOURNE, E,Sx) - TV608978

It was a perfect warm sunny day for a wander in the Lancing Ring area. It was great to bump into Kat and a couple from Hampshire, who were all interested in Long-tailed Blue. Sadly we couldn't find any in the chalkpit or up on the Ring. I did briefly see one in my garden, a middle-aged male with tails, but faded. Otherwise, 17 Clouded Yellow (including a helice), 9 Speckled Wood, 4 Wall, 4 Red Admiral, 2 Small Copper, 2 Common Blue, female Brimstone, Painted Lady, Small White (present but not counted), Humming-bird Hawk-moth. (Lindsay Morris, Lancing Ring area)