Butterflies...

Mountain Marsh Runners aka Broad-billed Sandpipers have started passing through South East Norway the last couple of days. There are only a handful of sites with annual records of this scarce species and one of them is Årnestangen. So, I set off on the long walk with high hopes this morning. My hopes gradually became lower and lower on the walk out when there was no sign of any migration whatsoever. Arriving at the end of the peninsula there was a particular dearth of birds and I had to work very hard to find any waders at all with just a single Dunlin and Ringed Plover being migrants. This is all part of the game but at this time of year one always hopes for a bit more.

On the walk back I did hear a brief snatch of “song” from my first Corncrake of the year plus seeing my first Swift which is a late first record. Whilst Beast walking I had a singing Icterine Warbler near the house which will deserve some more attention.

The lack of birds today is highlighted by the face that I will show pictures of butterflies instead. Three different Painted Ladies was a big surprise although there seems to have been an arrival recently. I always thought of this butterfly as a late summer migrant.

a female Orange Tip (aurorasommerfugl). From above it can be confused with the other whites but the pattern of the underside of the lower wing is distinctive

the first Painted Lady (tistelsommerfugl) I saw. This individual was very tatty and the upperparts which I didn't manage to get a picture of were pale and bleached

the second Painted Lady

which looked to be nice and fresh

and the third one 

which was also quite fresh

and a Green-veined White (rapssommerfugl)

it's been a long time since I've seen a Stoat (røyskatt). This one had something in its mouth but I didn't manage to see what it had taken