Butterfly observation 04.02.2024
Sinhagad valley Pune MH India

Pavan Damoor

ButterfliesofPune

Timing: 9:30 am to 1:30 pm
Latitude:
Longitude:

As we have visited Tamhini plenty of times so decided to change our location 😁 so this Sunday I planned to visit Sinhagad valley Pune which is very much near to my home. And with past experiences and observation I knew that the butterfly mud puddling activity must have already begun at the valley and it was the same.

This time I am sharing the list of butterflies sightings in a different format, it's a half hour count (scientific data method)

I started my butterfly walk from 9:30 am to 1:30 pm so a total of 8 counts in 4 hours.

Sharing the list of butterflies observed at Sinhagad valley

Also my special sighting of day is mentioned in the last so stay tuned ☺️

1st count - 9:30am to 10:00 am - 5 species

1. Common evening brown - (roosting) broken wings
2. Common Sailer - puddling
3. Glassy tiger - puddling
4. Red line small grass yellow - Roosting
5. Common evening brown - roosting
6. Common Grass yellow - Roosting

2nd Count - 10 am to 10:30 am - 9 species

1. Daniad eggfly (male) - puddling
2. Common Map - puddling
3. Common fivering - roosting
4. Common Pierrot - nectaring
5. Common Bush brown - roosting
6. Common Sailer - basking
7. Indian Cupid - basking
8. Tiny grass blue - nectaring
9. Lemon pansy - basking

3rd count - 10:30 am to 11:00 pm
10 species

1. Common Jezebel - nectaring on lantana flowers
2. Common Sailer - puddling
3. Chocolate pansy - puddling
4. Pea blue - puddling
5. Common silverline - basking
6. Blue tiger - puddling
7. Lemon pansy - puddling
8. Blue pansy - basking
9. Grass demon - basking/ sapping on bird dropping
10. Forget-me-not - puddling

4th count - 11:00 am to 11:30 am
10 species

1. Indian Red flash - puddling
2. Indian Nawab - basking/ puddling
3. Pointed Ciliate blue - basking/ cleaning its Probosics with its legs
4. Peacock pansy - basking
5. Blue pansy - basking
6. Lemon pansy - basking
7. Yellow pansy - basking
8. Chocolate pansy - puddling
9. Common threering - puddling
10. Pea blue - group puddling

5th count - 11:30 am to 12 pm
10 species

1. Grey pansy - basking
2. Lemon emigrant - male and female puddling
3. Vindhyan Bob - puddling
4. Indian Nawab - puddling
5. Grass demon - sapping on bird dropping
6. Daniad eggfly male - puddling
7. Great eggfly female - puddling
8. Double banded judy - puddling
9. Pointed Ciliate blue - puddling
10. Mottled emigrant - puddling
11. Tiny grass blue - puddling

6th count - 12:00 pm to 12:30 pm
9 species

1. Common line blue - puddling
2. Lemon pansy - basking
3. Spotless grass yellow - nectar
4. Common Sailer - basking
5. Common Pierrot - basking
6. Zebra blue - nectaring
7. Dark grass blue - nectaring
8. Mottled emigrant - nectaring
9. Striped tiger - flight

7th count - 12:30 pm to 1:00 pm
10 species

1. Common leopard - nectaring
2. Blue tiger - nectaring
3. Common Sailer - basking
4. Lime swallowtail - nectaring
5. Dark palm dart - nectaring
6. Indian wanderer - nectaring
7. Spotless grass yellow - nectar
8. Common grass yellow - nectar
9. Indian Cupid - nectaring
10. Vindhyan Bob - nectaring
11. Common Palmfly - flight

8th count - 1 pm to 1:30 pm
10 species

1. Painted lady - nectaring (most widely distributed butterfly in the world. It is found everywhere except the Arctic and Antarctic regions)
2. Indian Cupid - puddling
3. Spotless grass yellow - puddling
4. Pea blue - nectaring
5. Painted lady - roosting

It was getting hotter so I decided to pack up and leave for home. Had kept my camera in my sack too 😞
At that time around 1:45 pm I got to observe a very special sighting even though I couldn't click a photo of the beauty, but it made my day more beautiful 🤩

Malabar Banded Peacock 🦋 (Endemic to Western Ghats)
Special sighting for valley

Today's total species count - 45

Family count

1. Skippers - 3
2. Blue's - 11
3. Metal marks - 1
4. Brush footed - 21
5. White & Yellow - 7
6. Swallowtail - 2

Activity count - 72

1. Puddling - 26
2. Nectaring - 18
3. Basking - 17
4. Roosting - 7
5. Sapping - 1
6. Flight - 3

Species seen couple of times - 27

1. Blue pansy - 1
2. Blue tiger - 1
3. Chocolate pansy - 1
4. Common evening brown - 1
5. Common grass yellow - 1
6. Common Pierrot - 1
7. Common Sailer - 4
8. Daniad eggfly - 1
9. Grass demon - 1
10. Indian Cupid - 2
11. Indian Nawab - 1
12. Lemon pansy - 3
13. Mottled emigrant - 1
14. Painted lady - 1
15. Pea blue - 2
16. Pointed Ciliate blue - 1
17. Spotless grass yellow - 2
18. Tiny grass blue - 1
19. Vindhyan Bob - 1

ie, 72 Less 27 = 45 Species count

Apart from butterflies observed plenty of birds & Bees/ wasp

Birds - House sparrow, Jungle crow, Wabbler/ babbler, Flame backed woodpecker, Verditer flycatcher,
Monarch, Red whiskered/ vented bulbul, Yellow throated sparrow,
Black drongo, Shikra, Crested Serpent Eagle, Laughing dove

Mammals
Langoor & Wild Boar

Will share the photos shortly

Happy Butterflying to all.... 🦋🦋

Butterfly observations 11.02.2024
Sinhagad valley Pune MH India

Members
Swanand kesari
Dr Himanshu Pandav
Pavan Damoor

ButterfliesofPune

Timing: 9:30 am to 1 pm

Species count: 40

List of sightings

1. Vindhyan Bob
2. Pea blue
3. Common Pierrot
4. Angled Pierrot
5. White tip line blue
6. Common line blue
7. Tailless line blue
8. Common hedge blue
9. Common shot silverline
10. Abnormal silverline
11. Indian Cupid
12. Tiny grass blue
13. Zebra blue
14. Lesser grass blue
15. Forget-me-not
16. Blue pansy
17. Chocolate pansy
18. Grey pansy
19. Yellow pansy
20. Lemon pansy
21. Commander
22. Common Sailer
23. Chestnut streaked Sailer
24. Baronet
25. Blue oakleaf
26. Great eggfly
27. Blue tiger
28. Glassy tiger

29. Common leopard
    30 Painted lady female egg laying

30. Dark cerulean
31. Psyche
32. Indian wanderer
33. Common grass yellow
34. Spotless grass yellow
35. Lemon emigrant
36. Indian Jezebel
37. Common Mormon
38. Lime swallowtail
39. Grass demon
40. Eggs of Peacock Royal on loranthus
41. Catterpillars of Mormon on lemon/ curry leaves

Happy Butterflying to all....

Butterfly observations 18.02.2024
Sinhagad valley Pune MH India

Members
Pavan Damoor

ButterfliesofPune

Timings: 8:30 am to 1:30 pm

Weather conditions:
Chilled till 8 am
Hotter in the day with unbearable heat
a bit of breeze in between

Things to carry:
Breakfast, Water - 3 litres, fruits, sweets, onion , Cap/hat, first aid box, medicines if required,

Species count: 50

List of sightings observed

Family: Hesperidae (skippers)

1. Vindhyan Bob
2. Grass Demon
3. Golden angle

Family: Lycaenidae (Blues)

1. Pea blue
2. Common Pierrot
3. Angled Pierrot
4. White-tipped line blue
5. Plains cupid
6. Common line blue
7. Tailless line blue
8. Indian Cupid
9. Tiny grass blue
10. Zebra blue
11. Lesser grass blue
12. Common shot silverline
13. Abnormal silverline
14. Forget-me-not
15. Common cerulean
16. Pointed Ciliate blue
17. Dark cerulean
18. Large guava blue
19. Indian Red flash
20. Peacock royal catterpillar

Family: Riodinidae (metal marks)

1. Double banded judy

Family: Nymphalidae (brush footed)

1. Plain tiger
2. Common crow
3. Black Rajah
4. Common Tree brown
5. Common Threering
6. Common leopard
7. Commander
8. Common Sailer
9. Common Lascar
10. Baronet
11. Blue pansy
12. Yellow pansy
13. Lemon pansy
14. Chocolate pansy
15. Peacock pansy
16. Great eggfly
17. Sahyadri Blue oakleaf

Family: Pieridae (whites and yellows)

1. Common grass yellow
2. Spotless grass yellow
3. Small grass yellow
4. Mottled emigrant
5. Lemon emigrant
6. Common Gull

Family: Papilionidae (swallowtails)

1. Lime swallowtail
2. Common Mormon
3. Spot swordtail

overall a very great day today with plenty of mud puddling and nectaring activity.

Happy for getting my first record of 2 larvae of Peacock Royal butterfly 😊

Happy Butterflying to all....