Sierra Nevada, Granada Province, Spain.

A day in the hills with Anita and the Butterflies and Plants.

 

Spanish Brassy Ringlet (Erebia hispania).

I met Anita down at the bottom of the hill and then drove up to the top car park where we started the first walk, almost straight away Painted Lady's (Vanessa cardui) were seen around the flowers of the Carduus carlinoides plants along the foot path. 

Centranthus nevadensis.

In the same area we also had Small Tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae), the first of many Spanish Brassy Ringlets (Erebia hispania), Clouded Yellow (Colias croceus), Sideritis glacialis, Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) and by the first rocky outcrop Leontodon boryi, Erigeron frigidus, Euphrasia willommii, Anarrhinum laxiflorum and a calling Tawny Pipit (Bisbita Camprstre / Anthus campestris).

Spanish Brassy Ringlet (Erebia hispania).

Large Wall Brown (Lasiommata maera).

Southern Marbled Skipper (Carcharodus baeticus).

Safflower Skipper (Pyrgus carthami).

Escher's Blue (Polyommatus escheri).

Further along the track we added Rock Sparrow (Gorrión Chillón / Petronia petronia), Northern Wheatear (Collalba Gris / Oenanthe oenanthe), Black Redstart (Colirrojo Tizón / Phoenicurus ochruros), House Martin (Avión Común / Delichon urbica) as well as several interesting and some endemic plants including Silene boryi, Echium flavum, Ptilotrichum spinosum, Astragalus nevadensis, Eryngium glaciale, St Bruno's Lilly (Paradisia liliastrum), Centranthus nevadensis, Galium nevadensis and Nevada House Leek (Sempervivum minutum).

Echium flavum.

Galium nevadensis.

Arenaria tetraquetra.

Anarrhinum laxiflorum.

Nevada House Leek (Sempervivum minutum).

Nepeta amethystina.

We continued to encounter butterflies and as we walked we added Safflower (Pyrgus carthami) and Southern Marbled Skipper (Carcharodus baeticus), Large Wall Brown (Lasiommata maera), Escher's Blue (Polyommatus escheri), Purple-shot (Lycaena alciphron) and Small Copper (Lycaena phlaeas), Queen of Spain (Issoria lathonia) and Southern Brown Argus (Aricia cramera).

Comastoma tenellum.

Gentiana boryi.

Gentiana pneumonanthe.

We reached the Burreguiles wet area and soon found two new plants for Anita, the two Gentians Gentiana boryi and Comastoma tenellum as well as Gentiana pneumonanthe, Saxifraga stellaris ssp alpigena, Grass of Parnassus (Parnassia palustris), Pinguicola nevadensis, Cerastium cerastoides, Moonwort (Lunaria menor / Botrychium lunaria), Marsh Violet (Viola palustris), Whorled Lousewort (Pedicularis verticillata), Lotus corniculatus subsp glacialis, Plantago nivalis and Kidney Vetch (Anthyllis vulneraria).

Eryngium glaciale.

Marsh Violet (Viola palustris).

Cerastium cerastoides ????

Pinguicola nevadensis.

Moonwort (Lunaria menor / Botrychium lunaria).

Lower down the slope nearer to the waterfall we found loads more Nevada Blues (Polyommatus golgus), Safflower Skippers, Eryngium glaciale, Chickweed Willowherb (Epilobium alsinifolium), Spignel (Meum athamanticum), Chives (Allium schoenoprasum), Erigeron frigidus and Griffon Vulture (Bultre Leonado / Gyps fulvus).

Nevada Blue (Polyommatus golgus).

Southern Blue (Polyommatus celina) female.

After a while taking the photo's we wanted we started to walk back towards the car adding Southern Blue (Polyommatus celina), Teucrium compactum, Cirsium acaulon, Dianthus subacaulis subsp. brachyanthus, Linnet (Pardillo Común / Carduelis cannabina), Pallid Swift (Vencejo Pálido /Apus pallidus), Red-billed Chough (Chova Piquirroja / Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax) and Crag Martin (Avión Roquero / Ptyonoprogne rupestris).

Southern Heath Fritillary (Melitaea nevadensis).

Idas Blue (Plebejus idas) male.

Idas Blue (Plebejus idas) female.

Niobe Fritillary (Fabriciana niobe).

Niobe Fritillary (Fabriciana niobe).

We dropped down to another spot and walked out onto the ski slopes and we were soon seeing Idas Blue (Plebejus idas), Niobe Fritillary (Fabriciana niobe), Clouded Yellow, Small Tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae), Iberian Marbled White (Melanargia lachesis), Small Skipper (Thymelicus sylvestris), Small White (Pieris rapae) and Mountain Argus (Aricia montensis).

Mountain Argus (Aricia artaxerxes montensis).

Purple-shot Copper (Lycaena alciphron).

Southern Heath Fritillary (Melitaea nevadensis).

Small Tortoiseshell (Aglais urticae).

Birds included Rock Bunting (Escribano Montesino / Emberiza cia), Common Whitethroat (Curruca Zarcera / Sylvia communis), Common Kestrel (Cernicalo Vulgar / Falco tinnunculus), Bonelli's Warbler (Mosquitero Papialbo / Phylloscopus bonelli), Blackbird (Mirlo Común / Turdus merula), Barn Swallow (Golondrina Común / Hirundo rustica), Great Tit (Carbonera Común / Parus major), Robin (Petirrojo Europeo / Erithacus rubecula) and Serin (Verdecillo / Serinus serinus).

Essex Emerald (Thetidia smaragdaria).

Aquilegia nevadensis.

Eriopogon laniger.

Robust Marsh Orchid (Dactylorhiza elata).

In the same area we also had Essex Emerald (Thetidia smaragdaria), Ruby Tiger (Phragmatobia fuliginosa), Eriopogon laniger, Robust Marsh Orchid (Dactylorhiza elata) and Aquilegia nevadensis.

False Ilex Hairstreak (Satyrium esculi).

High Brown Fritillary (Fabriciana adippe).

Blue Spotted Hairstreak (Satyrium spini).

Southern Skimmer (Orthetrum brunneum) teneral.

Again we returned to the car and dropped down to the Old road down to Guejar Sierra and made a roadside stop picking up Wall Brown (Lasiommata megera), Silver-studded Blue (Plebejus argus) and just a little further on at the grassland corner False Ilex (Satyrium esculi) and Blue Spotted Hairstreak (Satyrium spini), High Brown Fritillary (Fabriciana adippe), Dusky Heath (Coenonympha dorus), Iberian Scarce Swallowtail (Iphiclides feisthameli), Great Banded Grayling (Brintesia circe), Southern Brown Argus (Aricia cramera) and a teneral Southern Skimmer (Orthetrum brunneum).

Holly Blue (Celastrina argiolus) female.

Queen of Spain (Issoria lathonia).

Also seen and heard were Woodpigeon (Paloma Torcaz / Columba palumbus), Wren (Chochin / Troglodytes troglodytes), Short-toed Treecreeper (Agateador Común / Certhia brachydactyla), Iberian Green Woodpecker (Pito Real / Picus sharpei), Crested Tit (Herrerillo Capuchino / Parus cristatus) and Common Chaffinch (Pinzón Vulgar / Fringilla coelebs).

Spanish Purple Hairstreak (Laeosopis roboris).

Our next stop was near the entrance to the Seminario Diocesano where we checked the hedgerows around a couple of Ash trees and found several Spanish Purple Hairstreaks (Laeosopis roboris), Queen of Spain (Issoria lathonia), a female Holly Blue (Celastrina argiolus), Soapwart (Saponaria officinalis), Wild Clematis (Clematis flammula), Common Burdock (Arctium minus) and just a bit lower down the road a couple of with over with spikes of Small-leaved Helleborine (Epipactis microphylla) and a few flowering nicely Epipactis Fageticola. 

Epipactis Fageticola.

Epipactis Fageticola.

We made our last stop down at the bridge over the Rio Genil but there was a very strong breeze so we did not add anything other than a Small Heath (Coenonympha pamphilus) before heading back to the meeting point and then on home.