"Butterflies and Birds of North Macedonia" - 'Naturetrek' Trip, June - July 2025

 Every year I take a wildlife holiday to somewhere in the world that I have not previously visited. In 2023 it was Japan, in 2024 it was The Gambia and this year I chose a shorter holiday, closer to home, in North Macedonia (formerly part of Yugoslavia). Two of my major wildlife interests (bird watching and butterfly photography) were well catered for and there was the chance to see other wildlife (particularly invertebrates and reptiles) that are not encountered in the UK and Western Europe. Unfortunately, the original leaders had to pull out due to illness. They were replaced at short notice by Slave, who proved to be an excellent and knowledgeable bird guide and leader, and Marek, the butterfly expert, who came all the way from the Czech Republic and proved to be a very keen and enthusiastic leader on all things 'butterfly'. Our group of 14 clients contained a considerable amount of expertise and I found that, as in The Gambia, that whilst at home I may be considered the 'local expert', here I was of little help in species identification. The party included some very keen 'moth-ers', who brought their moth traps with them and were up at 4.00am to check what the traps had captured.

North Macedonia is a small and beautiful country of mountains and plains. It is also very hot, with temperatures above 30C being 'the norm' for the time of our visit. In fact, temperatures reached 40C on our first two days, when most of our wildlife watching was done early or late, before returning to normal (around 30 - 35C) for the rest of the trip. The food was good and plentiful (perhaps too plentiful at times, as we were treated to some large lunches in cafes and restaurants). The first hotel (three nights) was good, although the air conditioning in the second hotel (four nights) left a lot to be desired and led to some poor sleeps. Only 'Wizz Air' departures from Luton fly directly to and from Skopje (the capital of North Macedonia) and they depart late in the evening, meaning that our arrival at the first hotel (12.30am) and our arrival back at Luton (2.00am) led to sleep deprivation (a common factor, it seems, on my wildlife holidays). I'll deal with the wildlife in three sections, Birds, Butterflies and Everything Else.

Typical Scenery in North Macedonia

Birds

I didn't come out with a 'wish list' of birds to see on this holiday. I have seen most of Europe's breeding birds and was more interested in getting good photos of (preferably) some of the species that we don't get in the UK. In fact, only three of the species that we were likely to see (Eastern Imperial Eagle, Ortolan Bunting and Rock Partridge) would be new to me. We saw the eagle on the first day and the Rock Partridge (which I thought at the time I had previously seen but in fact hadn't) later in the holiday, but the Ortolan Bunting remained elusive, despite Slave's best efforts to find one for me and one being seen by one of the other clients on the holiday. Ironically, an Ortolan Bunting was being 'twitched' in England whilst I was away! There were some good sightings nonetheless, including Lesser Spotted Eagle and both Dalmatian and White Pelicans. In all, we saw 138 species on the trip. Here are a few of my images.

Male Crested Lark, Singing

Male Lesser Kestrel

White Stork (they were nesting just up the road from our second Hotel)

Tawny Pipit

Black-headed Bunting

Butterflies

Around 200 species of butterfly can be found in North Macedonia, and we ended up with a trip list of 117 species (about twice the total number of species that can be found in the UK, and bear in mind that not all those species will be on the wing in midsummer). I had decided beforehand that I wouldn't make a big effort to see as many as possible, but would try to photograph a good variety. Marek was an enthusiastic 'netter' and a few of my fellow travellers also used nets to catch and, in some cases, place the butterflies in containers before (of course) releasing them after others had seen them. In this way, I probably saw all but a handful of these species although this wasn't an entirely satisfactory way, for me, of getting 'ticks'. We saw the Macedonian Grayling, the only North Macedonian endemic, as well as the very rare Yellow-legged Tortoiseshell Butterfly. As always, it was very difficult to sort out the rarer 'blues' from the masses of Common Blues, Small Blues and Brown Argus butterflies that were present everywhere we looked. Sometimes, as many as 200 could be seen 'puddling' in the mud together. Very few Swallowtails were seen, but Scarce Swallowtails were everywhere and at one site around 40 were seen together, picking up minerals from the mud. Many different species of Fritillary were seen, and it was interesting to note the hugely variable markings on the Lesser Spotted Fritillaries and (the commonest Fritillary), the Queen of Spain. Look at the following two images, both of Queen of Spain, for example.

Queen of Spain Fritillary, 'Standard' Markings

Queen of Spain Fritillary. Note the darker, heavier markings than on the Butterfly above

Common Blue, Small Blue and other Butterflies 'Puddling'

Eastern Greenish Black-Tip, a rare and localised Butterfly

Everything Else

One of the pleasures of the holiday was in seeing invertebrates, reptiles and amphibians that are rare or absent from Western Europe, such as the Four-lined Snake that was in the process of strangling a poor Blue Rock Thrush chick when we came across it near the entrance to a road tunnel, and the many Hermann's Tortoises that we saw. A good variety of dragonflies were seen, of which the Small Pincertail (image below) was the commonest. Giant Bush-crickets and huge Lacewings were encountered, as well as a variety of lizards. Very few mammals were encountered, but there was so much of everything else that it didn't really matter. I can heartily recommend North Macedonia for those who have a general interest in wildlife, in particular birds and invertebrates.

Small Pincertail Dragonfly

Four-lined Snake

Green Lizard

An attractive species of Ascalaphid

Local Wildlife Sightings, July 2025

 Back from holiday early on the 3rd and with an enormous amount of sleep to catch up on, I nevertheless managed a short evening walk on the same day along the Greenwich Meridian Trail, south of Royston, where I knew that I would find hundreds of Essex Skippers. Most had clearly been on the wing for a few days and were looking rather ragged, but I did manage to get a few photos of decent specimens in what is a very large colony. As expected, Chalk Hill Blues and Gatekeepers had emerged (the first Chalk Hills were reported on the 25th of June, the day I left the UK). Marbled Whites were still flying on The Heath when I visited on the 4th. Chalk Hill Blues were seen in relatively small numbers, but very large numbers of Gatekeepers were seen. The first of the second generation of Brown Argus were already on the wing, very early but in line with other butterfly species that have emerged early in what promises to be a long, hot summer.

Essex Skipper, Royston, 3 July

Brown Argus, Therfield Heath, 4 July

Male Chalk Hill Blue and Hoverfly on Knapweed, Therfield Heath, 4 July

A visit to Phillup's Lake on the 7th was rewarded by seeing families of four Little Grebes and three Coots. A handful of moulting Mallards and a single female Tufted Duck were also present. Nearby, I saw my first local Small Copper butterfly of the year, as well as an Emperor Dragonfly and several Common Blue Damselflies. As I reached three score years and ten, two more birthday related holidays kept me (happily) away from my local patch, so sightings were very sporadic until the 20th. However, I did manage visits to The Heath (Old Rifle range area) on the 12th, where I saw my first local Small Copper of the year, and Hertford Heath, where I saw Purple Hairstreaks flitting around in various Oak trees. The ponds had almost completely dried up and dragonflies were scarce here.

Female Chalk Hill Blue, Therfield Heath, 12 July

Small Copper, Therfield Heath, 12 July

On a visit to Fox Covert on the 14th I was very pleased to encounter an admittedly rather battered male Silver-washed Fritillary, the first that I have seen here since 2023. This species, which only arrived in the woodland a few years ago, is struggling to survive here in habitat that is not ideal, but will likely have bred here in 2024 (or maybe this male arrived from another colony this year?). Also seen in the woods were single Common and Ruddy Darters, the latter having a split and twisted abdomen, perhaps caused on emergence from the chrysalis.

Ruddy Darter with Damaged Abdomen, Fox Covert, 14 July

Record Shot of a rather battered male Silver-washed Fritillary, Fox Covert, 14 July

Following another holiday (see my UK blog) I was finally home for more than a couple of days from the 20th. The weather had finally deteriorated into what for many years was a typical English summer (thunderstorms, showers and longer periods of rain, average temperatures) and there was plenty to catch up on at home, but I did manage a few visits to local sites and, strangely, had my best week of the summer for local wildlife photography. Several female Chalk Hill Blues were now on the wing, and I photographed four mating pairs during the following week, including two pairs that were almost side by side at the bottom of Church Hill. Common Blues were also seen mating, whilst the dominant species on the wing, certainly on The Heath, was still Gatekeeper. On the 21st I led a Royston Photographic Society wildlife photography session on The Heath, near the Therfield Road, where in addition to lots of Chalk Hill Blues being seen, we found mating Burnet Moths and a large, female Wasp Spider!

Mating Chalk Hill Blue Butterflies, Therfield Heath, 22 July

Mating Common Blue Butterflies, Royston, 21 July

Mating 6-Spot Burnet Moths, Therfield Heath, 21 July

Female Wasp Spider, Therfield Heath, 21 July

Two Roosting Male Chalk Hill Blues, Therfield Heath, 22 July

Lizard Orchids

Back in the middle of June, two Lizard Orchid plants were found just off the Old Rifle Range (Nick Keep). This is, as far as I am aware, the first time that this species of orchid has ever been seen on Therfield Heath, although it is possible that they may have been here before without anybody noticing. I was asked not to publicise their appearance, as they are an uncommon plant and there was a risk of them being (unwittingly or maliciously) damaged. However, I did take some photos of the plants (one appears in the August issue of 'The Listing', where some of my butterfly photographs can also be seen), a couple of which are shown below. Lizard Orchids are particularly large orchids, which don't (in my eyes) look particularly attractive. However, they are a great addition to the flora of The Heath - I wonder whether any will appear next year? At the time of writing (30 July) the plants can still be seen, although they are wilting and decaying.

The two Lizard Orchids, Therfield Heath, 17 June

Detail of the flowers of one Lizard Orchid, Therfield Heath, 17 June

During the final week of July I concentrated, when I could, on photographing (mainly) roosting Chalk Hill and Common Blues, both on The Heath (Old Rifle Range) and at Clothall Common near Baldock, where the colony is doing well (I estimate that 200 - 250 individuals were roosting there when I visited on the 30th). I was hoping to find some aberrant individuals, but it seems that nowadays all Chalk Hill Blues look the same (well, obviously males and females differ and their colour changes with age). Here are a few more images. Incidentally, I have been asked to spell 'Chalk Hill' as two words, rather than the one 'Chalkhill' word that is in my butterfly identification books - don't ask me why!

Male Chalk Hill Blue, Therfield Heath, 29 July

Male Chalk Hill Blue resting on Scabious Flower, Therfield Heath, 29 July

Two Female Chalk Hill Blues, Therfield Heath, 29 July

Two Male Chalk Hill Blues, Therfield Heath, 29 July

Towards the end of the month, a number of pristine looking Painted Lady butterflies were seen in the Royston area. These would be the offspring of butterflies that flew across from the Continent in the late spring. Some were seen feeding voraciously on a variety of nectar, preparing themselves for the long journey back to Southern Europe, which they undertake in the late summer and early autumn.

Painted Lady, Royston, 31 July

Swift Survey

Every year I carry out an unofficial survey of the swifts in Royston town centre. The best time to do this is in late July, when the young birds have fledged but before the birds begin their migration back to Africa in early August. The best (only?) time of day to carry out the survey is in the 40 minutes or so before dusk, when the birds descend and form 'screaming parties' over the town, so I have to work quickly! I can only get a very approximate figure, because the birds are flying around rapidly, in groups of up to 15 which can splinter and re-form. However, they do tend to stay close to their breeding sites which makes my job somewhat easier. This year my rough estimate was of 85 birds, similar to last year. I report my findings to the BTO ('Birdtrack'). I have to say that I really enjoy seeing Swifts flying around like this - they appear to be so happy! I hope that they will return in good numbers next year.

UK Wildlife Sightings, July 2025

 I was away from Royston on three separate holidays from late June until mid July. The first holiday was a 'Naturetrek' holiday to North Macedonia, which I will write about in a separate blog post, when I have finally finished editing and sorting out over 200 images. I would have done this sooner, if I hadn't been on two further, shorter holidays to Wales and then Stockholm in July. From a wildlife point of view these were very low key - I'll deal with them briefly here.

Wales

My partner and I visited Aberystwyth in early July, as part of a family holiday (we met up with my brother and his family). Rock Pipits was seen around the castle ruins and I also saw Dipper and Red-breasted Merganser nearby. Aberystwyth is well known for its winter Starling murmurations around the pier, but of course we were six months too early (or late) to see these.

Young Rock Pipit, Aberystwyth, 8 July

Stockholm

For my 70th birthday my lovely partner booked a surprise four night holiday for us in Stockholm (I knew I was flying somewhere, but not to where). This beautiful Swedish city, situated on an island archipelago, held a few minor surprises. For one thing, the gulls threatening to steal your fish and chips were not Herring Gulls, but Common Gulls! Lesser Black-backed Gulls would then steal from the Common Gulls. A few Herring Gulls and Black-headed Gulls were present, but these kept themselves to themselves. The only (feral) geese that I saw were Barnacle Geese (and lots of them). Other sightings included Common Terns and a single Common Redstart. Stockholm, and Sweden in general, is very expensive (not that it bothered me, because my partner was paying for everything!), but if you can afford it and don't mind missing out on the excitement of bird watching for a few days, it comes highly recommended. Most Swedes speak good English, too. Don't fly British Airways, though - they cancelled our return flight....

Back to the wildlife, and on my birthday itself we used public transport to Hammersmith and walked along the Thames to spend an afternoon at WWT Barnes, encountering a variety of hoverflies and a Jersey Tiger Moth on the way.

Hoverfly Volucella zonaria, Barnes, 13 July

Jersey Tiger Moth, Barnes, 13 July

The reserve itself was pretty quiet - most of the wildfowl collection were moulting - but I did add three Odonata (Small Red-eyed Damselfly, Willow Emerald Damselfly and, best of all, Lesser Emperor Dragonfly) to my year list. At least two Lesser Emperors were buzzing around the many pools, but sadly they never settled for me to take their photograph, so you will have to make do with the other two. Lesser Emperors are slowly establishing themselves in Southern England (climate change?), and can be distinguished in flight from the Emperor Dragonfly by their slightly smaller size, duller colouring and a pale band around the abdomen, close to the Thorax.

Small Red-eyed Damselfly, WWT Barnes, 13 July

Willow Emerald Damselfly, WWT Barnes, 13 July

On my return from Stockholm, my next significant sortie was to Aston Rowant on the 23rd, with my target being the rare Silver Spotted Skipper butterfly. On a very dull day the reserve was very quiet, with few butterflies on the wing, but I did manage to find at least one Silver-spotted Skipper (image below).

'Record Shot' of Silver-spotted Skipper, Aston Rowant NR, 23 July

On the 25th I treated myself to a day out in Norfolk, my first visit to the county for some time. My first stop was at WWT Welney. The Wood Sandpiper, reported the previous day, had gone but I did enjoy watching a Common Tern trying to feed a fish to its chicks, which totally ignored it although a nearby Ruff took an interest. I added Brown Hawker to my 2025 dragonfly list here. I travelled on to Dersingham Bog, which was predictably rather short of water, but I did see a single male Black Darter and a single male Keeled Skimmer here. Better still, after having failed to see any here for quite a few years, I also had a couple of sightings of Grayling butterflies in flight. Once disturbed, these butterflies head rapidly for the nearest tree and hide on the trunk, where they are very hard to find.

Immature Male Black Darter, Dersingham Bog, 25 July

Encouraged by these sightings, I headed on to Snettisham, which proved to be my final stop. I hoped to see Turtle Doves here, but had no joy searching for an hour in the Coastal Park, where I have seen them many times before. With the tide coming in, I decided to head south along the muddy beach towards the RSPB reserve. Ringed Plovers were much in evidence and, as I approached the reserve, some impressive wader murmurations were seen. A huge flock of (mainly) Sandwich Terns was resting on the beach, close enough to pick out individuals with my binoculars and camera, but not close enough to be certain about identifying some of the smaller terns that were sitting alongside the hundreds of Sandwich Terns. Quite a few Common Terns were present, as were one or two Little Terns. I'm pretty sure that a handful of Arctic Terns were present too, based on bill size, colour and shape, but I could not convince myself to put them on my year list.

Terns and a Black-heade Gull at Snettisham, 25 July. Is the nearest bird an Arctic Tern??

More Terns at Snettisham, 25 July, with another possible Arctic Tern centre front

As the tide came in further, things got even more interesting as hundreds of waders flew in closer and closer. These turned out to be mainly Dunlin and Sanderling (are Sanderling, like Knot, on The Wash all year round?). A single Curlew Sandpiper was amongst them: these birds were heading for the southernmost lake on the RSPB reserve, where a White-rumped Sandpiper and a Pectoral Sandpiper had been reported on the day (and, indeed, for the remainder of the month). On a hot day, I didn't have the energy to go further but a couple of surprises awaited me as I turned to go back. Firstly, I heard the unmistakable purring of a Turtle Dove, which eventually revealed itself after much searching. Then, I noticed a family of warblers moving about in a line of bushes and sometimes coming out on to the ground to feed - a family of Lesser Whitethroats! I've never had such good views of this species before - the birds looked quite tame. Of course I took some photos: I may never have such a good opportunity again. To complete the day, several Wall butterflies were flying about in the same area. This double brooded butterfly became extinct in Hertfordshire many years ago, and Snettisham is probably one of the closest places to home where they can still be reliably seen. What a day!

Adult and Juvenile Lesser Whitethroats, Snettisham, 25 July

Record Shot of a Wall Butterfly, RSPB Snettisham, 25 July

Local Wildlife Sightings June 2025

 After an impressively warm and sunny spring, it was back to changeable weather in June with a few warm, sunny days interspersed with showers and longer periods of rain. I took the opportunity on the 2nd (a warm, sunny day) to visit local fields and Therfield Heath, looking mainly for butterflies. Numbers of first generation Common Blues and Brown Argus butterflies were falling now on The Heath, whilst I failed to find any Adonis Blues there. However, on the small wild flower patch in the field that is behind our estate, which has proved quite productive in the past, I was lucky to find a recently emerged male Common Blue, which flew conveniently towards me and perched on top of a flower bud, allowing me to take some nice photos. If only all insects were so obliging!

Male Common Blue Butterfly, Royston, 2 June

After changeable weather in the first week, high pressure built again with plenty of sunshine and temperatures building to a climax between the 18th and the 21st, with an official heatwave and a maximum temperature in Royston of 31C (or possibly higher - I'm relying on the temperature gauge in the car!). It has been a disappointing spring migration period locally for birds, with no sign of Wheatear, Garden, Sedge or Reed Warblers. Spotted Flycatchers were not encountered in Fox Covert during the month, although to be fair I didn't spend much time looking for them. There was some joy, however, on two late evening owl walks. On the 12th a Barn Owl crossed the GMT trail in front of me, heading SE from Flint Hall Farm towards and then beyond Half Moon Plantation, less than half a mile from the house. Further down the track two Tawny Owl chicks (one seen) were squeaking away. There were no Barn Owl sightings on the 18th, but the two Tawny Owl chicks were still present and I also saw a Badger, a Fox and a few bats. Unfortunately there was no sign of Little Owl activity on either walk.

It was necessary to be out early or late to find much bird activity on the hot days. Chiffchaffs, Blackcaps, Whitethroats and Lesser Whitethroats were all singing again in the second half of the month (well, the Chiffchaffs never really stopped) and were presumably having successful breeding seasons, the first juvenile Goldfinches appeared at my feeders early in the month and juvenile Blackbirds, Great Tits and Blue Tits were also seen in the garden. All four resident species of pigeon and dove were seen in the garden, both hoovering up spilt bird seeds and drinking from the terrace pond. Jackdaws and many species of small bird were also using the garden ponds to drink from. On The Heath, another Grey Partridge was seen on the 16th.

Grey Partridge, Therfield Heath (Old Rifle Range), 16 June

Some butterfly first sightings were, at least for my own records, very early. Dark Green Fritillaries were seen on The Heath from the 6th, both Small Skipper and White-letter Hairstreak from the 16th (with specimens of the last being seen at the bottom of my road on the 19th). Only Large Skippers, which only appeared in any numbers from the middle of the month, bucked the trend by appearing at the 'right time'. Common Blues kept appearing in ones and twos throughout the month, but I saw no Adonis Blues after the 4th, although they were reported later by others. Small Tortoiseshell Butterflies seem to be slowly recovering after some disastrous recent years: I saw six together near my house on the 10th and another four on a walk between Wallington and Clothall Common. Painted Lady butterflies have also been seen in greater numbers than in the last couple of years, but the biggest butterfly surprise this year to date was to see a Clouded Yellow in pristine condition on the 16th, which put in a brief appearance (too brief to get a photo) on my local wildflower meadow before flying off strongly to the west. I presume that this specimen had hatched recently in the UK, from eggs deposited by an early continental migrant.

Dark Green Fritillary (Side View!), TH, 6 June

Large Skipper, Royston, 16 June

Small Skipper, Royston, 16 June

Small Tortoiseshell, Royston, 10 June

Ringlets appeared from the 16th and were quite numerous when I visited Fox Covert and Jubilee Wood on the 25th. Essex Skippers were seen locally from the 24th. A visit to Scales Park on the 24th provided a brief glimpse of a Silver-washed Fritillary, but no sign of Purple Emperors (reported on the 22nd) - I'll try again later. Huge numbers of Marbled Whites were on Church Hill on the 25th, having switched their favoured plants for taking nectar from Privet (nearly finished) to the large clumps of Knapweed and Field Scabious flowers. At least four Dark Green Fritillaries were seen here (image to follow), with many more at the east end of The Heath, but there was no sign here of Silver-washed Fritillaries, which I haven't seen on The Heath since 2023. A White Admiral was seen when I visited Balls Wood nature reserve (Hertford Heath) on the 18th.

Essex Skipper, Royston, 24 June

Other invertebrates seen in June included Hummingbird Hawkmoth (one was feeding on my Valerian on the 16th), Summer Chafer and a new (for me) longhorn beetle, Golden-bloomed Grey Longhorn Beetle, seen near to the house. A (presumably Jersey) tiger beetle was seen in flight. A visit to Clothall Common on the 20th yielded no 'blue' butterflies, but surprisingly large numbers of six-spotted Burnet Moths were seen, considering that I hadn't seen any elsewhere on my travels (they usually appear in July). A Dock Bug was the first Shield Bug that I had seen locally this year, after shield bugs had a vintage year in 2024.

Six Spot Burnet Moth, Clothall Common, 20 June

Dock Bug, Therfield Heath, 10 June

Golden-bloomed Grey Longhorn Beetle, Royston, 10 June

Hummingbird Hawkmoth on the Ground, Royston, 24 June

It has been a poor year generally for orchids, although there was a good display of Pyramidal Orchids when I visited Clothall Common on the 20th and I also found a couple of Pyramidal Orchids on my local wildflower meadow. Common Spotted Orchids seem to have been particularly badly hit, with none seen by me locally. Very few were seen last year either, making me think that the dry, hardened ground in 2025 is not the only reason for this species' apparent demise. Fragrant Orchids appeared on Church Hill, but only small, wizened spikes were seen on my visits. Other plants fared better and I saw lots of the parasitic plant, Common Broomrape.

Common Broomrape near Wallington, 20 June

Pyramidal Orchids, Clothall Common, 20 June

My last visit to The Heath before a planned holiday abroad saw me on Church Hill on the morning of the 25th, when highlights included a female Dark Green Fritillary that allowed me to get close enough to get a decent photograph (males are rarely so obliging, being constantly on the move looking for females to mate with and fighting other males), and a mating pair of Dock Bugs.

Female Dark Green Fritillary, Church Hill, 25 June

Mating Dock Bugs, Church Hill, 25 June