Are there Butterflies in your garden, in April?

Simone_in_Wiltshire

Hello gardeners,

I noticed the first butterfly when neighbour's cherry tree flowered around the 26 of March. It was a Peacock butterfly. Since then I have seen Brown Butterflies (or might be Gatekeeper), Common Blue Butterflies, and white butterflies.
As far as I remember, I normally saw the first butterflies around May.
What kind of butterflies do you have seen in your garden so far?

joanna65

Speckled woods and small blues here in Essex. 

Fairygirl

Small Tortoiseshells, and a couple of Peacocks. They're our usual, earliest visitors, although the warmer, drier weather has helped. Usually towards the end of the month before we see them.  There was a little orange tip in the garden later yesterday afternoon when I got home. 

Ladybird4

Peacocks and orange tips - all around my Choisya yesterday.

Dovefromabove

We’ve had more early butterflies than usual too … I remarked on it the other day … Brimstones, Orange Tips, Small Tortoiseshells, Common Blues and more Peacocks than I’ve seen in a long while. 😊 

BlueBirder

Are the blues you're seeing @Dovefromabove and @Simone_in_Wiltshire definitely common blues, not Holly blue? It would be very early for common blue I think - flight period normally from mid-may. But Holly blues fly from March.

Emptyheadtime

I spotted a cabbage white butterfly on my veg plot last weekend. There is nothing of interest in there for him just now so he carried on his way.

fidgetbones

Holly blues ,speckled wood, brimstone, orange tip. Tortoiseshell , peacock.  There does seem to be a lot of brimstones this year.

Dovefromabove

I did look for a dark border to the wings @BlueBirder ... we do see Holly Blues in this area because we have a fair bit of old woodland with hollies and a lot of ivy around ... but couldn't see the border so presumed they were Common Blues ... of course it could be that they were just too quick for me ... they wouldn't settle anywhere down lowish where I coud see them properly, of course, so I had to spot them on the wing ... 

AnniD

Very small and slightly larger blue butterflies, orange tips and a couple of peacocks. As has been said, l remember thinking they seemed to be around much earlier this year.

BlueBirder

@Dovefromabove the best way to tell them apart is to look at the underside- common blues have a mixture of orange, black and white spots and Holly blues have little fine black dots. Holly blues also tend to fly higher than common blues