{"id":24306,"date":"2023-02-08T14:38:00","date_gmt":"2023-02-08T13:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/?post_type=purple_issue&#038;p=24306"},"modified":"2023-02-13T10:14:02","modified_gmt":"2023-02-13T09:14:02","slug":"a-dose-of-sunshine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/2023\/02\/08\/a-dose-of-sunshine\/","title":{"rendered":"A dose of sunshine"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center sans-serif intro\">The bright brimstone butterfly is a welcome sight in early spring <\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"no-tts wp-block-image article-in-image photo\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1288\" src=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/c96ad040-1cfb-4a42-afb8-9ec77839fab2.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"no-tts wp-image-24305\" srcset=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/c96ad040-1cfb-4a42-afb8-9ec77839fab2.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/c96ad040-1cfb-4a42-afb8-9ec77839fab2-300x189.jpg 300w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/c96ad040-1cfb-4a42-afb8-9ec77839fab2-1024x644.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/c96ad040-1cfb-4a42-afb8-9ec77839fab2-768x483.jpg 768w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2023\/01\/c96ad040-1cfb-4a42-afb8-9ec77839fab2-1536x966.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><figcaption>A male brimstone: the shape and veining of its wings closely resemble leaves <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif dropcap\">THE RICH LEMON-YELLOW OF A MALE brimstone butterfly is spectacular at any time \u2013 this is an insect that can nowadays be seen in the UK from February until November. But it seems especially fine in early spring sunshine, when the first freshly woken individuals are on the wing. The naturalist Michael McCarthy, one of the co-authors of <em>The <\/em><em>Consolation <\/em><em>of <\/em><em>Nature: <\/em><em>Spring <\/em><em>in <\/em><em>the <\/em><em>Time <\/em><em>of <\/em><em>Coronavirus, <\/em>writes: \u201cThe brimstone is so bright it looks like a piece of sunlight that has become detached from the sun\u2019s rays and freed to wander.\u201d By contrast, the female brimstone is a subtle shade of greenish-yellow. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">Emerging this early in the year means brimstone butterflies need some clever strategies to heat their thorax muscles, which power the wings, to the 35\u00b0C necessary for flight. They do this by seeking sheltered sun-traps, such as the south side of a hedgerow or grassy bank. But even that is not enough. So the butterflies perch and bask, angling their folded wings towards the sun. After basking, they can fly in an air temperature as low as 13\u00b0C. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"sans-serif article-byline\"><strong>Ben Hoare <\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"footer\">PHOTOS: BRIMSTONE: ROSS HODDINOTT<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The bright brimstone butterfly is a welcome sight in early spring 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bright brimstone butterfly is a welcome sight in early 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