Hertfordshire & Middlesex Branch
Saving butterflies, moths and our environment
Less common migrant
Distribution and Status
The Clouded Yellow is an immigrant but numbers arriving each year vary enormously largely determined by weather conditions in southern Europe. Recently, there is some evidence that some individuals overwinter successfully as larvae or pupae in the extreme south of the country but most perish and die in the cold. There is no evidence of any such successful overwintering in our branch area
Habitat Requirements
Almost anywhere where there is an abundance of nectar sources. Clover fields are one of its favourite habitats
Larval Foodplants
Red Clover Trifolium pratense, White Clover Trifolium repens. [Clover spp. Trifolium spp., Lucerne Medicago sativa, Bird's-foot Trefoil Lotus corniculatus, Goat's Rue Galega officinalis]
Adult Food Sources
Buddleia Buddleja davidii, Common Dandelion Taraxacum officinalis, Common Knapweed Centaurea nigra
Behaviour/Observation notes
Its quick flight and usual reluctance to settle long on a flower can make it difficult to get close and take a decent close-up photograph. Males are normally more active so seeking out females egg-laying in clover fields may present better opportunities
Life History
A few specimens visit Britain in the early summer in most years but most are recorded from August, the offspring of the early arrivals augmented by more immigrants from Europe. Eggs are laid singly on the leaves of the foodplant and hatch in about a week. Larvae spend about a month depending upon temperatures before forming pupae attached to the foodplant
Further information
Photo gallery
Branch Annual Report (2023)
UK distribution map
Full list of larval hostplants (Pieridae)
Stevenage butterflies - additional notes
Account for 2022