2024 was noticeably wetter and cooler than the previous years, with frosty temperatures lasting to mid-April. This year's amount of individual species was the highest since I began my observations in 2022, though the absolute number of individuals was lower on average than in previous years.
Six entirely new species were discovered. One species, Papilio machaon, already was seen in its adult stage prior to my observations, yet not included, thus making 2024 its first year of appearance during my monitoring. Lycaena phlaeas, which only has been recorded for zone "Meisel Forest", has been observed by other researchers in previous years, thus not being exactly new in this area but rather a confirmation that this species still can be observed in this area.
Thymelicus acteon, which was last seen in 2022, returned. Araschnia levana f. levana also made its first appearance after being absent for approximately two years. Speaking of A. levana: 2024 marked its strongest year since 2022, with both variants showing up in higher numbers of individuals in nearly all studied areas. Melanargia galathea and, for a short time, Aphantopus hyperantus were dominating almost every location in relatively high numbers, with both species having discovered new locations in the process.
A bunch of species continue to show relatively slow but steady increases, most notably Nymphalis polychloros, Gonepteryx rhamni, Erynnis tages and Colias sp. – the latter still remains undetermined due to me not having discovered any caterpillar, yet. Only two species are possible, namely Colias hyale and Colias alfacariensis.
Aglais urticae, which was last observed in June, 2023, made a surprise return in August after having skipped two generations. Its location, on the other hand, was limited to a single butterfly bush in zone "Yard", despite multiple bushes being scattered across my village. It did not seek out any other nectar plants, either.
Aricia agestis is turning out to be a quite volatile species within my wider study area. It made its first appearance in 2023 and quickly expanded its territory, however this year it first skipped its first generation and later was only observed near a tiny field of meadow geranium for a little more than a week at the end of August, with no individual seen outside this area within Zone III and only occupying a patch of stinging nettles to the south of the geranium field. While I'm not excluding the possibility that I may have missed or misidentified a few individuals while its first generation may have been active, even after taking much closer looks it turned out that most suspects were females of Polyommatus icarus, which were easier to come by than in previous years and were in various different adult stages – from freshly hatched to very old with "washed-out" colorings and patterns.
Two species that were seen in 2023 did not return as a result of the cool April: Satyrium pruni and Thecla betulae. Vanessa atalanta demonstrated its weakest year since I began my studies due to the significantly lower amount of (rotten) fruits. All blues were lower in numbers, as well, with Polyommatus bellargus and Plebejus argus seemingly being the only blues that declined the most. P. bellargus was rare to encounter and it did not produce a partial fourth generation, unlike previous years, whereas the season of P. argus was limited to a few weeks.
Satyrium w-album, exclusive to "Meisel", and Parage aegeria are becoming a particular concern of mine. While the first has been observed at one specific location only and likely took a hit from the cool April like its closest relatives S. pruni and T. betulae, P. aegeria disappeared entirely after the drought of 2022, showing no signs of a possible recovery. This is concerning insofar as my main zones, where I encountered its "yellow variant" (its main variant) in Zone II in solid numbers, has not changed significantly to its possible disadvantage, while the Meisel Forest, which so far remains the only location where I spotted a single P. aegeria f. tircis, did not change at all, save for only a handful of trees having succumbed to the drought and the following exploitation by bark beetles deep into this tiny and largely-untouched forest.