Tour Details

Dates:26th of Mar - 1st of Apr 2025
Availability:7Guaranteed departure
Group Size:Minimum 3, maximum 12 guests
Grading:Easy day walks
PricesFull price: £1,225.00 / person Single room supplement: £125.00 / person Deposit: £150.00 / person
Price includes: Accommodation, all meals, ground transportation, services of your guides, and a holiday report
Not included: International travel, drinks and other personal items, holiday insurance

Tour Highlights

  • A unique selection of Canary Islands endemic butterflies
  • Additional American and African pioneer butterfly species rarely encountered in Europe
  • Encounters with endemic bird species including outrageous Blue Chaffinches
  • Donations will be made to Butterfly Conservation Europe, and the European Butterflies Group, supporting proactive research and conservation

Tour Description

There is no ‘off-season’ for butterflies on Tenerife. Its southerly latitude and maritime location ensure that daytime temperatures are almost constantly above 16°C even in the coolest months of December and January.

By late March these temperatures have routinely risen to the point it feels like a summer’s day in the UK. The vegetation is rapidly growing and flowering, and butterflies are increasing in number.

Our base near the centre of the north coast will allow us to easily access the laurel forests of the island, where Canary Large White Pieris cheilanthi, and Canary Brimstone Gonepteryx cleobule, are resident, as well as two endemic birds, Bolle’s Pigeon Columba bollii, and Laurel Pigeon Columba junoniae.

This verdant part of Tenerife is also home to Canary Red Admiral Vanessa vulcania, and Canary Skipper Thymelicus christi, whilst at higher altitude we can expect to find the endemic Tenerife Green-striped White Euchloe eversi.

Nearer the coast and often in parks or botanic gardens, other desirable species are regularly encountered; for example Monarch Danaus plexippus, African Grass Blue Zizeeria knysna, American Painted Lady Vanessa virginiensis, and the exotic African Migrant Catopsilia florella. At practically every site, we will enjoy the company of the delightful Canary Speckled Wood Pararge xiphioides, whilst Long-tailed Blue Lampides boeticus, Geranium Bronze Cacyreus marshalli, and Bath White Pontia daplidice should also make an appearance.

We will, in addition, be searching for Canary Blue Cyclyrius webbianus, both at lower elevations as well as at a site on the Mt Teide massif, which is also home to the spectacular Blue Chaffinch Fringilla teydea. This other-worldly landscape is worthy of a visit on its own, but with travelling times being so short it can easily be fitted in to our itinerary.

Within our five full days, we expect to be able to cover a variety of locations and habitats and if the microclimate of the islands dictates that there is cloud or rain in a particular area, we can quickly rearrange our destination to ensure that we follow the sun which, at the end of a long British winter, is a welcome pleasure.

Entry to any parks and botanic gardens are included in the price and are interesting attractions in themselves, with a variety of exotic plants, shrubs and trees, including a reputedly 1,000 year old Drago Tree, which happens to be located in one of the best sites for Monarchs.

Tour Leaders

In the past decade David has devoted his life to butterflies - sharing them with guests, but also working proactively on the committee of the European Butterfly Group, and (until recently) as an identification consultant on the UK Butterflies website.

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For as long as he can remember, David has been passionate about birds and wildlife. This has led to a varied career in conservation, mainly working for the RSPB, and leading wildlife tours in Europe and beyond.

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Tour Location

Map

Tour Itinerary

  • DAY 1

Arrival at Tenerife South airport

Transfer to hotel. Local site visit if time allows

  • DAY 2

Mirador de Lagrimona & Barranco de Ruiz

for Canary Large White, Canary Brimstone and Canary Speckled Wood. Charcas de Erjos for Canary Red Admiral

  • DAY 3

Teno Alto

for Tenerife Green Striped White, Parque del Drago Milenario for Monarch

  • DAY 4

Las Lajas

for Blue Chaffinch, Canary Blue & Tenerife Green Striped White. Playa San Juan for African Migrant

  • DAY 5

Tacoronte

for American Painted Lady. Parque de las Mesas for Canary Skipper. Palmetum in Santa Cruz for Monarch

  • DAY 6

Coastal sites

for African Grass Blue, Monarch

  • DAY 7

Return to Tenerife South airport

and tour concludes.

As with all of our tours, we want our guests to enjoy the very best views of the very best wildlife and, as such, we think it’s important to retain a little flexibility in the holiday itinerary. This means that we may choose to swap days around to take into account local weather conditions, or the timing of the flight or flowering season we find upon arrival at our holiday destination. Rest assured, we will ensure you visit all the best sites, and we have your best interests and comfort at heart!

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