INSECTS

LEPIDOPTERA / BUTTERFLIES

BLUES, COPPERS AND HAIRSTREAKS

Common Blue Polyommatus icarus is a small species with a wingspan of about 35mm usually seen in meadows during summer and autumn. Males are brightly coloured. Females are duller and sometimes nearly completely brown.

Holly Blue Celastrina argiolus is a common butterfly that appears early spring much earlier other blue butterflies. It has a tendency to fly high around trees and bushes unlike other grassland blues that normally stay closer to the  ground. It visits holly in spring and ivy during late summer.

Brown Argus Aricia agestis is a small grassland species that can be mistaken for a Common Blue female.

Small Copper Lycaena phlaeas are often seen from May to September in the meadows especially where the grass is short. Males bask on bare ground in the sun waiting for females to flutter by. They chase off competition and other insects to defend their territory. There are usually three broods a year, when conditions are good there is sometimes a fourth during October. The caterpillars feed mainly on Sheep's sorrel.

Purple Hairsteak Favonius quercus can be found in woodland containing oak trees which is the larval foodplant. Their larvae feed at night and rest during the daytime. The caterpillar feeds on its eggshell after hatching and then burrows into a developing oak bud to conceal itself. After the first moult the larva leaves the bud and makes a loosely-spun web to live under. Debris caught in the web helps to provide a camouflaged hideaway. There are three moults before the larva changes into an adult.

Green Hairstreak Callophrys rubi rests with its wings closed, showing only the green underside with its faint white streak.