Another visit today under a very cloudy sky to Denbies Hillside and after a bit of leg work I caught up with the rarest of our downland blue flutters, the brilliant Adonis Blue (Lysandra bellargus).
This species has particular habitat requirements; needing short, herb rich turf with Horseshoe Vetch, its exclusive larval foodplant, on sunny south-facing slopes; but its range along the North Downs has definitely contracted within the past three decades. Like the Chalkhill the Adonis larvae are tended by Myrmica or Lasius Ants.
These fresh looking males are from the second brood (usually early August to end of September) when they are often seen in the company of the Chalkhill Blue.
Identifying the 'blues' by their underwing patterns can be a challenge. In the above image the Chalkhill Blue male is on the left (slightly larger with far more silvery-blue scales near the body) and the Adonis Blue male with its browner underwing colour is on the right.
Linking to NF Winged.
wow! definitely gorgeous!
ReplyDeletethese sure are some top shots of stunning butterflies Frank
ReplyDeleteAnother nice bug. We have several species under pressure here too. In fact, Essex County has the most pesticides of all the Massachusetts counties according to the local bee keeping associations.
ReplyDeleteJust lovely, Frank.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely gorgeous photos! This is a beautiful butterfly with some great coloring and design. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteYour butterfly images leave me speechless! Incredibly beautiful!!!
ReplyDelete~sigh~ Loving the images of these butterflies especially the Adonis Blue.
ReplyDeleteI love the blues, sadly I have not seen so many this year.
ReplyDeleteThe common and holly blue are usually a familiar sight in the garden, not so this year :(
The Adonis Blue is beautiful...........I think my heart would stop beating if I saw one in the wild.
Beautiful photos and a lovely butterfly. We are looking this species, but so far we haven't seen it yet.
ReplyDeleteGreetings from cloudy Poland
Great find Frank...and some lovely shots, especially the comparison shot of the two males, they don't usually make life that easy for us!...[;o)
ReplyDeleteSplendid picture of the AB!
ReplyDeleteI think you may have misunderstood my Cromer post - I have no problem with a little peace and quiet - more the merrier, but the town felt really still like it had come to a halt! And if the winter brings geese and waders, give me the winter!
Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne
heel mooi wat een schoonheid.
ReplyDeleteg o r g e o u s !
ReplyDeleteStunning Frank.
ReplyDeleteReally lovely set of these beautiful butterflies Frank
ReplyDeleteWe'll taken.
Hi Frank - I'm stopping by for my once a week blog session. Your butterfly photos are amazing: so Beautiful!!
ReplyDeleteWow! Spectacular images! I just love that blue.
ReplyDeleteWhat a stunningly beautiful butterfly. How fortunate to be able to photograph both species for comparison on the same flower!!
ReplyDeleteGreat shots Frank and a nice capture.
ReplyDeleteWonderful photos of these pretty butterflies.
ReplyDeleteSuperb shots, Frank!! Colours are excellent.
ReplyDeleteDet var en vacker fjäril.
ReplyDeleteHa en fin bild
Meta
love those little blue ones. I think we have this one, but as you mention, they are tricky to ID. :) Love to see the image with both of them.
ReplyDelete