Many thanks for the info EssexBuzzard, it's greatly appreciated. I was hoping to go up tomorrow on my day off but the weather forecast isn't looking good. I'm not off again until the end of next week so hopefully there will still be some around in excellent condition. Fingers crossed for a good fore...

Thanks Bugboy

I am keen to photograph White-letter Hairstreaks and, living in East Kent, they are difficult to come by around here, but I understand that Hadleigh Castle Country Park in Essex is a reliable place to see them down low enough to photograph. A trip to Essex for them is possible for me in a day and I ...

That's a very impressive piece of kit Guy, looks almost surgical. My kit is not anywhere near as cool. I have 2 different size 'tick hooks' which you just slide one the appropriate size between the head of the tick and the skin, then twist it around a couple of times to encourage the tick to release...

Thanks for the info Wurzel, I will also have a look at that one.
Good advice about the ticks too, although I always have a 'tick kit' with me during the summer months, just in case. Never hurts to have a reminder though, you can't be too careful!
Adrian

Many thanks for the info Mark, I will have a look for them there, and also take a look at Alan Thorbury's site as suggested.
Best regards,
Adrian

I will be down in the New Forest for a couple of days next week and I am hoping to catch up with some Silver-studded Blues to photograph.
Just wondering, are they widespread over all of the heathland or are there specific 'hot-spots' that I need to head for?

Many thanks in advance,
Adrian

My wife saw 2 yesterday while out walking the dog in East Kent, so possibly some new arrivals coming in.
Hopefully more to come in the warmer weather that's forecast over the next few days. I still haven't seen one yet this year.

Glad you liked the photos on my website Jack, and thank you for your kind words. There are a few rare bird photos on there which could be a bit tricky for non-birders to identify but, as you no doubt saw, they are all captioned in the relevant folders for anyone who requires some assistance. I start...

My wife & I had a great morning at Hutchinson's Bank today, our first visit to the site and our first Glanvilles too. Many photos to sort through but back to work early tomorrow so they will have to wait a while. I just wanted to say thank you to Martin for his help & advice, and also what a...

My wife and I had a trip to Dungeness this morning where we managed to find our first ever Grizzled Skipper! We had 2 sightings (possibly of the same individual) around the long pits. They were only brief views but I did managed to get a record shot. We will definitely be returning in the future to ...

I took a trip over Crawley way today with my wife Anne, where we were hoping to find Brown Hairstreak, as this is a species we haven't seen before, with it being absent from East Kent where we live. What a day we had, a great run down, plenty of sun, very little wind and best of all at least 3 sight...

Susie - nice to know there is at least one around, and past your window too, very nice.

David - thanks for the info, I had hoped to try today but the weather isn't good enough to chance the trip. Hopefully it will be better when I am off next week.

Adrian

OK, thanks Vince, I did wonder if it was too early for them yet, but didn't want to leave it too late and miss them at their best.

Adrian

A request for info - Just wondering if anyone can tell me if there are any Brown Hairstreaks on the wing in the Crawley area yet, or is it still a bit too early? The reason I ask is that this is a species I have yet to see & photograph and would like to make the trip from East Kent for them once...

Fabulous shots Mark, I have only managed to photograph the species once, I got some good shots but I could only get the blue to show on one wing or the other, never on both wings like this and certainly not as bright. Outstanding!
Definitely a 'right place, right time' moment.

Thanks Phil, although I missed out on photos of SSB's this year, I did manage to get some quite good shots of Large Blue at Collard Hill the end of last month (photos now on my website), so something to ease the frustration of recent events. I am hoping to try for Brown Hairstreaks for the first tim...

Thank you all for your kind wishes, I am now fully recovered but unfortunately hadn't managed to get any decent photos before it all happened. I had taken a large bottle of cold drink with me as I usually do, and had been drinking it during the short time I was on the common. I can only assume I was...

I am not sure where to put this so Mods please move it if required. Today while photographing Silver-studded Blues on Fairmile Common I suffered badly with Heatstroke & Dehydration to the point that I required a Paramedic. I don't know if the 2 gentlemen who called the Paramedics for me will se...

Thanks for the info Dave, I appreciate it.
I take it that SSB's have been on the wing for a while then, for some reason I had it in my mind that they started emerging around mid-July.

Adrian