A few more Blues from this holiday, various venues... Provencal Chalkhill, down south in the Drome .... 170606 L. hispana. __8738.jpg . Mazarine in the Alps... 170610 C. semiargus. __9206.jpg Large Blue in the Alps... 170610 P. arion. __9318.jpg Escher's in the Alps... 170617 P. escheri. __0016.jpg

helice, alfacariensis, or unlikely phicomone, what is the solution?

Well blow me down! Just checked all my previous shots and I had never noticed the V in S2 in ilicis, or the more steady size of red/ orange spots in esculi... happy to concur!!, especially as these are now the best esculi shots I have. Thank you again

Thank you Guy.... that's brilliant, I'm short of shots of alveus ! I had my suspicions but wasn't at all confident, hence my tending towards the other...

I think both species were present down in my Drome site, but they do seem "iffy" so I would appreciate opinions, I've numbered them and given them my judgements ( for what it will turn out to be worth :roll: )..... 1. ?? esculi .. 170606 S. esculi __8637.jpg 2. ?? esculi .. 170606 S. escul...

Please could I have advice on this Pyrgus from the Val du Giffre in France at about 900m... the photo numbers are so far apart I cannot be sure it is the same one in both photos. It was on the large side for Pyrgus, and I am stuck between alveus and armoricanus , though suspect the latter is more li...

Yep, quite right David, but they are two different ones, I saw several, and as Guy said, they were emergent, so would only be around for a few days to feed up before hiding away until next year. I was lucky! Here are my shots of trappi , seen with Guy on my last day ( these postings will not be in c...

Another welcome consolation in the wide forest trails were several polychlorus and I finally managed to achieve a couple of passable photos of this grand species....

Yep, it was a very pretty sight, and there must have been a dozen or so of them around.... but very active!!

Well, I'm back in UK and have Wifi. A large forest in the Chablais kept drawing me back in the hope of Poplar Admiral, initially in Guy's much appreciated company.... populi never did show up, but at least my time in the woods was rewarded with these ilia shots... 170613 A. ilia. __9958.jpg 170613 A...

I've moved around a bit, including a dash south to where I know Blue Spot Hairstreaks fly.... I wasn't disappointed, although the first ten or so I saw had all been harried by birds and had their blue spots pecked away.... then I struck lucky....

Anyone reading Guy's diary will have seen I met up with him in Switzerland. Well, I will post a few photos here as time and access goes by, but I was prompted to open with this, which is quite the most stunning Pearly Heath I think I have ever seen. I hope you like it....

The Cardinal photos are none too shabby Guy, especially the first one :mrgreen: ....... where in time is the dispar season?... the first one looked worn, but the others didn't... but being females, would one deduce they are well into, if not nearing the end of their flight?? I fly out to Samoens thi...

Managed to visit Salcey Forest a couple of times last week, and was rewarded with my first ever views of Wood White in the UK, though familiar from the continent, it is great to find them in the UK. Even on such hallowed turf for the species, they were not easy to come by, but eventually I saw a few...

Thank you guys, I am rather lucky!.. but I do try and create the best possible habitat. I also have Purple Hairstreaks atop an old oak at the bottom of my patch - relatively uncommon up here. Having said that, I cannot hope to see as much as you who live in the south do.... Brown Hairstreaks, white ...

First Wall Brown in the garden this year today. No photo!.. but did find this sleepy beauty this evening in a sunny corner...
f9 1/500s Canon 7D + 100mm macro IS, no flash

what a beautiful female Iolas. Do you think she could have just emerged and you saw her before her first flight?

so here he/she is...

No photo, but walking in the garden at twilight this eve, spotted a "looper" catty on our Elm..... well guess what... turned out to be WLH larva. Saw adults on the tree last year, looks like they may be here to stay

Thank you Pauline, I'm delighted her image has been so well appreciated, I hadn't even considered she might be in any way unusual!!