I would suggest that that is just natural variation, David. Here is one that looks just like it: https://www.butterfliesoffrance.com/html/Polyommatus%20eros.htm#22201_male_Hautes-Alpes_14Jul10_ The marginal spotting is quite common for eros , as is the slight chequering of the fringes. The colour lo...

The one you've ringed looks like eros to me, David.

See what Guy and Pete think.

Roger

Here are a few thoughts mapped onto the image. mud puddling 3000 pixel.JPG I had to reduce the size and quality in order to add the image as it was too large otherwise. These are really just best guesses. Pyrgus are impossible to say with any confidence from just an upperside view alone. Especially ...

Agree malvoides . Will have a closer look tomorrow. Strongly suspect serratulae and carthami at first glance. I don't find armoricanus to be an altitude species. I think thersites is there. It sure looks like icarus , but icarus isn't a puddler... I reserve the right to say differently tomorrow.

I agree. I would certainly have included it, near the top of the list. I have great respect for these hardy species that exist in the most inhospitable climates, which is why Glandon Blue and Grisons Fritillary made it onto my lists. If I had seen Dusky-winged Fritillary, probably the dullest-lookin...

A hybrid, perhaps

Hecate in my local patch flies from around mid-May until around the end of the first week in June. It was seriously sheep-grazed a couple of years ago and is only just recovering.

Roger

There seems to be a high degree of consensus on our favourite Fritillaries, perhaps not surprisingly given the rarity of some. Here are my top 5: No. 5 Cardinal ( Argynnis pandora ) Every other species is called a Fritillary, but not this one, for no apparent reason. Not that it matters. It is a spe...

I agree, no fraud involved at all. I would have had this as my #1.

Roger

Pete said Ah Jim, I am highly envious of your aquilonaris and your desfontainii, the only two Fritillary species on Roger's website that I have yet to see. Me too. They are the only two I have yet to see. I did have plans for both this year, but desfontainii will have to wait until next year. I may ...

Here is the vote of the Hatfield jury. 10. Lesser Marbled Fritillary ( Brenthis ino ) A very neat species, smaller and tidier than its bigger cousin, but it gets into my top ten on the grounds of its underside. This is a male, both shots are the same butterfly, seen in Doubs. Brenthis ino_15847W.JPG...

Another real problem as to what to leave out. I could do the three favourite Apollos. I think there is going to be some duplication here - my choice will include Bog Fritillary (sorry David). Pete mentions Knapweed Fritillary; it's not on my list but would merit a place on its variability in Provenc...

As you mention Valgaudémar, Jim, I’ll just mention that when we met there in July 2016 you asked me if there were any good spots nearby. I mentioned one at Molines-en-Champsaur where I had seen something large take off very quickly from the ground. You went there and found out what it was – yes, a P...

OK, I would guess either a Maculinea species or Meleager's (Medard's No.1, but no reason why it can't be yours as well).

If it is Maculinea, I would guess it would have to be Alcon, although I'm not sure if you've seen that.

Roger

That could almost be a top ten in one photo, Pete. It looks like you’ve even got aethiopella in there as well. David – yes, now I do recall that you saw Black-eyed Blue. It’s flight period seems to be over by the end of April, so it really needs an early trip to see it. Cogitating over your no. 1, D...

You got one right David, and close on another. Orion was one of the nearly-made-its. No. 5 Dusky Large Blue ( Phengaris/Maculinea nausithous ) This is just so rare and localised in France and has an appealing cinnamon colour, so different to its Maculinea cousins. And I was so lucky to get this mati...

David M wrote

I look forward to your top five (I reckon I can name three)

David - have a guess - they might not be what you would expect (clue: only one Maculinea)

Roger

Here are my top ten, very hard to whittle down with so many great species to choose from, even just the forty or so French species. Some have been posted already, so apologies for repeating. In reverse order: No. 10 Geranium Argus ( Eumedonia/Aricia eumendon ) This is a female, both are the same but...

I plan to post something on this later today. The problem is that I got the short list down to 16 but have agonized for two days as to what to leave out. Severe feelings of guilt at having to cross out another six... Guy's photo of the male Osiris Blue was one of the best blues photos I have ever se...

Those taras are stupendous, Allan. What causes this aberration? Is it clinal? I had a rare occurrence yesterday - a male Orange-tip flitted around the garden just as the weather clouded over and it settled briefly for a few seconds. I see a lot of Orange-tips in Provence, when they are even more fli...

I agree with Guy that it is preferable to have complete control over the content. FWIW I use Microsoft FrontPage which was discontinued in 2003 but is still available as a (free) download, I believe: https://microsoft_office_frontpage.en.downloadastro.com/ This seems to do most things that I want it...