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Thank you, Trevor - it is a really good site (as long as the sun is shining of course!).
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Cheers, Wurzel.
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Saturday 25th August and back to a fairly sunny Bookham again. I was fairly confident Bugboy would be there somewhere, and so it proved. We initially set off in different directions, combing the usual haunts for Brown Hairstreaks, but for the first couple of hours saw none. There were, however, plenty of other things to see and distract the camera lens. New Speckled Woods were frequent, often in the spots a hairstreak might feel at home. Other new-looking individuals included a Comma, some Small Heaths and a GVW. Less sparkling and in fewer numbers than recently were Brown Argus, Common Blue and Small Copper. However, at around 1200 or so, I finally spotted our quarry - a Brown Hairstreak had materialised on the hedgerow. I think we actually saw no more than two individuals altogether - they kept us busy by moving about and spent time sitting and basking well above head height, making for some less usual shots (see Buggy's diary for some of these). At one point Bugboy was investigating an egg he'd seen laid, whilst I followed the egg-layer. Just as she settled nicely she was rudely accosted by a male Small Copper, who chased her all over the place. At one point she took a rest in an inaccessible part of the hedge, about ten feet up, and the Copper continued to pester her. Whether he was attracted by the orange colour of her undersides and thought he had found the biggest and best female ever, we shall never know. When she flew again, he took off again in pursuit and unfortunately I didn't see any more. I don't think I've ever seen a Brown Hairstreak interact with anything else, though to be fair, she was a very passive player in this little drama.
Here are a selection of the closer shots achieved. The final encounter was brief. Having seen our second individual fly over the hedge to the path, we went to see if she had gone far. Having almost given up, I turned round and there she was in front of me, wings open. I had time for a quick shot and then she was away again. Patience has paid off at Bookham this year in the end!
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Dave