Northern Brown Argus - Favourite Photo 2019

[Wurzel]

Northern Brown Argus - Favourite Photo 2019

Week 11

Hopefully everyone had an enjoyable Solstice and as there are now only a few days now until the cheerful obese gentleman breaks in by way of a chimney and reverse burgles us all I will wish everyone a Happy Christmas!

Please could I ask that everyone waits until a topic has been opened by me for a particular species before posting photos as then it will be easier to keep track of things? Of course our overseas members are very welcome to fill in the obvious gaps relating to rare UK migrants. As in previous years details of locations, dates, times and circumstances would be welcome as would any accompanying stories and anecdotes or other observations of behaviour and interesting other points.

Have a goodun

Wurzel

[David M]

I'm still waiting to see the gorgeous white-spotted version in Scotland but I regularly see this species on the continent, and here is the montensis form from the Montes Universales in Spain during early August:

[Neil Freeman]

I too am yet to see the 'proper' artaxerses in Scotland but have seen salmacis a number of times now at various sites around Arnside and Silverdale where I caught up with a few this year when we were up there in early June.
I saw a few examples at both Warton Crag and Latterbarrow, all males which indicated that they were early in their flight period this year.

Northern Brown Argus salmacis - Latterbarrow 10.06.2019

Northern Brown Argus salmacis - Latterbarrow 10.06.2019

Cheers,

Neil.

[petesmith]

I'm still waiting to see the gorgeous white-spotted version in Scotland but I regularly see this species on the continent, and here is the montensis form from the Montes Universales in Spain during early August:

6SthMtArgus(1).jpg

David - thanks to you I also caught up with in montensis in the Montes Universales, although I believe it is now classified as a separate species to Northern Brown Argus, namely the Southern Mountain Argus, unless things have changed since the 2017 update, in which case I may be wrong!

Below is my encounter with this beaut...

[millerd]

I saw good numbers of the "English" version of this species at Arnside this year in mid-July. I find them far more tricky to approach than their close relative that abounds on my local patch these days, and these shots were hard to come by despite there being quite a few around.

Dave

[David M]

David - thanks to you I also caught up with in montensis in the Montes Universales, although I believe it is now classified as a separate species to Northern Brown Argus, namely the Southern Mountain Argus, unless things have changed since the 2017 update, in which case I may be wrong

I'm sure you're right, Pete. To be honest, I can't keep up with all this shifting taxonomy - there aren't enough hours in a day!