Cheers, all.
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Yes, the Small Heath does stand out, and there was no small amount of luck involved in achieving those shots!
LATE JUNE (part two) + EARLY JULY
On 26th June after Chiddingfold, I popped into Box Hill again, but it was really too hot to closely approach the DGF and Marbled Whites that were flying.
The following day I had another visit to Dawneys Hill where the first Graylings of the season were just starting. All males at this point, and as ever attracted to my jeans as soon as I stopped moving.
There were still good numbers of reasonably fresh Silver-studded Blues flying as well, a big contrast in size and behaviour to the larger species.
On both 28th and 29th June, it was the turn of Bookham Commons. I met up with Bugboy on both days, and we were treated to unusually large numbers of Purple Hairstreaks during the early part of both mornings. They were frequently to be seen down low, and at last I managed a halfway decent shot of an open-winged female.
Undersides were easier to come by.
There were also numbers of increasingly worn White Admirals and lovely fresh Silver-washed Fritillaries...
...but we struggled to see any Purple Emperors at all. New brood Brimstones and Holly Blues were now on the wing though.
Right at the halfway point of 2018, I set off on a long circuitous trip with the intention of adding a couple of new species to my all-time list. However, I had to include a stopoff on 30th with friends in Stamford which neatly allowed me to include a look at Bedford Purlieus, an area of woodland near Peterborough I hadn't visited for a number of years. There is one ride in particular here that is good for both variety and numbers, and on another hot and sunny day it didn't disappoint. An area where the grass had been rather trampled next to a stand of brambles underneath some elms cried out "White-letter Hairstreak!" and there they were.
However, at one point I realised that the rather ragged individual I had just singled out was actually a Black Hairstreak rather than a WLH.
As I had already seen Purple Hairstreaks in the trees, this became my first triple-Hairstreak day. It was also the third different site at which I had seen Black Hairstreaks this year, at pretty well the extremes of their distribution in the UK.
On 1st July, I headed northwestwards to the hotel I had booked in Lancaster, within easy reach of Arnside Knott. It was now very hot, and fires were breaking out on the northern moors with smoke blowing across the M61 as I drove along - the smell was quite noticeable in the car. I decided to make a late survey of the Knott after I had checked into the hotel, hoping that it might be cooler by this time. It wasn't: even up on the normally airy and cool slopes, the low sun was still scorching and the butterflies were still very active. That said, I did see my first ever Northern Brown Argus, though photos of this auspicious occasion were frustratingly impossible to achieve.
![Smile :)](./images/smilies/icon_smile.gif)
However, there was some recompense in the form of a completely unexpected sighting - another White-letter Hairstreak.
I also spotted a mating pair of Graylings...
...and a nice fresh Small Tortoiseshell.
I resolved that I would be up early on 2nd, and try and at least start the day in relatively cool conditions. A forlorn hope: the temperature was well over 25 degrees even at around eight am, and the Knott was just as hot as the day before. This time I managed to go one better and actually achieve a shot of an NBA - though barely more than "one for the record".
A pity, as the butterflies (including this one) appeared in good condition. It became a three-fritillary day - worn Small Pearls were flying along with a handful of female DGF...
..but the stand-out moment was finding a reasonably fresh male High Brown Fritillary.
There were lots of butterflies overall, with 21 species seen over the two days I was at Arnside - an amazing place.
After Arnside, I headed over to York to stay with my sister for a couple of nights. The plan for 3rd July was to drive up onto the North York Moors and visit Fen Bog, noted for Large Heath amongst other species - another that I had not yet seen. It was blissfully cool up there, and the sun took a while to break through. However, when it did, I found more SPBF (fresher than those I had seen at Arnside)...
...and lots of fresh DGF (mostly males) before I even moved to the main event.
Down on the bog itself (which was unusually dry), I went on to find my first Large Heaths. Though anecdotally difficult to approach, I had some success with getting close and found them no more difficult than Wall Browns and only slightly more nervy than their their near relative the Small Heath.
Another very successful day at a particularly attractive location - at least when the sun is shining!
High Summer was here, with only a handful of species left to emerge; the weather stayed fine though and the days continued to provide interest and new things to see...
Dave