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Brown Hairstreak - Favourite Photo of 2015

Continuing to build the Favourite Species Shots we enter into week 2.

Please could I ask that everyone waits until a topic has been opened by me for a particular species before posting photos? Of course our overseas members are very welcome to fill in the obvious gaps relating to rare UK migrants. As like last year 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

Easy to choose my favourite picture! This picture illustrates my first ever sighting of this gorgeous insect, poking out from behind a leaf, magical moment

Plenty of this species seen through August and September.

My favourite image is probably this one:

My first ever visit to Steyning was on 6th September. I saw a Brown Hairstreak almost as soon as I walked through the gate, watching it land on the ground not far ahead of me. When I approached it, I found it appeared to be drinking dew from the grass. The day was also notable for my camera breaking - the screen gave up the ghost and I shot completely blind for part of the day. This is one of those photos, which I was quite pleased with considering! Dave

This is one species that unfortunately I cannot post a photo for as it is very rare in the South of France. All I can do is look at the photos above and marvel at the beauty of this creature
Chris

This is my favourite. I was rather tardy, looking for Small Copper at the other end of the field, just managed to catch it before it flew off. I'm sure Willrow and PhiliB have better ones. Shipton Bellinger 12 Aug.

Some shots below of the one and only Brown Hairstreak that I saw in 2015, taken at Bernwood Meadows when I stopped off there on my way back from Aston Rowant on 12th August. As described in my PD at the time, these photos were taken with me holding my FZ200 at full stretch above my head and making full use of the vari-angle screen.
Cheers,

Neil

Saw reasonable numbers this year at Noar Hill and Shipton Bellinger
Kind Regards
Mark

This year, some of the Brown Hairstreak eggs laid in my front hedge hatched. The new arrivals were moved in with my other rescued eggs and they all developed happily together. For a few days, two larvae could be found resting under the same leaf during the day.

Brown Hairstreak

This was taken on my first trip to Shipton Bellinger of the year. I would soon be jetting off to the Czech Republic and had recently ‘bagged’ Chalkhills, Wood Whites, Silver Spotted and Lulworth Skippers so to see a Brown Hairstreak before I went would have been great as it would be a case of job done. Shipton didn’t disappoint with this stunning male which not only opened his wings wide for us but also hung around down low on a Bramble leaf. There were also another couple of males too but this placid individual was my favourite as it fitted in with a series of shots I was trying for this year with a range of species and here was my Brown Hairstreak close up. Have a goodun

Wurzel

It's always a favourite moment when one of the myriads of gatekeepers nectaring along the side of the ride at the Roman Road, Otmoor, turns out to be this species:
Mike