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Pearl-bordered Fritillary - Favourite Photo of 2015

Week 13

Happy 2016 to one and all. Here continues sequence of posts giving one and all the opportunity to showcase their favourite shots of 2015!

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

How about this one, perched (or glued?) on Neil Hulme's finger? Taken on a grey showery morning in Abbots Wood, 9th May 2015.
Cheers
John W

I saw this pair during a trip to the Pyrenees in June 2015.
For me this species is quite exotic as it is not easy to find on home ground around Marseilles. Chris

I've always wanted to photograph this species nectaring on a Bluebell and my opportunity came at last, during a visit to Hailey Wood, near Cirencester.

It was only a fleeting moment and the lighting was harsh, so there's a lot of room for improvement, as a photo, but it's still a 'favourite'
Mike

As ever, I got my annual UK 'fix' for this species at Ewyas Harold Common, Herefordshire, on Sunday 3rd May 2015:

Here is one of the few photo's I had of any butterflies this year from the UK.
Andy

Another one of my 2015 highlights was a day trip to Abbots Wood to get this lifer. After wandering around for several hours I finally found the 'promised land' and was treated to a couple of hours of watching them flitter low over the ground

I saw good numbers of PBFs when I spent a day wandering around the Wyre Forest in late May. Most were quite active but I spent some time with one particular individual that lazily flitted between a couple of shrubs during a cloudy spell and presented me with some good photo opportunities.
Cheers,

Neil

One of my favourite spring species ...

Though common in most of my local Sussex woodlands during the mid to late 70's, recent data from the UK Butterfly Monitoring Scheme (UKBMS) has confirmed that the Pearl-bordered Fritillary has undergone a 72% decline in numbers across the whole country since 1976. Now one of the rarest woodland butterflies in Sussex.

A male from 2015 pictured below ...

Pearl-bordered Fritillary

I have taken every single one of my Fave Pearl shots at Bentley Wood, in fact I’ve only ever seen Pearls at Bentley and so it was again this year unsurprisingly. It was taken on Philzoid and my first meet up of the year. We were wandering round the further reaches of the Eastern Clearing and had seen all the usual preludes to Pearls; Tree Pipit, Speckled Wood, Tiger Beetle and Speckled Yellow and so we were expecting Pearls any time soon. When we did get onto them (Philzoid went onto a short lived 1-0 lead) it was a cracking fresh individual down amongst the old Bracken and new rush growth. It’s my fave as it encompasses two of my favourite types of shot – the close up and the stained glass. Have a goodun

Wurzel

It was Bentley Wood for me too, on my only trip down there this year (13th May). I didn't end up with many pictures, though several I did get were of females laying - a new one for me. Dave