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Black Hairstreak - Favourite Photo of 2017

And so it begins...Starting this week the first opportunity to showcase your favourite shots of 2017! 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.
Here we go then!

Have a goodun

Wurzel

This is an easy one - I only managed one shot of this tricky butterfly this year, on a visit to Whitecross Green Wood on 14th June. Spring species were all early and this was no exception - quite often they are barely starting by this date. I did see reasonable number, but this one was the only one I could get near to. You can just make out a bit of the orange hindwing band on the upperside as it rotated its wings in typical hairstreak fashion. Dave

Looking forward to seeing what people post here, as this is one of the few British species I didn't see in 2017.

I kept my eye out for them in southern France in late May in areas where there was good blackthorn growth, but I suspect even here they are generally an early June species so the timing wasn't right.

I too had little luck photographing this species in 2017. This is my best shot:



It was taken on 28th May near Geneva.

Guy

My previous experience at this site has been plenty of sightings flying or settled either high or partially obscured by foliage. This year I visited the site early in the day, between 9 and 10 and maybe this accounts for why I found up to 10 settled low down. However, the thickness of the Blackthorn interwoven with bramble made it difficult to get close without causing everything to shake. Therefore, photographs were taken at arms length and focusing relied on luck.
Taken on 11 June, about two weeks earlier than usual. Walking back to the car, I saw my first SWF, also very early for the site.

As we all know Black Hairstreaks emerged rather early this year and I got a tip off when the first ones were seen at Monks Wood not long before I was due to go off on my travels. The day before I flew out to Ireland I met up with PhiliB and over the day probably saw close double figures, although in typical Black Hairstreak fashion they mostly stayed out of reach of my camera. The best chance I managed was this chap Phil found licking a leaf. I would have got better shots of a second individual had I not got itchy feet and wandered off out of earshot from Phil's hollering

I am fortunate to have several good colonies of Black Hairstreak, almost on my doorstep. Probably because of this, it took a phone-call from my son to actually get me out into the field and photograph some!

As others have noted, the season was early this year and I was not too hopeful of finding any fresh specimens at the time of our visit. The unusual timing of the season was underlined by our meeting someone who had just photographed a Purple Emperor!

in fact, we found several examples in the Blackthorn hedges surrounding the Bernwood Meadow, and some looked in excellent condition, in spite of the late date:
Mike