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Large Skipper - Favourite Photo of 2017

Week 9 - Advent is upon us so while you're musing over what butterfly related gifts to ask for from Father Christmas at the same time you can come up with your 'Favourites' for this weeks selection

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

My photo was taken on a beautiful sunny June day in my local Bernwood Forest. It is a very fresh-looking example with superb colouring around the fringes:
Mike

Here's two from Chobham Common, where they seem to go on flying all summer. The first is from my first visit of the year, 15th June and one of the last I saw (long after they'd vanished from my other sites) two months later

My Skipper shots are from Brockholes CP on the 14th June and HLB on the 24th June, the weather was reasonable on the day but with lots of cloud it wasn't too good locally this year for the LS I saw very few. Goldie

My favourite is one seen on 6th July at the same location as Bugboy's (Chobham Common) and in a pose rather like Goldie's... Dave

This is a 'filler' species that emerges when the spring species are on their last legs, so it is always welcome, although it is so common that after a week or two most of us pay it mere lip service.

Here's a male posing in south Wales on 26th June:

Plenty of Large Skippers around my local spots this year, the first ones appearing in late May and then continuing through June and July.

I was particularly pleased to see a few in my garden including this female in late June,
and this male later in July,
They were also flying in good numbers at the park just down the road from my mom's house where the selection below were taken.
Cheers,

Neil

Large Skipper

This was taken during a family visit to Kingston Lacey. It was taken prior to lunch and so I remember the immediacy of trying to get my shot before being called back into the fold of the family for lunch. When I was looking through my Large Skipper shots this one stood because it was a little too heavy for the flower it was feeding on which was bending over and the Skipper was clinging on and desperately feeding before it lost purchase and would have fallen off .
Have a goodun

Wurzel