24/07/22

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A very warm day, though also windy.

No sign of Purple Emperor today though my main objective was to try and find White-letter Hairstreak.  I checked the elms at the far end of PV though nothing seen there and I was beginning to think it was now too late for the butterfly.  However, on walking back along the footpath something caught my eye near the first pylon, and to my pleasant surprise it was a White-letter Hairstreak feeding on bramble flowers.  I watched it on and off for about 15 minutes and at one point the butterfly came very close, no more than a metre away.  Quite a worn individual as might be expected near the tail-end of the season for adults, and there may have been a second one.

Several Silver-washed Fritillary were also present in PV, though only one landed close enough to be photographed.  Comma were fairly numerous, and the new generation of Brimstone is now on the wing.

I was surprised to find a Chalkhill Blue in this area rather than the downland of Strawberry Banks.  However, perhaps the paucity of flowers in SB (due to the drought) forced this individual to seek nectar in the jungle of PV.

White-letter Hairstreak

White-letter Hairstreak

The spot where WL Hairstreak was found

Silver-washed Fritillary

Comma

Male Brimstone and Green-veined White

Male Chalkhill Blue

Robberfly

  

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