Oxenbourne Down - cracking day out with Butterfly Conservation

We joined a field trip with the Hants and IOW branch of Butterfly Conservation. Headed to Oxenbourne Down, which is adjacent to Butser Hill, and sits within the Queen Elizabeth Country Park. Target species silver spotted skipper (Hesperia comma), chalk hill blue (Polyommatus coridon), small copper (Lycaena phlaeas) and clouded yellow (Colias croceus). We dipped on the last two species but still clocked up 20 butterfly spp including great views of both silver-washed (Argynnis paphia) and dark green fritillary (Argynnis aglaja) on the wing.

Non butterfly highlights included slow worm (Anguis fragilis) and a single roe deer (Capreolus capreolus breaking cover.

Silver studs on Gore Heath, Dorset

The briefest of an afternoon's exploration of the southern slopes of Gore Heath in Dorset (off the B3075) enabled me to connect with silver-studded blue (Plebejus argos) for the first time this summer.

Also noted large skipper (Ochlodes sylvanus), small skipper (Thymelicus sylvestris), small heath (Coenonympha pamphylis), and meadow brown (Maniola jurtina), a pale moth sp. caught my eye, hopefully identified correctly later as a female four-spotted footman (Lithosia quadra).