Stud.io
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Argus-Bläuling - Geißklee-Bläuling - plebejus argus
Sony A9 with FE 100-400mm GM and FE 1.4 x Teleconverter
Argus-Bläuling - Geißklee-Bläuling - plebejus argus
Sony A9 with FE 100-400mm GM and FE 1.4 x Teleconverter
I've been hoping to photograph Silver-studded Blue on heather for some time. This was taken at Prees Heath near Whitchurch, Shropshire, which I gather is the last reliable place for this species in the Midlands. There were good numbers of butterflies when I arrived yesterday evening but they were beginning to roost and didn't seem very inclined to settle on the flowering heather. Eventually I found this one perched on the end of a stem against a clean background.
An idyllic Cotswold scene… Batsford Stud was built by Sir Ernest George for John Freeman Mitford in 1878. Formerly the stables to Batsford Park, the stud now forms part of the Batsford Estate, near Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire. There are about 120 acres of paddocks varying in size, including nursery paddocks for mares with their new-born foals.
Higher Hyde Heath DWT. The silver-studded blue emerges in June and is usually on the wing until late August. It is a rare butterfly, generally found in heathland habitats that have shorter, sparsely vegetated areas. It is restricted to close-knit colonies in southern England and Wales. Two subspecies can be found in its range, while two others are now extinct in the UK. The larvae feed on a wide variety of plants, such as bell heather, cross-leaved heath and gorses.
Here's something to brighten yet another damp July morning. A lovely fresh male Silver-studded Blue perched on Bell Heather.
I have to say I'm finding this damp summer a little frustrating, I should be looking for Purple Emperors but instead its drizzling outside.
Male / upperwing.
Species: Plebeius argus.
This attractive little blue is most often associated with heathlands of southern England, where it can occur in very large numbers. However, in many places it is serious decline, mainly as a result of destruction of heaths and the shading out of the sparsely vegetated, sunny habitats it prefers.
Prees Heath Common, Shropshire.
Many thanks to people who view or comment on my photos
I was astonished to see this number of horses roaming around on the clifftops of North Cornwall. They seemed friendly enough and soon came over to see whether I had anything worth having...
It made me happy to see so many of one of my favourite butterflies this morning.
121 pictures in 2021 (105) uplifting
Shot 65/100 x
I had the opportunity to head back to see family over the weekend and while there took a trip out to Yateley Common to see if I could find some Silver-studded Blues. Luckily I found a few however I think in a week or so the numbers will be far greater. Won't get much chance to get away now until early September so it was a real treat to find this smart female settling in for the night.
Can go to L
Another one from the end of June. It had been some years since I actively went looking for butterflies to photograph and I had forgotten how hard it is to contort yourself into the correct position to try and get the whole wing in the plane of focus, maybe that is why I stopped doing it last time!
However for one of the UK's prettiest (and smallest) butterflies - it was worth it!
A wonderful backlit Silver-studded Blue this morning. Only saw 2 this morning, 1 yesterday, however these still feel early.
Always a delight to see.
A lovely silver studded blue butterfly amongst the ling heather. I've been lucky enough to come across quite af few "blues" of various types this year but this was my first images of the silver studded - great to see.
This week's assignment for Macro Mondays is "All in a Row". I could have used so many items but I chose this belt with studs which are all in a row. I hope you like it!
Thank you for your views, comments and faves! HMM everyone!
It has taken me a while to get a half decent photograph of this relatively uncommon UK species, but finally I have it.
The silver-studded blue emerges in June and is usually on the wing until late August. It is a rare butterfly, generally found in heathland habitats that have shorter, sparsely vegetated areas. It is restricted to close-knit colonies in southern England and Wales.
This was photographed on Silchester Common in Hampshire, a noted site for this charming little butterfly.
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 Italy License.
The chandeliers and lamps in this room give the gold studded walls a great shine.
Designed for a client.
Silver-studded Blues are commonest on southern heathlands around the New Forest and Thames Basin. Beyond that they are decidedly localised, though often common where they do occur. They are noticeably smaller than Common Blues, with a more leaden blue colouration, with a row of black studs around the hindwing margin. Its caterpillars feed on a variety of plants including gorse, heather and rock-rose, but they also have a relationship with black ants of the genus Lasius. Ants carry the young larvae into their nests where they tend and protect them, presumably for the sugary solutions they exude. But it is not known whether they actually feed on ant larvae (like Large Blues do), but at night the caterpillars emerge from the ants' nests to feed on vegetation. Female Silver-studded Blues selectively lay eggs on vegetation close to Black Ant nests.
As far as I'm aware there are no "natural" colonies in Yorkshire, but a few years ago a colony was established in South Yorkshire using butterflies translocated from Shropshire. We were passing on the way back from Lincolnshire so called in and saw a small number on the wing. The person who unofficially introduced these butterflies (and many other species at many other sites) died last year but the Guardian wrote an article about him and his butterfly releasing activities: www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/oct/13/maverick-rewi...