Skip navigation.

UK Wildlife

Exploring the fauna of Britain

Chalkhill Blue Butterfly

Thursday, 27. March 2008, 09:20:53

, , , , ,

Just a quick post as I a 'little' busy. I thought I'd talkabout my current Profile Photo: the Chalkhill blue

It belongs the the family Lycaenidae and its scientific name is Polyommatus coridon. The female unlike the light blue male is a light brown colour (see below)
The chalkhill blue can be found flying around unimproved chalk grassland, between June and October. It is distributed across SE England and much of mainland Europe. This male and the female were both photographed in Darland Banks, Kent.
The larva has an interesting lifestyle, feeding on Horseshoe vetch Hippocrepis comosa, it secretes a substance attrative to ants and uses the ants for protection from other invertebrate threats. When it pupates it also secrets the substance and it is believed that the ants bury the pupa

References

Uk butterflies

Heronry Report 13: chick photos and videoHerons feeding video

Comments

avatar
Very interesting! I've always thought your profile picture was extraordinarly beautiful and have wondered what this beautiful butterfly was.

By cakkleberrylane, # 27. March 2008, 12:19:26

avatar
Really interesting. I'm hoping to see more butterflies this year. Great photos. Thanks. Jane

By UrbanExtension, # 27. March 2008, 19:23:37

avatar
Beautiful butterfly. I should think we probably do have them here (we have a lot of ancient haymeadows) but I've only got a picture of a common blue to date. I will have to look harder this summer.

By SittingFox, # 28. March 2008, 07:09:31

Write a comment

Comment
(BBcode and HTML is turned off for anonymous user comments.)

Please type this security code : 04c714

Smilies

Photos

common gull.jpglesser black backed gull.jpg

My sites

Other cool sites

Other Opera Wildlife blogs