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Underside. Never settles with wings open. Sexes appear similar.
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The row of black dots on hindwing allows species to be distinguished from other hairstreaks.
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Information
| Law: | Protection under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. |
| UK BAP status: | Not listed |
| Local status: | Local BAP Species - A Species Action Plan exists for this species in Bedfordshire.
Rare. (Bedfordshire's rarest butterfly).
Only found in a few small colonies, some of which are on private property.
Only about 45 colonies exist in the whole of Britain, all in south-east midlands.
Map shown at 5km resolution to reduce possibility of collecting. |
| Size: | Small. |
| Larval foodplant: | Blackthorn. |
| No. of broods: | One. |
| Flight time(s): | Only 2-3 weeks duration(!) usually during second half of June, but flight period varies each year, so to avoid missing it completely start looking before mid-June.
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| Winter: | Egg. |
| Habits: | Occasionally flies, mostly around lunchtime, but loves to skulk around the tops of trees out of sight, feeding on honeydew. May come down to feed on Wild Privet or bramble. Often requires lots of patience to find and binoculars to get a good view. |
| Habitats: | Mature thickets of sheltered sunny Blackthorn, usually in woodland. |
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Distribution
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No. of Adults
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No. of 1km Squares
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No. of Records
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No. of Adults per record
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No. of adults per 10,000 records
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Percentage of all records
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