Large Blue - Favourite Photo of 2011

[Vince Massimo]

This is a thread in which to post your favourite photo(s) of a particular species taken in 2011.................or the last time you saw one!

This is part of a series which will hopefully grow throughout the winter until all 58 British species have been covered. Three new threads will be introduced per week. Our overseas friends are welcome to fill in the gaps relating to our rare migrants, but please try to observe the alphabetical listing .

Details of places, dates, times and circumstances would be appreciated and please feel free to contribute observations of behaviour, personal encounters, anecdotes and other interesting points.

Cheers,
Vince

[Reverdin]

Memorable Large Blue year for me, with an overnight friday evening trip over the Dales via Hawes from home then a long M6/M5 trawl to Collard Hill, arriving 5am on 4th June to a sunrise over Glastonbury Tor... Brilliant... then 2 hours nap and onto the slopes.... Sussex Kipper was already there, and aquaintances made, he, my son and I soon found sleeping imagos...

Later as the slopes warmed under a lukewarm sun few deigned to bask open winged, these being a couple...

A very frosty call home to tell the boss I would be staying over at Roger & Rose's (also met on that wonderful hillside), met with icy and underwhelmed joy ( I discovered that day was my wedding anniversary.... yeeeesh ) - still suffering the fallout

Ah well, later in July in the high Alps of Switzerland I was very lucky to see a spanking fresh darker Alpine version of the Large Blue... upper and underside below... I reckon it was fresh out of the box!

[David M]

I was lucky enough to see quite a few Large Blues this summer in the Massif Central region of France.

Like our British ones, they weren't too keen on offering up an open wing pose, but after 4 days I managed to find one beautiful female who was prepared to show off her stunning, heavily-marked uppersides:

[MikeOxon]

26th June was a very hot day on Collard Hill. After pounding up and down the slopes for some time, I was pleased to find this mating pair in the quarry area, quite near the entrance to the reserve.

Collard Hill - 26th June 2011
Nikon D300s with 70-300VR - 1/500s@f/11 ISO400

An unexpected bonus was also to be shown a Wasp Orchid by the warden (Ophrys apifera var. Trollii), which contributed to a very memorable day.

Collard Hill - 26th June 2011
Nikon D300s with Tamron 90mm - 1/250s@f/16 ISO400

Mike

[Vince Massimo]

Collard Hill is a 280 mile round trip for me so I only get there occasionally. My last visit was on 24th June 2010 and they were already on the wing when I arrived on site at 08.45. My one and only open-wing shot was achieved at 09.00 and the rest of the morning was spent traversing the slopes, praying for cloud, and waiting for one to settle. On this particular year they had spread to a large part of the reserve and I did not need to go to the eastern slope at all.

Female Large Blue - Collard Hill, Somerset 24-June-10

This particular female had only just emerged and been mated.

Vince