Small Copper

[Pauline]

Not very good with variations but this was a stunning butterfly and the photo doesn't do it justice. Is such colouration normal or is it an aberration. Any advice appreciated.

[Rogerdodge]

That looks a lot like aberration fuscae to me.
Beautiful.
Try the Cockayne database for more information
http://www.nhm.ac.uk/research-curation/ ... index.html

[David M]

Small Coppers seem to be more prone to variation than most species.

When I visited Springdale Farm Reserve last week, all the SCs were darker than normal in colour and some had pronounced tails.

[Pauline]

Thanks for your help Roger. I have had a quick look at that database but I must admit I find it a bit confusing - there are just sooo many variations. Whatever it turns out to be it was just a beautiful creature that I couldn't really capture with a camera.

P.