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Today I went a part of Dungeness that I've rarely visited but have had in mind for some time as potentially a prime Small Copper habitat:Dengemarsh.

I drove part way down Dengemarsh Road, parked then slowly made my way down to the sea, investigating the ditches and verges. It's a fascinating place And sure enough it has its population of Small Coppers I found them in little pockets of 2-3 individuals or in singles occupying large areas of territory I counted 51 Small Coppers there today Much of my time was spent following females ( as in my hobby, so in my life..! ) This lady was carefully investigating the very tiniest of young Sorrel leaves and then bringing down her abdomen onto them This plant was rejected after much investigation but then she moved on to what looked to me to be a most unpromising stub of a plant and there she laid a single egg Well done, you! Lots of Dragonflies about in this location and I saw many Meadow Browns, Small and Large Whites and a single Clouded Yellow passed through but I was most pleased to have spent more time with the Small Coppers

My plan today was to brave "The Desert of Dungeness".

But before venturing out into that Forbidden Zone I dropped in on radiata He was exactly where I left him on Thursday. It appears that some male Small Coppers (of which this radiata is one) show very set territorial behaviour, sticking to one defined location for many days, whilst other males are more mobile and wander about from brief territory to the next.

Today I noticed that there's been a changing of the guard in that now female Small Coppers are far more in evidence than before, often more than males, and that now although I saw a few testosterone fuelled skirmishes I saw far more examples of males pursuing females or of egg-laying females. I guess this signals the latter stages of the brood.

Here's a typical pursuit and you will see the uninterested female shaking her hind wings and strutting along ahead of the luckless male like an inflated Turkey As for "The Desert" I counted 126 Small Coppers and saw many egg-laying females. Here's a closer look at the terrain with Sorrel leaves poking up through the lichen and a female toddling along over it.

Then either laying eggs or going through the motions The landscape looks so forbidding you can easily wonder how anything could survive out there, but Small Coppers evidently do!

Feeling somewhat singed and parched after my adventures in "The Desert" and in need of greenery and cool shade I stopped off on my way home at Orlestone Forest where I saw many Ringlets and also my first White Admirals of the season Such a contrast to Small Coppers!

And I enjoyed watching them flying together, showing a delicacy quite alien to my Dungeness friends.I tried taking some snaps - they're awful, but I like them because the White Admirals seem to become more impressionistic creatures of light and air than of substance But of substance they most certainly are, as this individual, which had found a nice pile of poo, clearly demonstrates Not quite Fairy Spirits after all!

Hello again Hoggers,
We were at Dunge ourselves today,and I think I saw you yomping across the desert ,from the road you parked up and just went!, I was going to call out but you,d gone,we found the Radiata in the moat(without asking Dave Walker, I like a challenge!),I just do not know how you manage an open wing shot when they shut their wings almost as soon as they land,what with that and the wind!as you say a very pugnacious individual,striking out at anything that flew by,including Large Whites,many others about as well + several Brown Argus Regards Allan.W.

I was probably in a hurry to get myself a drink after 3 hours chasing Small Coppers in The Desert!

I'm glad you found the radiata, Allan, it's a very special butterfly

Best wishes

Hoggers

Great shots of the radiata Hoggers But what's all this...posting shots of White Admirals I must have been heat stroke

Have a goodun

Wurzel

Cheers Wurzel, that radiata was very special, only the second I've ever found.

As for the appearance of White Admirals in my diary, it was just a phase I was going through - I'll be back to normal soon...!

Best wishes

Hoggers

This morning at Dungeness started off rather dull but soon the sun was getting past the clouds and out came the Small Coppers Although some are now very tired looking most are in their prime I was delighted to come upon this beautifully marked femalewith her lovely big paint brush dabs Indeed we are at that stage of the brood when it's the females you notice the most. Here's a gorgeous blue badge female She'd found a rather inaccessible place to rest and I had a difficult time trying to get in position to take a photo without disturbing her There were quite a few blue badgers about They are always a treat to see.

On my walk I counted 105 Small Coppers Lots of punch ups between the males and other butterflies And talking of other butterflies I saw 4 Painted Ladies, 2 Common Blues and 12 Brown Argus.

What I was most interested to see was some Small Copper behaviour.

There are many females about so I got to see them brushing off the attentions of males It's when the female adopts the strutting Turkey pose, quivering her hind wings while keeping her fore wings straight up, that the male gets the message that he is not wanted Most males then seem to suddenly freeze as if completely non-plussed. They will sit motionless for some time and then just as suddenly they'll resume their frenetic activities.

A fascinating little butterfly

Hi Hoggers,
Your beautifully marked female is Ab; Extensa I think ? Regards Allan.W.

I think you're right, Allan! The specimens on the Cockayne website certainly look very much like it

Thanks for the ID

Best wishes

Hoggers

Your dedication to Small Coppers as paid off, you've got an ab I should be in Kent next weekend for two weeks so I'll try to visit Dungeness, with my family, hope the Small Coppers may still be there. Goldie

They certainly will be, Goldie! I'm sure you will see plenty. I'm always delighted to stumble upon the odd ab here and there but the "ordinary" ones keep me entertained, especially watching what they get up to!

I'm looking forward to seeing how you get on butterflying in Kent

Hoggers

Before taking my usual walk at Dungeness this morning I stopped off in nearby Greatstone to investigate some likely Small Copper haunts It wasn't long before I started to find them They were far more thinly spread than, for example, by the Observatory but I'd soon counted 18and had watched a female crawling around looking for a suitable Sorrel leaf on which to lay her eggs.

I then made my way to Dungeness where the first butterfly to make itself known to me was a Painted Lady During my visit I saw six of them and all were in beautiful condition.

I resumed my Copper Hunt and brought my total for today up to 86.

I sat down to have my lunch beside one Copper in particular I'd noticed that he had a very well defined territory so over my marmite and banana sandwiches I watched him. He strongly favoured the pebbles as his watch point and from here he launched his attacks upon every butterfly that came past. As there were many Meadow Browns, Gatekeepers and Skippers this meant that he was very busy indeed!

Now and again he'd flit up to a near by grass stalkor other plant and perch there waiting for an intruder But I got the impression that he preferred to be lower down on the pebbles as the breeze meant his high perches were unstable! So active was he that I decided to test him: I took a piece of crust from my sandwich whilst he sat on a pebble and gently lobbed it over his head. Sure enough, he flew up to intercept it!

What's not to love about Small Coppers?!

My plan for today was to look for Small Coppers in part of the Dungeness Desert that I have not visited so far this year.

I made my way out to the proud memorial for two Polish spitfire pilots who gave their lives for us in the Battle of Britain Brave men.

From there I went into the Forbidden Zone I don't think much can live out there but Small Coppers certainly do. Here's a photo to show their world Dungeness is basically a dune system of pebbles held together by lichen and (what's good for the Coppers) SorrelIt's a tough environment for anything (including butterfly enthusiasts!) but then perhaps Small Coppers really don't need very much to thrive.

I noticed an increasing number of worn individuals But many still in fine fettle I watched several males either unsuccessfully pursuing females or launching themselves up from their pebble watch towers and striking out at any intruder Ever vigilant And today I saw two males perform a little exercise that I've seen others carry out in the past: they will flit up to a grass stalk or some other kind of plant then slowly walk down it head first whilst quickly patting their feet against the stem They seem to be investigating the plant as if for signs of females. They'll then return to standing guard My Small Copper tally for today was 119.

I also saw 8/9 Painted Ladies all in tiptop condition as well as several Brown Argus.

Hoggers wrote:

My Small Copper tally for today was 119.

That's amazing, Hoggers. I doubt I've ever seen even a fifth of that in a single place on one day.

119 Small Coppers and that was just in part of a very big area, David.

I've been trying over the season to visit as much of Dungeness , Dengemarsh and Greatstone as I can and it's clear that there are very many Small Coppers here indeed!

Hoggers.

I think the entire UK population has migrated to you this summer. I've seen 2 this year which is the worst for me in recorded history! I'd never see as many as you but I should be into double figures well before now! 30 or 40 in a season would be a good year for me.

That is a fantastic number of Samll Coppers Hoggers - any ideas on why the habitat there is so good for them?

Have a goodun

Wurzel

I was wondering about their environment too like Wurzel, in your photo's it looks like there's not much there, is it just the Lichen they like Hoggers,? What other Butterflies are there, I know you love the Coppers but if I get the family to go I may have to put a show on if you know what i mean Goldie

Hi Goldie and Wurzel, it looks more like the surface of the moon than Kent but when you get there and look carefully it's a carpet of Sorrel. The Sorrel grows small,perhaps as a result of the environment ( nothing grows very big there) but it pokes up through the pebbles and lichen just enough for the females to lay their eggs on.

So what with there being lots of the Copper's food plant and the fact that it's a nature reserve
, the Coppers do well ( and I think Coppers prefer rather barren places anyway ).

There are other butterflies : Painted Ladies, Small Tortoiseshells, Red Admirals, Brown Argus, Common Blues, Gatekeepers, Meadow Browns,Whites and often Clouded Yellows, so plenty to see - as if Small Coppers aren't enough!!!

Best wishes

Hoggers