Small Copper

When you hear that someone has seen an adult male Red-footed Falcon on one of your local patches, not five-minutes drive from work, you have to give it a go at lunchtime. So it was off to Dogsthorpe Star Pit we headed. Yes, there was the odd Kestrel, but other than some odd-looking gulls, not much else bird-wise on offer. Brian Stone once more gave Katie and I a lift and we bumped into the hemi-mythical birdfinder Kevin "Pinky" DuRose.
There should always be something for an obsessive snapper to take at such events, and so it turned out with the appearance, just as we were leaving, of a Small Copper. This beautiful butterfly made me a bit nostalgic for my youth, watching the Surrey North Downs at Happy Valley and Farthing Downs. We used to see this butt a lot then, but it doesn't seem to be very common around Peterborough. It lingered just long enough for a couple of shots. As always, please enjoy.


Small Copper, Dogsthorpe Star Pit, Peterborough, 14.7.04.