Egg laying Brown Hairstreak

A trip to Suffolk paid dividends at the weekend. Brown Hairstreak Butterflies were on the agenda but we did see so much more.

The Brown Hairstreaks are tree top dwelling insects and very rarely come down to ground level. The window for seeing them is pretty narrow; hence the reason they are so difficult to see. Around the third week in August, an hour either side of noon on sunny days the females fly down to Blackthrorn bushes. Between one and two metres from the ground they find a junction of a branch between old and new wood and lay a single white egg. She will repeat the egg laying process several times before returning to the canopy.

This back-lit photo shows just how beautiful these butterflies are. Next years tour for these beauties is set for Sunday 16th August – book early to avoid disappointment carl@wildlifetoursandeducation.co.uk