Yesterday I took a trip down through Wiltshire just over the border into Hampshire to visit a butterfly site at Fontmell and Melbury Downs. On the way I stopped off at another popular site called Martin Downs, south of Salisbury, an open area of chalk downland, heath and woodland. I parked in the Sillens Lane carpark located three quarters of a mile along a rather pot-holed narrow road as I'd heard that sometimes turtle doves can be seen or heard here. With many tracks to choose from, I decided on a straight track alongside many bushes and trees, and a grass verge. Sadly no turtle doves, but even at eight o'clock, butterflies were already on the wing in the warm temperatures. I spent the best part of two hours there, including talking to another butterfly enthusiast who informed me he'd see all the UK butterflies each year for about 12 years!  That would necessitate travelling the length and breadth of the country annually.  I think I'll be content with trying to see all 60 species at least once! He did give me some useful information about  a couple of sites where I could find some of my five  'missing species'. Butterflies I saw at Martin Downs were common blue, small blue, small copper, speckled wood, orange tip, brimstone, small heath, dingy skipper and green hairstreak. 

My second stop was at Fontmell and Melbury Downs where my aim was to locate a couple of  'firsts for the year', namely Adonis blue and Glanville Fritillary. The latter species was once only found in the Isle of Wight but has been now 'introduced' into one or two areas in the south of England where it appears to be thriving.  I soon spotted my two target butterflies, on a sunny bank part way down a fairly steep track leading from the car park down to the valley below. With the day becoming increasingly warm, they were hard to photograph as they tended to settle with wings closed or amongst vegetation where it was cooler. On previous visits I've seen Marsh Fritillaries here, but there were none today although there were good numbers of brimstone and also small and common blues. 

My final visit was  on my journey home, when I stopped off at Boscombe Down West, a straight 1km section of a disused railway which runs alongside some ministry of defence land and is bordered by chalk embankments. Today it was hard to spot many butterflies but I did find a green hairstreak and one Adonis blue and one common  blue which often seemed to be interacting with each other. 

                                                                  Adonis blue

common  blue

Glanville fritillary

green hairstreak