Green Hairstreaks at Spurn

A beautiful family and friends walk to Spurn lighthouse from the visitor centre. The tide was up and dapper summer plumage Grey Plovers sat on the edge of the marsh with dunlin, knot, and Brent Geese. Plenty of flowers about with several patches of Scarlet Pimpernel near the breach. Just getting near the lighthouse a small moth-like insect fluttered in front of me. I jumped for joy, my first live Green Hairstreak! I first saw this beautiful tiny jewel of a butterfly in May 1987 near my hometown, a recently dead individual by a group of gorse, which I still keep in a small plastic bag. At Spurn this individual was not in great shape, having had some problem while emerging, one of its hind wings was folded on itself.

My first live Green Hairstreak, with its deformed wing.

I got an inkling of the lovely behaviour of this species when I offered my finger to it and it promptly jumped on...

...showing its better side.

We eventually got to the lighthouse and set up a picnic. We wandered around the dunes and there were at least three hairstreaks about. One individual, likely a male, sat on marram grass atop the dune, returning time and time again to its favoured spot, from where it inspected and chased a Wall Butterfly and another Green Hairstreak. They are extremely approachable and it was easy to photograph them with our mobiles. Depending of the angle of the light they appear to glow green,

Totally at ease amongst our picnic.

I followed one of them as it fed on dandelions...

...and daisies.

This is going to be my home screen for a long time!

View north from the lighthouse.

Spurn Lighthouse.

All day, many swallows, a sprinkle of house martins and a swift flew south over the peninsula

Humber by the breach.

The broad beach at the breach.

Brent Geese

The caterpillars of the brown tailed moth already clustering on the sea buckthorn.

A ferry enters the Humber.