Small Copper

Lycana phlaesPhotoWingspan   Male 32mm   Female 35mm 
Description
This easy-to-identify little butterfly has bright orange upper wings that sport black markings and borders. The upper side of the hindwings are greyish brown with orange in the trailing edge. The underside of the forewing is similar to the upper side but without the black border. The underside of the hindwing is also grey brown with a few black spots. 

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Flight Period
The Small Copper can have three or more broods a year with peaks in abundance between the following months:
May - June
July - August
September - October 

Habitat
Open rough ground
Chalk Grassland
Grazed grassland
Heaths
Wasteland
Set-aside land
Railway embankments 

Larval food Plants
Common Sorrel (Rumex acetosa)
Sheep Sorrel (Rumex acetosella)
Ocasionally on Broad-leaved Dock (Rumex obutusifolius) 

Status: Resident, frequent to common 

Earliest Sightings
Earliest county record 26th March 1997 

Latest county record
5th November 2001