Small Blue

Cupido minimus

Photo

Wingspan: 22 - 28mm 

Description
The Small Blue is our smallest butterfly. The silvery-grey underwings are scattered with small black dots with no orange markings, the un-patterned upperwings are smokey-black on the male and dark brown on the female. 

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Flight Period
The flight period is from mid-May – end June. Occasional second brood mid to late August 

Larval Food plants
Kidney Vetch (Anthyllis Vulneraria) 

Habitat
Chalk downland, chalk pits, embankments 

Wiltshire Status
Resident, scarce to frequent but local. 

Wiltshire Sites
Salisbury Plain
Bratton Castle
Boscombe Down
Haddon Hill
Park Bottom
Cotley Hill 

Earliest sightings
Earliest county record 24th April 2011; Park Bottom (Gordon Mackie, Chris Riley) 

Latest county record
27th September 1999