Imago female - courtesy of Tristan Bawn (wild specimen)
Brown Argus (Aricia agestis)
Wingspan: 22 - 27mm
Location: Central and southern Europe (including the south of England and excluding Spain and Portugal), North Africa, the Middle East, Asia
Habitat: Grassland, meadows, dunes
Diet: Nectar - Daisy, Buttercup, Vetch, Dandelion, amongst others
Caterpillar - Common rock-Rose, Dove-Foot Cranesbill, Common Stork's-Bill, Geranium species
Description: Dark brown forewings and hindwings and a grey-brown thorax and abdomen. Both sets of wings are fringed with white and have orange marks along the borders. The antennae are black and white banded
Male - duller brown than female and with more reduced orange marks, not only paler but also lacking from the tips of the forewings
Underside - the abdomen is fluffy white. The hindwings and forewings are pale fawn with orange marks to the borders and white bordered black spots all over the hindwing, and on the further most half of the forewing
Caterpillar - slug-like. Green with a red-purple longitudinal stripe . Body covered in white hairs
Pupa - small and cigar-shaped. Green with red-purple striping
Facts: Although the Brown Argus is very similar to the Northern Brown Argus, they can be easily identified as their ranges do not overlap in the UK, although the Brown Argus is slowly expanding northwards. The Northern Brown Argus also has a faint white discal spot to each forewing that is not present on the Brown Argus
The Brown Argus is similar to the females of the Common Blue, Chalkhill Blue and Adonis Blue. The Brown Argus can be identified as the black spots on the underside of it's forewings are not present near the wing base as they are in the other 'Blues'. Also the Brown Argus lacks any blue at the wing bases that is also present in the other species
The caterpillar of this butterfly is tended by ants, in return it secretes a sugary liquid for them to feed on, some species include Lasius niger and Lasius flavus.
Imago male - courtesy of Gill (wild specimen)
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