Long-tailed Blue; or tiger blue as it is known in Dutch due to the stripey pattern of the underwing, is another migratory butterfly which is scarce in Belgium but seems to be undertaking a minor invasion this year. One group of them have found a patch of Broad-leaved Pea, one of its host plants, along the River Sambre near the French border and seemed to be hanging around so I gave it a try earlier this week. I went before work and so arrived before there was any activity but, after about fifteen minutes of waiting, I spotted one on a flower and, by 11:30am, when I had to leave for work, there were at least three flying around, with one female observed ovipositing. It is doubtful whether the caterpillars will be able to survive a Belgian winter but I was very pleased at finding my 11th new species of butterfly in Belgium this year, and the close-up photo's reveal some subtle, golden scaling which wasn't obvious in the field.
