Brown Argus (Aricia agestis)
2011 photos highlighted in green. Click on any photo to go to an enlarged picture, or simply scroll down the page.
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| 19792_male_Var_20Apr10 | 19817_female_Var_20Apr10 | 7704_female_Var_30Jun07 |
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| 14842_sex?_Var_05May09 | 16419_sex?_Var_22Jun09 | 7696_female_Var_30Jun07 |
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Agestis is quite widespread in the UK and common in France. The very similar Mountain Argus (A. artaxerxes) occurs at higher altitudes and can co-exist with agestis which can also occur at quite high altitudes. Agestis has a full set of upperside orange lunules, especially so in the female, although the male upf lunules are generally smaller and may not quite extend past s4. Artaxerxes has an incomplete set of lunules in both sexes, especially in the male where they may be vestigial or even absent from the upf. Artaxerxes also has a slightly more pointed forewing apex. |
The agestis underside could be (and often is) confused with the female Common Blue (Polyommatus icarus) but there is a key differentiator in the unh spots which is illustrated on the icarus page. The female uppersides of agestis and icarus (the brown form) are often very similar, although icarus sometimes has a smattering of basal blue scales on the forewing which agestis does not have. |
| ref | sex |
observations |
alt. m |
| 19792 | M |
the limited orange lunules of the male in front contrasts well with those of the female behind. |
10 |
| 19817 | F |
a female, showing a complete set of strong orange lunules. |
10 |
| 7704 | F |
a female based on body shape, and the upperside of 7696. The upf lunules extend to s6 but are not especially strong. |
140 |
| 14842 | M? | a first-brood, based on the extensive orange lunules. Probably a male, if the greyness of the unh ground colour is any sort of reliable indication. It was roosting in this position, apparently defying gravity so as not to slip off the snail shell. | 140 |
| 16419 | F? |
a second-brood, probably a female based on the strong warm brown ground colour of the unh. The colouring may not be a reliable indicator of sex for Aricia species as it would be for, e.g., Polyommatus species. The forewing apex is slightly pointed, leaving open the possibility that 16419 is artaxerxes. |
920 |
| 7696 | F |
a female with nice clean brown ground colour and a complete set of strong orange lunules on the unf extending to s6. The hindwing anal angle hints at male, though. 7704 is the upperside, which clearly confirms female. |
140 |
