Climbing up on Cotley hill ........

I can see the butterflies!
Luckily this was true for me today as it was another 200 mile round trip to Warminster in Wiltshire, I think I would have been Gutted if there had been no Marsh fritillaries at all!
It was raining in the wind when we arrived, which was quite good as the butterflies were less flighty than last year.
The Marsh fritillary Euphydryas aurinia, has one of the most colorful upper sides of all our fritillaries, with a variable chequered pattern of oranges, browns and yellows when fresh. After a few days the bright colors fade leaving the butterfly with a shiny appearance which led to early lepidopterists calling it the 'Greasy fritillary'. 
The butterflies exist in small discrete colonies whose number can fluctuate wildly year on year, making it one of our most threatened species.
Such a beauty I am sure you agree.
I have included an under side shot in extras.