NATURE TABLE: The Holly Blue Butterfuly

The holly blue is a small but striking butterfly — with its wings open in a patch of sunlight it is an intense lilac colour. Females have distinct black tips to the front wings.

Mon, 01 Jun, 2015 - 01:00

They are unusual among Irish butterfly species in that they appear to be increasing in both numbers and range.

Once a rather uncommon woodland species they have been turning up in suitable hedgerows and gardens all over the country for the past 10 or 12 years. Some experts believe the increase is a response to climate change.

They still tend to be more common near the coast than at inland sites. They normally have two broods a year — occasionally three in warm southern counties and only one in cold northern ones. Second generation females have larger patches of black on their wing tips.

The caterpillars of the first brood feed on holly — usually female hollies because they prefer the immature berries to the leaves. Second brood caterpillars feed on mature, flowering ivy.