SMALL COPPER
This small but brightly coloured butterfly has a wingspan of 20 to 32mm. The upper side fore wings are a bright orange with 8 or 9 black spots and a sooty brown border. The black spots are occasionally outlined in yellow. The upper hind wings are brown with an orange border. The males colouring is darker than the female, and she sometimes has a row of blue spots inside the orange border. The undersides are a pale grey with small black spots.
The small copper is a resident here on Kefalonia and can be seen on the wing from February until October. They have a wide range of habitats, which include roadsides, heathland, woodland clearings, churchyards, waste ground, and grassland up to 2400m. 2 to 3 generations can be produced with the caterpillars usually being green but can have a purple stripe down the middle of the back and along each side. The larva feed on sorrels and docks.
