^{What, two butterfly postings in one day? Yes, I had some interlinking to do between the two, so there.}

The brown argus (Aricia agestis), which goes by he strange name of bruin blauwtje ("brown blue") in The Netherlands, is rare in my region; it is mostly found near big rivers and the sea. It is more widespread in southern and central Europe, but it has been moving north over the last decade.

I took these photos near Oosterbeek, The Netherlands on the north bank of the river Rhine, and I mistook the butterfly at first for a female common blue, the one I posted about earlier today.

An expert I consulted sternly pointed out it was in fact a brown argus. Some study of the underside of the wings and the wing shape is needed to tell the difference. It is a close relation of the common blue, though, and considered to be in the family of the blues, even though both sexes are brown. Don't blame me for that, I can't help it.

^{Olympus Stylus 1s, 300mm, ISO200, f5.6, 1/200s}

^{Olympus Stylus 1s, 300mm, ISO200, f5.6, 1/320s}

It is also pretty, but not very blue; just a hint of it. I like blue.

Thanks for watching this interesting post with nice pics!

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