I met the most Grizzled Skipper in Cross

Grizzled Skipper (Pyrgus malvae) – Cross Plain, Somerset, UK. ID JB4_4105

The Urban Dictionary defines Grizzled as “Worse than grundy. The result of being exposed to something terrible for a long period of time and having the results show through your appearance and state of mind. Mainly used when referring to a sailor. I met the most grizzled harbor master in Maine“. This butterfly is no sailor but it is a skipper, and the only thing it was exposed to for a long time that day was me!

Cross Plain is a great place to visit for Small Pearl-bordered Fritillaries, but this day it was the skippers that were the most fun and easiest to approach. However, it was not a easy place to get photographs. The ground was covered in last year’s bracken and bramble making it impossible to get near the butterflies without making a lot of noise. The dead material makes a poor background, and an even worse foreground. My solution was to lie on the ground and look upwards at butterflies resting on this year’s fresh bracken.