The Common Blue butterfly can be found at Croome in the summer months (June-August). It can be found in the meadows, usually in the grasses and nettles. The path in the meadows running to the east of the main lake is a good place for butterflies. The photo below shows a male Common Blue.

Confusingly, the female Common Blue (shown below) is actually not so much blue, as brown, although she can have varying amounts of blue 'shimmer'. To add further to the confusion, there is another butterfly called the Brown Argus, which looks similar to the female Common Blue.

The Common Blue is one of the smaller species of butterfly, and best spotted when they are in flight. Obviously the shimmering blue colour is the thing to look out for, but the blue is not always so obvious as you'd think, as it will be mixed with the pale brown under-wing when in flight.

The Common Blue is one of several butterflies to have an under-wing pattern as pretty, if not prettier than the upper wing (see photo below). These patterns are the best way to distinguish different blue butterfly species, as although they look random, each species has a unique pattern.