The Essexes were late arriving this summer and, as I almost frantically checked the antennae of every Small skipper I could find (not as many of them as usual either), I had begun to think I wouldn’t see one. (For context, my first sightings in previous years have been as follows: 2019 9 July, 2020 25 June, 2021 11 July, 2022 29 June, 2023 23 June.) Then, finally, on 17 July I spotted not one but two male Essex skippers involved in a little skirmish over territory in a local coastal field. And the next day one popped up most obligingly at Cosmeston Lakes Country Park. And there have been a couple more since then … so, I’m a happy butterflier once more.