Mating Small heath

I went for a quick trip to my favorite meadow high on the downs today, but I was really sad to see how autumnal everything was, and how everything is basically 'over'! With this in mind I was delighted to come upon this mating pair of Small Heath butterflies in the tall grasses.
The Small Heath Coenonympha pamphilus  is a small inconspicuous butterfly that only flies in sunshine and likes to stay close to the ground. It is widespread and can occupy a range of different habitats including acid heath land and chalk grassland.
I have added another shot of my pale tussock larvae in extras as they are all molting into grey livery for the final instar, and this one I caught in the middle of changing from red being a red head to being grey - sounds a bit like me really!