The Magdalen Hill Down reserve is an excellent place to see butterflies and moths, within easy walk of Winchester town centre.

Extension
From the board that advertises the entrance to the reserve, the Extension is to the south, behind the board. There is a path running east-west along the fence line and row hedges. Following this path, in spring, Brimstones are often abundant together with Peacock and Red Admiral. Orange tips are also seen, and Green Hairstreak has sometimes been observed rousting on leaves. An alternative to taking this path, you can continue south across the open field to a row of telegraph poles. From there turn right towards the field boundary marked by a tree belt which separates the extension from the original reserve. During the summer months, when the Extension is covered by Chalk flora, this field is the home of species such as Meadow Brown and Marbled White. Moving due south on the path, instead of turning right, takes one to the lower slope area of the Extension. This is a more sheltered area with a number of chalk scrapes. In recent times Small Blues and Grizzled Skipper and Dingy Skipper have been observed here.
Original
The south facing sheltered lower slopes of the Original is probably the best area in the reserve for seeing a variety of butterflies. It is an important breeding area for Brown Argus, Chalkhill Blue and Green Hairstreak. This area contains patches where the food plants of these species are abundant. such as common rockrose for Green Hairstreak and Brown Argus, and horseshoe vetch for Chalkhill Blue) are also good locations to see these species.

The higher slopes are by no means devoid of their share of butterflies, including common grassland species, Chalkhill Blue and mobile species like Brimstone and the Nymphalids. The Green Hairstreak is often observed along the lower footpath that runs parallel with the A31. They may perch in the foliage of scrub lining the footpath, or on anthill tufts along the lower slope. The same path may yield some Grizzled Skippers during their flight period. Small Blues are common on the scrap are and the top of the slope near the tree line dividing the original from the extension. can sometimes be seen here during their respective flight periods Chalkhill Blue also tend to favour the more sheltered lower slopes, where horseshoe vetch is plentiful, the former favouring the rougher areas and the latter most likely to be seen in areas where kidney vetch is present. These more specialist species can of course also be found in company with commoner species during their respective flight periods, including Common Blue, Small Heath, Meadow Brown and Marbled White, as well Brimstone and Nymphalids such as Peacock.

North Field
The North Field comprises a flat top portion with a slight southern slope turning into a broader north facing slope. The flat top is currently best for butterflies. Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper and Small Tortoise being prolific in the appropriate part of the season.






