The first butterfly of the day is the rare wood white

Meeth Quarry, Devon I'm prepared for disappointment. Then the sun works its magic, teasing winged life from the undergrowth

The entrance is easy to miss: an understated wooden sign roughly halfway along the main road traversing Devon north to south. From the turning beside an abandoned rail station a quiet lane that once shuddered under the weight of heavy diggers leads to a car park at Meeth Quarry where I join 20 or so Devon Wildlife Trust members for a field trip.

While the others may have come to enjoy the variety of flora and fauna thriving at this relatively new nature reserve, I have one species on my mind - a delicate national rarity that endured here as the land about it was torn apart.