They feed on the flower nectar of various flowers, including Centaurea, Carduus and Knautia species.
These sites often support many typical chalk downland species such as Common Milkwort (Polygala vulgaris), Field Scabious (Knautia arvensis)and Salad Burnet (Sanguisorba minor) as well as orchids such as Fragrant (Gymnadenia conopsea), Common Spotted (Dactylorhiza fuchsii) and Pyramidal (Anacamptis pyramidalis).