Emperors & Admirals

I had a rare foray out of the parish to Fermyn Woods in Northants yesterday. We saw several superb Purple Emperors...

Together with White Admiral, White-letter Hairstreak, Silver-washed Fritillary plus another dozen species of butterfly. In high numbers too, as a reminder of what many parts of the British countryside must once have been like.

Today, by the rather more mundane standards of the parish, was also a good butterfly day with the Magic Garden holding 50+ Meadow Browns, a couple of dozen Ringlets, a handful of Speckled Woods...

 My first Comma of the year....
 

 

And best of all (having referred to its apparent disappearance from the village only a couple of posts ago!) a Small Skipper.

Other sightings here included two Emperor Dragonflies on the lake and a Southern Hawker hunting along the woodland rides.