By Mike Daish.
I have not been very active with my camera recently, but have taken a few pictures here and there. Most have been in my garden where I have spent many hours watching the local wildlife come and go. One of my favorite visitors is the peacock butterfly a vibrant visitor.
I expect most will have seen its striking colors and patterns, especially the large eyespots on its wings that resemble those of a peacock. But did you know that this butterfly is also one of the most adaptable and resilient species in the UK. This shot was taken in my garden a short time ago.
The red admiral has a fascinating life cycle. It overwinters as an adult in sheltered places, such as buildings or trees. In early spring, it emerges and flies northward, looking for mates and suitable plants to lay its eggs. The caterpillars feed on nettles and other plants in the nettle family. It is one of the most common butterflies in the UK. This photo again was snapped in my garden.
The comma butterfly gets its name from the comma-shaped white mark on the underside of its hindwing, which helps it blend in with dead leaves when it hibernates. It is one of the few butterflies that can survive the cold season by entering a state of dormancy. Yet another garden picture, this one landed on the back of a chair and posed for a few shots.
A single ladybird can eat up to 5,000 aphids in its lifetime! Ladybirds are beetles of the order Coleoptera, which means they have hard wing cases (elytra) that cover their soft wings when not in flight. The number of spots on a ladybird indicates what species it belongs to, not how old it is. Someone on my Instagram commented that this made them think of it as spaceship landing on a pad.
This final picture was taken at Salmon leap in Totton and is a dragonfly. I don’t know what type sorry. I think these are such incredible creatures. I have seen one or two fly over my garden but none have stopped yet, but fingers crossed it.
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