Did you go down to the woods today? I did after lunch. There were Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper, Ringlet, Speckled Wood, Large Skipper, Comma, Red Admiral, Large White, Marbled White and possibly Small and/or Essex Skipper butterflies in the woods. There were also Silver-washed Fritillaries, which were what I'd gone to see. Thanks Frank for the excellent directions. The Fritillaries moved fast and there was no possibility of a photo using my digital camera but I did use my old film camera when one butterfly came to rest. They like bramble flowers, so it's not easy to get nearer when they briefly touch down. Here are a few pictures of some of the other butterflies in the wood:







Now I'd left a Small Tortoiseshell butterfly guarding my back garden but when I returned, I spotted a Large Skipper on my Verbena bonariensis too.

Walked to town late in the afternoon and saw two blue butterflies dancing above my head along the path opposite my house. I'd been wondering where the blues were...