Egg-laying speckled wood and blue butterflies

As we only have a very small garden we have not been able to create a meadow garden as we would have liked. We do let the clover and other small flowering plants remain in our lawn. We also allow some of the lawn edges, where they are bordered by shrubs, to grow uncut. I was really pleased today to see a speckled wood butterfly laying eggs on the long grass at one corner of the garden.


Egg on grass

The garden was also visited by two of the blue butterflies. A female common blue (below) the females have brown upper wings tinged with blue with a fringe of orange spots.


This Holly Blue (blue) was actually photographed just outside our garden on the track where it settled.

speckled wood and damselflies

There was a speckled wood butterfly in the garden yesterday and another this morning. Only resting occasionally in the sun. Did not see it visiti8ng any flowers to feed. It is said that this species feeds on the honey dew secreted by aphids for much of the year.

Damselflies continue to emerge from larvae. Three pairs seen laying eggs. While gardening I noticed a clump of newly hatched spiderlings. White on hatching they soon take on a rather atttracting golden colour. I took a rest on the doorstep and a male sparrow came to the bird bath to drink, a few feet from where I was sitting.


Still numerous bees around the gardens and holly blue butterflies visible for much of the day. Still numerous goldfinch coming and going via the large tree that overhangs our back garden.