Giant ant at Butterfly World

I had a tremendous morning (despite the weather) visiting Butterfly World near St Albans to discuss the management of their meadow. I'm now kicking myself wondering why I didn't visit in the summer. It is such a wonderful project. I saw the butterfly house having its winter clean prior to being restocked with hundreds of exotic butterflies for the opening at the end of March. Delightful Louise, their Ecologist & Lepidopterist, showed me her amazing leaf-cutter ant colony that has been kept going through the winter to astound children visiting in 2014. The extensive grounds are just as important and feature conservation projects for native butterflies, dragonflies and other invertebrates. I do hope they manage to raise funds for the next stage of the project.