Oranges And Lemons Or Butter And Marmalade

No sign of the painted lady that was to be my subject for today. :(

I was actually trying to shoot birds when this brimstone fluttered into view. I'd got my macro lens stuffed down my trousers just in case.

The brimstone is one of the first butterflies to take to the wing in the Spring. The males have one thing on their minds as they patrol the hedgerows and are very difficult to capture. It is thought that the word butterfly was inspired by these beautiful insects with their buttery wings.

At this time of year they are calmer as they concentrate on nectaring up in readiness for the big sleep.

I wanted to try to capture the purplish 'fur' on the 'shoulders' of this butterfly earlier in the year but wasn't able to. It seems that the purple tinge has faded to a dusky/rusty pink.

The orange hawkweed, also known as fox and cubs and hen and chicks has thrown up a few flowers out of season.