Surprised!

Is exactly what I was the other morning when I opened my moth trap and found this beautiful red admiral butterfly staring up at me! To be honest I wouldn't have been so surprised if I had run it into the daylight as I do sometimes, but I had put it out after dark, and emptied it while it was still dark!
So, do Red Admiral butterflies fly by night? I wonder.......... it was a nice surprise though I have to say.
The Red admiral Vanessa atalanta, is a large and well known butterfly often found in gardens. They fly well into the autumn nectaring on flowering ivy and rotting fruit, and overwinter in outhouses and barns.
Well used to the cold this one was completely unphased by being in my fridge, and after a couple of wing flaps to warm up took off into the twilight to find a decent place to roost!