For many of us the period of lockdown has given us a chance to discover new ways of thinking, behaving exploring new talents and interesting hobbies. With the blessing of glorious weather I have taken lots of long and enjoyable walks exploring our local nature. I also decided to try a new hobby and discovered the joys of observing butterflies. This enjoyable pastime has been quite an education and I have learned a lot about British butterflies. Britain and Ireland have in fact only 57 native species of butterflies, compared to over 500 species on the Continent. I found many of them live in the glorious nature around Shepperton . Most gardens have a lots of common butterflies like Peacock, large and small White, small Tortoiseshell, Red Admiral and Painted Lady. But as grasses were left uncut we attracted many more and I found such species as Marbled White, Small and Large Skipper, Meadow Brown, Gatekeeper , Ringlet, Small and Large Heath, small Copper in our area. Closer to lakes and woodlands I have been spotting butterflies such as the Comma, Speckled Wood and Brimstone.
It’s great to be familiar with our local resident butterflies and be able to share this knowledge with your friends and family. Butterflies are amazingly beautiful creatures and great pollinators. I have found that even using your phone camera, with a bit of patience, you can create an awesome and memorable photo collection. All photos here are taken on an iPhone7. You can also widen your knowledge about their habitat and behaviour. It is a great new hobby! An added bonus is that nature has a healing effect. So this hobby will help tackle negative thinking and anxiety.