Yesterday myself, Miss and Master Aimson were pondering the collective noun for butterflies. Miss Aimson thought maybe it was myriad. We looked it up and it was rabble, which was quite good but we preferred myriad.
I have just been out in the garden at Aimo's House. There are more butterflies than you could shake a stick at. Although I did have a go, just for fun. There were more than 30 on one buddleia alone: peacocks, cabbage whites, red admirals and tortoiseshells. There was also a small moth, a bit like a hummingbird hawk-moth, but smaller. Don't know what it was. I wondered about painted ladies... could I tell one from a tortoiseshell, I wondered? Is it very obvious?
Then I spotted an amazing caterpillar on the little cherry tree. I looked it up and ... guess what... it's common... common AND widespread, like most things in the garden at Aimo's House. It is a grey dagger caterpillar (Acronicta psi). I did try and take a photo for you, but the technology required to take a close-up defeated me. You should find a picture on tinternet though, it is quite an amazing caterpillar (for a common one). Interestingly enough, in the cold weather, (I can't remember whether it was last Autumn or this Spring) I saw a grey dagger moth sheltering by the kitchen door for a week or so. Now I've seen its baby!
I'm keeping an eye out now, because it was this time last year I saw the common lizard, and the common dragonfly in the garden.
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