A first for me!

There was no question what my blip would be today: this Brimstone (Gonepteryx rhamni) - a first for me. The warm sun brought them out of hibernation and most were in pairs, dancing around each other, ready to mate.

Other butterflies included peacocks and tortoiseshells in Morkery Wood, where we enjoyed a lovely walk this afternoon, and also spotted a good few bees. Saw and/or heard chiffchaffs, blackbirds and long-tailed tits, and a goldfinch, too. (See Extra.) Always nice to catch a photo in their natural, more wild habitat, rather than on or around garden feeders.

Lots of colour at our feet, too, with yellow aconites and bluebells, as well as white wood anemones. And we only saw 5 other people in the 90 minutes we were walking!