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| Alderney train and lighthouse. |
I've just come back from holidaying on the Channel Island of Alderney. It's an island that hasn't suffered from excessive use of insecticides, and therefore it was alive with insects - bees and butterflies being especially abundant. Of course, I had to take some photographs, and here they are, in the form of a quiz. Get your Butterfly Guides out and see if you can identify all five...
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| Rusty old crane/train - puts my non-league rusty rollers to shame. |
Butterfly number 1 was abundant all over the island, mostly in meadows. This is the female of the species. This is possibly a local colour variation:
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| Alderney butterfly 1. |
Number 2 is a species I've never knowingly seen on the British mainland. It rests with its wings shut. When it flies, it is a glorious orangey-yellow with black markings:
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| Alderney butterfly 2. |
Number 3 was possibly the most widespread of all the species on the island. It turned up just about everywhere:
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| Alderney butterfly 3. |
Number 4 was another common species. It particularly liked the brambly and ferny areas, of which there are many on Alderney:
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| Alderney butterfly 4. |
Number 5 is another of the brown species. When I heard that there were Glanville Fritillaries on the island, I became especially excited when I saw these - until I noticed the black spots on the upper wings:
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| Alderney butterfly 5. |
That's enough butterflies. I'll post the answers in the comments in a week or two.
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| Alderney's football ground. |
