... TWO RARITIES...

This afternoon I made a  revisit to Daneway Banks to attempt a photo of large blue butterflies.  It was a warm, hazy afternoon and as expected there were a number of visitors all with the same mission!  A conversation with another visitor was encouraging - several had been seen, including a pair mating.

I saw three large blues flying, as I made my way down to the end of the reserve, where the sight of  a group of photographers indicated that the mating pair of large blues were still there, and allowed for as many photographs as you wanted!

I was shown an individual with open wings on a nearby flower which allowed a record shot but it was disturbed and flew off.

After spending some time (unsuccessfully) looking for more individuals in a different part of the rreserve I returned to the 'mating pair' who were still there!  and walked around that area again.
Suddenly I became aware of a larger reddish/orange butterfly chasing some smaller ones, a fritillary perhaps, but then it disappeared.  Shortly afterwards it reappeared.  'Hey look at that!', I called out to some nearby photographers and we began a quick chase.. to find to our amazement that it was a Monarch butterfly!

I took a few quick record shots on a zoom lens, before it disappeared again,  and then came back to settle on a flower not to far away from us.  Probably a released specimen, especially just after the weekend,  far too pristine to have been blown over from America, I would think, but nevertheless a great find!

large blues mating

large skipper

marbled white

monarch

monarch

monarch - looks like stained glass windows I think!

rather blurry large blue!