Life is like a butterfly for kitten who finds himself in a field of blue-winged beauties


A kitten looking for someone to play with got lucky. finding a whole swarm of them – although he had to chase them first.

The adorable ginger tom went charging into a swarm of blue-winged butterflies trying to catch them, but after several failed attempt was forced to give up and lie down among them instead.

Loveable Lepa couldn’t believe his luck when he saw so many new winged friends in one place, but the butterflies were feeling a bit shy, teasing the cat by flying just out of Lepa’s reach.

The six-month old kitten reaches for the blue-winged butterflies as he lies among them, but seems unable to catch one

The bouncy chase was captured by student Natalia Moldovanova, during a visit to see her parents - and Lepa - at home in Leningrad Oblast, Russia.

The stunning sight of hundreds of bright blue butterflies was almost too much for the six-month-old kitten as he bounced over and started trying to catch them.

20-year-old Natalia, a keen photographer, said: ‘Lepa and I were both stunned to see so many butterflies in the same place - he raced over and started to play with them as soon as he saw them.

Excited Lepa charges at the butterflies outside his home in Leningrad Oblast, Russia nearly trampling some of them in the process

The Aporia Crataegi lis found all over Europe and in some parts of Asia and North Africa, normally on altitudes between 1,600ft and 6,600 ft

She added: ‘They were not afraid of either of us and started flying up and down before landing on Lepa and also on my hands.

‘I think they must have tired him out because before long he collapsed on the floor next to them and it looked like he was in paradise.

‘I was really happy I had my camera in my hands when I saw these butterflies and was able to capture this shots.’

Photographer Natalia said she was lucky to have the camera so she was to catch the kitten playing with the butterflies outside her parents' home



The butterflies seem to be a rare blue form of Aporia Crataegi – known in Britain as the Black-veined White – which is used to be common in southern England but is now reportedly extinct.

Fortunately for Lepa they prosper near his home in Russia and on altitudes of over 1,600ft.