Spring is an unquenchably optimistic time, and two weeks of plentiful sunshine – in the south, at least – has brought out the first butterflies of the year. My first, like last year, was a male brimstone, bobbing beside the old ivy-covered hedge beyond my garden.



On the next sunny March day came the small tortoiseshells and peacocks, which also hibernate as adult butterflies. It wasn’t until 2 April that I saw my first orange tip and holly blue – species which burst afresh from their chrysalises with the warming weather.

These early butterflies possess a patrolling demeanour, and that’s exactly what they are doing: the males emerge a few days before the females and scour the landscape for an unmated female.

So far, I’ve not seen any female brimstones or orange tips. The latter are sensibly waiting until their caterpillar’s food plant – garlic mustard, in my garden – grows big enough for egg-laying.

But the small tortoiseshells have been mating, spiralling high into the sky together.

This spring I’ve downloaded iRecord Butterflies, a free app to record your butterfly sightings and send them to Butterfly Conservation. The app includes photos of all butterfly species to help beginners. Butterflies tell us so much about our changing environment because we have 400 years of spotting data; we can all join in.

Last spring several butterfly experts made dire predictions for the summer on the basis of a mild winter disturbing many butterfly life cycles. Unfortunately they were correct. This year is unlikely to be a brilliant butterfly summer either, because 2016 was so poor. But insects can rapidly bounce back. Let’s hope butterflies do.