Matt Berry

Ophrys reinholdii

A 2025 shot as this and several other plants nearby have been dug up & stolen. A crime scene I witness all too regularly; individual #orchid plants & groups that I know well gone when I go to revisit them each spring. Maybe not as bad as habitat damage & loss but it all adds up.

And this week's challenge is to identify the species whose larvae are represented here - one from each of the 6 butterfly families ... the final two in a reply to this post!

Based on news from the team, the guests on this new tour are in for a treat! 😊

We believe our guests deserve knowledgeable & organised leaders. Site visits by local guide team Sotiris & Rachael for our botanical tour in Greece starting later this week are all part of delivering a good service.

📷Ophrys aesculapii, Fritillaria graeca, Ophrys mycenensis, Fritillaria obliqua.

Glad to cheer up your feed a bit 😊 And there’s still time to come for spring, or plan for next year.

A female Small Copper butterfly (Lycaena phlaeas) egg-laying on Common Sorrel (Rumex acetosa)

Two eggs of the Small Copper butterfly (Lycaena phlaeas) on Common Sorrel (Rumex acetosa)

Excited to see one of my PhD chapters now published! We found a trade-off between the quality of host plants and how warm they were for a declining grassland butterfly (Small Copper, Lycaena phlaeas) and looked at how this shaped their egg-laying choices: doi.org/10.1111/een....

Good morning from Greece in spring mode…

#RhodesOrchidOdyssey #MuchMoreThanOrchids

Field margin with wildflowers that can support butterflies in arable farmland

Livestock grazing is essential to maintaining grasslands in the mountains of Europe. Extensive cattle grazing has been shown to be the most beneficial but any extensive system is good

Grassland butterflies are declining across Europe, but how do we reverse that trend? We have just produced a report with some simple guidance to land managers and policy makers on how to 'Bend the curve' and help increase butterflies and other pollinators. www.bc-europe.eu/webpage.php?...

Picture postcards from our ongoing 'Cyprus in Spring' tour..

Endemic Crocus cyprius, carpets of Anemone coronaria, Oleander Hawkmoth, Holly Blue on endemic Arabis purpurea.

Good afternoon from Greece...

Ophrys cretica subsp. beloniae

#RhodesOrchidOdyssey

Good morning…

Large Wall Brown.

As well as seeing adult butterflies coming out of hibernation today (Peacock and Brimstone for me!), I also enjoyed finding several Marsh Fritillary larval webs, with larvae taking their first nibbles of Devil's-bit Scabious, & communally basking to raise their body temperature, which aids digestion

False Apollo

Southern Festoon

Scarce Swallowtail

Grecian Copper

With temperatures on the rise, I'm looking forward to a 'spring break' in Northern Greece with @greenwingstours.bsky.social (greenwings.co/our-holidays...). Some photos from last year, a trip that led to Martin Partridge's interesting article on the False Apollo: www.sbbt.org.uk/latest-news/....

Good evening from Greece…

Green Hairstreak on Rock Rose.

Ophrys argolica subsp. elegans

Hyla savignyi

Orchis anatolica subsp. troodi

female Paphos Blue on Glebionis coronaria

'Cyprus in Spring'

Global issues aside, the #orchids have been lovely on our tour, as has all the other diverse & beautiful flora & fauna.

Our groups very happy with all they’ve seen & done & just as importantly, with each other’s company as kindred spirits, enjoying a wildlife holiday together 🙏

Thank you 🙏

Thank you. They're Ophrys speculum (Mirror Orchid).

For #WorldWildlifeDay here's a few of my photos illustrating the kind of things I most enjoy taking pics of - butterflies, dragonflies, orchids.

Taking photos is just 1 of the many ways in which I connect & enjoy being part of nature.

I wish the world were wilder, and safer, for us all.

Thanks Anna, glad you like it :)

Good morning from Greece...

Ophrys lucis ( #orchid of light )

#RhodesOrchidOdyssey

Good morning from Greece...

Ophrys lucis ( #orchid of light )

#RhodesOrchidOdyssey

Peacock butterfly in hibernation, with spider lurking!

120 wings of dead Peacock butterflies on floor of bunker, presumably eaten by bats. Equates to 30 butterflies eaten!

A solitary Peacock left alive in the Purbeck bunkers. Out of 73 that went in. Not a very good survival rate! Culprits are bats (wing photo from last August) and spiders. Let’s hope they do better in other hibernation sites @dorsetbutterflies.bsky.social

Ophrys lucis / Ophrys argolica subsp. lucis

Rhodian Horseshoe #Orchid

Kalo mina / Καλό μήνα / Good month

#RhodesOrchidOdyssey

Thanks Auntie :)

Thanks a lot Helen :)

Another Ophrys tenthredinifera

#RhodesOrchidOdyssey #orchids