Today I found two Atalanta butterflies on the trunk of the tree in the garden. So this is my entry for this week.

@adalger/amazing-nature-contest-august-2020-03

Its also called admiral butterfly one of the most common butterflies in our country, the Netherlands.

But every time I see one I get excited. The are so beautiful, and when their wings are up they arent visible very good.

With a wingspan of 5 to 6 cm, it is quite a large and striking butterfly. Moreover, the atalanta is easy to recognize. It is a black butterfly with two oblique red bands on its wings and some white spots on the top and some blue dots on the wing edge. This very beautiful butterfly is a true migratory butterfly in Europe, which can be found in the Mediterranean in winter and then flies to the northern parts of Europe.

When the atalanta arrives in our region in early May - June, nettles are already growing well. The tree leaves serve as host plants to deposit the green eggs on the underside of the leaves. The caterpillars up to 4cm long will then feed on the leaves and pupate after a month. They remain in the pupa for 15 to 20 days and then emerge as a very beautifully colored butterfly. We planted some bushes that attract them espaecially for this purpuse!

Especially in the high and late summer months, this butterfly can be seen in many gardens, both in the countryside and in the city. You will see them sucking up nectar with their long rolling tongues on real butterfly plants such as flowers of the Buddleia (butterfly bush), asters, Sedum spectabile (heavenly key), royal herb, ... You can also spot the atalanta in flowery meadows, on forest edges, forest paths, fields, ...

It is a butterfly that is also very fond of overripe fruit. In the fruit orchard you will see them enjoying the rotting pears and apples that have fallen to the ground. You can also attract the red admiral by placing a bowl in the garden with some ripe apple, pear, plum or banana.

From mid-October onwards they will retreat southwards en masse. A single specimen remains behind and tries to hibernate here in cracks and cracks in garden sheds and the treetrunks left after cutting. Few of them will survive our winters. Not always to bad cold. When you spot a atalanta on a sunny day in March, you may suspect that it is one of those hibernators that has been awakened by the heat behind the glass of the garden house.

Butterfly feeding dish or Butterfly pot ceramic box will attrack butterflies and you can do the photo session for a #amazingnature blog for @adalgers contest aswell.

Thanks for stopping by, its appreciated and remember focus on being creative instead of being bee-zy.

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Date : 28 august 2020