It reached 18.5^oC today, so I took the opportunity to photograph some of the insects in the garden.

Starting off with a violet carpenter bee - searching for nesting holes on our house wall. Presumably this is a female which has overwintered nearby.

There are lots of honey bees nectaring on the snowdrops and also a couple of hoverflies nearer the house, enjoying the speedwell.

Finishing off with a peacock butterfly I rescued from the pond and a great diving beetle which, despite his heft, was being attacked by much smaller backswimmers. There are lots of great pond snails who have also successfully overwintered in our pond.

Some nice weather has finally kick-started activity in the garden. I'm always pleased to see large tortoiseshell butterflies. I know they're not rare in mainland Europe, but they are extinct in Britain - so I think I can appreciate them more for that reason.

This red squirrel has managed to evade our "squirrel-proof" bird feeder. I really don't know how he managed to get through that mesh.