One of my favourite flowers of Spring. This Snake's Head Fritillary in the wettest part of my Sheffield garden meadow.

A tale of two Anacamptis. While the green-wings have been feeble, the butterflies have been soaring on Rhodes this past fortnight. Green-winged Orchid are frankly a bit underwhelming this year, but Pink Butterfly Orchid and its variations have been spectacular. #OrchidsOfRhodes

Oxlips are appearing in our local ancient woodland in Cambs. #WildflowerHour.

If you're coming to Rhodes looking for orchids, and your guides tell you it's been a cool, wet spring and it's too early for Violet Limodore to be flowering... they're wrong. A lovely colony of this strangest of orchids seen yesterday by our #OrchidsOfRhodes group. 💜 #orchids #bloomscrolling

For #WildflowerHour #treeflowers here's a disease-resistant elm, probably Ulmus 'Lutece' (Nanguen) planted at Bobbingworth NR #Essex

Postcard from the field from tour leader @dunnjons.bsky.social leading our current #OrchidsOfRhodes tour: It's been a productive day exploring the woodlands of the central spine of the island, with some excellent finds to be had, including a fine hybrid and a mighty Ophrys halia.

Amelanchier lamarckii in full flower now on a Sheffield street near me. We've funded the planting of over 20 of them amongst the 358 local street trees we've funded this last 5 years.

Postcard from the field, from tour leader David Moore: Our Butterflies of Tenerife tour is up and running, and already seeing some fine things - including several African Migrant today. What a ray of sunshine they are.

Postcard from the field from tour leaders David Moore & Dave Fairhurst: Our Butterflies of Tenerife tour is well under way now, with today featuring pristine Canary Red Admiral & Monarch, among other highlights...

Dog Violets are just bursting into flower in my Sheffield garden 🌼

It's Magnolia season, and don't we love it! 💚

A wonderful day for our guests in Rhodes today that combined culture in the beautiful historic town of Lindos, and some fine #orchids, including Ophrys blitopertha and eponymous Ophrys lindia. We're roaring through the forties for our species count for the week. #OrchidsOfRhodes

I love a scarce or rare orchid as much as the next orchid-hunter, but I'm far from immune to the beauty of the common species that are readily found here in Rhodes. Ophrys sicula never fails to please.

My first Orange-tip (Anthocharis cardamines) of the year, a female at Pamphill in Dorset this morning 🙌🏼 @ukbutterflies.bsky.social

The Marsh Marigold's are bursting into flower in my Sheffield garden pond this weekend. They glow so brightly in the sun and pollinators love them.

The Cherry trees just outside Sheffield Town Hall are just out and putting on a stunning display.

We're feeling in the pink this week as the #OrchidsOfRhodes continue to delight with every turn. Today we started our exploration of upland and woodland sites, enjoying many orchids in peak condition, including these fine Neotinea lactea and Orchis anatolica.

A beautiful Oxlip in my Sheffield garden meadow this morning. Rare in the wild, I seeded a few around 5 years ago. They are now beginning to flower each year and, hopefully, spread!

What a gorgeous Spring morning in my garden today

It's publication day! My butterfly book for children publishes today in the UK & Germany. Written in the hope it captures the imagination of kids, and inspires a lifelong interest and love for butterflies and the wider natural world. (1/2) #Butterflies #Schmetterlinge

Happy publication day to Mariposa co-founder and tour leader Jon! His new butterfly book for children takes flight today. We're delighted to see he promotes the work of @europebutterfly.bsky.social in it - European butterflies have no finer champion than Butterfly Conservation Europe. #Butterflies

We really could not be more proud of the leaders who make the beating heart of Team Mariposa. Paul's involvement with the fight to save Sheffield's street trees, and to plant valuable, wildlife-friendly new trees for the future, is an example to us all.

Last week Sheffield Council installed this plaque at the Town Hall entrance sited under the historic Kinder Scout trespass plaque. Most people don't realise it, but the Sheffield Street Tree campaign will in the future be classed as just as historic. Proud to have been a part of it

Tour update 🚨 The 2027 edition of Butterflies of the European Arctic went online for guests to book last weekend, and it's already fully-booked. Watch this space for more 2027 butterfly tours, coming soon. All generate donations to @europebutterfly.bsky.social. #butterflies

This small section of grass verge is just around the corner of where I live. If only all grass verges were similarly planted for Spring. Such pollinator potential! 🌼🦋

We think a conservation charity shouldn't have to wait for a donation; not for months, and certainly not for years. We've made our #OrchidsOfCyprus donation to @bsbibotany.bsky.social today, the day after the tour ended. We've donated to them after every orchid tour since Mariposa formed. #orchids

Tomorrow is a chance to brush up on your Iberian Lycaenids with top expert Miguel Munguira. It’s free and online, the links are here butterfly-monitoring.net/epic-butterfly

Tour update 🚨 The 2027 edition of Butterflies of the Hohe Tauern - Austria's Mountain Heartland went online for guests to book last weekend, and it's already fully-booked. Watch this space for more 2027 butterfly tours, coming soon. All generate donations to @europebutterfly.bsky.social.

This patch of Cyclamen in a neighbour's garden never fails to stun me in March each year with the vibrancy of the colour.

Sick of hearing miserable wildlife news? Yes, us too. What a delight to hear @savebutterflies.bsky.social declare Large Tortoiseshell is, for the first time in decades, a resident British breeding butterfly. Great piece by @patrickbarkham.bsky.social today: www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Cornus mas (Cornelian Cherry). Just around the corner from my house and one of 358 new street trees that I've coordinated the funding to plant this last 5 years. Nectar and pollen heaven for early emerging insects. 🦋

Tour update 🚨 As of this morning, the 2028 edition of our Orchids of Rhodes, the ultimate exploration of the wonderful #orchids found on this delightful island, has just one place left available on it. As our guests will tell you, it's worth the wait... mariposanature.com/tours/botani...

As ever, I can't wait to lead this wonderful orchid tour with my good pal @thenewgalaxy.bsky.social. We take great pride in giving our guests the ultimate experience of the #OrchidsOfRhodes - as, indeed, we do on all our orchid tours. That the tour is almost full 2 years off speaks volumes.

If any image sums up what we love best here at Team Mariposa, it's this one from tour leader @thenewgalaxy.bsky.social today - a lovely, fresh Paphos Blue on Anacamptis syriaca, the sophisticated cousin of Green-winged Orchid. We can't think of any better thing for a butterfly to sit upon.

Tour update 🚨 As of this morning, our 2027 Summer Butterflies of Serbia tour now has just four places remaining available to book upon it. Naturally, like *all* our butterfly tours, it generates a donation to support the work of @europebutterfly.bsky.social. mariposanature.com/tours/butter...

How did you come to be here, a mile from the nearest house? All landscape is story.

The first of soon to be hundreds of native Primroses now in bloom in my Sheffield garden meadow. Wonderful

Tour update 🚨 The current Orchids of Cyprus tour may be in just its second day, but next year's tour now has its first booking. This wonderful island is a tremendous destination at this time of year for orchids, and other wildlife besides. www.mariposanature.com/tours/botani...

These guys are the best! I’m so sorry that you missed your trip Roger but how lovely that you got a full refund!

So sorry you were disappointed but the Mariposa guys have clearly dealt with the crisis so well.

This Oxford Giant Orchid is scant consolation for missing my trip to Cyprus. But it is lovely. @mariposanature.bsky.social we're wonderful. Mail from David and call from Jon whilst at airport. No hassle refund. This is why they are so successful. Nice guys, brilliant guides and top customer service.

Customer service really matters to us. It should go without saying that clear and prompt communication is important; as is the simple principle of treating people as we'd like to be treated ourselves. We know it's disappointing when other companies fail to do that - but that's not the Mariposa way.

Postcard from the field from tour leaders @thenewgalaxy.bsky.social and Dave Fairhurst, leading our Orchids of Cyprus tour this week: While the orchids are tremendous, we keep our eyes peeled for other wildlife too. Yesterday we enjoyed great views of endemic Paphos Blue, and Blunt-nosed Viper.

A lovely interruption from writing about orchids - pre-publication copies of my new book for children have arrived. Writing this meant a lot to me. As a kid I was desperate for books full of interesting facts and cool stuff about butterflies. If this book finds a kid like me, I hope they love it.

Postcard live from the field, from Mariposa co-founder David Moore in South Wales: Recent southerly winds have already ushered the first migrant butterflies our way this spring, with a fine and pioneering Painted Lady found this morning. @savebutterflies.bsky.social

Our Orchids of Cyprus tour is safely under way. We'd like to take this opportunity to thank our guests for their patience and understanding, and our guides Dr Richard Bate & Dave Fairhurst for their calm, organised assistance while events unfolded. Here's to a world with more flower power.

March Daffodils. Love that vibrant yellow.

It's fleeting each year, perhaps lasting just 10 to 14 days maximum. But I just love Crocus season.

Tour update 🚨 Bookings for 2027 butterfly tours continue to come in and, this morning, Romania in Spring moves to guaranteed departure status. This is a lovely tour, with Brown Bear guaranteed too, as is a donation to our friends at @europebutterfly.bsky.social. mariposanature.com/tours/butter...

Postcard from the field, from tour leader @jpcancela.bsky.social in Fuerteventura: Our Fabulous Fuerteventura tour is blessed this week to find the island covered with blooming plants, and spectacular numbers of Greenish Black Tip & Fuerteventura Green-striped White. What an experience!