We made a brief trip to the USA a couple of weeks ago, and I was impressed at how much this area of Virginia is a haven for beautiful butterflies. These pictures were taken off the Skyline Drive which runs along the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Firstly, this beauty which I think I've identified as the Great Spangled Fritillary (Speyeria cybele) - much bigger and more splendid than our home-grown silver-washed and dark-green frits. It posed perfectly for me and was even so obliging as to close its wings:
But on the whole, I was quite pleased with the cooperative behaviour of our Transatlantic cousins (the insects, I mean...).
