This has been a better year for insects in Dorset. Last year there were hardly any in the garden; this summer the long grass on the lawn is zizzing with grasshoppers. Butterflies and moths are more evident too.
In a bright flutter of tomato-red wings, the first of this year’s Jersey tiger moths appears. It settles momentarily in the lower leaves of a sycamore tree, folding away its brilliant hindwings under cream and black tiger-striped forewings. Only the furry orange tip of its abdomen hints at the vibrant colour concealed beneath, reserved as a warning to flash at predators.
