Contrary to my last
review, 2017 was not just about the birds. I also managed to find six different orchid species in Belgium, including this gorgeous
Late Spider Orchid, and added three dragonfly species to my Belgian list (
Red-veined Darter,
Western Clubtail and Banded Darter). The main focus of my pre-Amazonian summer months were the butterflies, however. A concentrated effort to fill some of the gaps in my Belgian butterfly list resulted in me adding 15 species, with a year total of 53 species and an impressive day count of 23 around Han-sur-Lesse in mid-July.
My week long trip to the
Alps was also primarily about the butterflies yet additionally yielded six species of orchid and two new dragonflies for me; Lesser Emperor and this Scarce Emerald Damselfly.
The butterflies exceded my expectations, however, with hundreds of my most-wanted species, the
Apollo, and a total count of 70 species, a phenomenal 31 of which were lifers! Many thanks to Mike Bowman and Richard Prior for all their help making this trip such a success.
Dark-green Fritillary
