Argus

A giant with a hundred eyes lay waiting for me as I stepped out into the Corfu brush in search of butterflies.

The Brown Argus butterfly may not have the hundred eyes of the all-seeing giant of Greek myth, Argus Panoptes, but it still makes an impressive display. And as this was the first I've ever seen, an exciting observation on our first full day in Corfu. 

Even in just the small patch of coastal scrub, bamboo thicket and olive grove that lay behind our holiday apartment the variety of life was impressive, but as I adjusted to Mediterranean climate so I had to adjust my thinking as to what species of butterflies I was observing. A White, but which White, a Meadow Brown, but perhaps also a Dusky Meadow Brown, a Skipper, but which of the many different types? 

We spent most of the day by the pool, or in the pool, but even there there was an opportunity to watch the wildlife, especially in the form of the Swallows and Martins that swooped about, like the Red-rumped Swallows that provide today's extra image.