One thing I used to miss in the UK was butterflies - I love them in all their incredible shapes sizes and decorations.
The urban UK sprawl, GM farming and lack of natural space seems to have drastically reduced their numbers.
Her in the charente and Dordogne near Angouleme at our chambres d'hotes, we can treat our bed and breakfast guests to spectacular cavalcades of butterflies in every concievable colour.
They are amazing to look at & the detail in their marking on their gossamer wings is astonishing.
They keep the cats busy too who are forever trying to catch them and enlarge their butterfly collections - we have several large 'butterfly bushes' near the kitchen that attracts them and lots of lovely bees too so we can watch them out the kitchen window when making dinner.
So beautiful and ethereal as they flit around the garden , in and out the house and then off to wherever butterflies go to party.
Here's one that gigi bought us as a present ( which makes a change from the usual mice and birds) - look at the markings.
