Monday 17 April 2017

A Swallow's tale in a Corfu paradise

On Saturday I returned from a fantastic one week intensive butterfly trip to Corfu with 3 butterfly enthusiasts. It was superbly organised by Dr Dan, and my other companions were Sarah and Richard.
  I spent my first day back hunting unsuccessfully for the Sussex Large Tortoiseshell (for the 9th time – it was much easier in Corfu!) 
  These are some pics from our first afternoon in Corfu at John & Lynne’s wonderful villa which was our home for 3 days. It is a fabulous home which they designed and built and has a garden packed with wonderful flowers and insect friendly plants. There were orchids and flowers in a nearby olive grove.  The view to the sea was astounding. Swallows were everywhere.
  Although we knew each other before the trip, the design of the villa with communal kitchen/living area enabled us to gel as a group.
  The first photo I took was a close-up of a Swallowtail (P. machaon). After that it just got better and better.
Blue-throated Keeled lizard, Dalmatian Algyroides

Brown Argus, Aricia agestis

Brown Argus

Hairy Garlic, Allium subhirsutum

Foxglove Tree, Paulownia tomentosa

Humming-bird Hawk-moth, Macroglossum


a view from the villa

olive grove

sea view from the villa

close-up from above pic

steep driveway from villa

Pyramidal Orchid, Anacamptis pyramidalis

Rockrose, Cistus species

Self-heal, Prunella vulgaris

Swallowtail, Papilio machaon
"There are 37 recognized subspecies, that include
P. m. machaon (Central Europe)
P. m. mauretanica Verity, 1905 (North Africa)"
I'm reluctant to say which subspecies the Corfu P.m. belongs to without further authoritative references.






2 comments:

  1. in answer to your onion question it's probably Rosy Garlic - Allium roseum which is found all over the med.

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    Replies
    1. thanks Jillian, I appreciate your suggestion. On researching this I came across Allium subhirsutum which seems a match. What do you think?

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