Trouserings

I haven't washed my moleskin trousers since early June, and won't wash them again before August. As they have 'matured' in the current heat-wave they have become ever more appealing to His Imperial Majesty, until it now seems they are almost irresistible to his refined palate. Yesterday (15th July) I trousered my sixth and seventh Emperors of the season at Botany Bay, where they continue to descend in good numbers. The only downside is that my trousers seem to have taken on a life of their own; it takes me about ten minutes to catch them every morning.

Later in the day I visited Southwater Woods, spotting a single male Emperor above the Marlpost Road car park. Mia Iris Hulme was treated to her first close encounter with her favourite butterfly, when a second male descended to fly in tight circles around her backpack.