This photograph was sent to us by Sue Ogilvy. She tells us that it is a Marbled White butterfly on a Greater Knapweed flower which she snapped one day in one of the dales nearby. Sue is this area’s Natural England adviser on all things to do with the flora and fauna on our farms.

Our chalk grassland is of interest to naturalists because of the variety and diversity of the plants and insects which thrive on the thin soil covering the chalk beneath. Sue advises us on how to manage all aspects of nature conservation while at the same time keeping the land productive. It is a fine balance between over-grazing and under-grazing with sheep and cattle to ensure no one plant species becomes dominant. Ragwort, thistles, tor grass and hawthorn scrub can all cause problems by competing out the special chalk grassland flowers which are such a feature of our Yorkshire Wolds dales.

Many thanks Sue for sharing such an excellent photograph.