A mass migration of butterflies into Dorset over the weekend has delighted conservationists.

Not since 1996 have the butterfly recorders and members of Butterfly Conservation been so excited about the numbers of Painted Ladies alighting.

Up to 100 an hour were counted, dozens arrived at Dancing Ledge from across the Channel and the total numbers will have been in the tens of thousands.

“It is good to see the Painted Lady back again in good numbers and hopefully, a good summer with the other migrants, the Clouded Yellow and Red Admiral too,” said Bill Shreeves, county butterfly recorder.

One of our Flickr photographers caught the Painted Lady on camera yesterday - click here to see....

The Painted Lady is one of the larger garden butterflies and starts its journey from North Africa in February and March. They breed as they come so it will be a new generation that arrives on our shores.

Last year the Painted Lady was a rarity, largely due to the bad weather on the continent. But this huge wave is special and has been seen all along the coast from Bournemouth the Lyme Regis and as far north as Somerset.

The Dorset branch is keen that people send their garden sightings to dorsetbutterflies.com.