All hail the purple emperor

With its flashing, iridescent purple wings, our second largest butterfly is midsummer incarnateThis Monday, a week later than normal, His Imperial Majesty awoke in the woods of Sussex and Surrey. The purple emperor is midsummer incarnate – its flashing, iridescent purple wings the perfect accompaniment to both sunshine and, this year, violent lightning.When Victorian collectors nicknamed our second-largest butterfly HIM, they were not being sexist but simply referring to the male. The fema