March 2012 found Mt. Hermon (elevation 7330 ft) in Israel’s Golan covered with snow. So we photographed butterflies in the low lying areas within sight of the peaks.

This Long-Tailed Blue butterfly was photographed in June of 2008, at the top of Mt. Hermon. Lampides boeticus on Mt. Hermon live with little or no contact with humans. This female did allow my approach . . . hunger trumps caution at times.

Access to the mountain top is by chair-lift only, and most visitors are skiers who ski the mountain during winter. Many fewer explore during June.

Mt. Hermon’s butterflies do not stay on the trails, so we followed them, which is how we do what we do . . . until we found . . . a land mine!  That was a game changer.

More soon about Mt. Hermon’s butterflies, many of whom are found only on Mt. Hermon and nowhere else!

Despite the absence of people, the butterflies of Mt. Hermon are the most skittish I have ever approached.

Jeffrey