Bugs, beetles and butterflies: July wildlife on your doorstep - in pictures

Ulysses butterfly: Just another jewel in the tropical rainforest. Photograph: Ian Nicolson/Guardian

A stag beetle: Found in a garden in SW18. Photograph: Yuzo Saito/Guardian

Spider in the veggie patch. Photograph: Simon West/Guardian

Golden Orb Spider at Mermaid Pool: Mermaid Pool at Manly Vale, Sydney is a volunteer environmental restoration site. The community has been removing invasive weeds and dumped rubbish here since 2002. It has now become a beautiful haven for native plants and wildlife. This Golden Orb Spider is named after the golden sheen of its web. Photograph: Malcolm Fisher/Guardian

Giant moth in Cheddar: This rather large moth decided to join us for a pint in a pub up Cheddar gorge last weekend. Photograph: Ben Marshall Ben Marshall Ben Marshall Ben Marshall/Guardian

Dragonfly sunning on our oleandar: Spotted in our rooftop terrace garden. Photograph: Alain Chirot/Guardian

Bees, Bees and More Bees: Bee swarm in the Cotswolds, UK. Photograph: Allan Mustoe, Wildlifescool/Guardian

First sighting in fifteen years: A ladder-marked longhorn beetle.Saperda scalaris. One of three individuals seen in my garden last week. The species ID was confirmed by more expert people than me, but its markings are pretty unique. The local WIldlife Trust reported it was the first in fifteen years for the county. Photograph: Roy Hill/Guardian

Eastern Hercules Beetle: I have never seen a beetle this big before and never this up close. He hung out on our third deck step last night and then later on in the evening he traveled up to the main deck. I'm not quite sure where he came from. Photograph: Erica Jorgensen/Guardian

Attack! Rosebud being attacked by aphids. Photograph: Brian Cook/Guardian

The Frangipani Moth Caterpillar: A Frangipani moth caterpillar on my hand for perspective. Photograph: Wayne Lee-Sing/Guardian

Kitchen window wildlife. Photograph: Damien Kaye/Guardian