From hawthorn blossom to holly blue butterflies, London’s wildlife appears to be indicating that summer is on its way, despite the series of cold snaps that we’ve endured recently.

Volunteers on the Greenway Project photographed this hawthorn, or May flower blossom as they were hard at work this week. Traditionally the blossom’s arrival is a sign summer is just round the corner. The flowers used to be used to decorate people's homes, a practice known as "bringing home the May", and they were the bloom of choice with which to garland the May Queen.

Butterflies are also now being spotted. This holly blue was fluttering around London Wildlife Trust’s Camley Street Natural Park earlier this week. Also associated with the month of May, the holly blue is sometimes seen in late April and later on into the summer months. A beautiful peacock butterfly was also basking in the sun at Camley Street this week.

Stag beetles don’t normally come out until May. One beetle enthusiast sent us this snap of a particularly handsome specimen, found wandering around his garden in mid April. Stag beetle larvae live for three to five years, but the adults have very brief lives. Found mainly in the south east of the country, they are normally seen in the capital between May and August.

Read more about what’s been seen this month on our regularly updated spotted page.