In recent weeks, Sulphur butterflies have darted through my garden, flashes of yellow against the pinks and greens. In keeping with the season, they have covered my senna plants with tiny, football-shaped eggs.

I’ve been raising some of their caterpillars. Unlike the gaudy offspring of Swallowtails or Fritillaries, they pass their lives as slim, green pencils, hard to spot against the leaves they so avidly consume but gorgeous nonetheless.

I’ve had fun photographing them with the Xenvo macro lens I bought for my phone a couple of years ago, but until now have been too busy to use. It captures remarkable detail. This egg is about to hatch.

Once a cat has eaten its fill, it morphs into a leaf-shaped chrysalis.

A few days later, the patterns of the soon-to-emerge butterfly begin to show. I check them every morning, waiting for the miracle I know is coming.