Looking back at entries across the year two themes strike me. It was a bad year for butterflies and a good year for flowers. Butterflies or lack of are a good indicator of how insects generally are doing.

 Spring and early summer were wet and cool, the period when many butterflies emerge. By all accounts there was a steep decline in sightings. Species that fly later in the summer like the Comma (above) appeared to fare a little better. 

 Then again I noticed many wildflowers and garden plants were vigorous; for example these Common Spotted Orchids seemed particularly tall and sturdy. No doubt they benefited from the rainfall in that regard but plants need pollinators.