Sunday 22 September

Dry Morning

We found all these within a few yards of each other plenty of Galls about this year.

 7 Spot Ladybird

 Artichoke Gall on Oak - Quercus

 Garden Spider

Found among the Common Spangle Gall - Harlequin Larvae

 Harlequin Larvae

 Knopper gall on Oak - Quercus

 Knopper gall on Oak - Quercus

Marble Gall Oak - Quercus

 Silk Button Gall on Oak - Quercus

Tar Spot on Sycamore - Acer pseudoplatanus

Take Care

Wednesday 4 September

Dry almost sunny morning

 I am an offcomer as they say round here, meaning I wasn't born in the village, born about 14 miles away and love my home town, seen many beautiful sunrises (possibly more than most) loads of  views from all over the country, yet when we came to live here this view stunned me. No matter how many times I see it I have to tell myself it's real and on my doorstep. Money can't buy it and no one can take it from me, we can all share it.

 Thought this was a strange looking ladybird larvae, not one of our native ones but the Harlequin Ladybird not native but introduced and seems to be building up in number.

 One big slug at least 6 inches in length

 Baby spiders in a web type nursery

The winged seeds of Wild Angelica - Angelica sylvestris

Take Care

Sunday 22 May

Thought we might get wet this morning but we stayed dry - the sun was trying to make a show and but for the wind it would have been very warm.

We went to the Large Bitter cress this morning and none of the buds had changed so I took one. At home I opened the bud to find two of these - they are actually less than 2mm in length. It is Dasineura cardaminis a larvae that produces a swollen bud or gall on Large Bittercress.

Dasineura cardaminis 

Dasineura cardaminis the two in a petre dish.

 Bittersweet Buds - Solanum dulcamara

Black Headed Gull

 Common Bistort  - Persicaria bistorta

 Dactylorhiza x grandis - Orchid Hybrids

 Elder - Sambucus nigra

Fly for ID

This Frog was on the Pond Field it was too quick for us to hold for a good close up.

Sunny Brow Gate

Primrose Hill Gate

 Greater Birdsfoot Trefoil Leaves - Lotus pedunculatus

 Green Dock Beetle Larvae very similar to ladybird larvae but this one makes lace patterns in the dock leaves.

A very obliging 7 Spot Ladybird

Mallards

 Pixie Cup Lichen - Cladonia sp.

Edwina was out showing her babes off.

White Lipped Snail

 Yarrow Leaves- Achillea millefolium

Yarrow Buds - Achillea millefolium

Hope you enjoy the little movie of Edwina and her babes.

Take Care

Monday 3 August

We had a good walk and saw all sorts of things - I took 92 photos mainly records shots but I think these are of interest to some.

Currant Gall on Oak - there are a lot of galls about this year - even the acorns seem to be suffering.

I photographed a couple of these last week, since then I have had them ID as Fungus Gnats, now I am seeing them everywhere. This lot was feasting on wild angelica pollen.

I thought this was a gall on the Goat Willow - but it was rust.

It starts off as these pustules and turns to the rust we recognise.

The Heron was on the fields across the weir.

An unusual looking Hoverfly - it had black & white bands.

This is a lacewing larvae looking for aphids - they are usually a darker colour so I am wondering if this is fresh youngster.
It look the part with those pincers and a flicking tail, I left it to find it's breakfast. Certainly glad they are not Crocodile size.Macrodiplosis dryobia is the Latin name for this gall - a white larva is tucked up under the folded leaf edge.

Marble Galls on Oak.

Another Button Gall on Oak - this was hairy and purple/red.

This is another Spiders nest - smaller this time, I believe it could be a wolf spider.

I pulled the nest over so I could photograph the inside of the nest.

You can see the Spider with her blue egg sac.

Wasp

Wasp

Whose watching who?

Wood Sage

Wood Sage