Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum
General Subjects => General Forum => Topic started by: Maggi Young on August 04, 2014, 03:01:14 PM
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The amazing wildlife on a mountain bigger than Ben Nevis under the sea off the west coast of Scotland - read more : http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/28583945 (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/28583945)
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This cat killed 102 bats at a bat roost in 1 week. >:(
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Mother red kangaroo, her 'teenage' daughter and a young joey in her pouch. They are always in the garden and are getting quite friendly.
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This beast gives me the creeps - but it is pretty
[attachimg=1]
pic from here : http://wowthatscool.com/-meetanimal/seven-strange-beautiful-insects?utm_content=bufferbe9df&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer (http://wowthatscool.com/-meetanimal/seven-strange-beautiful-insects?utm_content=bufferbe9df&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer)
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New Zealand's short-tailed bats?
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New Zealand's short-tailed bats?
Yes. Cats, rats and possums are a huge problem in New Zealand.
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I was wanting to clear some of the farm grounds today of Rosebay Willow-herb but finding this fine fellow feasting upon its favourite food has put a stop to it! It's a Elephant Hawk-moth caterpillar with amazing eye-spots.
From Wikipedia:
Like most hawk moth caterpillars, they have a backward curving spine or "horn" on the final abdominal segment. The anterior of the caterpillar appears to have the shape of a trunk-like snout. It is this elephant look, rather than its large size, that gives the moth its name. When startled, the caterpillar draws its trunk into its foremost body segment. This posture resembles a snake with a large head and four large eye-like patches. Caterpillars are preyed upon by birds, but these shy away (at least for some time) from caterpillars in "snake" pose. It is not known whether the birds take the caterpillar to actually resemble a snake, or are frightened by the sudden change of a familiar prey item into an unusual and boldly-patterned shape.
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A bit scary when you first see this caterpillar. I have found two in different years and not on willowherb. I wondered if they were mature and looking for somewhere to pupate.
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I was on my way to check the ponies this afternoon when I spotted this chap watching me.
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Buck shot. ;)
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Buck shot. ;)
No, he got away ;D
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Wish somebody would shoot them. Not too much damage in the garden this year so far - annual willowherb topped, Oenothera 'Sunset Boulevard' and yellow lupin also and worst of all part of Sisyrinchium palmifolium inflorescence nipped off.
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A bit scary when you first see this caterpillar. I have found two in different years and not on willowherb. I wondered if they were mature and looking for somewhere to pupate.
Willowherb seems to be their favourite food but they do feed on other plants. Haven't seen any more caterpillars of this one but there are many Tiger moth caterpillars at the moment - one even crawled into the house yesterday! We do have a small number of bats to keep the moth numbers under control (not sure which species yet).
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Wish somebody would shoot them. Not too much damage in the garden this year so far - annual willowherb topped, Oenothera 'Sunset Boulevard' and yellow lupin also and worst of all part of Sisyrinchium palmifolium inflorescence nipped off.
Hi Roma
You could try this product and it's totally environmentally friendly www.grazers.co.uk (http://www.grazers.co.uk)
I've used it here on the farm against rabbits but you can also use it for deer, pigeons voles & mice.
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Saw this photo and couldn't resist sharing it:
[attachimg=1]
Learn about the Ecology of the Hazel Dormouse via a course from the Sussex Wildlife Trust
http://www.sussexwildlifetrust.com/PBSCProduct.asp?ItmID=13822190 (http://www.sussexwildlifetrust.com/PBSCProduct.asp?ItmID=13822190)
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Il dort. :)
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A new joey to hop around the garden.
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This critter pic passed via twitter- query is it a hornet?
In UK -
[attachimg=1]
Some sort of fly?
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Volucella zonaria?
Big hoverfly?
Greetings, Guus
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Looks like that , Guus, thank you.
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This spring I planted a "Gorgeous" crab apple tree. It is now covered in fruit so heavy that the young branches are bent over, and I have had to tie one up to try and preserve a leader, but the other problem is it has no leaves left. A quick look this morning found the culprit.
Is my identification correct? It was 2 - 2 1/2" or so long. Coming home this evening it has gone so can't take any more photos.
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I would say eyed hawk moth caterpillar.
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I agree with the last diagnose.
Greetings, Guus
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Thank you for the correction. I have not come across either before knowingly. Found it again this morning and have transferred it to a large old apple tree, with an endless supply of food for it.
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Good instructions for making bumblebee nests on the Bumblebee Conservation Trust website here:
http://bumblebeeconservation.org/news/anthonys-blog/making-bumblebee-nest-spaces?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=E-newsletter+August+2014&utm_content=E-newsletter+August+2014+CID_5310cebc9e098397e5b419342bc92338&utm_source=Email%20marketing%20software&utm_term=Click%20here (http://bumblebeeconservation.org/news/anthonys-blog/making-bumblebee-nest-spaces?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=E-newsletter+August+2014&utm_content=E-newsletter+August+2014+CID_5310cebc9e098397e5b419342bc92338&utm_source=Email%20marketing%20software&utm_term=Click%20here)
Can I remind you with silly season coming up that if you enter Amazon (the web shop not the rainforest) through the BCT's site, 8% of the value of your total shop will go to the bumblebees! Use the link below, and use it as your link to enter Amazon. About time some of their profits went to something useful!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/?_encoding=UTF8&tag=bumblebeecons-21&linkCode=ur2&camp=1634&creative=6738 (http://www.amazon.co.uk/?_encoding=UTF8&tag=bumblebeecons-21&linkCode=ur2&camp=1634&creative=6738)
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Could anyone tell me what species this moth is please, it was on my window a couple of weeks ago. As you can see from the photo it has lovely markings, these moths give the butterflies a run for these money, there not all plain to look at.
(https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3885/15081218605_854290ca0f_c.jpg) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/126223196@N05/15081218605/)
image (https://www.flickr.com/photos/126223196@N05/15081218605/) by johnstephen29 (https://www.flickr.com/people/126223196@N05/), on Flickr
(https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3840/14894522749_768abbcfe9_c.jpg) (https://www.flickr.com/photos/126223196@N05/14894522749/)
image (https://www.flickr.com/photos/126223196@N05/14894522749/) by johnstephen29 (https://www.flickr.com/people/126223196@N05/), on Flickr
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Hi John, your moth is a Light Orange Underwing Archiearis notha.
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I would say red underwing (Catocala nupta). This is a seriously big moth.
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I do agree with Anthony again.
Catocala species.
Greetings, Guus
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I clearly underestimated the scale of this beastie :-[
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Yup, Red Underwing. Very nice.
Only think I've seen one this year, flying away after being disturbed.
Lot of other underwings out at the moment, I had 81 Large Yellow Underwings in the trap this morning along with a few Lesser Yellow Underwings, Broad Bordered Yellow Underwings, Lesser Broad Bordered Underwings and Copper Underwings agg.
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I've tried so much to get bumble bees nesting in the garden. Every year many queens come through the garden nest hunting
1. bought a box
2. repositioned it many times
3. added a mouse nest from the pet shop
4. held a queen captive inside for a few days
5. added a hose tunnel
6. added kapok
nothing works yet a man on youtube has multiple species, 9!, nesting in man made boxes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2_SHITsFMA (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S2_SHITsFMA)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDviJT6h_Bs (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BDviJT6h_Bs)
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Mark, they nest in some of my bird boxes every year and I don't add anything, sometimes wasps occupy them as well but I never bother them and they never bother me.
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Are those Tree Bees (Bombus hypnorum), Michael? They seem to be the most common ones to find in bird boxes. It would be interesting if so, as I'm not sure if they're supposed to have got over the Irish Sea yet.
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Not sure Anne, I know very little about wild Bees :-[
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Couldn't resist posting this of the second brood of swallows resting after their day flight training. Can't believe they will have to fly to Africa in the next couple of days. In the nest round the corner they are still looking out over the top, not started at flight school yet.
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Are those Tree Bees (Bombus hypnorum), Michael?
As far as I know they haven't reached Ireland
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"Water voles recorded at RSPB Scotland reserve in Strathspey for the first time in 20 years"
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-29010706 (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-29010706)
[attachimg=1]
Photo by Chris Sutherland
[attachimg=2]
Photo by Alex Millon
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Particularly dark water voles, especially the one in hand.
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Couldn't resist posting this of the second brood of swallows resting after their day flight training. Can't believe they will have to fly to Africa in the next couple of days. In the nest round the corner they are still looking out over the top, not started at flight school yet.
The same thing is happening here Susan and I'm very worried for the babies who are only just flapping there wings in two nests. The last few days the rest of the swallows are going quite bonkers flying around in large groups in the courtyard and must be set for leaving.
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Most of our swallows have already left, just in the last few days. There are just one or two hangers'on still around :'(
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Welcome swallows, a recent immigrant to New Zealand, don't migrate long distances here. I see them most days throughout the year. In the south they head to the coast and feed on flies that inhabit the milder coastal fringes.
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Can anybody please help me ID these? I'm gradually trying to compile a list of all the native species here at the farm and woodland.
The first one is a small moth I saw in the wood, the second another small moth in the grassland and the third I am right in thinking it's a Scabious Sawfly (as it's tucking into a Devil's bit scabious)?
I recently bought a Collins Butterfly & Moth guide to help ID the moths ... but it's of little use - so if anybody can recommend another book that would be very helpful.
Thanks in advance!
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Hi Lisa,
I terms of books, my 'go-to' book is 'The Colour Identification Guide to Moths of the British Isles' by Bernard Skinner (ISBN: 0-670-87978-9), which is the standard work for the larger moths (i.e. not the tiny micro-moths). It has a cover price of £45 although you may find it cheaper. This is an excellent hard back book, too cumbersome to use in the field but with excellent photographs of real specimens and including variation within the species.
For just £12.95 you can't do better than the 'Concise Guide to the Moths of Great Britain and Ireland' published by British Wildlife Publishing (ISBN: 978-0-9531399-6-5). This book might be a better starting point, perhaps progressing to Skinner as your interest develops. The book is pocket-sized, spiral-bound book with artworks by Richard Lewington and is easy to carry and use in the field.
Your moths are Clouded Border and Latticed Heath. Both fairly common moths, the latter will be found flying by day.
Don't know anything about sawflies but Google turns up photos of an identical beastie.
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Hi Matt
Thank you so much for all your information and will look into getting one of the books straight away :)
Lisa
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Hi Matt, Anthony & Guss thanks for letting me know what the moth was, really beautiful insect, first time i had seen one of these.
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Not exactly wildlife. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuOp5nbXe_4 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuOp5nbXe_4)
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Not exactly wildlife. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuOp5nbXe_4 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuOp5nbXe_4)
This footage was on TV tonight - quite amazing!
cheers
fermi
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I wouldn't have wanted to be on that container ship! :o
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Male Nathusius' pipistrelle singing for females. The cheeky male had set up his song post at the entrance of the maternity roost so the females had to see him when they came home at dawn
http://youtu.be/FGoTMhXTxTg?list=UU7Rtd8UWbrOs57wFluGWiXg (http://youtu.be/FGoTMhXTxTg?list=UU7Rtd8UWbrOs57wFluGWiXg)
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my house wildlife...
Amazing... a tiny, long legged cellar spider (Pholcus phalangioides) caught an much larger domestic house spider (Tegenaria domestica).
The cellar spider sucked 2 days on his quarry until the empty dry corpus fell down (and the corner was cleaned by weekly routine).
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Most of our swallows have already left, just in the last few days. There are just one or two hangers'on still around :'(
We still have some here - I presume they are our last babies that were only starting to fly a few weeks ago ... worried that the parents have left them.
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Male Nathusius' pipistrelle singing for females. The cheeky male had set up his song post at the entrance of the maternity roost so the females had to see him when they came home at dawn
This is a time expansion recording, using a bat detector. In reality, it's ten time faster, each call spent less than 1 second and it's nearly inaudible : when the recording is slowed, the sound become deeper and can be listen to. When you are not too old, you can ear bat's social calls, like common pipistrelle which is not a single call but 3 very close ones.
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A Red Admiral butterfly with Colchicum speciosum
Butterflies usually fly off when disturbed. This Peacock butterfly dropped to the ground and I could see how the eye spots on the back wings would frighten a predator.
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Kraba you know your bats! Do you study them?
From last night
Leisler's bat, Nyctalus leisleri, calling from a sing post
http://youtu.be/ypmdcg7y1Xk?list=UU7Rtd8UWbrOs57wFluGWiXg (http://youtu.be/ypmdcg7y1Xk?list=UU7Rtd8UWbrOs57wFluGWiXg)
Daubenton's bats, Myotis daubentonii, inside their roost location, out of the roost but not yet leaving to feed two hours after sunset
http://youtu.be/n7PENBI7bfM?list=UU7Rtd8UWbrOs57wFluGWiXg (http://youtu.be/n7PENBI7bfM?list=UU7Rtd8UWbrOs57wFluGWiXg)
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my house wildlife...
Amazing... a tiny, long legged cellar spider (Pholcus phalangioides) caught an much larger domestic house spider (Tegenaria domestica).
The cellar spider sucked 2 days on his quarry until the empty dry corpus fell down (and the corner was cleaned by weekly routine).
Armin I am touring Ireland and I don't know what they feed their spiders on but they are huge. Today at my sisters and I felt something on my arm when I turned to look I nearly died of fright, everyone thought it was so funny but not me I have never seen a spider that big. Checking my hotel room tonight just incase. Not sure how big the spider you are talking about but hopefully I won't see a spider as big as that one today.
Angie :)
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Armin I am touring Ireland and I don't know what they feed their spiders on but they are huge. Today at my sisters and I felt something on my arm when I turned to look I nearly died of fright, everyone thought it was so funny but not me I have never seen a spider that big. Checking my hotel room tonight just incase. Not sure how big the spider you are talking about but hopefully I won't see a spider as big as that one today.
Angie :)
LOL...How about mice, Angie?
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LOL...How about mice, Angie?
Just don't like anything that is hairy and moves fast. Keep thinking of those big spiders. Back to Aberdeen now and little spiders :)
Angie :)
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Just don't like anything that is hairy and moves fast.
Then you may not like me either Angie, whenever we meet ::) ;) ;D
Best wishes for the rest of your holiday. I hope these misadventures have a funny side and bring happy memories too.
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Us Australians are all laughing out loud after reading the above discussion about spiders.. ;D Angie I recommend you think carefully about wildlife before you consider immigrating to Australia. 8)
Warning - do not click the link below if you suffer from arachnophobia. A very common spider in Australian houses and we consider it harmless. (ish).
https://www.google.com.au/search?q=Lesquerella&safe=off&rlz=1C1KMZB_enAU578AU578&es_sm=93&biw=1920&bih=979&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=1d4hVLabJsfi8AXZwoKAAQ&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAQ#safe=off&tbm=isch&q=huntsman+spider (https://www.google.com.au/search?q=Lesquerella&safe=off&rlz=1C1KMZB_enAU578AU578&es_sm=93&biw=1920&bih=979&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=1d4hVLabJsfi8AXZwoKAAQ&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAQ#safe=off&tbm=isch&q=huntsman+spider)
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Then you may not like me either Angie, whenever we meet ::) ;) ;D
Best wishes for the rest of your holiday. I hope these misadventures have a funny side and bring happy memories too.
Ashley can you run fast as well ;) You are so lucky living in such a beautiful place and the people are so friendly. Weather was perfect and we had only one misty morning. Already planning my next visit. We got up to a bit beyond Galway so there is still more for us to see. Next year I am coming over for a few weeks instead of five days.
Angie :)
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Us Australians are all laughing out loud after reading the above discussion about spiders.. ;D Angie I recommend you think carefully about wildlife before you consider immigrating to Australia. 8)
Warning - do not click the link below if you suffer from arachnophobia. A very common spider in Australian houses and we consider it harmless. (ish).
https://www.google.com.au/search?q=Lesquerella&safe=off&rlz=1C1KMZB_enAU578AU578&es_sm=93&biw=1920&bih=979&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=1d4hVLabJsfi8AXZwoKAAQ&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAQ#safe=off&tbm=isch&q=huntsman+spider (https://www.google.com.au/search?q=Lesquerella&safe=off&rlz=1C1KMZB_enAU578AU578&es_sm=93&biw=1920&bih=979&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=1d4hVLabJsfi8AXZwoKAAQ&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAQ#safe=off&tbm=isch&q=huntsman+spider)
Ok how do you expect me to sleep after looking at those pictures. I have checked my roof for any little spiders ;D that might fall on me when I am sleeping ;D Are there really a lot of these spiders over there with you or would it be unusual for these to be around the house.
Angie :)
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Yes a lot Angie although they are much more active in the summer months. They come into the house regularly and run around on the walls and ceiling. It's my job to catch them release them outside. In their natural habitat they live on and under the peeling bark of Eucalyptus and don't spin a web, catching insects by stalking them. That's why they don't sit in one place but hunt, wandering into houses and sheds and even into cars! It's a nasty shock to have one run across the inside of the windshield while you're driving along! Happened to me a few times... it's something Australians can all relate to having experienced something similar.
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Wow its bad enough when there is a wasp in the car let alone a massive spider. Well I can now say that there is something good about staying in a cold, windy place like Aberdeen. Little spiders ;) ;D I will have to remember if I ever get the chance to visit Australia to take along a big net, not for catching spiders its for covering me up when I am sleeping.
This reminds me of another story, I have a lot of frogs and toads in the garden and some are what I describe as being big. Well my American friend said that they weren't big you should see the ones that we have back home. I just though here we go everything is bigger over there. Well, she was right as we were boating down the lake she said to me look I told you so. I couldn't believe my eyes. This thing was enormous. I think she said it was a bull frog, never had the camera such a shame. One thing for sure you would know if you stood on that :o
Angie :)
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Nearly 11 cm long, is it a big one ? ;D
Toad of Pelobatus cultripes, southern France
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Karaba you know your bats! Do you study them?
Indeed, it's a part of my job ;)
From last night
Leisler's bat, Nyctalus leisleri, calling from a sing post
Funny ;D I can't analyse the record with a software so that I can be sure but it looks like that the Leisler's bat is responding to the social calls of a common pipistrelle.
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Nearly 11 cm long, is it a big one ? ;D
Toad of Pelobatus cultripes, southern France
That's a chunky tadpole, Karaba, and I love the common name of Western Spadefoot (Pelobates cultripes).
... but still a dwarf compared to Cane Toads (aka Marine Toads).
Chris
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Oups, I made a confusion between poad and tadpole (my poor english...)
Yes, the Spadefoot is not very big but it has big tadpoles, isn't it ? Even big female of Bufo spinosus look dwarf compared to Cane Toads :o
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I fell in love with that fat tadpole :P :-[
Found some info about this small furry critter (http://western pygmy possum (Cercartetus concinnus)), which I thought would cheer up the arachnophobes by showing something incredibly cute ---- a western pygmy possum (Cercartetus concinnus) pic by Amanda McClean
Just look at those whiskers!
[attachimg=1]
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The balance of the Universe has been upset. Time to fix it. 8) Was trying to catch flies for my geckos yesterday and one ended up in the web of a White Cobweb Spider (Achaearanea tepidariorum), a recent immigrant to NZ although it is found worldwide.
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I was lucky today and snapped a photo of our resident blue wren, affectionately known by us as 'Bluey'. He and his little lady have chicks at the moment which have just flown the nest and are hopping all around the garden. Blue wrens are notoriously hard to photograph. They just never sit still long enough to get a decent shot. I was sitting in the front garden with my camera in hand and he landed in front of me on the lawn. :)
(https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3851/15188444678_d6f9b4c0f0_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/p99KrQ)
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A cloud of ladybirds has just descended here this afternoon. There are several hundred of them crawling all over the outside of the house.
Had to run round quickly closing all the windows which was annoying as it is warmer outside than in. >:(
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The mild weather we are having just now is bringing out the butterflies, mainly Red Admirals. I saw 13 on Sunday. I am still seeing an occasional Small Tortoiseshell or Peacock but they are usually faded or have damaged wings. I had a less common visitor today, a Comma.
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The mild weather we are having just now is bringing out the butterflies, mainly Red Admirals. I saw 13 on Sunday. I am still seeing an occasional Small Tortoiseshell or Peacock but they are usually faded or have damaged wings. I had a less common visitor today, a Comma.
I was squashing newly hatched caterpillars on my broccoli plants yesterday. Don't think they'll have stood much of a chance being so late in the season, but they could have had time enough to strip my brassicas.
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It's amazing how the comma has spread throughout the UK. A hundred years ago it was confined to three counties in the west of England, having shrunk from a wider distribution to as far north as Fife, but not the west of Scotland in the 1850s. Its spread started in the 1930s, but has been more dramatic in the last 5 years. I saw my first comma in Dunblane in 2009.
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The balance of the Universe has been upset. Time to fix it.
You know what happened the last time you tried that. :o
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Hard life being a bird of prey -
"Gamekeeper found guilty of mass poisoning of birds of prey
A Norfolk gamekeeper has today been found guilty of offences after the grim discovery of at least eleven illegally poisoned birds on a game shooting estate in Norfolk in 2013."
http://www.rarebirdalert.co.uk/v2/Content/Gamekeeper_found_guilty_of_mass_poisoning_of_birds_of_prey.aspx?s_id=375584334 (http://www.rarebirdalert.co.uk/v2/Content/Gamekeeper_found_guilty_of_mass_poisoning_of_birds_of_prey.aspx?s_id=375584334)
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Jail him! >:(
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Just heard that six buzzards have been found in a field in Fordoun area, Aberdeenshire . It said the police are investigating this.
Angie :)
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Buzzards feed mostly on worms! Why kill them? >:(
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I was surprised to learn that Heptacodium miconioides was as attractive to insects just as Buddleia is -
especially the late flowering time seems to draw butterflies
Gerd
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There's a male scarlet tanager on Barra, Scotland
http://www.scotsman.com/news/environment/twitchers-flocking-to-barra-in-search-of-rare-bird-1-3565903 (http://www.scotsman.com/news/environment/twitchers-flocking-to-barra-in-search-of-rare-bird-1-3565903)
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There's a male scarlet tanager on Barra, Scotland
http://www.scotsman.com/news/environment/twitchers-flocking-to-barra-in-search-of-rare-bird-1-3565903 (http://www.scotsman.com/news/environment/twitchers-flocking-to-barra-in-search-of-rare-bird-1-3565903)
Unfortunatley it's in eclipse plumage. Pics of the bird can be found here: http://www.western-isles-wildlife.com/Latest%20Bird%20and%20general%20wildlife%20sightings%20in%20the%20western%20isles,%20outer%20hebrides.htm (http://www.western-isles-wildlife.com/Latest%20Bird%20and%20general%20wildlife%20sightings%20in%20the%20western%20isles,%20outer%20hebrides.htm)
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Found this fledgling song thrush at the side of the footpath on Heidi's morning walk today. Lifted it over the short hedge into the front garden of the house, but don't give much for its chances given the number of cats that are free to wander the neighbourhood.
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Found this fledgling song thrush at the side of the footpath on Heidi's morning walk today. Lifted it over the short hedge into the front garden of the house, but don't give much for its chances given the number of cats that are free to wander the neighbourhood.
So cute.
Angie :)
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A goldcrest killed itself in a collision with our window yesterday - we see one so rarely, it was so sad to see it dead. What a beautiful little creature.
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Rather bizarre weather here yesterday. It reached 18C in the afternoon. Saw a number of dragonflies on the wing (Common Darters and a single Common Hawker) whilst walking in the local Scots Pine Forest, with a few Peacock Butterflies still around.
Numerous skeins of Pink-foot passing over the garden and a single small (7) noisy flock of Whooper Swans -my first of the Autumn. Also had 5 Buzzard over the garden at one point (our local pair raised two young - the nest is 150m from the end of the garden). A mixed party of Long-tailed Tits, Blue, Coal and Great Tits with some Goldcrest and a couple of Treecreepers passed through the garden and at dusk there were still Pipistrelle hawking over the neighbours old Apple Trees.
This morning it is dreich, dour and very windy.
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Numerous skeins of Pink-foot passing over the garden and a single small (7) noisy flock of Whooper Swans -my first of the Autumn. Also had 5 Buzzard over the garden at one point (our local pair raised two young - the nest is 150m from the end of the garden). A mixed party of Long-tailed Tits, Blue, Coal and Great Tits with some Goldcrest and a couple of Treecreepers passed through the garden and at dusk there were still Pipistrelle hawking over the neighbours old Apple Trees.
This morning it is dreich, dour and very windy.
We rarely get Pinkfeet on the west coast but good numbers are recorded annually at the Butt of Lewis before moving on down the Minch. Our commonest goose is the Barnacle which is always a thrill to see and hear.
Chris
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Last year we had a brown snake living between two large boulders in the rock Garden; this year we have a friendly reptile there - a blue tongue lizard, Tiliqua scincoides,
cheers
fermi
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Blue tongued skinks are kept as pets here, although their transport into Auckland (i.e. north of the Bombay Hills) is not allowed. They eat fruit, veg. and snails. I'll stick to New Zealand geckos and tortoises. Here's my latest addition. Nautlinus stellatus, the Nelson or starred gecko, Sandy Bay form. This male was beating up his cage mate so I was asked to take it. Hopefully I'll be able to acquire a female next year.
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Gecko's? I Think I'll stick with my dog, cat, chickens & ducks :)
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There was a long warm period and then freezing rain and frost ...
Frost and fly
[attachimg=1]
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Still unseasonably cold here. Spotted this Aussie import Helpis minitabunda on the tiles by the bin, called the "Bronze Aussie Jumper" in Australia and first spotted in Auckland in 1972.
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Still unseasonably cold here. Spotted this Aussie import Helpis minitabunda on the tiles by the bin, called the "Bronze Aussie Jumper" in Australia and first spotted in Auckland in 1972.
An Aussie on the tiles in NZ? How unusual! ;D
Here's some sort of mayfly seen in the garden a few days ago
cheers
fermi
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Maybe a bit late to show as I encountered this angry fellow (Lemmus lemmus) last summer - among thousands of others. I disturbed him in his lunch munching a sedge leave and he got very upset trying to frighten me away (and no, they don't burst when angry).
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For a little creature he is VERY angry!
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At the Atlanta Botanic gardens they have some some interesting "topiary" in its widest sense : follow this link to see the range of animals they have displayed -
http://atlantabotanicalgarden.org/about-us/imaginary-worlds-media-page (http://atlantabotanicalgarden.org/about-us/imaginary-worlds-media-page)
[attachimg=1]
At first glance this chap looks very real - though it turns out to be just another shaggy dog story!
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Here is the shaggy dog from another angle
[attachimg=1]
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Both made from grasses?
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Yes- I think it's the same "dog" photographed at different times, different angles - in the second pic the grass has grown longer, making him more furry! It's fun isn't it?
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Sounds like a shaggy dog story to me. ::)
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;D ;D ;D
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It's a bit early for Thanksgiving.
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Not wild about this life I found on one of my orchids. Scale insects that have now been sprayed off.
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Not what I want on my plants, Anthony!
I would rather have any of these! Boloria selene probably. Argynnis aglaja
In lack of butterflies now I show this one from last summer.
[attachimg=1]
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. . . or this one. (Also last summer)
An Ammophila sabulosa feeding the offspring.
I watched the wasp flew away and came back dragging the larvae. In a few minutes she had dug the hole. She went in first, then she came up grabbed the larvae and dragged it down. Then she sealed the hole. It was impossible to find if you didn't know exactly where it was.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=2]
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Fascinating pictures, Trond.
It was only about 10 or 11C here yesterday but the sunshine brought out the insects on the ivy. All sorts of flies and hoverflies, one Red Admiral butterfly and even a wasp.
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I would rather have any of these! Boloria selene probably.
In lack of butterflies now I show this one from last summer.
Not Argynnis aglaja?
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Not Argynnis aglaja?
Anthony,
You are right of course. Argynnis aglaja it is!
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I've been catching bulb flies with my spring-framed butterfly net. The green geckos go daft when they see them. Normally ambush predators, they become active hunters at the sight of a bulb fly. I've even had two fight over a fly! :o
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30 million song birds are killed every year in and around the Med - Why!?
Emptying the skies Activists brush with the law and the mafia in their bid to rescue songbirds from ending up on European dinner tables.
http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/witness/2014/11/emptying-skies-201411681814511798.html (http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/witness/2014/11/emptying-skies-201411681814511798.html)
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Seen a flying whale? Picture: Karl-Otto Jacobsen
Read the story here (Norwegian):
http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/utrolige-historier/sjekk-karl-ottos-49-hval-blinkskudd/a/23336516/ (http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/utrolige-historier/sjekk-karl-ottos-49-hval-blinkskudd/a/23336516/)
(http://1.vgc.no/drpublish/images/article/2014/11/15/23336517/1/990/hval2.jpg)
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This red-billed gull (Chroicocephalus scopulinus) came to watch our 1st XI boys in an away match in a howling gale on Saturday. Looking for lunch, to be provided by the away team, which never appeared. The young thrush crashed into our lounge window and I found it on its back. That was two hours ago. Seems to be okay now.
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Last Saturday - black grouses early in the morning.
[attachimg=1]
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Some snaps from a seal counting trip last weekend to Inchkeith in the Firth of Forth.
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now a series showing the different ages of pups on the beach from newborn to c. three weeks when they moult out of the white and go to sea to fend for themselves
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Can't see this having much effect, but it will be nice to have another species of butterfly to look for. Now they just need some swallowtails to tackle the fennel plants that pop up in unkempt grassy places. http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/about/news/media-releases/new-butterfly-introduced-to-tackle-problematic-weed#.VGwlbpr3t9M.facebook (http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/about/news/media-releases/new-butterfly-introduced-to-tackle-problematic-weed#.VGwlbpr3t9M.facebook)
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Have been stuck in the house for days, bad back again. Thought I would go out for a walk and caught this wee chap sound asleep.
Angie :)
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Sorry to hear your back is troubling you again , Angela - weather is so grotty oyu' ve probably been as well keeping inside in the warm.
That field of yours is a lovely quiet spot for the roe deer to have a snooze.
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The flying whale and the seals are brilliant.
I can only show a flying visitor in the front garden.The sparrowhawk was
sitting at the hedge and waited till I fetched my camera.
Uli
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Sorry to hear your back is troubling you again , Angela - weather is so grotty oyu' ve probably been as well keeping inside in the warm.
That field of yours is a lovely quiet spot for the roe deer to have a snooze.
There are so many deer in the field in front of the house it's a bit worrying. I also nearly disappeared down a hole, think it's a badger, saying this I haven't seen them doing this in the field its always at the edges. Just thinking ,no the whole wasn't big enough for me to disappear down there ;D
Angie :)
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Friends in Niagara-on-the Lake awoke to this fellow in their yard last Wednesday, a lovely Cooper's Hawk.
johnw
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Had a wee bit of help today. I have a big problem with mice so hopefully I have one less now.
John that Coopers Hawk could be helpful here as well ;D
Angie :)
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Hi Angie great photos, I wish the foxes around me would only go after mice instead of trying to get my poultry >:(
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I do sympathise, John - but I must admit that given the choice between a mouse and a chicken for dinner, I know which one I'm going for! ;D ;D ;D
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They try Maggi but they don't get anywhere, it's like Fort Knox around here, electric fence and all.
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They try Maggi but they don't get anywhere, it's like Fort Knox around here, electric fence and all.
;D
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I thought I'd brighten up a dull day by posting a couple of pictures taken at Loch of the Lowes last week, the day after the AGM.
Great Spotted Woodpecker (female, gaudy)
Chaffinch (female, nosey)
Both taken through the glazed window of the vistor centre in poor light, so they didn't turn out too bad considering...
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Very nice, Peter. After a couple of seconds thought I have decided not to comment on your descriptions ;-(((((
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Great photos Peter
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Peter really lovely photos. I have done something to my camera, things are just out of focus nearly all the time.
Angie :)
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A couple of our winter visitors taken a a few weeks back. A Whooper swan and Barnacle geese.
Today we had unseasonal visitors in the shape of a Swallow and House Martin feeding over the seaweed on Troon beach
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Photos doing the rounds on Facebook and Twitter of 2000 dead moles on barbed wired in a Scottish shooting estate. Maybe the lack of moles could be why harriers are targeting precious pheasants.
Game estates are also dumping 100s of shot pheasants on their grounds which attract scavengers, corvids, mammals and birds of prey, which are then get the blame for attacking pheasants ...
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I will never understand why people shoot birds and other animals for there own enjoyment, the local bigwig, walks around with his snout in the air, he and his cronies had a shoot a few weekends ago, makes me sick to my stomach.
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I agree, people who shoot animals for "fun" worry me. There's something a bit scary about the personality type I think.
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Yeah true, also over here people used to & maybe still do hare coursing, badger baiting, deer stalking, cock fighting & game keepers shooting birds of prey to protect there game birds & this country is supposed to be full of animal lovers? Anything like this go on over there Jamus?
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The annual Aussie duck slaughter?
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Sounds like hell Anthony, for the poor duck anyway, men with guns?
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Men with guns have just murdered a 185 year old alligator in the US which had Civil War pellets in its hide. ??? >:(
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That's one old alligator, I know tortoise's could live to a ripe old age, but not alligators. Those men are nothing but savages. When you think about it man has a lot to answer for, all the plants and animals who have become extinct because of man, the dodo, thylacine, moa, great auk to name a few.
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Quite so John. It was introduced pigs that did for the dodo, but the moa was hunted on an industrial scale. I have the bones of one leg, and the tarso-metatarsal shows evidence of cooking.
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Men with guns have just murdered a 185 year old alligator in the US which had Civil War pellets in its hide. ??? >:(
Such a waste! If they wanted to be brave why didn't they go in to the water to battle it!
http://worldnewsdailyreport.com/usa-hunters-find-bullets-from-american-civil-war-in-185-year-old-alligators-hide/ (http://worldnewsdailyreport.com/usa-hunters-find-bullets-from-american-civil-war-in-185-year-old-alligators-hide/)
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Not sure the story is exactly as they tell it, but the picture certainly shows one old gator.
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Talking of extinct animals have you heard about what the South Koreans are up to Anthony? A female wholly mammoth was found in Siberia, preserved in the permafrost with its blood still liquid, the Koreans are hoping to find some viable cells and impregnate a Indian elephant which is its closes living relative. In a few years if it is successful mammoths will be back then who knows what else.
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Cool. As long as there are no Wildlings and White Walkers accompanying them. ;)
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What are they when there at home?
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Game of Thrones, don't really want to meet either ;)
Just back from Honduras, despite having the the highest murder rate per capita (even KFC have armed guards :-\) it was a great trip & the Hummingbirds were a highlight.
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This may be of interest to chimney swift fans out there.
http://www.cbc.ca/player/Shows/Shows/More+Shows/Land+and+Sea/ (http://www.cbc.ca/player/Shows/Shows/More+Shows/Land+and+Sea/)
Birds at Risk will play at the above site at 4pm GMT tomorrow Sunday the 7th. Hopefully I have the link right, you may have to tweak the date.
johnw
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Entertaining lunchtime today.
From our kitchen we can see a conifer tree at the bottom of the garden of the largish house the opposite side of the road to us. It has a weepy top, not straight up, and often has a Red Kite perched along the top branch calling. Today I noticed movement nearer the main trunk. Unpacking a recent cheap purchase of a spotting scope from Lidl I could watch a Red Kite plucking its latest scavenge, for more than 20 minutes, before a group of Magpies chased it off, and then 2 Jackdaws took their turn. The Red Kite returned after ~10 minutes to the weeping branch and still with some of its meal. Must have flown off with some of it. The whole event took close to 40 minutes or so, before they all gave up. Never saw what they were eating.
I occasionally leave food out for the Kites, the odd road kill or dead rats from traps, but others leave all sorts of things good and bad for them.
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Red kites, Brian you lucky so & so, having said that the only birds of prey I can recognise are owls.
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John, you should come down to Adelaide for a holiday some time. In our back yard we see;
Peregrine falcon
Nankeen kestrel
Brown goshawk
Wedgetailed eagle
Brown falcon
and maybe more...
Some time ago I was lucky enough to witness and wedgetailed eagle take a young magpie out of a tree just 20 metres away from where I was standing in my back garden.
Edit: what I'm calling Peregrine falcon might in fact be the Australian hobby. Hard to tell the difference for a novice like me from a distance.
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Yeah I might just do that Jamus when the kids have left home, we will have a bit more time on our hands. :)
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John
The Red Kytes seem to take no notice of us when they are flying, often barely roof height when I am in the Garden and they think there is food available. 10, 20 or more at a time in places where they are fed regularly. Not exactly very natural to see them swooping between the semis in housing estates.
Jamus
Make the best of your raptors while you can. Many were common here until a few 100 years ago. It is us that persecuted them to rarity status.
By co-incidence the Kites were reintroduced only a few miles away in the Chilterns, in a private park. Another house a few miles further on just happens to have the name Stonor Park. The family name. Any relation? ;-)
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Must be a site to see Brian
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Kites have spread into Herts quickly in the last few years, I remember the release programme starting, remarkable success story.
Often see 15+ at harvest time & there are roosts of 50+ in the county.
Ravens are also regular now which are great to see & hear!
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Brian, yes, they are cousins but we have nothing to do with them. My grandfather grew up in Chiltern, but moved to Australia after the war and broke all ties with the family in England. Alas any chance of an inheritance is forfeit.
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Pretty good for raptors here too.
White-tailed Eagles in the winter.
Peregrine, Merlin and Hen Harrier hunt the headland and coast all year.
Kestrel and Sparrowhawk are occasional.
Short-eared Owl in summer.
Best of all was a white Gyr Falcon three years ago (from the lounge window) 8)
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George Monbiot considers our relationship with the natural world, here (http://www.bbc.com/earth/bespoke/story/20141203-back-to-nature/index.html).
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How to save a drowning duck: (use the linkunder the picture)
(http://imbo.vgc.no/users/bildespesial/images/4867fc5b2aa057f1ee03995f2411753c.jpg?t%5B0%5D=crop%3Ax%3D0%2Cy%3D0%2Cwidth%3D5184%2Cheight%3D3456&t%5B1%5D=resize%3Awidth%3D1024&accessToken=a746349ba7fbcb4d7d5249cef0aa9b8582a48ac6f3dca433338ae9f4806c69dc)
http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/dyrene/isbaderen-lars-36-reddet-and-fra-drukningsdoeden/a/23354239/ (http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/dyrene/isbaderen-lars-36-reddet-and-fra-drukningsdoeden/a/23354239/)
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well done the very brave man
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I could not resist to show you this Peacock Spiders
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GgAbyYDFeg (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GgAbyYDFeg)
There are lots of species and all dance and look different.
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Fantastic footage of a peacock spider on David Attenboroughs new series that just finished
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An apt name for a very beautiful spider.
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The little skinks are so much a part of the garden which supports a huge population of them. They are very happy with me for building a rock garden. Lizard heaven.
(https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8615/15904665737_d7c9db393a_c.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/qerz1M)
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Looks like a rainbow skink. Here's one sunbathing in my pot area on Boxing Day. Another Aussie pest.
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Why a pest?
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Non native wildlife and invasive plant species - all can be a real problem .... .see this New Yorker article about New Zealand : http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/12/22/big-kill?mbid=social_twitter (http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/12/22/big-kill?mbid=social_twitter)
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Hi Maggi great article, you only have to look at the grey squirrel to see the damage it has done, the only time I have seen the beautiful red squirrel was about fifteen years ago or thereabouts at the highland wildlife park, same goes for the wildcat and the capercaillie, lovely bird.
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At least here in West Fife it looks like the Reds may be making a comeback.
We have Grey Squirrels in our garden but only 2 miles away in Devilla Forest there are increasing numbers of Red Squirrels. We saw 4 separate individuals along 6km of forest trails whilst walking the dog this morning.
Whilst there is still a worry that squirrel pox may transfer to the Reds a new player has appeared on the scene -we now seem to have Pine Martens in the area. A large dog Pine Marten has been seen on a number of occasions and another was found as a roadkill, whilst regular scats are also being found. These predators find Grey Squirrels far easier to catch than native Red Squirrels and will hopefully tip the balance in favour of the Reds.
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These predators find Grey Squirrels far easier to catch than native Red Squirrels and will hopefully tip the balance in favour of the Reds.
As seems to be happening here in Ireland too: http://www.irelandswildlife.com/squirrel-pine-marten/ (http://www.irelandswildlife.com/squirrel-pine-marten/)
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This is good news all round Ashley for the UK and Ireland populations of reds.
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We have had a few geckos lately on the windows or below the windows. Such cute feet.
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Why a pest?
It breeds at an incredible rate, being a clutch egg layer, and is ousting native species, which produce a maximum of two young per season. This, coupled with predation by mustelids (spell checker tried to change this to mudslides!), cats, rats, and mice, mean I will never see a native skink outside a reserve with a predator barrier.
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How did it get over to New Zealand Anthony?
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Hello,
When the snow covers the flowers in the garden then there birds who get the attention. Now when it is winter we always have food to the birds and the garden is filled with life.
[attachimg=1]
Erithacus rubecula
Marit :)
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Here it was a little messy with the post ::)
[attachimg=1]
Turdus merula
[attachimg=2]
Garrulus glandarius
Now when it is Christmas holidays we are home during the daytime and we are fortunate to meet squirrel too.
[attachimg=3]
Sciurus vulgaris
Marit
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Thank you Maggi :)
I tried to go back and fix my post but it was a mess. But other attempts went well?
Marit ;)
Marit - some of your pictures were missing- and I tried to help- but I've made it worse! Sorry! :-*
You can click "modify" by your post to go back to change things.
M
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Marit, these photos are magnificent - feels like the birds are really "here" 8)
Only grey squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) in our garden.... but only one and not very often - the Reds are a little further away at the edge of the city.
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Marit, those photos are extraordinary. They look 3-D. Are you using some special effect?
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See more of these great pictures - including what appears to be the fattest cat in Norway ;) :
http://rantenhagen.blogspot.no/ (http://rantenhagen.blogspot.no/)
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How did it get over to New Zealand Anthony?
Probably accidentally in cargo: http://www.doc.govt.nz/conservation/threats-and-impacts/animal-pests/animal-pests-a-z/rainbow-skinks/ (http://www.doc.govt.nz/conservation/threats-and-impacts/animal-pests/animal-pests-a-z/rainbow-skinks/)
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That's some list Anthony, people introduced animals to other areas years ago and now we are seeing the affects in New Zealand and here in the UK.
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See more of these great pictures - including what appears to be the fattest cat in Norway ;) :
http://rantenhagen.blogspot.no/ (http://rantenhagen.blogspot.no/)
Not fat - it's all fur!
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Yes it is most fur ;D
Marit
Not fat - it's all fur!
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Thank you Gene :)
Nothing special but I use Photoshop and I have got a new photo lens from Santa Claus 8)
Marit
Marit, those photos are extraordinary. They look 3-D. Are you using some special effect?
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That's some list Anthony, people introduced animals to other areas years ago and now we are seeing the affects in New Zealand and here in the UK.
You will notice the Kiwis have re-invented the large white butterfly, calling it the "great white". A little bit of research would have gone a long way here, methinks.
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Yes it is most fur ;D
Marit
Okay, I believe you! :D :-*
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Yes it would, just out of interest Anthony, if I'm been nosey tell me to mind my own, but I noticed you said the kiwis! What do you consider yourself? A honorary kiwi or still a scot?
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Okay, I believe you! :D :-*
I speak from experience - here is our furball Charlotte. Actually, she is quite fat.
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Speaking personally, I don't have a problem with fat ;) ;D (Pot, kettle, black, and all that!)
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Yes it would, just out of interest Anthony, if I'm been nosey tell me to mind my own, but I noticed you said the kiwis! What do you consider yourself? A honorary kiwi or still a scot?
Actually, I was born in Huddersfield, so not sure what I am. I don't think we will stay in New Zealand for ever. Another five or six years and who knows where then? Certainly not somewhere cold!
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So I'm talking to a fellow yorkie, even better :D, I though with the dunblane link you were Scottish. I've been to Huddersfield many times when I lived in gods own county, nice town.
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Lived in Dunblane for over 30 years. 8)
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Have you been in New Zealand long?
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Four years next month.
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Hi,
Not exactly wildlife, but here are the"sister". Only fur on her too ;D
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
Marit :)
Okay, I believe you! :D :-*
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There is a pets thread.
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These are the rare Norwegian Cattus fattus subsp. furriest - clearly wildlife !! I mentioned their photos among Marit's wonderful wild bird photos on her blog site, so that's how they got here..... :D
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Excuse me :)
This was the last time the cats appear here. I know there is a separate place for pets ::) Sorry!
Marit
There is a pets thread.
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No need to apologise.
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One gecko I have seen in a pest-free sanctuary is the Pacific gecko (Hoplodactylus pacificus). http://www.doc.govt.nz/about-doc/news/media-releases/2014/reptile-revival-on-motuihe-island/ (http://www.doc.govt.nz/about-doc/news/media-releases/2014/reptile-revival-on-motuihe-island/)
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Four species of bumble bee were brought over from England to New Zealand between 1880 (at the fourth attempt) to 1906. European honey bees and native bees could not pollinate the red clover crop. This is a black form of Bombus ruderatus.
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I remember we have mentioned before in the forum the pleasure many of us had in watching the TV programmes of Hans and Lottie Haas and their underseas advantures - back in the middle of last century - I read that Lottie Haas has just passed away at the age of 86 :
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/11368317/Lotte-Hass-undersea-film-maker-obituary.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/11368317/Lotte-Hass-undersea-film-maker-obituary.html?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter)
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Anthony, one of those bumble bee species taken over to New Zealand has now been lost from the UK. I was listeneing to a guy on the radio and he was saying they looked into the possibility of using NZ stock for a re-introduction programme but he said they were too inbred and I think they went with Norweigan stock.
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The short-haired bumblebee and the interview was with Dave Goulson, founder of the Bumblebee Conservation Trust. Swedish bees have been released at Romney Marsh, Kent. The full story is recounted in his book 'A Sting in the Tale', which as a good read (and writtenin the same relaxed and engaging style he had when he taught at my Uni) but you can also find out more here: http://www.bumblebeereintroduction.org/ (http://www.bumblebeereintroduction.org/)
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I think it was Bombus subterraneus that they tried, and failed, with New Zealand stock. The hibernating queens died, so they used Swedish stock. This shows the bees we have here: http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/interactive/11163/distribution-of-bumblebees (http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/interactive/11163/distribution-of-bumblebees) and http://www.terrain.net.nz/friends-of-te-henui-group/local-flies/bumble-bee.html (http://www.terrain.net.nz/friends-of-te-henui-group/local-flies/bumble-bee.html)
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and NZ queens have recently been sent back to England
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How recently Mark? I thought it failed, so they tried Swedish stock. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short-haired_bumblebee (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short-haired_bumblebee)
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last couple of years. I didn't hear it failed. Nearly sure it was on Countryfile
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2013 http://www.rspb.org.uk/whatwedo/projects/details.aspx?id=299380 (http://www.rspb.org.uk/whatwedo/projects/details.aspx?id=299380)
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Yes, the NZ stock was too inbred, so they seem to have been successful with bees from Sweden.
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I've been enjoying the seed heads of my cardoons as they dry out, but the galahs have found them and find the seeds irresistible.
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This is a video I took last year of a Hare less than 25 feet away in the field at the back of our garden. It's quite a long clip but worth staying with as it washes its ears towards the end.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=j46b9Qxnj7w (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j46b9Qxnj7w#ws)
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That's was beautiful David well done, the hare population where I am is starting to pick now since the wretch next door was banned from chasing them with his lurchers, needless to say we don't speak to each other very often.
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We have a good population of hares on the local extinct volcano that is Greenmount. They move out onto the football pitches at night. Very "Watership Down" seeing the silhouettes against the sky or lit buildings.
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must be a beautiful site Anthony, but wasn't watership down about rabbits if my memory serves me right?
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must be a beautiful site Anthony, but wasn't watership down about rabbits if my memory serves me right?
It was, John, but, like the bald man with a rabbit on his head, it looks like hair from a distance.......
;) ;D ;D :P
(sorry, dreadful joke but I couldn't help myself!)
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That is true Maggi, I can only tell them apart if I have my binoculars on or see them boxing, not long now before they are running about like mad things. Your joke wasn't too bad, I've told a lot worse ones ;D
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;D ;D ;D
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This is a video I took last year of a Hare less than 25 feet away in the field at the back of our garden. It's quite a long clip but worth staying with as it washes its ears towards the end.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=j46b9Qxnj7w (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j46b9Qxnj7w#ws)
I like the way it stretches its toes while cleaning the foot
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The hare always seems to have an eye on you mark to see what you are doing.
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The hare always seems to have an eye on you mark to see what you are doing.
It was watching me all the time I was filming. Given how close I was to it I was amazed that it just sat there continuing its routine. We think it was a female and may have been about to give birth. I saw it again several times but never so close again and we couldn't see any young. I doubt I will ever see something like this again.
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Sorry David
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It's amazing how close you can be to animals if you are perfectly still. I once watched a squirrel moving her young from one drey to another. I was fairly close to the new home and saw her bounce along the ground with a second then a third baby then up a tree. My husband then appeared and did not understand me signalling to keep quiet. They carry the babies holding them by the tummy with their legs curled up by mum's head. Unfortunately I did not have my camera at the time.
I had not seen a Goldcrest for a long time. Earlier this week I was standing admiring Galanthus 'Magnet' when one landed on the wall between my garden and my brother's less than 6 feet from me. It then flew into the Chamaecyparis. I did get a rather blurry pic of it on the ground.
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Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis) The bottom fell out of the bird feeder this morning and the Goldfinches are having a party on the ground.
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Michael, if we ever had 17 Goldfinches in the garden we'd faint clean away with delight.
On the other hand, we are very fortunate to be able to enjoy the "peeping" and busy hunting and flitting of Goldcrests every day. We get closest to them though glass - just a pity all the windows here are so filthy! :-[
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This green Woodpecker is a visitor to our garden several times a year. They are very shy but we do have rather a lot of ants in the lawn and that is what they like. This was taken last week.
http://youtu.be/PSnLa3mhJgw (http://youtu.be/PSnLa3mhJgw)
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Amazing experience David. We get flocks of goldfinches feeding on the seeding grass on the football pitches near us. Don't get as close as you Michael, except when they sit in ones and twos on the wire fence.
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This male great spotted Woodpecker is a regular visitor particularly when the pair have young to feed. We see both the male and female and sometimes both at the same time and they stay for a considerable amount of time.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4sMtCtjplM (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4sMtCtjplM#ws)
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Over the years the bird life in our garden has changed. The year we moved in was 1971. The rows of houses had just been built on what was farmland. We had Curlews, Oystercatchers, Skylarks puzzled as to where the fields had gone. Our residents were House Sparrows, Blackbirds and Starlings. In Autumn, we had Tawny Owls calling from the roofs and Vixens calling in the evenings and Grey Partridges about 200 yards away. We even had a few Red Squirrels.
Goldfinches are an everyday regular now along with Tree Sparrows-four appeared some weeks ago for the first time. Our House Sparrows have made a come-back and number about 15. The Starlings seem to be increasing also For the 44 years we have been here, our regulars have been Robins, Great,Blue and Coal Tits,Wrens, Goldcrests, Dunnocks, Blackbirds and Song Thrush - sadly now only occasionally .
Newcomers include Redpolls, Siskins,Blackcaps (in Winter) Yellowhammers, Magpies, Wood Pigeons, Rooks,Jackdaws and Carrion Crows. The latter are now fearless. They refuse to fly off when I come out the back door. Nuthatches breed within two miles of me and I half expect one to turn up soon.
I even had an Alpine Swift hawking over my garden several years backm an Osprey being mobbed as it flew north and a White Tailed Eagle high in the sky heading for Arran.
I wonder what the scene will be in another 40 odd years.
Some pictures of a Black Redstart and Green Winged Teal which are overwintering and a disturbing picture of a horse licking a dead chicken
Vampire tendencies ?
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Had this bad boy in the garden this morning,and he /she was very approachable,we went out for about 10 minutes and when we arrived home it had a magpie............feathers everwhere
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One for Sorrow....
It's a she.
With raptors, as in human society, the males are the weaker sex! ;)
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Red squirrel enjoying the peanuts in the birdfeeder, then having a drink from a puddle. It has built a drey in our Korean spruce, about 10m from our living room window.
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Michael, if we ever had 17 Goldfinches in the garden we'd faint clean away with delight.
On a good day I get up to 200
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Carolyn - I do hope your squirrel raises a great family in your garden.
Mark - that must be why the goldfinches are so scarce here - they're all in Ireland!
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Carolyn you are so lucky to have red squirrels in your garden, the only time I have seed one was in the highland wildlife park years ago.
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I was tidying up my gentians in pots today and disturbed this little grasshopper.
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Never seen one like that Roma
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What a day today. 8c but very warm. Loads of white-tailed and buff-tailed bumble bees working the crocus in the garden. Lots of droneflies too and a lone small tortoiseshell. It was supposed to be a day of weeding but it soon stopped. Topped up the tan instead
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I was tidying up my gentians in pots today and disturbed this little grasshopper.
It should be Tetrix undulata, the only Tetrix in Scotland : http://www.orthoptera.org.uk/species/account.aspx?ID=31 (http://www.orthoptera.org.uk/species/account.aspx?ID=31)
This is a young one (larva).
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Looks mature and winged to me. For young I would say nymph rather than larva. Larva implies complete metamorphosis with maggots or caterpillers etc.
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Thanks, Yvain and Anthony. It is fascinating what you can find among the plants if you look closely.
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Anthony, sorry, it's indeed an adult (imago) but not because it looks winged. Wings are hidden by the long pronotum and juvenile have the same look. On this picture, you can't see the wings, not even the tegmina. The criteria are on the posterior knee where the dorsal carina is interrupted just before the knee (adult), the dorsal carina is prolonged on the knee in juveniles. Not easy to explain, so here are few pictures. I didn't well remember these criteria that why I needed to have a close look on it.
Young
http://www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/ref-131138.htm (http://www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/ref-131138.htm)
http://www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/ref-62506.htm (http://www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/ref-62506.htm)
http://www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/ref-116920.htm (http://www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/ref-116920.htm)
Adult
http://www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/ref-63497.htm (http://www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/ref-63497.htm)
http://www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/ref-118170.htm (http://www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/ref-118170.htm)
Ps: juvenile/larva/nymph : it's a traduction mistake. Young grasshopper are sometimes called "larve" or "juvénile" in french, but never "nymphe"
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It's amazing indeed what you can find. I see hardly any grasshoppers here in New Zealand. Too many introduced birds eating them? I must try sweep netting some undisturbed grassland and see what appears.
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Interesting behaviour today. I drove by a recently killed grey squirrel. On the way back there was a live one sitting beside it. Do squirrels pair for the summer or maybe life?
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Mark,
I have been reading up about (red) squirrels. Apparently they mate, then the male takes no further part in bringing up his family, so I expect the answer to your query is no.
An update now on our red squirrel: a second squirrel has arrived in the garden and was exploring the bird feeders and the trees. It's slightly lighter in colour. I have a couple more photos to show - the first just showing how cute our furry friend is and the second one maybe indicates that this is a lactating female? (zoom in on the relevant part and you'll see). Any squirrel experts out there?
Sorry about the reflections in the glass for the 2nd photo - the sun came out)
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Checking up on his flat mate? ::)
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Checking up on his flat mate? ::)
Possibly, but he's just this minute made a hole in the middle of a saxifrage to hide some peanuts!
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From HortWeek Daily/Garden Retail: (http://www.hortweek.com/court-rules-friends-earth-criticism-bayer-thiacloprid-products-freedom-expression/plant-health/article/1337911?DCMP=EMC-CONGardenRetail&bulletin=garden-retail-bulletin) 12th March 2015
"Court rules Friends of the Earth criticism of Bayer thiacloprid products is 'freedom of expression'
Bayer has failed in its attempt to sue Friends of the Earth Germany over the pressure group's claims that thiacloprid harms bees.
A ruling by a judge in Dusseldorf on 11 March found that the environmental group had a right to voice its concerns, Friends of the Earth (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) bees campaigner Dave Timms said.
"Now we want to see action from the European Commission to ensure that any pesticides with evidence of harm to bees are taken off our shelves and out of our fields for good," he said.
The campaigners want the neonicotinoid thiacloprid banned. The chemical is legal to sell in Britain. Three other neonicotinoid pesticides were subject to a temporary ban in the EU from 2013.
Thiacloprid is used on crops in the UK in products such as Bayer Provado Ultimate Bug Killer, Multirose Bug Killer and Baby Bio House Plant Insecticide and Scotts’ Bug Clear and Rose Clear.
Bayer said it regrets the decision in favour of Friends of the Earth Germany (known as BUND).
It said the court pointed out the product is classified as "not harmful to bees" and labelled in accordance with binding legal regulations. The court decided BUND's allegations were freedom of expression, which deserves special protection. Bayer CropScience will wait for the written judgement before taking any other potential steps.
Bayer had filed the injunction arguing BUND publications on Bayer products Calypso and Lizetan Ornamental Plant Spray are incorrect. The German Federal Office for Consumer Protection and Food Safety classified the product as not harmful to bees after evaluation.
Bayer Garden product manager Alison Mulvaney said: "The key point to understand about this judgement is that relates purely to freedom of speech. It contains no comment whatsoever on the accuracy or otherwise of the statements being made by BUND. The essential point is that Bayer’s thiacloprid-based products have officially been classified as ’not harmful for bees’ and continue to be so."
Friends of the Earth is now asking the European Commission to take a precautionary approach by suspending all uses of thiacloprid and to review its safety. The environment charity will be contacting retailers in the UK asking them to stop selling products containing thiacloprid. "
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I would like to send pictures of wildlife but my machine warns me against using the picture sizer. Is there a general email address I could send them to?
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Ian, because of the nature of the programme needed to resize the pix some machines will "warn" against loading it - that is a protection against unknown internet sources. The link form the SRGC is quite safe. I got the same message when I installed the re-sizer.
I regret that I do not have time to routinely resize and add pictures for members.
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Thanks Maggi, I,ll give it a go.
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I have loaded the re-sizer to desktop. Dragged and dropped an image to the re-sizer. How do I put it on to the wildlife blog?
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This thread should be of help : http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=65.0 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=65.0) and this post has specifics :
http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=65.msg266604#msg266604 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=65.msg266604#msg266604)
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Andromeda on a local reserve. Still not working. There is no Browse option and if I click on the image re-sizer the machine tries to send the re-sizer not the image it contains. ???
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I use the free app Irfanview and manually resize. You just click "Attachments and other options" below, then "Choose File" just like attaching to an email.
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Ian :if I remember correctly, the resizer offers you the chance to save the resized images to a computer folder of your choice. Then you follow the instructions, given in the thread I cited, to retrieve the photo and post it .
I know Anthony and others use Irfanview with great success too.
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Thanks Anthony, I have loaded the SRGC image re-sizer and followed Maggis instructions. When I click on Attachments there is no Browser option as mentioned in Maggis post. If I try to attach the image by clicking on the re-sizer the machine tries to load the re-sizer not the image it contains. I have the drag and drop re-sizer which says....Image saved as SRGC-image_3517 but can,t get this from the resizer to the post.
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Andromeda on a local reserve.
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Thanks Maggi. Modern machines are too complicated for me. Perhaps Anthony would know what this grasshopper is. Heath? On my machine it says choose file, instead of Browse.
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Thanks Maggi. Modern machines are too complicated for me. Perhaps Anthony would know what this grasshopper is. Heath? On my machine it says choose file, instead of Browse.
Not easy, the picture is quite small and I can't see some important details of the wing and the antennae. There's not many species like this in UK, and I would say a Myrmeleotettix maculatus female. Very small and usually in sunny, dry, sandy area. The female can have different color, see here http://www.orthoptera.org.uk/species/account.aspx?ID=48 (http://www.orthoptera.org.uk/species/account.aspx?ID=48) and here http://www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/esp-page.php?genre=myrmeleotettix&espece=maculatus (http://www.galerie-insecte.org/galerie/esp-page.php?genre=myrmeleotettix&espece=maculatus)
The two other species which can be quite similar are Chorthippus brunneus and Stenobothrus stigmaticus.
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Hello John, I,m afraid not. I live in a very large village but have recorded over 70 species in and from my back garden. If people do not get fed up with my pictures I have many more of wildlife of all groups. Like most naturalists I see wildlife of other groups than my specific interest, which consists of plants.
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hi ian it would be great t see them.
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Carolyn, this is "freddie," perhaps it should be freda?"
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Red squirrels! Ian you lucky so & so :)
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Interesting behaviour today. I drove by a recently killed grey squirrel. On the way back there was a live one sitting beside it. Do squirrels pair for the summer or maybe life?
Mark, did you see this headline on the BBC news website on 13th Feb? -
"A baby red squirrel found clinging to its dead mother in Aberdeenshire is being cared for by the Scottish SPCA."
Ian, super photo of your squirrel. We have now realised that we have three different squirrels in the garden. There has been logging going on in the woods near us and we think that perhaps loss of habitat has driven the other squirrels to our garden.
We are still hoping for babies in the drey- the (female?) squirrel can be seen going up and down the tree early every morning and in the late afternoon.
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Hello Carolyn, I think we are seeing more birds in the garden due to habitat destruction in the name of "progress." Peatland destruction for horticulture img 122. Cloudscape 1996? img 125. Oyster plant, Mertensia maritima img 128. Wood ants nest img 127.
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Saw my first summer migrants today. Four sand martins feeding over the river in my town
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Large Heath.
Not photographed in March though. Looks like a southern form.
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Hello Anthony, you are right. The local population has not been seen for some years on this site, so a local idiot decided to introduce some. The ones seen after his interference have been traced to a Shropshire population. He thinks he is the expert but he is wrong. He openly boasted on a TV programme that the authorities cannot do anything about his activities. Natural England are, as you would expect, not pleased.
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I agree Ian. These butterflies, and others, like the grayling, have so many local forms that could be wiped out by this sort of interference.
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These Pheasants are in my and neighbours gardens everyday. Sometimes as many as 6 hens, but rarely more than 3 cocks.[attach=1]
They let me work in the garden too as long as I don't approach them directly, and sometimes wander past me while I am working. If I don't notice them and walk too close they take off suddenly. Can be quite a surprise if I am looking at pots not for big birds. They mostly scavenge the bird feeder spillage and stand underneath looking up apparently saying "more". Not needed the rat traps in the background for some months now. Appear to find a lot of things to eat all over the garden.
That is the problem.
Planted out a group of mature Hellebores recently to the right of where this photo was taken, and started filling in and edging with a number of other plants. Last week I planted 5 pots of Erythronium dens-canis, all in bud. Today I noticed not 1 bud left. Just stalks. They also seem to like a deep pink primula 'John Fielding' but leave the similarly coloured sax close by. I have several lots of tulips about to come into flower.
I get the feeling my garden is going to end up with lots of protective netting around.
Not seen the deer recently thankfully.
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Interesting colour variation in the pheasant hens,Brian. I don't see them in the garden but a black pheasant cock has been around for about 5 years. He feeds under a neighbour's bird table and I see him a lot where my ponies graze. He usually roosts at night in a pine tree, but not always the same tree and makes a terrible noise as he flies off to bed. I have seen three other cocks around but have not seen a hen this year.
This morning I saw a squirrel collecting dead grass from a pile of strimmed grass and lawn mowings, rolling it into a ball and off up into the trees. I saw her do this at least 6 times.
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Managed to catch the black pheasant tonight. He was rummaging in the straw I feed to the ponies and would have ignored me if I did not look at him but as soon as I got the camera out he started walking away. I can never get close enough for a good picture.
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Beautiful bird roma, we only get the usual ones down here.
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Hello Roma, a farmer friend told me the term for this type of black pheasant is melanistic. This is the opposite of leucistic, which means a white form.
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The pheasant markings are quite variable. A very dark cock was around last year but not seen it lately. The white neck collar is not always present on some.
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Been there. Had to identify 6000+ spiders, mostly "money spiders" - there's 100+ kinds in the UK, for my honours project, from 85 monthly collected pitfall traps on the island of Inchcailloch in Loch Lomond. Looking at their naughty bits under a microscope stretched the patience! One species was originally described in my identification book (British Spiders by Locket and Millidge) with the male and female being different species in different genera. I caught the second Scottish, and first male, specimen of it:(Walckenaeria incisa)!
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Sounds like heaven, Anthony! The Linyphiidae are my favourite group. I'm still working through some samples collected last summer but can't seem to find enough time. Less seed sowing would leave more time for spider ID ::)
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I still have my Olympus VMZ microscope, bought in 1978. Interesting looking at the distribution. My supervisor said the distribution of spiders in L & M reflected where they lived and where they went on holiday.
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Thanks Anthony, Chris and Matt.
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Sloe shield bug img 0534. Bog bush cricket img 0060. A pair of tigers, img 00055. A damsel img 013.
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Tricky one, Ian! Is it a diminutive birch?
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Sorry Matt, good try though.
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Alder?
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Not that either, Anthony.
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I thought Anthony had it there. What a teaser!
It's a fragrant shrub with a strong wind in it's name!
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Re posting Ian McD's quiz picture to this page ....
" The description of this flower in Clapham, Tutin and Warburg is very long, but what is it? Male flower to follow. img 0420."
[attachimg=1]
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Re posting Ian McD's quiz picture to this page ....
" The description of this flower in Clapham, Tutin and Warburg is very long, but what is it? Male flower to follow. img 0420."
(Attachment Link)
Myrica gale? (bog myrtle)
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That,s it Ashley.
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A beautiful plant Ian, and fine photos.
Years ago I learned from a Danish friend to pick flower buds from late summer onwards then extract them in vodka or schnapps to make a nice bitter 8)
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Ashley, I have just been to the "local patch" today and the bog myrtle is nearly in flower. A wonderful sight when they are out. All plants seen are male.
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Today's photo of our red squirrel shows quite clearly that this is a female. She has been busy for most of the day, getting peanuts from the feeder or searching for the beech mast which she buried last autumn. She has also been fending off another more orange squirrel who has also appeared on the scene and who has been trying to steal the buried beech masts. She was waving her tail, which I think they do when angry or under threat. We are keeping our fingers crossed for babies in the drey, which is about 10m from our living room window.
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Hello Anthony, I don,t think it is beetle. Perhaps Maggi could enlarge it?
Sorry, nothing I can do about that - it would need to be zoned in on and enlarged from a larger file sized photo.
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Looks like a beetle larva to me. Oiceoptoma thoracica: http://www.agefotostock.com/en/Stock-Images/Rights-Managed/BWI-BS308511 (http://www.agefotostock.com/en/Stock-Images/Rights-Managed/BWI-BS308511)
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Just watched one of my favourite programmes Countryfile and they were ringing baby Grey Herons. Well I know where I would like to put a ring ( sorry ) on the one that has just picked holes in my twenty year old Golden Orfe. Time to put this poor boy out of his misery. Herons are beautiful birds but not when they are at my pond.
They say they are protected, is it because their numbers are low, they don't seem to be when it comes to my garden. Not a good picture and there was one in the pond already.
Angie :(
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Hi angie I think it's time to invest in some netting before you loose anymore fish.
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Thanks Anthony.
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Just been sitting at the window drinking coffee and watching a couple of crows gathering nest material. When I had my lovely birch trees chopped in 2013 I got the tree surgeon to cut an untidy Cryptomeria japonica elegans back to about 6 foot and trim off the remaining branches. (I am hoping to get a rose to climb up it and maybe a clematis if the rose grows a bit better). The dead bark peels off in strips so the crows were pulling off 2 or 3 strips and flying off to their nest.
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My partially prepared sand bed is a good indicator of who visited me during the night. A single row of Roe deer prints were obvious a week or so ago, but I was confused by disturbed sand in one part this week. Investigated today and dug up a squirrel corpse. Seems a fox thought my sand bed was a good place to store it. It is now openly displayed for the Red Kytes. A bit gritty though.
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Are Red Kytes very common in your area Brian, I've never seen them in Devon/Cornwall. A couple of months ago I was on the M4, somewhere between Reading and Slough and saw four of them quartering the motorway verges.
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Very common David. Unusual not to see several above me during the day when I am in the garden. Most entertaining when they "dice" and call to one another. If looking for anticipated food they come down to roof level and will sit on the ground if undisturbed, but usually use local trees. A report in todays paper says numbers of 20-30 being attracted into Reading because of feeding. A feeding frenzy on a housing estate looks positively dangerous at times. Often accompanied by Buzzards too. Never seen one perched on a building. Although primarily carrion feeders they will take slow moving small birds and animals I understand; e.g. ducklings.
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We hardly ever saw red kites in Dunblane because their feeding station was over the hill at Argaty, so they had no need to move very far. I did see one flying across the playing fields of Harrogate Ladies College when our choir was staying there in 2010.
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Birders may find this of interest - Bald Eagles at Sheffield Mills, Nova Scotia:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_I2JHCWD-TQ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_I2JHCWD-TQ)
johnw
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I never realised that Robins had such an extensive vocabulary.
http://youtu.be/lx3NCNYSniI (http://youtu.be/lx3NCNYSniI)
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About five years ago I got rid of my fish and left my pond as a wildlife one.
This year several common newts have appeared and one which I cannot identify.
It is about six inches long as opposed to the four inches of the common ones and much stouter altogether.
The colour in the picture is reasonably accurate.
I am wondering what it is?
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Great to have attracted newts to your pond, Tony. They're fascinating creatures and really benefit from fish-free ponds.
The pale colouration and smooth skin of your animal is typical of the smooth newt Lissotriton vulgaris, the most commonly occurring species. However, at 6 inches this would be an unusually large specimen. Only the great crested newt Triturus cristatus will typically reach this size in the UK, but it's skin is much darker and very warty. My money would be on a large female smooth newt.
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He's been using his 'man' ruler ;D
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We're lucky to have quite a large population of newts in the garden. I assume ( have always assumed) that they are Smooth Newts ( they're all smooth- and I have seen crested newts elsewhere) . But, none are ever much beyond three inches/8cm at most. Most of them are around 7cm I guess. Colour vary from mid brown to quite dark brown/green. They have the most glorious markings. I am very fond of them.
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He's been using his 'man' ruler ;D
Steel rule i have moved on.
Thanks for your help,I am delighted to have them.
I must say it did not show much interest when the puny specimens were trying it on!
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I never realised that Robins had such an extensive vocabulary.
"this is my garden and if you come too close you're in for a beating!"
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Update on my squirrel corpse. The "fox" returned a couple of nights ago and dug down again for its corpse, even though it was openly displayed just 20 feet or so away. Had to move the decaying corpse as we had a dog visiting. It is now on the outside of our fence but still accessible to scavengers.
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This marvelous fellow has been in this hemlock tree all winter long. Ken has been working in this city garden even pruning the hemlock and the Barred Owl doesn't move aside from head turns. Seems he's been dining on squab whilst there's snow on the ground. It's certainly not been an easy winter or spring on robins, woodcocks and migratory birds in general etc. so heartening to see this magnificent specimen.
johnw
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Never ceases to amaze me how wildlife can be so trusting- I suppose there are just times when they sense that the human is no threat and so remain calm and don't waste any unnecessary energy moving off. Smart cookies!
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Just a cool dude. 8)
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Here's another cool dude. Somehow he wound up in a fire pit. Released and seems fine.
johnw
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And another friend just sent this pic of a woodcock at her front door garden. Wonderful creatures.
johnw
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We have one in the garden every now and again - goodness knows why - we're very nearly in the city! Beautiful birds.
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Used to get one roding, going along the back of our estate in Dunblane. Fascinating sound.
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There's an article here (http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/new-guinea-flatworm-foreign-worm-that-could-wipe-out-britains-snails-arrives-in-europe-via-potted-plant-imports-9211140.html) about the risk of accidental introduction of New Guinea flatworm Platydemus manokwari through the horticultural trade.
It's interesting that another alien, the Australian flatworm Australoplana sanguinea, doesn't seem to have caused the devastation predicted. At least in my garden they are (much) less common than before, while earthworms are about as common as ever. There seem to be some environmental checks operating although I don't know what.
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Lots of tadpoles in the ponies' water hole but it is going to dry up soon if we do not get more rain.
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Lots of tadpoles in the ponies' water hole but it is going to dry up soon if we do not get more rain.
Roma you will have to be out with a bucket and save them ;D
Angie :)
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I never realised that Robins had such an extensive vocabulary.
http://youtu.be/lx3NCNYSniI (http://youtu.be/lx3NCNYSniI)
I enjoyed that - he listens so intently to the reply and never interrupts, what a polite little chap. I reckon he's saying something like - "Ye Gods, I wish that Chiff-Chaff would shut up!"
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I miss seeing robins. I'm gazing out of our window looking at a flock of house sparrows devouring scraps on our front lawn. Brought to New Zealand in the 1860s as a pest control. Other species like the greenfinch, chaffinch, blackbird, song thrush and goldfinch were brought as settlers "missed" the birds from back home. So why no robins? ::)
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Some promising new research on the bat fungus which is kiiing bats across North America. Press Listen at CBC's Quirks & Quarks below.
http://www.cbc.ca/radio/quirks/quirks-quarks-for-april-18-2015-1.3037881/fighting-bat-fungus-with-bacteria-1.3037920 (http://www.cbc.ca/radio/quirks/quirks-quarks-for-april-18-2015-1.3037881/fighting-bat-fungus-with-bacteria-1.3037920)
johnw
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14 common swifts were seen in one flock in N Ireland yesterday at the south end of Lough Neagh
If you listen to dunnocks singing they also wait for the other territorial male to stop and hen reply
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We saw swifts (I'm reliably informed by she who knows all!) in Padstow at Easter.
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Some promising new research on the bat fungus which is kiiing bats across North America. Press Listen at CBC's Quirks & Quarks below.
http://www.cbc.ca/radio/quirks/quirks-quarks-for-april-18-2015-1.3037881/fighting-bat-fungus-with-bacteria-1.3037920 (http://www.cbc.ca/radio/quirks/quirks-quarks-for-april-18-2015-1.3037881/fighting-bat-fungus-with-bacteria-1.3037920)
johnw
That's good news, John.
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Anne - One can only hope there are enough bats left to treat. Many of the caves here are empty as is the nearby belfry which, for as long as I can remember,
was home to dozens.
johnw
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Smuggled jewelled geckos (Naultinus gemmeus) have been repatriated to New Zealand after being confiscated from a gecko smuggler in Germany in December 2013. Not sure why it took so long to return them. Alas, they will have to remain in captivity. http://www.investigatemagazine.co.nz/Investigate/14319/gecko-arrested-in-germany-deported-to-nz/?doing_wp_cron=1429364023.8418960571289062500000 (http://www.investigatemagazine.co.nz/Investigate/14319/gecko-arrested-in-germany-deported-to-nz/?doing_wp_cron=1429364023.8418960571289062500000)
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Under the roof overhang today.
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We saw swifts (I'm reliably informed by she who knows all!) in Padstow at Easter.
I think Easter is a bit early. My first swift arrived back yesterday. This is two weeks early
40 were seen at the south end of Lough Neagh on Saturday
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Update on the returned jewelled geckos. As no jewelled geckos have ever been legally exported from New Zealand, they must have been poached from the Otago Peninsula. Alas, they won't ever be returned to the wild. http://blog.doc.govt.nz/2015/04/23/return-of-the-geckos/ (http://blog.doc.govt.nz/2015/04/23/return-of-the-geckos/)
Geckos now get better protection: www.doc.govt.nz/news/media-releases/2013/green-geckos-get-greater-international-protection/ (http://www.doc.govt.nz/news/media-releases/2013/green-geckos-get-greater-international-protection/)
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One of MrsG's finds. ID please.
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A Peacock butterfly in the garden yesterday
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A busy mum's got to eat whatever the weather. Five minutes between the first and last pictures.
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An amazing sight of 1000s of swallow battling strong north west wind and a temperature of only 4c. What you see in front of me was also above me and behind me
Where did our youtube button link go?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZm0NgPJURs (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZm0NgPJURs#ws)
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Where did our youtube button link go?
Still works to load the video here Mark - but you need to make sure the url is simply http:// and not https - I've fixed your link for you. :)
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We spotted a good variety of birdlife on our recent trip to the Netherlands, with great crested grebes particularly abundant and confiding! There were three nests right outside our hotel with the second pic showing the context for these, squeezed between the hotel car park and the marina pontoons (one is obvious, the second is just the other side of the gate/access where you can just see the bird's head and another was at the far end).
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That is amazing. We had a mallard nest in the woods opposite the school used to teach at in Falkirk. Not hidden well enough because the kids found it and had an egg fight! There's a badger set nearby, but it's pretty safe, having been dug into the Antonine Wall.
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amazing to see those grebes like that
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Thanks Maggi
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I rescued some tadpoles the other week. The pond was almost totally dried up. I was surprised how many survivors there were in two scoops of wet mud. I took some duckweed with them and later gave them some chickweed. They seem to be thriving. I'm considering putting them back as there is plenty water coming down the ditch now but it could dry up quickly if we get another heatwave. some summers they get dried out and others they get washed away.
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More tadpoles ;-)
In a new small pond I have added both frog and toad spawn over the last month. Seem to have 2 species and/or generations. Apart from size and the timing of adding can I tell them apart? I added the frog a couple of weeks before the toad.
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Toadpoles are uniformly dark/black in colour whereas frog tadpoles will be a lighter, speckled brownish colour, which will be more noticeable as they get larger. Also, frog tadpoles may appear to have a deeper tail (i.e. including the transluscent part on top and bottom of the tail) than toadpoles.
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A neighbour's cat just got into my robin's nest. If I get my hands on it it will be an ex-moggy.
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sparrows and starlings woke me this morning shouting about a cat that was hiding in the garden
Anne, where was your nest?
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On a trip down to Teesdale yesterday I made the most of the 'beautiful' 8) ;) spring weather and drove around the moors in the steady rain looking for photographic inspiration. This Red Grouse was happy to pose for me whilst I stayed dry in the car.
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That bird looks as "groused off" with the cold rain as we would be. Great portraits though.
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Nice images Peter!!!
Sometimes it's worth going out in the rain -even when you don't leave your car!
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The most beautifully constructed and filmed programme on the 'dawn chorus'.
www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b05ttkx2/dawn-chorus-the-sounds-of-spring (http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b05ttkx2/dawn-chorus-the-sounds-of-spring)
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A very wet squirrel on Sunday
A fine sunny day yesterday so a few butterflies around -a Peacock, one or more small whites, a male Orange Tip and this female Orange Tip. It was the only one which sat still long enough to be photographed.
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Amazing moth photography by James ONeill, 18, here in N Ireland
https://www.facebook.com/JamesONeillWildlifeImages?fref=ts (https://www.facebook.com/JamesONeillWildlifeImages?fref=ts)
The last image is huge and you may have to scroll
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Great photos - from a talented young man .
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oops I linked my page and not his facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/JamesONeillWildlifeImages?fref=ts (https://www.facebook.com/JamesONeillWildlifeImages?fref=ts)
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I was weeding near the fish pond when I noticed this little visitor, there is another somewhere, I can hear him croaking.
[img]https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5446/1686414 (https://flic.kr/p/rGeb21)
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I was weeding near the fish pond when I noticed this little visitor, there is another somewhere, I can hear him croaking.
[img]https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5446/1686414
(https://flic.kr/p/rGeb21)
John I love sitting at the pond at night listening to the frogs, haven't done this lately as its been so cold here. Lots of tadpoles and this year we have baby fish already. Must have been that nice weather we had weeks ago.
Angie :)
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You can't beat it Angie, the wife and I love sitting out here with a drink or two listening to the pond fountain and the wildlife.
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The Orange Ladybird, Halyzia 16 guttata
http://youtu.be/KqM-wmbbuuM (http://youtu.be/KqM-wmbbuuM)
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I was there, I had a camera with me so you may as well get the opportunity to be there too. ;D
http://youtu.be/H_NgP3Pi8W8 (http://youtu.be/H_NgP3Pi8W8)
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I think this says "spring" as much as anything.
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The fantastic journey taken by the Chinese subsp of the common swift, Apus apus pekinensis, has been revealed for the first time
http://saveourswifts.co.uk/chineseswiftmigration.htm (http://saveourswifts.co.uk/chineseswiftmigration.htm)
For some unknown reason one of my swifts dumps an egg hours after it was laid and then gets a beating by the mate
www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJgR_N0sIzw (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJgR_N0sIzw)
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Amazing migration routes - but what on earth is going on with your birds? An intruder trying to oust the resident - not his egg ?? (How would he know??)
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Amazing migration routes - but what on earth is going on with your birds? An intruder trying to oust the resident - not his egg ?? (How would he know??)
It is possible there is an intruder that has taken over the nest and the mate. It has been known to happen. The intruder, much like lions, will want his/her own genes in the egg/s so gets rid of what isn't his/hers
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Amazing migration routes - but what on earth is going on with your birds? An intruder trying to oust the resident - not his egg ?? (How would he know??)
The egg was there before he'd played double decker birdies with the female so he knows it's not his ;)
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This fur seal spent a couple of days wandering around a suburb of Auckland about 20 minutes south of us. http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/city-slicker-no-more-incredible-moment-seal-released-back-into-wild-6320932 (http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/city-slicker-no-more-incredible-moment-seal-released-back-into-wild-6320932)
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http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/beluga-whale-sighting-in-halifax-harbour-sparks-warning-1.3093343 (http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/beluga-whale-sighting-in-halifax-harbour-sparks-warning-1.3093343)
johnw
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Notice of an event this coming Sunday, 7th June, at The Scottish Ornithologists’ Club, Waterston House, Aberlady EH32 0PY, featuring an array of interesting features, including presentations from our esteemed forumist Stan da Prato.
Celebrating Waterston House Garden
Now in its tenth year, the garden at Waterston House has grown to be a popular attraction with the local community and summer visitors, who are treated to a blaze of colour from the beds and wildflower meadows, which are buzzing with life. For the birds we also have a small busy feeding station and the building itself is a regular nesting site for Starlings, Swallows and Tits.
All the events on 7th June are free and entry is on a first come, first served basis on the day. With the exception of the "mothing "event, no advance booking is required, just turn up!
(Tel: 01875 871330)
Programme :
[attachimg=1]
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Polyphemus moth.
Sitting on the driveway this afternoon.
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My first introduction to this moth was in Gene Stratton-Porter's book "Moths of the Limberlost", which my piano teacher gave to me one Christmas.
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This link is to a video on tree wetas. The one shown is the Wellington tree weta, but the Auckland one is just as impressive, then there are those on the islands in the Hauraki Gulf, which are as big as gerbils! http://www.wired.com/2015/06/absurd-creature-of-the-week-weta/ (http://www.wired.com/2015/06/absurd-creature-of-the-week-weta/)
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Near Wellington we met one that snugly over-nighted in my teenage daughter's shoe under the flysheet of her tent :o 8)
Wonderful beasties.
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Wren 999 emergency. Photos taken while rescuing two wrens 9.6.15
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Wren 999 emergency. Photos taken while rescuing two wrens 9.6.15
My word- that's a real emergency - thank goodness you were able to help. Well done!!
We had a blackbird caught up in thread she had built into her nest in a Mutisia the other year. Managed to get her out okay and she went on to raise her chicks successfully, but this must happen with tragic results many times in nests that are not so visible to us.
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Here's one for Mark. Swallows having a dip.
http://youtu.be/ZlUuodTbEDY (http://youtu.be/ZlUuodTbEDY)
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Lots of pollinators around at present.
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A most uncooperative butterfly today at the Truro Rock Garden. After 15 minutes I finally caught him in the act, in the middle of a roadway.
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Worth waiting for, John. A lovely image of a Western Tiger Swallowtail (Papilio rutulus).
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I don't think Papilio rutulus is found in Nova Scotia? More likely to be P. canadensis.
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I'm sure you are right, Anthony. It's easy to forget how large the north American continent is, with distinct species from west to east rather than geographical races.
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Alas, swallowtails is one group that is totally unrepresented in New Zealand. They are introducing the Japanese white admiral to combat honeysuckle. They could be justified introducing a swallowtail to tackle fennel, which is everywhere.
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Wren 999 emergency. Photos taken while rescuing two wrens 9.6.15
Why use gloves?
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No reason except that I prefer to use gloves when gardening. Maybe it helped calm the birds because the gloves are soft. I did have to take the glove off the hand using the scissors. It was easier to pick the thread off by hand without a glove.
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The linden trees in front of the house are grey with lichens. Our air must be reasonably clean.
johnw
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Moths and a centipede (hope this is correct)
Smerinthus ocellatus
Spilosoma lubricipeda
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Local birds that visit the garden.
Passer domesticus
Accipiter nisus
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And a bug.
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Somebody is trying to hide from me.
Angie :)
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Can't imagine anyone trying to hide from you, Angela. Has he got the rest of his family around as well? Cute little fella.
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Yes, Maggi there are two cubs and I think mum. We have so many foxes around and I am pleased to say no rabbits. When we got the fields in front of us we stopped the people shooting as we felt they only wanted the deer and the foxes and rabbits weren't really their target. Don't know if it is the foxes that have got the rabbit numbers down but just happy to see them disappear. Deer population up though.
Angie :)
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A friend has just made me a weta hotel.
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Here's what I hope will take up residence. This one's a male.
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I was cleaning the weeds from the greenhouse grit plunge when I found this insect crawling about. It seemed intent in trying to get under the soil again when I lifted it out.
It was approx. 10mm in length and iridescent. Any ideas as I have failed to find it in any UK Insect recognition book.
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Must have been going to a party dressed like that, Tom. Might be a Cuckoo wasp - Chrysis sp. - though what it would be doing in Ayrshire I don't know. :-\
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Ruby-tailed Wasp (Chrysis ignita) I think.
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http://www.bwars.com/index.php?q=category/taxonomic-hierarchy/wasp/chrysididae/chrysidinae/chrysis/chrysis-ignita (http://www.bwars.com/index.php?q=category/taxonomic-hierarchy/wasp/chrysididae/chrysidinae/chrysis/chrysis-ignita)
Photo (C) Josef Dvorak www.biolib.cz (http://www.biolib.cz) for BWARS
[attachimg=2]
Photo from wikimedia
[attachimg=1]
"Chrysis April 2008-1" by Alvesgaspar - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chrysis_April_2008-1.jpg#/media/File:Chrysis_April_2008-1.jpghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuckoo_wasp (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chrysis_April_2008-1.jpg#/media/File:Chrysis_April_2008-1.jpghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cuckoo_wasp)
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I never though about wasps and only looked up flies ! As it seems harmless I will put it back into the greenhouse soil.
This year we had a Humming bird hawk moth in the garden and a Holly blue butterfly on the same warm April day. Both were a couple of hundred miles farther North than they should have been.
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This year we had a Humming bird hawk moth in the garden and a Holly blue butterfly on the same warm April day. Both were a couple of hundred miles farther North than they should have been.
Hi Tom
Holly Blue is a remarkable record and well outside its normal range. However, Hummingbird Hawk-moth is a regular, if infrequent, migrant over all of Scotland including numerous records from Orkney and Shetland.
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I was just preparing some foto's of my 'bee hotel'. I placed it in the garden to support the bees and for overall enjoyment of myself while obeserving them.
Alas it is more a wasp hotel. It seems that it is mostly inhabited by a wasp Symmorphis bifasciatus, which cleans my garden from small caterpillars, so that's a good job too. And this wasp does not attack and does not like lemonade, so it's welcome. And furthermore I see some varieties of small black bees which I think is be the small campanula bee Chelostoma campunularum and some other species, but these are too fast to take a proper photograph.
But those are the regular inhabitants...
Rob
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The Chrysis ignita is around here too to lay their eggs in the well prepared nesting hole of the Symmorphis wasps so their young can eat both the caterpillars which are meant for the larvea of the Symmorphis and the larvea itself as well. That sounds pretty horrific for such a juwely creature.
But some more strange critters are around. Gasteruption erythrostomum does not need to dive into the nest. It can lay eggs through the clay 'doors' that Symmorphis uses to close down the nests. Once you get to know more about this it is really very fascinating.
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Not everyone likes my hotel. Some bees like more the blue bedding of a Campanula. It looks rather cosy. I know that some Chelastoma males like to stay overnight and in bad weather like this, but I could not identify these. Anyone else?
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Wow, this is fascinating Rob - Thank you!
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Leaf cutters?
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Megachile centuncularis? Seems not unlikely to me Anthony. I will look for the cutout leaves in the vicinity.
Thanks.
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Chris.
I am sure that the Hawk moth had just hatched out locally as it was in pristine condition. Two years ago I had one in the garden in June and then found a larva crawling along the garden path in August. I collected it and gave it to my grandchildren in Edinburgh who overwintered it in their garage in Edinburgh hoping to have a moth hatch out but when they checked it in April, there was no trace of it.
I found out from a member of our local Scottish Ornithologists Group that there has been a colony of Holly Blues in Belle isle park in Ayr, for over 10 years.
My garden would also seem to be the ideal habitat with the gable wall covered in ivy and a mature Holly tree within 8 feet of the ivy.
I am convinced that my Holly Blue had just hatched in the period of warm weather as it was in a fresh condition..
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Holly blues are double brooded, alternating with the first generation feeding on holly, mainly the berries, and the second feeding on ivy flowers.
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OK, not the usual sort of wildlife that we see on this Forum. We have a Big Cat Sanctuary near us, dedicated to conservation of wild cats big and small - see http://www.whf.org.uk/. (http://www.whf.org.uk/.) They have breeding populations of many species, and work with other institutions to conserve threatened species. Not normally open to the public, but they do a range of "experiences", so I bought my cat-mad wife a "Ranger for a Day" experience. She said that she had never seen so much cat poo in here life, but had a wonderful time and got to hand feed the white lions. She took lots of photographs, here are a few.
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More.
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More.
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More.
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Chris.
I am sure that the Hawk moth had just hatched out locally as it was in pristine condition. Two years ago I had one in the garden in June and then found a larva crawling along the garden path in August. I collected it and gave it to my grandchildren in Edinburgh who overwintered it in their garage in Edinburgh hoping to have a moth hatch out but when they checked it in April, there was no trace of it.
I found out from a member of our local Scottish Ornithologists Group that there has been a colony of Holly Blues in Belle isle park in Ayr, for over 10 years.
My garden would also seem to be the ideal habitat with the gable wall covered in ivy and a mature Holly tree within 8 feet of the ivy.
I am convinced that my Holly Blue had just hatched in the period of warm weather as it was in a fresh condition..
Tom
An interesting local population. The national database suggests northern England as its most northerly distribution on a regular basis. Good years will see them spreading out but these are not always sustained.
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The change in butterfly and moth populations in the last 40 years has been spectacular. Forty years ago there were no peacocks, commas or orange tip butterflies in Central Scotland (Stirlingshire and South Perthshire). Now all three are reasonably common here. I can't comment on the moths as I stopped trapping on a regular basis twenty years ago, and many moths migrate long distances, whereas butterfly migrants tend to be restricted to a few well known species, and none of the above.
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The change in butterfly and moth populations in the last 40 years has been spectacular. Forty years ago there were no peacocks, commas or orange tip butterflies in Central Scotland (Stirlingshire and South Perthshire). Now all three are reasonably common here. I can't comment on the moths as I stopped trapping on a regular basis twenty years ago, and many moths migrate long distances, whereas butterfly migrants tend to be restricted to a few well known species, and none of the above.
We have found the same in the east of West Lothian. I remember getting very excited when the kids said we had Peacock butterflies in the garden. It was about 10 years after that before we saw the Orange tips. Both are now common but the Comma is a rare visitor. I thought I might have bought them in on plants from south of the border. Tortoiseshells used to be our most common species but even they are seen less often. I caught this one feasting in the garden last evening.
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Unlikely to have brought commas in on plants, unless you are transporting hop plants or elm trees. They have spread naturally. I saw my first in Dunblane in 2009. 100 years ago they were confined to three central counties in England.
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We have found the same in the east of West Lothian. I remember getting very excited when the kids said we had Peacock butterflies in the garden. It was about 10 years after that before we saw the Orange tips. Both are now common but the Comma is a rare visitor. I thought I might have bought them in on plants from south of the border. Tortoiseshells used to be our most common species but even they are seen less often. I caught this one feasting in the garden last evening.
Small Tortoiseshells used to be one of the commonest butterflies but suffered a catastrophic decline over a number of years; it is are now on the increase again. I recorded Orange Tip in woodland near Stornoway last year (second Outer Hebrides record), and hopeful that a small colony will develop. It will never be common as this is the only suitable habitat here.
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While Cindy was wandering round a craft fair in Troon. I went to the harbour and was lucky enough to have close encounters with an Icelandic Gull and some Black Guilemots
resting on the harbour wall. The first winter gull was hanging about with some immature Herring Gulls outside the "Wee Hurrie" chip shop - gulls are always on the scrounge.
As it posed nicely, I gave it a piece of my muesli bar !
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After our meeting at the FCHS Hall on Saturday we saw this chap (Laughing Kookaburra-Dacelo novaeguineae) sitting on a boulder outside and it made a dive into the garden to come up with an earthworm - well, snakes are hibernating at this time of year! We have them at home hunting mice, I think,
cheers
fermi
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This adult male katydid (bush cricket - Caedicia simplex) surprised me this afternoon.
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Caterpillars
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My red mason bees were a disaster this year. I had about 150 cocoons. April was hot with high teens centigrade with c.100 emerging. Most gave me the finger and flew away never to be seen again. c.50 didn't emerge. May then went very cold with little or no activity due to freezing nights and as low as 4c during the day. With a life span of only 6 weeks most females died from starvation and the cold temperatures. I only have 4 filled tubes.
Will anyone have spare cocoons of red mason or other solitary bees next year?
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Caterpillars
Frazer, these look like Ground Lackeys but that species is southern and coastal. Can I ask you where you found them and the plant species they were on?
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Had been nice, Mark but I don't think I am allowed to import them :(
My foxgloves are very often visited by bumblebees and yesterday was no exception. One of the bees was very big - a queen presumably, but late in the season? Thought they were busy laying eggs.
[attach=1]
A gang of rather big stinging wasps were collecting nectar at this angelica. The wasps eat nectar as grown-up but meat as larvae to get protein.
[attach=2]
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One of the bees was very big - a queen presumably, but late in the season? Thought they were busy laying eggs.
Hoy - In northern and western climates such as ours, bumblebees often don't appear until June to coincide with their particular food-plants. In particularly cold and wet seasons (such as this year), queens can be seen on the wing in July. On Sunday I recorded queens of Bombus muscorum, Bombus lucorum and Bombus distinguendus.
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I have bumblebees in the garden at most times of the year. Around Christmas time/early January they congregate around the blossom on my Mahonia x media 'Charity'.
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Can someone ID this butterfly or moth for me? Unfortunately it was dead when I picked it up in the parking lot near Carnegie Park in Dunfermline.
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Looks like a large yellow underwing moth (Noctua pronuba).
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Looks like a large yellow underwing moth (Noctua pronuba).
Thank you. It is apparently a common moth in UK but I cannot recall see those brightly coloured underwings before.
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It's dragonfly season, so I thought I'd post a couple of pictures from a nearby pond:
Common Darter (Sympetrum striolatum) - immature male (they turn orange-red in a few days)
Four-spotted Chaser (Libellula quadrimaculata)
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A squirrel yesterday with a bundle of drey lining material. I think it was some stringy bark from the firewood.
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I wasn't going to show this as it has nothing to do with rock gardens, but I wanted to try out the image-resizing ;)
Beautiful Carpet, new record for the Uists.
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Like Chris thought I'd try the new image-resizing too with some photo's from the farm this week :D
Baby Swallow outside my office window (don't you think they have evil faces!)
A mole out in the daylight - something I've never seen here before.
A beautiful birds nest fallen from a tree, more like a work of art and made from mainly badger hair, moss and lichens.
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Had been nice, Mark but I don't think I am allowed to import them :(
There are now wild colonies of red masons in Belfast nesting in holes in houses made from Belfast red bricks. I know someone who caught many and brought them to his house
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The fabled piebald deer spotted recently in Halifax County has appeared in a garden Ken tends. Here it is eating a rhododendron today. He, not amused.
john
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Won't munching rhododendrons poison it? A friend here though that deer died in her garden after browsing rhodos.
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Deer (and sheep) have munched my rhodos without dying. But they select the ones they browse so maybe they avoid the most toxic?
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In some plants leaf toxicity increases with age of leaf.
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Won't munching rhododendrons poison it? A friend here though that deer died in her garden after browsing rhodos.
They have eaten thousands of rhododendrons from a friend's nursery, lepidotes, elepidotes, and all azaleas. They've also eaten rows & rows of yew, an entire field of hollies (excluding I. pedunculosa and I. opaca), all the euonymus and so it goes. None have died. This usually happens in the very early hours of the morning between mid-December and late February.
Anthony - Toxicity doesn't seem to affect the INTRODUCED white-tailed deer here. As for Narcissus they bite off the flower then drop them. Prunus laurocerasus apparently is very toxic in winter but edible in summer. The province is crawling with deer and they surely must be disrupting ecology.
Turned out the piebald was eating a blue holly down.....
john
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Roe deer have eaten rhododendrons in my garden and I remember a golden yew being eaten by deer in the Cruickshank Garden.Their metabolism must be designed to cope with a certain amount of toxic material.
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I can understand eating holly. European holly increases the number of spines on its leaves the closer to the ground they grow to deter browsing. It's an interesting biology project we used to do in Scotland.
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Anthony - We've watched deer eat the spiniest English holly. It wrapped its tongue around the stem and pulled all the leaves off and ate them. We cringed in horror, they could have been eating Creme Caramel. As well we were told Taxus baccata was immune but they ate an entire row of one variety whose name escapes me.
john
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This is the problem with introduced species. Co-evolution has not occurred.
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I have seen red deer eating bracken when it is young. Holly used to be fed to cattle in harsh winters in yorks.
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I found this moth among pots in the frame. I thought at first it was a yellow underwing but the forewing pattern is different and it doesn't have the yellow hind wings. It behaved in the same way - reluctant to fly and clung on to my finger when I picked it up.
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It's a dark arches Apamea monoglypha
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Not sure what they've sprayed on our local football pitches, but there are thousands of dead worms that are not present in the areas away from the playing surface. It has rained over the last couple of days, but that's not the cause.
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Not sure what they've sprayed on our local football pitches, but there are thousands of dead worms that are not present in the areas away from the playing surface. It has rained over the last couple of days, but that's not the cause.
Crikey, I'd be worried about what residual poison anyone using the pitches might pick up. Children falling about on it, or animals running over it. ???
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It's a dark arches Apamea monoglypha
Thanks, Mark. It is well camouflaged.
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Here are some photos of said worms. I know they put a selective weed killer on last week, but there were fresh vehicle tracks yesterday suggesting something else had been put down. I occasionally see little blue pellets of fertiliser.
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Here are the weird frothy blobs that were on the same pitch yesterday lunchtime. Looked like a rabid dog had wandered across the pitch, stopping every so often to rid itself of all the slavery froth from its mouth! :P
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The frothy blobs are a slime mould, Dog Vomit Slime Mould (Fuligo septica) is usually yellow. There is another species that has been recorded in New Zealand Mucilago crustacea which is white and is known as Dog Sick Slime Mould.
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It was so light it could just have blown away if it had been windy.
I have made enquiries about the worms. Apparently on playing fields they spray chemicals to kill worms and grass beetles. Wonder what this would do to the resident blackbirds, thrushes, kingfishers etc.?
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Goodness only knows, Anthony - sounds dreadful. An excuse for lack of diligent groundsmanship, I reckon.
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The are "sand turfs", with an inch of pure sand over the topsoil. Apparently worms drag the sand down into the soil and this makes the turf muddy in wet weather. I have never seen the froth before, and it was gone by tea time on the same day.
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Yuck Anthony it makes you wonder what we are doing to the planet. Here is a prettier photo to cheer you up. I think it is a Brimstone Moth. It was resting on a climbing hydrangea and flew off when I went to open the gates this afternoon. I have not seen one before.
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Yuck Anthony it makes you wonder what we are doing to the planet. Here is a prettier photo to cheer you up. I think it is a Brimstone Moth. It was resting on a climbing hydrangea and flew off when I went to open the gates this afternoon. I have not seen one before.
Yes, Brimstone Moth. Rarely seem by day but comes out just after dark; also attracted to light.
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A familiar sight when I lived in Dunblane.
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Some people get rabbits in their garden and complain.
This morning we looked out to see this fellow "mowing" the grass,
cheers
fermi
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Hmmmm, I don't suppose he will stick to a diet of grass though, will he?
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Hmmmm, I don't suppose he will stick to a diet of grass though, will he?
These roos seem to survive on just grass and the only plants they've damaged had grassy foliage! Wallabies cause more damage (as Anthony may concede ;D )
Actually one roo killed a newly planted fruit tree by landing on it when jumping a fence!
cheers
fermi
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These roos seem to survive on just grass and the only plants they've damaged had grassy foliage! Wallabies cause more damage (as Anthony may concede ;D )
Actually one roo killed a newly planted fruit tree by landing on it when jumping a fence!
cheers
fermi
I was watching the Ashes on the other side Fermi. First time the last innings of the third day of an Ashes test lasting less time than a rugby match. The All Blacks played quite poorly. Back to more important things. I see the Aussies have dropped Imodium as a sponsor as the runs have dried up. ;)
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Has any one ever seen a butterfly like this? it was on the side of the road just out of Cazorla Spain. It looked like a swallow tail butterfly at first, but the two long bits are not on the wings they seem to be attached to the body separately to the wings. Are they stabilisers when they are landing or flying.
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This is Nemoptera bipennis, which is the wood fairy or thread winged lacewing - Duende in Spanish - and belongs to the group called spoonwings. It belongs to the neuroptera, which includes ant lions and lacewings.
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Wow thank you Anthony is there any thing this forum does not know, thank you again
Viv
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I've been to Spain many times but never seen one. Lucky you. 8)
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Photo taken by my son's Fiance on Burgh Island (Bigbury Bay) last weekend. Burnet six spot, there were loads of 'em.
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Several holidays at Bigbury, but before I remember.
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We've had a LOT of rain lately and we're sick to death of it.
Describes our summer pretty well :P
One consequence has been the lack of butterflies here this year. Orange tips and holly blues were scarce earlier in the year. I've seen only one silver-washed fritillary in the garden whereas most years they are common visitors, and now in late summer when buddleias are in full flower vanessa butterflies are almost absent.
By contrast hummingbird hawkmoths appeared as usual, patrolling Echium pininana, sage and valerian.
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Not obviously wildlife
Rose Gall
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Hello Roma, it looks like a robins pincushion, caused by the gall wasp, Diplolepis rosae.
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A little gecko seen yesterday.
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Hello Roma, it looks like a robins pincushion, caused by the gall wasp, Diplolepis rosae.
Thanks, Chris. There were quite a lot of them on the rose bush, some quite tiny on the leaves but this was a really big one.
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A very frustrated Parakeet trying to get at the sunflower seeds.
[attach=1]
We got fed up with them taking large quantities of the food. Similarly the Squirrels. Unfortunately the Woodpeckers will presumably also be prevented, but we have another spring loaded anti-squirrel feeder nearby which they can use.
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Hi Brian do you have a lot of the parakeets where you are? I remember been at a cyclamen show at wisley one year and the were some on some nearby trees, they was plenty of screeching going on.
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A good butterfly day today (quality not quantity). A Speckled Wood on Calluna vulgaris and a male Common Blue on Lotus peduncularis/ uliginosus. I didn't have my camera but may go back now. I might find the Speckled Wood again but the field where I saw the Common Blue hasn't been grazed since the spring and is about an acre of rushes and lotus with the paths all overgrown. I still have to get to the far end with a barrow to collect ragwort :-\ It is only in recent years I have occasionally seen a Speckled Wood butterfly but the Blue used to be very common. I only see one once every few years now.
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Warm, sunny conditions :o here too today brought several butterflies to the garden: speckled woods, green-veined whites, a holly blue & this slightly worn female silver-washed fritillary (Argynnis paphia) which is the largest butterfly we have in Ireland.
Normally these are all common species in this area but have been very scarce this year.
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Hello Ashley, it was a slow start with butterflies here as well. The cold spring seemed to hold them back. The last few weeks have seen many peacocks, gatekeepers, common blues and meadow browns. The large heaths seem to have gone over now though. No commas in the garden yet. They usually arrive when the michelmas daisies are in flower.
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Hi Brian do you have a lot of the parakeets where you are? I remember been at a cyclamen show at wisley one year and the were some on some nearby trees, they was plenty of screeching going on.
Most days we see 2's or 3's sometimes a flock of 6 or 8, but seems a bit seasonal, like most birds, and few around at the moment.
This particular "squirrel guard" was not designed to have such a large feeder in and I cut and bent 2 wires at the top just enough to drop it in. So what happened a couple of days ago?
[attach=1]
It shot straight out the top and up the single fencing wire ~6' hanger, as soon as I went out of the door. Amazingly small space. Now rebent so the gap is no larger than any of the side openings.
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Back to the brawing board then Brian ;D
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It was on the feeder the next morning when I drew the curtains. Can't lip read squirrel yet but I am sure I saw it say "I could get through there yesterday, why can't I now?" Just hoping for the best now.
Some small birds still try unsuccessfully to get through the bottom tapered holes as they are nearest the bottom feeding holes. A cylinder shape cage would be better at the bottom, but most birds happily go through higher up and drop down.
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I suppose that deer stalkers and their "clients" consider that getting close to a deer in order to murder it with a gun, is skill. I decided to look at a corrie to see what plants were there. The rock is quartzite and I did not expect much in the way of "alpines" but you never know. Parking the car I followed the track to the summit for a short way before turning off for the corrie and the scree slopes. I was walking slowly looking at the ground for small plants, stopping to identify them and take the occasional drink. It was a hot day. I had been there for quite some time when I thought I saw something move out of the corner of my right eye. Turning, I stopped dead in my tracks. Not more than twenty paces away there was a red deer stag, walking at the same pace but on slightly higher ground. He stopped and looked down his nose at me, with a superior expression, I thought. What to do? I could not out-run him. From my position he looked like a well built horse, with antlers. We stared at each other for a time, then I thought, should I try to take a photo. The camera was around my neck. What would his re-action be? Would he run off, or charge. I said, can I take your picture, no reply. I slowly raised the camera and took a picture. He just stared at me. I remembered my reason for being there and moved off again. So did he. After a while I stopped. So did he. What was going on? This happened several more times. Then a thought like a lightening bolt struck me. He was parallel walking, just like two stags in the rutting season. This was his corrie and I was the intruder. How long had he been with me? He must have seen me a long way off. Perhaps he had been resting during the heat and had been sat down, only rising as I approached. He must not have seen me as a threat. I studied his size. If I had got down on all fours I would have been about a third his size. We were approaching a large sloping outcrop. He walked to the right of it and I was heading for the centre. If I carried on I would have come out above him. I did not want to suddenly appear above him so I went to the left, following a stream and botanising. I did not see him again but think he probably watched me until I had moved a good distance away and back to the car. Skill? no. Luck, probably. Magical? You bet. The King of the castle.
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Lovely chance encounter with the Stag Ian .
I had company in the garden here in NZ a few days ago in the form of an inquisitive Kaka ,(Nestor meridionalis), which has been around for at least 3 weeks visiting our bush section that backs onto the larger Otatara native reserve . It flew down quite close and after posing for a number of pictures I then observed how powerful it's beak was as it demolished a rotten branch high up in the canopy in the search I presume for grubs.
A long way from home ,the nearest population being on Rakiura ,(Stewart Island), some 55 ks away.
Sighted again today .......
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One ambition of mine is to visit Stewart Island, but a forlorn hope, as getting permission and affording the technology to see Tukutuku rakiurae, the harlequin gecko, would be extremely difficult.
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Lovely chance encounter with the Stag Ian .
I had company in the garden here in NZ a few days ago in the form of an inquisitive Kaka ,(Nestor meridionalis), which has been around for at least 3 weeks visiting our bush section that backs onto the larger Otatara native reserve . It flew down quite close and after posing for a number of pictures I then observed how powerful it's beak was as it demolished a rotten branch high up in the canopy in the search I presume for grubs.
A long way from home ,the nearest population being on Rakiura ,(Stewart Island), some 55 ks away.
Sighted again today .......
Great sighting Dave; I would love to have a kaka in my garden. At the moment all I have is a surplus of cats, ferrets and possums. The last time I saw a kaka in the wild was at Makarora in the bush behind the DOC visitor Centre.
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I had company in the garden here in NZ a few days ago in the form of an inquisitive Kaka ,(Nestor meridionalis), which has been around for at least 3 weeks visiting our bush section that backs onto the larger Otatara native reserve . It flew down quite close and after posing for a number of pictures I then observed how powerful it's beak was as it demolished a rotten branch high up in the canopy in the search I presume for grubs.
A long way from home ,the nearest population being on Rakiura ,(Stewart Island), some 55 ks away.
Sighted again today .......
An impressive bird, t00lie - at first glance the plumage looks quite subdued but then we see that there is a lot of lovely colour and shading. That beak looks a real weapon!
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I've seen kaka on the Tiritiri Matangi island reserve. At least you don't have bloody idiots blasting away at them like on Mototapu Island near Auckland, where four takahe (there are only 300 left on the planet - deer hunters "hired" to cull 600 pukeko were responsible and had been trained to tell the difference) were shot by mistake (takahe are the ones that are twice as big and don't fly), or near Nelson, where some keas were illegally shot last week!
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Some cute red squirrel pictures. This lot were taken between 7.50 am and 8.20 am on July 30th. It's quite common to have two fighting for a place at the food but four is unusual. Don't know why they were all so hungry that day.
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A few portraits. The first one was a very wet day. 4 & 5 are the same squirrel and I think 2 is as well. The all reds are less common than the ones with darker tails though it can vary from year to year.
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Not many 'pretty' insects (like butterflies) around at this time of the year, so here's a couple of their uglier relatives seen on a walk over the Simonside moors in Northumberland last week.
1. Pond skater (Gerris costae)
2. Not sure about this one. First thought it was a slightly small dark bumblebee at first glance, but it's obviously a fly of some sort. My first guess was a bee-fly, but all the British species seem to have a long proboscis, so any sugggestions would be gratefully received. ;)
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Your fly is not a bee fly, which has a long forward pointing proboscis, Peter. It looks more like Tachina grossa, the larvae of which parasitise large caterpillars.
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Brilliant to have red squirrels coming to your garden
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We've had quite a lot coming since spring. They completely disappeared about this time last year and we saw very few over winter. Last year was a bumper year for conifer seeds so maybe they did not need extra feeding. There are pine, larch, sitka and norway spruce quite close. We lost many big sitka spruce and a couple of pine trees last winter and I do not think it has been such a good year for cones so they will be needing fed this year. It's a bit annoying when they bury so many nuts and the crows and magpies follow them around and dig them up again. One male is particularly bad. Some of the girls are still rearing young so do not have time for burying nuts.
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It looks more like Tachina grossa
Many thanks Anthony, that fits the bill exactly. It's been interesting to explore what resources are around on the web to aid with identification these days: I even came across a dipterist's forum which should have been of help, but I'm new to flies ;) and it was like opening a flora for the first time.
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Red squirrels steal our chocolate and everything if we don't close the front door......Had 3 at the same time in my kitchen ...They disappeard for some years when it was cats around here...now the cats are gone and the squirrels are back.....me likes.....
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Tell me the secret of making cats disappear and you will have a friend for life...
Can anyone help me ID this moth, seen at Hartlepool today on grassland near the sea? The poor wee thing's a bit tatty. It was quite large, about the size of a Common Blue butterfly.
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I thought there were only monkeys hanging there?
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Huh???? ???
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Nice with a helping "Hand" in my benches....A bit Cold for it this morning but i warmed it up in my hand. And a little time in a sunny spot it was fit for fighting the slugs again :-)
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Can anyone help me ID this moth, seen at Hartlepool today on grassland near the sea? The poor wee thing's a bit tatty. It was quite large, about the size of a Common Blue butterfly.
I think it's a lattice heath moth, Anne.
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Huh? ??? ???
Anne,
This may help resolve your confusion.....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monkey_hanger
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;D ;)
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That's a bit gruesome. Anyway, it definitely wasn't a monkey. Matt, that was one of my contenders - thanks for confirming my suspicions.
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A few butterflies in the garden today
Speckled Wood
Small Tortoiseshell
I also saw 2 or 3 Silver Y moths
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It seems to have been a good year for Speckled Wood butterflies. We've had a few in the garden for the first time, although I understand that they breed at a local nature reserve, about 2 miles away as the butter-flies. ::)
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The pale markings on the northern Scottish race of the speckled wood are very pale compared with those from the Scottish Borders southwards. In continental Europe these spots can be quite orange.
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A speckled wood flew past my window through the pouring rain yesterday - brave little chap.
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We watched this Basking from Maidens harbour yesterday. It was about 100 metres off-shore and moving up and down a regular beat hovering up plankton.
Not the easiest thing to photograph as waiting for the nose, dorsal fin and tail fin to be in view at the same time takes patience and concentration. A couple of canoeists came up to it but it ignored them and went on with it's business. I would estimate it at about 8 metres long......I have now gone metric !!!
These sharks used to be very common in the Clyde 50 years ago. Brodick bay was a favourite location. I hired a rowing boat in Brodick to go out for a look at one.
As I was facing the wrong way to see forward, Cindy guided me out towards it. I remember she said, I think we are near enough. When I turned the boat round I saw we were about 5 metres from it as it lay on the surface. It was about 3 times larger than our rowing boat. Quick decision....back off immediately. If it hit us we would have overturned so we moved off and left it in piece. In those days the word shark was enough to put the frighteners on you.
I can also remember seeing a Norwegian shark hunting vessel, complete with harpoon gun, in Loch Eriboll, in the late 60's.
More recently we had a local fisherman in Dunure who hunted the sharks in Clyde waters. Eventually he gave up because they disappeared. Cause and effect ?
Thankfully we now live in more enlightened times and the sighting of a Basking Shark brings people to watch it and enjoy the sight of a whale sized fish gently swimming up and down on the surface bothering and threatening no one.
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Interesting short bit in today’s Daily Telegraph Nature notes about Blue Tits and Great Tits (Chickadees in US ;-) laying eggs in one another’s nests and raising young etc. and song recognition by the young. Much more detail in the original paper here
http://www.researchgate.net/publication/279931532_Facultative_interspecific_brood_parasitism_in_tits_a_last_resort_to_coping_with_nest-hole_shortage (http://www.researchgate.net/publication/279931532_Facultative_interspecific_brood_parasitism_in_tits_a_last_resort_to_coping_with_nest-hole_shortage)
You can read it round the sign-in box if you need to. Not read it all yet.
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The pale markings on the northern Scottish race of the speckled wood are very pale compared with those from the Scottish Borders southwards. In continental Europe these spots can be quite orange.
Hi Anthony, yes they are different subspecies. See http://www.ukbutterflies.co.uk/species.php?species=aegeria
(http://www.ukbutterflies.co.uk/species.php?species=aegeria)
Attached a photo of a speckled wood from the Sierra Nevada, S Spain. Almost like a wall brown.
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A few of the Scottish butterflies have their own subspecies in north and north west Scotland.
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Brought to my attention by Alan Grainger - 42 butterflies of North America....
http://tabletopwhale.com/img/posts/08-27-14.gif (http://tabletopwhale.com/img/posts/08-27-14.gif)- images enlarge well.
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Warning!!! - Look for your plants! -
The first species of huge and hungry mutated
caterpillars was sighted yesterday.
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Rudi, your caterpillar is a big one - but this one is almost as big - and looks even more hungry...
[attachimg=1]
this pic is a screengrab fron the video, link below.
This is a a link to a video of what its said to be the biggest caterpillar in North America.
https://www.facebook.com/keeptheheat/videos/10153655244592069/?fref=nf (https://www.facebook.com/keeptheheat/videos/10153655244592069/?fref=nf)
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That's some larva but would still get lost in Rudi's caterpillar' foliage. :o
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I have bred this species in Dunblane. Use to know the whereabouts of every walnut tree in the Dunblane-Stirling area. There's a good one behind May's Palace in Dunblane. Here is a caterpillar I reared in 2000 from eggs sent from the USA.
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Anthony, good to see yours is an imperial. :D
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A slightly larger herbivore has taken up residence in our garden!
cheers
fermi
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That would have been a roo'd awakening seeing that in the garden! ::)
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The thrush nest above the light in our porch came to nothing. Not sure if this nest is from the same pair, but we have one youngster, at least, joining the baby blackbirds in our garden. I hope the local cats, that have been efficiently slaughtering the local ducklings, stay away. This nest is in one of our two Duranta 'Geisha Girl' bushes. This one over hangs the tortoise enclosure, and like its twin, has Spanish moss growing in it.
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Anthony, are the thrush and blackbird native or imported?
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Imported by idiot settlers in 1868 as they "missed the bird life from home". The Victorians regarded New Zealand birds as second class and needed to be replaced with better European ones. Begs the question, where is the British robin? The European sparrow is the commonest bird in NZ. Starlings and Indian mynas are pretty common round us too, as are goldfinches, chaffinches, green finches and yellowhammers. I hear skylarks on the local fenced off volcano. Not sure how they survive because they cut the grass once a month. No idea why! Still, they and hares and pheasants are there.
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Today while negotiating a major M40 junction, and waiting at a red light, a flock of Starlings were occupying one of the dual lighting standards (poles). It was one of the Y types in the centre of a dual carriageway. They were regularly spaced about 10" or so apart from edge to edge, but only ~ 2/3 of the large flock could get on and the rest were circling. For some reason it had to be that standard of the dozens around it. Can't remember the last time I saw one in the garden; maybe 10 years? Used to be common.
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Today while negotiating a major M40 junction, and waiting at a red light, a flock of Starlings were occupying one of the dual lighting standards (poles). It was one of the Y types in the centre of a dual carriageway. They were regularly spaced about 10" or so apart from edge to edge, but only ~ 2/3 of the large flock could get on and the rest were circling. For some reason it had to be that standard of the dozens around it. Can't remember the last time I saw one in the garden; maybe 10 years? Used to be common.
Most are here, Brian.
A regular winter flock of over 3000 feed on the wildlife in the seaweed and then defecate all over my fruit cages. I will willingly transport some down to you. ::)
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Rudi, your caterpillar is a big one - but this one is almost as big - and looks even more hungry...
(Attachment)
this pic is a screengrab from the video, link below.
This is a a link to a video of what its said to be the biggest caterpillar in North America.
https://www.facebook.com/keeptheheat/videos/10153655244592069/?fref=nf (https://www.facebook.com/keeptheheat/videos/10153655244592069/?fref=nf)
Incredible!
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Any ideas on the name of this creature. Found in SE USA most likely Florida.
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Looks like a mating pair of two lined stick insects (Anisomorpha buprestoides).
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someone replied off line.
http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/misc/walkingstick.htm (http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/misc/walkingstick.htm)
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South African sprinkbok mantids (Miomantis caffra) can survive as adults over winter here in Auckland, then this happens. Found this by the wall next to the back door.
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For some rather fine photos of the wildlife seen in the area of the recent SRGC discussion Weekend in Grantown-on-Spey, see Tony Goode's blipfoto pages - starting here : https://www.polaroidblipfoto.com/entry/2097034225134863703 (https://www.polaroidblipfoto.com/entry/2097034225134863703)
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First bulb fly of the season. Now in the Northland gecko cage. Choice Narcissi are now caged to prevent attack.
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Our local New Holland Honeyeaters (Phylidonyris novaehollandiae) enjoy exotic fare, here on a clump of Kniphofia,
cheers
fermi
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High-voltage affair! A pair of Egyptian Geese on a nearby electricity transmission pole - they had a lot to say... ;D
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They look very fine. Meanwhile a Great Spotted Woodpecker is stealing my hazelnuts and vandalising my tit boxes. we'll have to renew the fronts of them next season.
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I don't begrudge the hazelnuts, and he is very beautiful, but surely just one box is enough to roost in?
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A GS Woodpecker seems quite happy here eating the sunflower seeds. Maybe you need to distract it.
A Kestrel is making regular visits to us sitting on the power line at the bottom of the garden and dropping down onto a wild part of the garden on and off. Even stayed there when I walked along the house paving with ~20 metres or so between us. Always seems to be back-lit so no photo.
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Kestrel back twice today. 1st time perched on the power pole with less contrast behind it than usual
[attach=1]
but then decided to perch on our gutter and look at us in the kitchen. Both photos through double glazing.
[attach=2]
Must look into nest box for it.
We get Tawny owls calling at night. Could I have nest boxes for both in the same garden, say 20 metres minimum or so apart, as long as they are not visible from each other. They would need to be on NNE walls of the house and garage.
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Thanks Chris, it must have been confused, it was on Myrica gale.
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Thinking more about my proposed Kestrel nest box. I notice on line that the US Kestrel type boxes are generally vertical, with a largish (3"~) hole and square base, whereas the UK Kestrel boxes tend to be horizontal with large open entrance and a large rectangular floor, apparently ~double the floor area of the tall form boxes. I was sent the US type instructions from one UK "birding body" but that may have been a mistake.
Anyone have experience of either type of box here, and if either may be less likely to be appropriated by less desirable species? Jackdaws and their friends can be very noisy here.
Had 2 Kestrels passing through today at one point but too fast to really see if they were the same sex or not. Their reaction suggested rivals.
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Thanks Chris, it must have been confused, it was on Myrica gale.
Nah, it's just not choosy about it's foodplants!
http://ukmoths.org.uk/species/ceramica-pisi
(http://ukmoths.org.uk/species/ceramica-pisi)
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Thanks Chris, it must have been confused, it was on Myrica gale.
Bit of a misnomer, Ian, as it's omnivorous.
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Bit of a misnomer, Ian, as it's omnivorous.
My goodness, so it eats meat too? ;D
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Sounds dangerous.
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My goodness, so it eats meat too? ;D
Hmm - could have chosen my word more carefully ::) How about undiscriminating herbivore.
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Polyphagous?
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Yes, though I was thinking about this the other day. Polyphagous = 'eats many things' vs Omnivorous 'eats everything'. Just scientific convention rather than any real precision in the terms themselves.
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Yes, though I was thinking about this the other day. Polyphagous = 'eats many things' vs Omnivorous 'eats everything'. Just scientific convention rather than any real precision in the terms themselves.
Yes. I despair when I see birds described as "seed predators". Conjures up the vision of some fierce avian ambushing unsuspecting seeds and pecking them to death. Also, substitution the word grazer to mean any animal that eats bits of something else without killing it, when I was always taught that grazers ate grass, and there were other words to use, such as browsing, which was nibbling bits off bushes or coral etc. Black rhino = browser; white rhino = grazer.
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Some recent Squirrel pictures taken from my kitchen window. The one with four was taken at lunchtime today. It's unusual to see so many that close. It did end in fighting ;D
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If you want to export one or two...... ;)
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Great pictures of the squirrels we have one sometimes and a pair of woodpeckers had a walk yesterday frozen solid I went to feed my friends, cheers Ian the Christie kind.
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Not bread, I hope.
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Cake?
;D
Feeding on the kniphofias this morning, New Holland Honey-eaters
cheers
fermi
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Not all wildlife is welcome in the garden
This viola which I got from a friend has been sitting on the middle step at my front door for at least two months
Look where I found it this morning - well pruned too and deer tracks all around
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Oh Deer good in the deep freeze? cheers Ian
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Oh Deer good in the deep freeze? cheers Ian
;D 8) ;D
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Last night I spotted this Emperor Gum moth (Opodiphthera eucalypti), that had been attracted to a security light, in Remuera, Auckland. Female, but not sure if she'd mated. We'll see if the eggs are fertile. It's an Aussie import.
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We have a resident local dove or crested pigeon, Ocyphaps lophotes in our garden.
Not easy to capture on a "point and shoot" camera, so not the clearest of pics,
cheers
fermi
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Blends in well with the rocks and the euphorbia, Fermi.
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Super pictures Fermi thanks for posting, cheers Ian the Christie kind
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Some recent Squirrel pictures taken from my kitchen window. The one with four was taken at lunchtime today. It's unusual to see so many that close. It did end in fighting ;D
Fantastic. Do you have any snow scenes with them that would make a good Christmas card? Thinking of a red sitting on a snow covered log or fence post
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"Mark, hurry with the food we're starving"
Almost 60kg of sunflower hearts eaten so far this autumn/winter. 100s of goldfinches, greenfinches, chaffinches and house sparrows coming daily
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wow! I thought we did well with 8!
Fermi, your very elegant dove appears to have had one too many espressos :o
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I have bought 180kg of sunflower hearts in 2015 for my neighbour and myself, plus a few other things. Can't ground feed; managed to be free of 4 legged wildlife for a year or more now, mice etc. apart probably. Trap down in the greenhouse tonight as evidence of them in a couple of pots. Maybe I can tempt the kestrels with something at last if I catch one.
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over the last week or 10 days I've got at least one brambling visiting
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Fermi, your very elegant dove appears to have had one too many espressos :o
Well, we have been using coffee grounds in the garden! :-[
;D
cheers
fermi
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Mark, good picture of the brambling. A bird I have not had in the garden. Happy New Year to all.
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Some of the guesstimated 500,000 starlings that gather at a roost site in the Mourne mountains here in N Ireland
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt7x0dcPcOs (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt7x0dcPcOs)
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Saw a small 'ball' of starlings flying in formation today around noon then a larger flock of crows all over the place.
A friend found two little auks on her property on Sunday and I saw on Facebook today that a number have been found in the North East. The New Arc, a local rescue centre is looking afterat least a dozen.
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There have been a few sightings of Little Auks along the Atlantic coast but no casualties reported, fortunately.
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One turned up in a yard outside Belfast yesterday
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Would a sparrowhawk eat a kestrel or? another sparrowhawk? I went for a quick walk in the wood at the back of the house on Saturday and came across a pile of feathers on top of the root of a fallen tree. I thought a sparrowhawk had eaten a pigeon when I saw a pair of yellow legs and thought that's no pigeon. I did not have my camera and the rain was getting heavier. By the time I got home it was too dull and wet to go back. Not sure why I didn't go yesterday but I went today and found the legs had gone and the feathers even more bedraggled so I have no record of the legs.
Tree root
Feathers
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I think you should consider a Goshawk as the predator. Kestrels rarely frequent woodlands and the feathers don't look right. It's more like a Sparrowhawk although it is almost impossible to say from the pictures.
Sparrowhawks and Owls are on a Goshawk's prey list. So much so that they can clear out a wood of all other birds of prey.
An interesting thing about Goshawks is that they are almost never mobbed by any other bird. Whereas other birds of prey may tolerate being mobbed, a Goshawk will regard mobbing as a chance for an easy meal. Crows and Rooks are quiet when a Goshawk is about and try to slink away unseen.
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Thanks, Tom. That is interesting. The feathers were pretty wet when I found them and after Saturday night's heavy rain are sodden. I do not know a lot about birds of prey. I see buzzards frequently. I have not seen a kestrel for a long time. I know my neighbours had a sparrowhawk catching small birds at their bird feeders and I frequently see heaps of feathers which I've always assumed were remains of a sparrowhawk's meal but a quick flash is all I usually see of the bird itself.
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Not sure we get Goshawks in this area? But I don't doubt they could make short work of a sparrow hawk.
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I thought goshawk could be the bird. The RSPB site suggests southern Scotland and the Inverness area for most likely areas.
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The Scottish Raptor Study group website lists eastern Scotland and the border (English) forests as strongholds, with a Scottish population of around 150 pairs. The BTO (British Trust for Ornitholgy) atlas website shows confirmed breeding along the length of the Dee valley down to the coast so goshawks in the Aberdeen area are entirely possible.
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Gosh - awkward when the predator become the prey.
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Cardinalis cardinalis
[attach=1]
Sometimes he likes to pose for photo shoots :)
[attachimg=2]
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If I had a smart coat like that I'd pose myself!
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The UK government just okayed a plan to sow bee-endangering seeds across the country.
http://action.sumofus.org/a/neonics-uk/?sub=fb. (http://action.sumofus.org/a/neonics-uk/?sub=fb.)
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The UK government just okayed a plan to sow bee-endangering seeds across the country.
http://action.sumofus.org/a/neonics-uk/?sub=fb. (http://action.sumofus.org/a/neonics-uk/?sub=fb.)
Why am I not surprised. Wonder who's getting the back hander?
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If I had a smart coat like that I'd pose myself!
If I had a smart coat like that I could be Father Christmas ;D
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If this is true it's good news!
"Queen creates army of super honeybees that can defeat deadly varroa mites
The queen’s mother was from a colony in Vermont which managed to survive the cold winters there and also outbreaks of disease "
http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/queen-creates-army-of-super-honeybees-that-can-defeat-deadly-varroa-mites-a6813301.html (http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/queen-creates-army-of-super-honeybees-that-can-defeat-deadly-varroa-mites-a6813301.html)
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The UK government just okayed a plan to sow bee-endangering seeds across the country.
http://action.sumofus.org/a/neonics-uk/?sub=fb. (http://action.sumofus.org/a/neonics-uk/?sub=fb.)
I've been given this information by Ben Probert to explain why these treated seeds are not such a problem and why it is important to keep up the vigilance on neonic sprays......
Ben Probert :
Neonics were originally intended as seed treatments. Seeds easily fall prey to insects when in storage and when initially planted, so the neonics were initially designed to be used as coatings for seeds. Once the soil borne organism comes into contact with the seed coating it dies, allowing the seedling to germinate. Later it was also realised that neonics could be used on plants actively in growth using water or oils as carriers. These sprayed applications use more product each time; there is physically more plant to treat! Also, as the plant is actively in growth it's either in flower or will be flowering during the effective period of the insecticide it's treated with. This is obviously bad news for bees! Just as an aside, spray neonics were initially used because they were considerably safer than the ironically natural and organic nicotine treatments that went before- this is why scientific reviews are so important!
Back to seed treatments. The neonic dose used for seeds is considerably smaller than the dose used in spraying of plants in active growth. Add to this the fact that the product is applied as a coating to the seed shell, which is not actually attached to the plant tissues and is shed shortly after germination and the amount of product in the plant tissues after germination is further reduced. By the time the plant is anywhere near flowering size the product has diminished completely or is found as a miniscule trace in tissues- this is why the plants are sprayed; there's not enough neonic in the tissues to kill a baby aphid, let alone cause troubles to the neural pathways of beneficial insects! To suggest that neonics might be found as a trace in plant tissues is a bit of an exaggeration... we're talking homeopathic doses here!
We need to keep the anti-neonic campaign focussed on accurate science. If the pro-neonic groups can bring out tested scientific results and the anti-neonic groups are muddied by inaccuracy and poor science then the pro lobby will win hands down.
Similarly we need to remember that if a neonic has a maximum lifespan in tissues of six months (which is about maximum for horticultural products) and the plant won't flower until its second year then the risk is absent. Neonics aren't like radiation with a long half-life; the problem with them is they're fairly unstable and break down too easily. If Lisa wanted to treat first year perennial and shrub seedlings with a neonic like Provado to protect against vine weevil (and I'm not suggesting that she does), then providing the plants don't flower in their first year the product will be absent by flowering time in the second year and beyond, unless it's reapplied. Persistent neonic products for vine weevil had to be slow release granules to stop the product disappearing before its year was up!
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Very interesting and helpful.
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I guess they hibernate (like Small Tortoiseshells and other Nymphalid butterflies) and the warm weather has woken them up. Hopefully there are some nettles around for them to lay eggs on.
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I had a couple in the garden around Christmas.
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They do hibernateas adults, yes. Red Admirals seem to be doing this increasingly too - hence the famous 'red admiral and the snowdrop' photo a couple of years ago. Also, if you find a butterfly in your house in winter, please put it in a safe place outside (e.g. in an ivy bush or in an open porch). Heating will kill it.
There is a good article about it on the Butterfly Conservation website.
http://butterfly-conservation.org/3114-3219/heating-and-hibernation.html (http://butterfly-conservation.org/3114-3219/heating-and-hibernation.html)
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In winter our local stream (Thames tributary) has a Little Egret as an winter visitor. Cars passing it ignores but gets a bit twitchy with walkers ~ 80' away, and usually flies further into the adjacent field. Noticed this morning we now have 2 birds, although they were on opposite ends of the village so need to get their act together yet. Doubt they will find anywhere locally quiet enough to nest and they will probably head for the Thames and the old gravel pits area a couple of miles away. Quite a delicate bird when it flies towards you as you drive along parallel to the stream. The much heavier swans and herons look clumsy in comparison when they try to avoid the trees and power lines etc.
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Sometimes squirrels enjoy being in focus:
http://www.nrk.no/nordland/disse-ekornbildene-far-stor-oppmerksomhet-1.12788438 (http://www.nrk.no/nordland/disse-ekornbildene-far-stor-oppmerksomhet-1.12788438)
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Tortoiseshell butterflies and peacocks need to be in outhouses and unheated garages, not hedges. Commas hibernate in hedgerows. Not sure red admirals hibernate in the true sense. Perhaps they just rest up in cold weather, and if they survive, they are lucky.
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The day I find a squirrel making a snowman in my garden is the day I take to drink! :D ;D
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If I saw one making a snowman in my garden it would be the day to stop drinking. ;D
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For those who you who have not seen this CBC Special 'A Murder of Crows' it's an absolute must. The experiment around 24:00 is particularly surprising.
http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/episodes/a-murder-of-crows (http://www.cbc.ca/natureofthings/episodes/a-murder-of-crows)
johnw - +2c & overcast
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Was away Sunday to Wednesday last week on one of our 6 year 9 camps. First day was a rather steep 14 km tramp through the Waharau Regional Park, near Kaiaua on the western side of the Firth of Thames, south east of Auckland and about 80 minutes by double decker bus from our school. On our way down the bush track we had to cross a stream and jump over this huge spider. I have found out it is Dolomedes dondalei, a species only described in 2010. Like D. aquaticus, the large water spider found further south, it floats its front legs on the water waiting for a trapped insect or unlucky fish to get close. It was not for moving, even though about 5 dozen students and adults had to stride over it. There is a third species very common in Auckland, the nursery web spider (D. minor), which is still quite big, but this one was at least 2" across the legs. There is an even bigger species, D. schauinslandi, but it's only found on the Chatham Islands.
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...we had to cross a stream and jump over this huge spider... waiting for a trapped insect or unlucky fish to get close. It was not for moving, even though about 5 dozen students and adults had to stride over it...
Maybe it was waiting for "an unlucky student" to get close :o
;D
cheers
fermi
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Wildlife weekend. Found Mallard as fresh roadkill while out shopping and brought it home. Tied the legs to a rock with thin wire, in the hope that a fox would not try and bury it in my sand bed, and left it in an open wild part of the garden for the Kytes. One had daintily plucked a pheasant some time back. Next morning all that was left were feathers scattered around. No corpse. A feathered wing-tip was buried in an area of mulch but the fox must have carried the rest off, minus the rock but still with the wired legs. The Kites went hungry.
Later saw a Muntjac the other side of my hedge/fence and crossing the drive entrance before disappearing. 30seconds later it reappeared and walked round the garden looking for another escape route. I managed to get round the back of the house and drive it back out the entrance.
Kestrels still appearing daily but usually alone now. Drew the curtains the other morning and the male was looking straight at me from the middle of the apple tree. Photo from earlier a bit dark; a dull day.
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Saw the first bumble bee of the season yesterday.
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Saw the first bumble bee of the season yesterday.
They were around my Mahonia flowers before Christmas
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Our resident 'roo had been taking a snooze under a nectarine tree in a mixed bed but took himself off to another section as we went about watering
cheers
fermi
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Is he quite old then, fermi? His haunches look a bit bony - tho' he still has a very cute face.
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Hi Maggi,
we think he's an old male who has kicked out of the mob so he's on his own :'( .
This is all conjecture on our part though! ::)
cheers
fermi
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I saw some starlight murmurations earlier, I hope I've spelt that right. It was an amazing site, just wish I had my phone on me to take some pics.
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Starling in its lovely spring plumage.
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Dapper little birds, aren't they?
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Live action camera of new American eagle chicks at the US National Arboretum in
Washington DC :
http://www.eagles.org/dceaglecam/ (http://www.eagles.org/dceaglecam/)
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Live action camera of new American eagle chicks at the US National Arboretum in
Washington DC :
http://www.eagles.org/dceaglecam/ (http://www.eagles.org/dceaglecam/)
Thanks for the link, Jim - very clear pictures of this beautiful bird.
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Yes the Statling appears all blackish until you look closely.
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Heron sat on nest at my local patch.
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Heron sat on nest at my local patch.
Keeping a very low profile!
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Another web-cam link - this time for Osprey http://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/things-to-do/wildlife-webcams/loch-of-lowes/ (http://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/things-to-do/wildlife-webcams/loch-of-lowes/)
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Of course you can see beavers there too Maggi - but then I think they are fairly commonplace in parts of Scotland nowadays?
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Perhaps, I don't know. It's easier to see ospreys I'm sure !
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First Spring migrants here are Chiffchaff. A couple of singing males appeared (in Valleyfield Woods) at the weekend.
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/2/1659/25351901453_ce4f8a7cbf_o.jpg)
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In one of our ponds, spring is heard and see. Rana temporaria, grenouille rousse.
[attach=1]
[attach=2]
[attach=3]
[attach=4]
[attach=5]
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Beautiful pictures. Late though Fred, our common frog tadpoles are just hatching.
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With us, there was still ice on the pond last week, each night ... :)
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Still too cold in our pond - our frogs are always late!
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Je ne les considère pas en retard. Pas en avance non plus. Chez nous, c'est souvent en mars avril que les grenouilles viennent pondre. J'ai creusé une nouvelle dans le terrain derrière chez nous l'automne passé. Ce sont les pluies de l'hiver qui ont fait le reste.
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Tres interessante Fred. En Grande Bretagne les hivers peut etre pas si froid, alors les grenouilles commencent en Janvier ou quelquefois en Decembre! Il y a varieuses possibilites en zones climatiques differents:
http://www.pnas.org/content/107/18/8292.short (http://www.pnas.org/content/107/18/8292.short)
Apologies for my appalling French!
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Tres interessante Fred. En Grande Bretagne les hivers peut etre pas si froid, alors les grenouilles commencent en Janvier ou quelquefois en Decembre! Il y a varieuses possibilites en zones climatiques differents:
http://www.pnas.org/content/107/18/8292.short (http://www.pnas.org/content/107/18/8292.short)
Apologies for my appalling French!
:D :D :D :D
Your French can not be worse than my English :P ::) ;D
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A pair of Siskins on the bird feeder this morning.
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A pair of Siskins on the bird feeder this morning.
Do they nest near you?
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A fool and his money ... I made these on Friday and put them up today. I told the local biodiversity officer about the plans and she said "you do not have permission from the council"
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Do they nest near you?
I saw them again this morning so I think they could be nesting nearby.
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Don't often see a yellow admiral (Vanessa itea) in the garden, so when this one decided to stick around long enough to be photographed I was delighted. Looks as though it's been round the block a few times!
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Mark, when did "the council" ever take any notice of the public?
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Web Cam for Peregrine Falcons nesting on Chichester Cathedral
http://www.chichesterperegrines.co.uk/live%20link.htm (http://www.chichesterperegrines.co.uk/live%20link.htm)
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We have found Siskins are much less nervous about disturbance than other birds. To their loss when the Sparrow Hawk comes around. Several piles of feathers around at present; not all Siskin of course.
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Siskins are regularly seen at Jack Drakes nursery.
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Siskins are regularly seen at Jack Drakes nursery.
From what I can remember about half the small bird population of the Highlands can be seen at Jack Drake's nursery Ian, together with various red squirrels and woodpeckers! And all very easy to enjoy over a cup of tea and a slice of cake..
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On the other side of the world - here is the webcam for one of our northern royal albatross chicks. It is the only mainland colony in the Southern Hemisphere.
http://www.doc.govt.nz/royalcam (http://www.doc.govt.nz/royalcam)
Susan
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On the other side of the world - here is the webcam for one of our northern royal albatross chicks. It is the only mainland colony in the Southern Hemisphere.
http://www.doc.govt.nz/royalcam (http://www.doc.govt.nz/royalcam)
Susan
Cool Susan, you don't get many of those at the bird table! That chick has quite a view.
I don't think there are any albatrosses of any kind in the northern hemisphere, so presumably that also makes this the only mainland albatross colony in the world.
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Tristan, they are an awe inspiring sight on a windy day when the adults are flying.
Apparently a lot of people have become 'hooked' on the webcam, especially in working hours. Not sure it is good for productivity!
Susan
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Just looked at the bird. It,s dark there just now but the bird looks bigger than my garden let alone the bird table.
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One did turn up on the Bass Rock a few years ago.
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One did turn up on the Bass Rock a few years ago.
That was a Black-browed Albatross. There have been a few (? same bird) at various Scottish Gannet colonies over the years but never more than one at a time sadly.
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I don't know if Albert is still alive but there's still some sighting of Albatross in northern Atlantic. Last year, there was an "Albert" at Helgoland in Germany
http://www.rspb.org.uk/community/placestovisit/minsmere/b/minsmere-blog/archive/2015/07/13/albatross-ahoy.aspx (http://www.rspb.org.uk/community/placestovisit/minsmere/b/minsmere-blog/archive/2015/07/13/albatross-ahoy.aspx)
http://www.rarebirdalert.co.uk/v2/Content/Finders_in_the_Field_Black-browed_Albatross_Minsmere.aspx?s_id=690019373 (http://www.rarebirdalert.co.uk/v2/Content/Finders_in_the_Field_Black-browed_Albatross_Minsmere.aspx?s_id=690019373)
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Common Starfish (Asterias-rubens).
Two washed up on a Harris beach on Thursday. They hadn't been there long as the tide was just ebbing - they were returned to the sea.
Although very common around our coast these are the first I've seen.
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A 7 armed variety, Luidia ciliaris? img. 2560.
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A 7 armed variety, Luidia ciliaris? img. 2560.
Yes, Luidia ciliaris. Where did you find it Ian?
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It was on the north west coast some years ago.
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Emperor moth img. 09 143.
August 09? Second brood or very late?
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Early summer some years ago Anthony. Just seen this morning a holly blue. First of the year. Warm and sunny here. They like camellia leaves as well as holly and ivy. Must be something to do with dark green and shiny. img. 1010180.
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Not sure how far holly blues have spread into Scotland. At least their food plants are plentiful - mainly ivy flowers and berries for the overwintering brood which then lays its eggs on holly flowers and berries for the spring brood. Alas, the brimstone will never make it as buckthorn is not a Scottish hedgerow plant.
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Hello Anthony, brimstones have been seen in our area already but not by me yet.
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Not sure how far holly blues have spread into Scotland. At least their food plants are plentiful - mainly ivy flowers and berries for the overwintering brood which then lays its eggs on holly flowers and berries for the spring brood. Alas, the brimstone will never make it as buckthorn is not a Scottish hedgerow plant.
Brimstone seems to be one of relatively few UK butterflies that have high occupancy on their foodplant (i.e. plant it and they will come. Neither buckthorn or alder buckthorn are that common in Britain, but where they do occur there are nearly always brimstones. Most of our other butterflies seem to have rather more specific requirements or are restricted by parastitic wasps etc.
I guess it would be an interesting experiment for a gardener in Scotland with a large patch to plant a reasonable area with buckthorn or alder buckthorn and see if they colonise.
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The Edinburgh Butterfly House tried it as a publicity stunt, giving away hundreds of both species of buckthorn. The plan never worked. I even planted two in my hedge in Dunblane. Wonder it they are still there? A question was raised at one of the Gardener's Question Time programmes recorded it Dunblane asking what hedging plants were recommended. The answer came back "buckthorn to attract brimstone butterflies". Not in Dunblane they won't. You'd need a continuous corridor up the M6!
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The Edinburgh Butterfly House tried it as a publicity stunt, giving away hundreds of both species of buckthorn. The plan never worked. I even planted two in my hedge in Dunblane. Wonder it they are still there? A question was raised at one of the Gardener's Question Time programmes recorded it Dunblane asking what hedging plants were recommended. The answer came back "buckthorn to attract brimstone butterflies". Not in Dunblane they won't. You'd need a continuous corridor up the M6!
I've planted a few alder buckthorns Anthony, though more chance here I think (though brimstone are not so common in Wales either). They are just starting to get to a decent size so fingers crossed. How long ago was the Edinburgh Butterfly House thing?
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Would have been the early 90s, I think. Would need to check. Martin Feather was the manager then.
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Who has done it?
I would be glad if someone could tell me who is responsible for the cutted shoot tips found beneath a Serbian
spruce (Picea omorika).
I observed squirrels, crows and wood pigeons in that tree but unfortunately I never wasn't able to catch one of
them in the act. The problem exists since autumn.
Please have a look at the pics added!
Gerd
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Squirrels cut the shoot to eat the bud. In mountain forest, I often found thousand and thousand of these shoot tips in winter. I think that they eat buds especially when seeds are missing.
See also http://beaverboardwalk.blogspot.fr/2010/03/spruce-buds-and-squirrels.html (http://beaverboardwalk.blogspot.fr/2010/03/spruce-buds-and-squirrels.html)
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Direct hit - that was quick indeed!
Thank you Ivain!
Gerd
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One of last years brimstones on the local patch, img. 1000379.
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Great ptarmigan shots - excellent camouflage.
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On the pond this morning. It was eating the frogs one after another. The nice thing was it washed each one before swallowing it. Clearly well mannered.
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Our newts have eaten ALL our frogspawn. >:(
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Helen took a series of photos today of a regular garden visitor.
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Wonderful adder photos Ian. None here, thanks (?) to St. Patrick.
Angry bird: a territorial goldcrest (Regulus regulus) threatening his reflection in a window (Helen's photos, not mine).
Around this time every year we have to tape white paper inside the glass to make provocative reflections less obvious. Just as well there are no close neighbours to wonder about our sanity ;D
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Super photos of the Goldcrest - VERY handsome little chap!
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They're beauties all right Maggi; the female with her yellow crest in the upper two pix, and the orange-crested male in the lower ones.
It amazes me that such tiny birds come through the winter and sometimes migrate long distances over water.
The nest is also a wonder, mostly of moss and cobwebs, and the eggs are absolutely tiny.
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Wonderful adder photos Ian. None here, thanks (?) to St. Patrick.
Angry bird: a territorial goldcrest (Regulus regulus) threatening his reflection in a window (Helen's photos, not mine).
Around this time every year we have to tape white paper inside the glass to make provocative reflections less obvious. Just as well there are no close neighbours to wonder about our sanity ;D
That male really does look VERY cross for such a tiny body!
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I've never seen Teal's eggs - how pretty they are!
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The solitary bees have woken up & doing their usual madcap display.
Only a few bees visible but it is manic at times.
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Heard the first cuckoo this morning. Put me in mind of this:
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bHaZ0rxdxnI
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We went up to Loch Doon last week on our Spring cuckoo hunt. Although we never heard any, we watched a male bird on a tree stump having a good look round. There are about 5 birds in this area every spring. Reports indicate that they have all come back. Our Ospreys have settled in to their nest and hopefully should raise two young as they did last year.
Yesterday, we came across three Whooper Swans in one of their wintering sites. The strong N. winds have held them back. In a pond near there was an Icelandic Bar Tailed Godwit in it's spectacular rufous plumage. There have been steady passages of Whimbrels -about 150 in the past few days. Spring is finally here.
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Sounds a good area Tom. It,s surprising how quick the trees get their leaves once the weather improves.
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Was out in the garden yesterday and heard a grasshopper warbler calling in the garden! There are always a few territories near us but they usually sound further away.
Heard a cuckoo a week or so ago but not lately, perhaps he will be more active in the warm weather. We usually have a few in the area.
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Wasp on dandelion, covered in pollen img. 1010316.
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Squirrels are looking a bit scruffy now.
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Wasp on dandelion, covered in pollen img. 1010316.
Looks more like a solitary bee?
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It could bee, Anthony. I was using the pre-decimal guide, if it,s got a waist, it,s a wasp.
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Squirrels are looking a bit scruffy now.
Did you mean to say Fluffy? ;D
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No, Anne. Fur coats all look as if the moths have been at them ;D
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This one has lost most of her winter woollies. She ate a lot of nuts very fast. Must have been hungry.
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I've rescued a few birds from the greenhouse recently. One each of wren, blue tit, dunnock and female chaffinch. Today's rescue was a surprise - a grey wagtail.
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I see there must be a bit of networking that doesn't cross the species barrier. They tell their mates, which is why you only get one of each species. ;D
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In a pond near there was an Icelandic Bar Tailed Godwit in it's spectacular rufous plumage.
I think you mean Black-tailed? The Icelandic sub-species has been increasing and they are indeed smart birds in breeding plumage. Bar-tailed are more northern with some breeding in N Scandinavia but most in arctic Russia/Siberia.
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Quite right Stan. In my wife's diary she has it as a Black Tail - why I got it wrong ...no idea. We have steady passages of the Icelandic race during migration on the West coast.
Today we were up at Loch Doon for a look at the Ospreys. It appears that they have got eggs. Picture taken from the TV monitor.
Today's picture was 185 KB When I posted it was refused and I was told it was over 200kb !
Back to photoshop and try again.
Success ! That was hard work.
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Pix with lots of meta data will affect the final file size, Tom. Sorry that you find a problem with the resizing - I can only reiterate that I have little problem, either with the SRGC resizing tool of my old faithful, ACDSee4 - many others have made suggestions as to the methods they use - in the picture thread (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=65.0), for instance.
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We have had black tailed and bar tailed godwits on the local patch.
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'Jews ear' fungi seen today img. 1010345. Auricularia auricula-judae
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Had to look that one up.
Etymology
Auricula is a Latin word meaning ear. Judae means Judas, the Jew who it is said betrayed Jesus. Older field guides may list this species under the common name Jew's Ear fungus, a derogatory term that I will mention only once in case you see it either online or in an earlier printed publication and wonder which species it refers to. Other, older common names for this species include Wood Ear and Judas' Ear - the latter a reference to the belief that Judas Iscariot hanged himself on an Elder tree in shame after betraying Jesus Christ to his executioners. The legend, which dates back more than 400 years, suggests that the fulgal 'ears' that emerge from Elder wood are visible residues of Judas' tormented spirit.
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Fascinating research Arnold. 8)
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According to the RHS, the judas tree is Cercis siliquastrum. Other names for the elderberry (Sambucus nigra) in the UK, are bore tree and bour tree. There is a village not far from me called Bawtry, probably the same derivation. Names written down for the domesday book were often written phonetically. I assume that the elderberry was common in this area.
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Somebody was happy to see the rain today , he/she sat the from 9.00am till my visitors came and soaked in the sun oh meant to say rain.
Angie :)
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Starlings, blue tits, robins and blackbirds all feeding young. The blackbirds are building their second nest while still feeding the first young. The female is doing the collecting as usual.
Our Blue tits hatched last (8th) weekend. Clutch of 7. This weekend I can see the feathers forming well.
This is using a Lidl nest box with built in camera powered by the usb socket on my laptop. Camera aim off centre and fairly low quality but seeing things I have never seen before. Makes me want to get a better quality one for next year, but then they will probably not use it. Still shots or video, day or night (led). I will post some pics later
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Hello Brian, the blue tits use the main nest box in my garden about every 4 years. I don,t know why this is, perhaps a series of boxes may encourage them to nest in the garden every year.
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We are only going from memory but we think in our previous garden the box (another) was used more years than not. Don't know why this might be, but when placing this current box I checked online as to the best aspect for mounting. Neither of our boxes were ideal apparently, but then I have 3 other boxes on this house, different types, all facing north and none has been used in 2 years, except as an occasional winter roost for a great tit. This current box faces almost west picking up the sun maybe ~3pm but the old box faced east and was in full sun until early afternoon.
Apart from making sure you don't cook the birds in full sun and installing at a reasonable height, don't know how critical all this might be. This garden is full of birds and has thick hedges and trees around so no habitat or food problems.
Our old box now sits fairly low down behind the garage and seems to be used by bees every year now.
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Mid May and a few more butterflies starting to appear. Not so many orange-tips about now but just emerging is this little gem - green hairstreak Callophrys rubi. (this photo was actually taken in June 2013).
[attach=1]
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May be nice having lots of wild life around, but the badgers have eaten over 1200 tulip bulbs over the last few weeks and in digging them up they have totally destroyed all the plants and shrubs in one bed. Now that there are no bulbs left in there, I expect they will move on and destroy more of the garden.
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Brian, in regard to your tit box, is there a metal plate over the hole. If not, birds may feel at risk from squirrels and woodpeckers. Palustris, in spite of the damage I would be pleased to see badgers. Perhaps scones with jam might tempt them away from your plants? I have never seen a live badger. Plenty of dead ones as road and rail casualties. Most have been killed one way or the other in this area, many by illegal diggers.
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Ian. I doubt that you would welcome badgers when you see the damage they have caused here. I reckon we are talking over £1500 of bulbs and plants destroyed. Maybe you can afford that, but we certainly cannot. To badger proof the perimeter is going to cost a staggering amount in fencing too.
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Yes Ian. The nest box had a slightly larger hole than necessary for Blue Tits so I bought some aluminium plates on ebay, B.T. size. Yes we have woodpeckers, frequently.
[attach=1] [attach=2]
The spiral is an earlier attempt at a Squirrel deterrent, on an older feeder, that did not work, but smaller birds queue on it to feed so it stays.
The jury is still out on Badgers here.
[attach=3]
They have been here before and this was so dug up over-night we think it was too much too quickly for Rooks, which sometimes make fairly neat but deeper and narrower holes. It was just a flat settled wood-chip mulch the day before. It has happened again a few nights later to a lesser extent, which could have been either "pest". I like and have watched Badgers but prefer they were not in my garden.
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My Blue Tits flew 2 days ago. Just 3 young from the original 7 eggs. The smallest took several hours after the first 2 to go. Checked the nest after. No corpses.
Part dismantled the box to realign the camera and raised it a fraction to get a wider angle. Thought about removing the B. T. plate to leave a slightly larger hole and encourage something else to use it. Any thoughts?
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Metal plates at the entrance to a nest box do not deter woodpeckers which can simply drill in elsewhere.
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I was repoting some Crocus in the greenhouse when suddenly i heard a sound that cover the ventilator:
[attach=1][attach=2]
i slowly ran :P to the house to grab the camera, still there when i entered the greenhouse.
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Guess this comes here. Went into the garden this evening and a very fine thread like worm? was waving about in free air from the surface of a leaf. Maybe 8-10 cms long but only as thick as a cotton thread. Lifted it off and put it on the ground, so not "sticky". What was it?
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I found a dead goldfinch in the garden this morning.
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On a happier note a friend's sister in Lunenburg Co., Nova Scotia built an owl house last year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NMa8VrqFLA (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NMa8VrqFLA)
john
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I've been seeing a tree sparrow occasionally at the bird seed in the last few days and today there were two adults feeding two babies under the feeder. I am not sure I have ever seen a tree sparrow before. Certainly not well enough to identify. Too shy to get any pictures.
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I would say eyed hawk moth caterpillar.
!I thought it was a still-curled-up leaf! Fantastic camouflage!
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Brian, in regard to your tit box, is there a metal plate over the hole. If not, birds may feel at risk from squirrels and woodpeckers. Palustris, in spite of the damage I would be pleased to see badgers. Perhaps scones with jam might tempt them away from your plants? I have never seen a live badger. Plenty of dead ones as road and rail casualties. Most have been killed one way or the other in this area, many by illegal diggers.
Scones with jam????? I should be so lucky. Do they let it be known which kind of jam they would prefer? Apricot? strawberry? black currant? I expect home-made is best? And how about with whipped cream too?
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!I thought it was a still-curled-up leaf! Fantastic camouflage!
You been messing around your time machine again Lesley? ::)
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Scones with jam????? I should be so lucky. Do they let it be known which kind of jam they would prefer? Apricot? strawberry? black currant? I expect home-made is best? And how about with whipped cream too?
We had scones with raspberry jam and whipped cream for yesterday's morning tea.
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We just had more plants destroyed. And I meant Hesperantha coccinea, not Schizanthus.
No idea where they are getting in now as we have fenced the whole garden. Cannot see where they are climbing over and there are not holes or places where they have lifted the netting.
Would you be pleased if they had eaten 1500 or so Tulips and countless Brodiaea and Hesperantha and dug up hundreds of pounds worth of plants and shrubs to get at them? You are more generous than we can afford to be.
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Terrible news, Eric - is it possible there's one trapped inside the garden now? Hiding under a shed or something? We've had that happen, but thankfully only with a couple of little rabbits, long ago.
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No, that was one of the things we checked. There are no holes under any of the sheds and we have lifted all the shrubs etc. to look under for damage. Nice idea though.
We did have rabbits in once. We found out when we saw one bolting down the middle path closely followed by two cats. We followed and found the scrape where they were attempting to live. Cats had rabbit for lunch, dinner and probably breakfast too!
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A caterpillar, a butterfly and a bird.
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Lovely photos Frazer. Where were they taken? Central Asia is a big place ;) ;D
And do you know what that blue flower is in the butterfly photo?
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The wee bird looks to be a Little Forktail which has a wide range in southern Central Asia, China and the Indian sub-continent.
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Considered a flycatcher but behaves rather like a dipper. Convergent evolution I suppose.
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A caterpillar, a butterfly and a bird.
The pics of the nymphalid caterpillar pre-pupa and black-veined white butterfly are kind of sidieways.
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The pics of the nymphalid caterpillar pre-pupa and black-veined white butterfly are kind of sidieways.
Onlyshowing sideways in the thumbnail here - they correct on enlargement.
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And do you know what that blue flower is in the butterfly photo?
Is it an Ixiolirion?
cheers
fermi
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Delightful addition to the garden, I had noticed that my Kniphofia Ice Queen was being sublet for a brilliantly camouflaged nest (so well hidden that my two hopeless guard dogs completely missed it!)
Today, a Red Legged Partridge and numerous chicks emerged!
Seriously going to curtail dog activity in the garden.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
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Thanks Ingrid - what a sweet family - perhaps the dogs were the ones running the sub-let?
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Thanks Ingrid - what a sweet family - perhaps the dogs were the ones running the sub-let?
(cue Mutley style chuckle)
Pair of choughs flew over today. They nest on the coast and quite often come a short way inland to feed once the young have fledged.
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Mr. Fox enjoying the sunshine while I am pottering in the garden!!!
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This squirrel had most of its body inside the box when eating nuts and when the rain came on really heavy went right inside leaving its tail sticking out ;D
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This Noctua fimbriata (?) was "born" while we watched last night. It took a while to pump up the wings and I forgot to take pictures until it was almost too late.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
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Puffins near Arbroath this afternoon.
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7520/27884114996_e6062dfa1f_b.jpg)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7038/27884119126_f7fff91204_b.jpg)
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7405/27640205680_867fe98e9d_b.jpg)
My local Ospreys yesterday afternoon. They are 10 minutes from my house. This is the closest (legal) viewing point but is still far away. 600MM lens - heavily cropped images. There are 4 chicks in that nest.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/8/7302/27285765624_a1d4b7f56a_b.jpg)
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7360/27863040116_5794eebdb6_b.jpg)
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/8/7710/27863042276_f894513860_b.jpg)
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Fine photos Fred and Trond 8)
Here are some Icelandic cousins, from Heimaey off the south coast & Látrabjarg in the north-west.
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Cracking images Fred!!!
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Wonderful puffins, both lots and thanks so much for them. I've taken my laptop to my room so they can meet with Ian's puffins who are a bit isolated in this country. ;D (One of Ian's beautiful prints from when he visited NZ a few years back. Fortunately I don't have to fish for them.)
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Goodness me - how lucky are we to have all these fantastic photographers in our midst?
[attachimg=1]
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I borrowed a Nikkor 500MM prime lens from a friend the other day. Even at over 200M away in pretty poor light I managed to get these shots.
When it comes to glass you get what you pay for and this lens cost him well over £5000.
(https://c8.staticflickr.com/8/7339/27943690151_d139b250b1_b.jpg)
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7799/27943692401_65eb31f0e2_b.jpg)
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Million dollar photos though, Fred!
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Crab spiders are very common here. One of them got a honey bee for breakfast the other day while others patiently waited:
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
This tattered painted lady (Vanessa cardui) escaped by choosing another plant.
[attachimg=3]
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I love the photo of the Great Northern Diver. Where did you take it Ian? It takes me way back to the wonderful heady days when I spent many happy hours with (with the books of) Arthur Ransome. Marvellous books every one. :)
That's twice this week friends have mentioned Arthur Ransome books. Remember reading Coot Club and Swallows and Amazons as a child.
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Oh yes Anthony. "The Big Six" followed on from "Coot Club" and it a great thrill to spend some time on the Norfolk broads in 1981, remembering those stories. My brother had all of Ransome's books but they vanished after his death in 1956, aged just 21. I still, occasionally, borrow a couple from the Dunedin Public Library.
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Had a few holidays on the Broads, staying at Ludham Bridge on the River Ant. Visited Bressingham nursery a couple of times too.
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Someone has placed Erinus alpinus on a Special Area of Conservation and SSSI. It has spread throughout the site and is dominant in at least one area. The meaning of Conservation seems to be unknown to some people. They are harming the very reason these sites are important. There are other sites where this invasive foreign plant has been introduced by people who should be aware that their actions are irresponsible. Non-native plants should be kept in gardens, not in the wild.
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In the summer of 1970, a pair of Great Northern Divers successfully reared two chicks in a Loch in Wester Ross. When I was an active birder, I heard about this via Dick Balharry who was the warden of the Beinn Eighe reserve
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Here's some completely organic pest control.
A praying mantis young'in moving in on some aphids attacking a grape vine stem.
Mantis only an inch and a half.
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If he scoffs that lot he'll soon get bigger!
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Nice snake. :D Someone has told him to "get knotted?"
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The other beetle looks like a nettle weevil (Phyllobius pomaceus) or P. maculicornis. The former is around 10cm, and the latter, being the lesser of two weevils, is just a tad smaller.
10cm?
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10cm?
Slip of the finger. :-[ 10mm. Another species it could be is Phyllobius argentatus, which is smaller at 6mm.
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I give up! Squirrels and gophers have eaten anything with a bulb. Deer are eating anything with leaves. Raccoons tipped out all seed pots. Now this guy shows up to join the party. >:(
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I give up! Squirrels and gophers have eaten anything with a bulb. Deer are eating anything with leaves. Raccoons tipped out all seed pots. Now this guy shows up to join the party. >:(
Holy Moly! That's a BIG problem!
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I give up! Squirrels and gophers have eaten anything with a bulb. Deer are eating anything with leaves. Raccoons tipped out all seed pots. Now this guy shows up to join the party. >:(
I'm starting to feel grateful to only have to deal with slugs!
Perhaps you need a pet wolf...?
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PS Like the Primulas.
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I'm starting to feel grateful to only have to deal with slugs!
Perhaps you need a pet wolf...?
Oh no :o I'll take anything but slugs :-X
I can tolerate deer, hares, different rodents and also an occasional moose/ European elk (at the mountain cabin) (and the neighbours' cats and dogs) but not slugs :( Not all slugs though, it is Arion vulgaris a recent immigrant which is the problem).
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Does Vipers bugloss count as wildlife ? ;-)
When I returned from the Nargs conference to a very overgrown garden, a pheasant had nested in the rough grass area. I actually mowed over the nest before I saw the 2 eggs in a small hollow. Each day they increased in number until 6 eggs just a few days ago. She crept in under the long dry grass I added to disguise it a bit, and was not visible without standing over her. Yesterday they were all broken and empty shells. A gap dug out under the fence suggest a fox visited during the night. No sign of the hen since ;-(
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It,s pretty wild around here Brian. During a survey all forms of natural history are recorded, native and alien, for posterity. As far as I understand, all forms of natural history come under the heading of wildlife. The Verbascum has been identified as V. speciosum.
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I splashed out on a 500MM f4 prime lens. Here are a few shots of my local ospreys
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/9/8735/28483129521_fc384630c2_b.jpg)
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/9/8791/28483130781_ee1c0f507a_b.jpg)
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/9/8616/28528658026_a10e4c6680_b.jpg)
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/9/8860/28483131121_52d2cbbf4f_b.jpg)
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/9/8046/28528659506_f4584790fa_b.jpg)
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I give up! Squirrels and gophers have eaten anything with a bulb. Deer are eating anything with leaves. Raccoons tipped out all seed pots. Now this guy shows up to join the party. >:(
Perhaps he's just come to see the garden. After all there can't be much left to eat. ;D Sorry, I do sympathize, rabbits are my problem and free-range chooks.
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Does Vipers bugloss count as wildlife ? ;-)
When I returned from the Nargs conference to a very overgrown garden, a pheasant had nested in the rough grass area. I actually mowed over the nest before I saw the 2 eggs in a small hollow. Each day they increased in number until 6 eggs just a few days ago. She crept in under the long dry grass I added to disguise it a bit, and was not visible without standing over her. Yesterday they were all broken and empty shells. A gap dug out under the fence suggest a fox visited during the night. No sign of the hen since ;-(
So no pheasant suppers for Brian? One of our chooks has taken to laying by the back porch in a nest of bearded iris and old Narcissus leaves which I've left for her, though I don't really want her just there. They have a house for night but prefer to perch in camellias! Anyway our Marley, darling dog that he is has discovered the pleasures of egg for breakfast and chases her off the nest as soon as she's laid and grabbing the warm egg. I've had to fence her nest off. She can hop over but Marley can't. Yet.
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I splashed out on a 500MM f4 prime lens. Here are a few shots of my local ospreys
Beautiful pictures; it should make the pain of parting with that amount of money go away.
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Fabulous photos, Fred - worth the expense I'm sure, as David said! And will be loads of fun for you to work with in future -but I suppose now isn't a good time to ask you to lend me a fiver?
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Possible conversation:
pic 1: what are we waiting for? Shouldn't we just jump into this garden?
pic 2: here comes Ted
pic 3: Ted says not to jump into fermi and Will's garden or they'll get mad!
pic 4: we're off then!
cheers
fermi
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Superb Fermi. We only have sheep to worry about.
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Possible conversation:
pic 1: what are we waiting for? Shouldn't we just jump into this garden?
pic 2: here comes Ted
pic 3: Ted says not to jump into fermi and Will's garden or they'll get mad!
pic 4: we're off then!
cheers
fermi
:) :) :)
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Superb Fermi. We only have sheep to worry about.
Generally the sheep in the neighbours' paddocks stay put except when gate gets left open >:(
However there is a "pet lamb" kept by a neighbour above us who keeps alpacas as well.One alpaca and the pet lamb have managed to go from their paddock into the next one and the next one down from there. Yesterday we saw that they had actually managed to get into the yard of the neighbour opposite us and that means they can get into the street and into our garden >:( >:( >:(
The roos can jump the fences but the tend to only eat grass (and grass-like plants) however they can do "mechanical" damage by standing or jumping onto brittle plants and smashing them to pieces :'(
Lost a young Pecan tree that way (a few years ago) which we never bothered to replace.
I guess we can be glad that they're not as big as Ken's moose ;D
cheers
fermi
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Just as well the sheep are not woolly jumpers! ::)
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Just as well the sheep are not woolly jumpers! ::)
I think the alpaca holds up the fence while the lamb crawls under ;)
cheers
fermi
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I had kangaroo steak when I was in Australia a couple of months ago ---- it appears you could live quite cheaply ----
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Did't roo the day you ate it then?
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Some good news and some shocking news.
Super news, a healthy brown bat population has been found here in Nova Scotia:
Discovery of bat colony in Nova Scotia provides hope for the at-risk population | The Chronicle Herald (http://thechronicleherald.ca/novascotia/1385459-discovery-of-bat-colony-in-nova-scotia-provides-hope-for-the-at-risk-population)
The experts now seem to be leaning towards a great white shark attack in nearby St. Maggi's Bay; certainly looks like a great white in the slowmo version. Now if fishermen will just leave it alone.
Shark attack or porpoise play? You be the judge | The Chronicle Herald (http://thechronicleherald.ca/novascotia/1385814-shark-attack-or-porpoise-play-you-be-the-judge?from=most_read&most_read=1385814&most_read_ref=%2Fnovascotia%2F1385459-discovery-of-bat-colony-in-nova-scotia-provides-hope-for-the-at-risk-population)
john
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I KNEW it wouldn't be long before our Maggi was beatified.
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;D ;D ;D Thanks for your "faith" Lesley!!
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I KNEW it wouldn't be long before our Maggi was beatified.
Lesley, Lesley, Lesley,
are you forgetting your Sunday school lessons? ::)
Beatifying someone only makes them a "Blessed"; to become a Saint Maggi had to be Canonised! ;D
(Don't go there, David N, or you'll be paying a hefty fine in chocolate! :o )
cheers
fermi (B.Theol.[unfinished])
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If it means being shot from one I wouldn't bother Maggi.
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I'm chortling away but have no smileys :-(
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Don't you have to be dead to be canonised?
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Don't you have to be dead to be canonised?
Very likely- I'm not for it!
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If you were not dead before being canonised you would definitely be dead after . ;D ;D ;D
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You don't have to go off of on your own accord though :P ;D
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We could get a dispensation to use a chocolate trebuchet instead. ???
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The mind really does boggle - while the mouth salivates!
Maggi I'm so sorry my initial comment has put you up for all these appalling procedures. I should have remembered that Fermi and David, in particular wouldn't let it go at that.
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Maggi I'm so sorry my initial comment has put you up for all these appalling procedures. I should have remembered that Fermi and David, in particular wouldn't let it go at that.
Moi! :o
My purpose was merely to point out your theological inaccuracy and bait warn David ;D
cheers
fermi
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Well, it all went with a bang.
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On Saturday I checked the three monarch pupae that I spotted in the front garden a while ago. Normally, by the end of May, any larvae or pupae die and go foostie. Not this year. Two (one on the house wall, the other on the jade plant) had hatched. The other was colouring up and hatched today, even though we have had two frosty nights, and temperatures struggling to get into double figures during the day.
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Nice capture of the monarch hatching!
A first time encounter for me earlier in the week - hard to miss it at aprox. 6 cm long! ID as the Heterocampa umbrata moth caterpillar. It takes this very obvious colour only before pupating. Sitting on a Solidago stem - feeds on oaks.
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Few images of yesterday, a fat, quite handsome caterpillar preparing to pupate - this time of the Polyphemus moth.
[attachimg=1]
My favourite - the hummingbird clearwing moth.
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
Eastern Black Swallowtail and Giant Swallowtail - all around a Vernonia clump and, alas not in my garden.
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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Gabriela:
Here's what you to look forward to.
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Used to breed polyphemus moths in the UK. Sent from the USA. My interest was sparked by reading 'Moths of the Limberlost' by Gene Stratton-Porter, a present from my piano teacher.
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Gabriela:
Here's what you to look forward to.
These large moths are exquisite creatures; have seen once a Cecropia. Slim chances to catch this one though, so thank you for the picture!
Used to breed polyphemus moths in the UK. Sent from the USA. My interest was sparked by reading 'Moths of the Limberlost' by Gene Stratton-Porter, a present from my piano teacher.
I am not surprised at all some people are growing these beautiful giant silkmoths, Cecropia and Promethea included. But I never heard about breeding moths?
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I first visited Worldwide Butterflies (http://www.wwb.co.uk/ (http://www.wwb.co.uk/)) in 1968, and went to the 10th anniversary, with special guest Peter Scott, in 1970. I still keep in touch even though I can only buy equipment now. As you can see, many people keep and breed moths and butterflies.
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Our single baby swift flew the nest last week. As I stood outside watching him dither, a bat flew out from behind the box!
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Most Swifts have gone now but saw three today. I have three nest boxes on the house but have been unsuccessful so far.
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The garden's been a little neglected of late and I've had some dirty pots sitting in a tub of water for some weeks to make the cleaning easier. When I went to clean them today, I found that this chap had taken up residence. The pot scrubbing has been postponed.....
Common Frog (Rana temporararia)
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Butterflies have been a bit scarce this season and have not been hanging around the garden much. I did see 3 Small Tortoiseshells at one time a couple of weeks ago on Origanum. It has gone past now and the sedums are just starting. I am seeing the odd Small tortoiseshell now and again but not every day.
I rescued a Speckled Wood from a spider's web about two weeks ago.
Today was more exciting - one Small Tortoiseshell, one Peacock which did not hang about and 3 or possibly 4 Painted Ladies. There were 3 on this sedum but I only seem to have 2 in the picture. They kept closing their wings making them difficult to see.
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Here's a yellow jacket feasting on some Eucomis autumnalis pollen.
Must be like eating caviar for the first time.
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Here's a yellow jacket feasting on some Eucomis autumnalis pollen.
Must be like eating caviar for the first time.
Arnold yellow jackets are wasps aren't they? Just checking because that is a hoverfly - much less problematic around the jam sandwiches :)
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You're right Tristan, that's 'someone' pretending to be a yellow jacket.
But such a great picture and I like the metaphor :)
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Thanks, doesn't have the nasty looking stinger that yellow jackets have.
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Lurker-friend Donna passes along this encouraging article on elephant damage to gardens. FB so all may not be able to access it.
http://www.littlethings.com/bees-and-elephants-vcom/?utm_medium=Facebook (http://www.littlethings.com/bees-and-elephants-vcom/?utm_medium=Facebook)
johnw
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Genius John! ;D
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How Bees, Elephants and Farmers Are Keeping Each
Other Safe In A Genius Way
By Laura Caseley (http://www.littlethings.com/author/laura/)
Being a farmer is hard work - but being a farmer in places like
Kenya, Botswana, and Sri Lanka has a unique challenge that
other areas of the world don't: elephants!
Wild elephants, whose natural behavior is to roam, have been
known to march right through fields, damaging and destroying crops.
When the human farmers try to intervene, things can turn ugly,
and both human and elephant injuries and even deaths can occur.
Sadly, like too many animals (http://www.littlethings.com/category/animals-in-the-news/), elephants face many dangers at
the hands of humans. It's a shame, because these creatures are
intelligent, sensitive, and have complex emotional and social
connections, forming strong bonds with one another,
and with different animals, too (http://www.littlethings.com/elephants-mourn-human-friend/).
So a solution was needed that would both keep the farmers' fields
safe, but make sure the elephants were in no way harmed.
This solution was not only brilliantly simple, but also had the added
bonus of helping out another species in crisis: bees.
Read on to see how they did it!
Elephants usually raid fields at night, and to ward them off, people h
have fired guns, thrown rocks, and launched firecrackers to scare them off.
Just like with humans, an injury or death in an elephant's family unit
puts major emotional stress on the herd.
The devastation to fields is no small issue, either.
These small farmers rely on their crops to survive, and a damaged
field can mean a serious loss of income and food.
There seemed to be no simple solution, until zoologist Dr. Lucy King
noticed something: Elephants really don't like bees, and will avoid
them at all costs.
If they hear buzzing, they'll leave an area immediately, signaling to
others that bees are about.
This is because the bees' stings are especially painful to the elephants'
trunks, and to avoid this pain, the elephants prefer to just stay away.
And thus, bee fences were born!
"Beefencing," as it's known, is the use of hanging rows of beehives,
each connected by a length of wire.
When a nosy elephant approaches, it will knock into the wire, setting the
hives swinging and disturbing the bees.
And when the elephants hear that buzzing, they'll turn around and leave.
The crops are safe, the humans are safe, and the elephants are safe.
The bees are safe, too.
Dr. King has been working with various conservation organizations and communities
in Africa and Sri Lanka, building these beefences around local farms.
She hopes that this will be the first of many steps to create sustainable solutions where humans
and animals can coexist peacefully.
The project has also attracted the attention of some big names, who are
chipping in to create more beefences.
The bees also help pollinate fields and maintain the biodiversity needed to
support an ecosystem, so the farmers get a helping hand, too
And as an added bonus, the farmers get to keep the honey and beeswax
produced by their hives, which they can use or sell.
This "elephant-friendly honey" is available in local shops near the areas
where the farmers live and work.
So unless you're planning a visit to Nairobi, you won't be able to get any.
But it's quite popular where it's sold!
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Brilliant idea!
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Four butterflies today, all different species
The Red Admiral did not hang around but I did get pics of the other three
Small Copper
Painted Lady
Peacock
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The peacocks are so beautiful! they are not found in North America.
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The peacocks are so beautiful! they are not found in North America.
You have the mourning cloak butterfly though.
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Its amazing that something so small can scare something so big
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You have the mourning cloak butterfly though.
Also beautiful but I guess I'm partial to the peacocks :-)
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Its amazing that something so small can scare something so big
I thought you were referring to Anthony and the butterfly :o
Then I looked back and realised you meant the elephants and the bees ;D
Perhaps they are allergic to stings? Epi-pens would be useless for them!
cheers
fermi
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Any ideas what this handsome chap will be when he grows up? He is brown not black as he appears on my my monitor. Hope he's not too hungry. I do not want to lose all my sweet peas ;D
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Could it be the Striped garden caterpillar? or something similar.
http://bugguide.net/node/view/30011/bgimage (http://bugguide.net/node/view/30011/bgimage)
I don't know many cat., but when new to Canada years ago, I was terrified by the thought that I would kill a swallowtail cat by mistake, so I got in the use to search fast for them on the web :)
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Any ideas what this handsome chap will be when he grows up? He is brown not black as he appears on my my monitor. Hope he's not too hungry. I do not want to lose all my sweet peas ;D
Looks like a broom moth (Ceramica pisi) caterpillar. They will eat just about anything, presumably including sweet peas and broom.
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I was lucky enough to meet up with a local kingfisher yesterday afternoon. Even luckier to see him catch a shrimp.
I know it's a "him" as the lower mandible of the beak is red on females.
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/9/8252/29248510493_2dec860cf0_b.jpg)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/8/7771/29840177006_f26e03f151_b.jpg)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/9/8112/29581404150_526032361c_b.jpg)
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/9/8515/29248506953_fec81251a9_b.jpg)
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Congratulations to these wonderful pictures of such a shy creature.
These birds are very rare in our region.
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What amazing shots ... which belong to the National Geographic.
My congratulations.
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Great photos of a rarely seen bird.
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What a magnificent series Fred. Wonderful to see such detail.
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Lovely images Fred!!!
We have a breeding pair on the local burn but I lack the skill and "bushcraft" to achieve anything other than poor quality record shots! :'(
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Fabulous photos Fred. But... a shrimp?? Was if fishing in tidal water?
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Wow! just to add my admiration!
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Was if fishing in tidal water?
Yes, in brackish pools that flood at very high tides.
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A more abstract shot of another bird at a different site last week. Poor light and at quite a distance, but I think it works as that enhanced the reflection.
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/9/8453/29755347481_c27b1136af_b.jpg)
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Fantastic kingfisher photos!
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Fantastic kingfisher photos!
Aren't they just? Fred is man of many talents - no wonder he used to be the SRGC journal's picture editor!
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Those kingfisher images are incredible - very well done! The village I've moved to has the river Wensum running through it and my regular Sunday morning walk always involves some time spent on the bridge hoping for otters and kingfishers; they have been seen at nearby Pensthorpe Nature Reserve.
My butterfly & moth books are still packed in one of 34 boxes of books - can anyone identify this caterpillar from the garden this afternoon for me?
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You're quite sure that is a caterpillar and not a hat, Gail?
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A pale tussock?
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See what you mean Maggi - it really did not want to pose properly but Ian's speedy reply looks correct. (http://www.ukmoths.org.uk/species/calliteara-pudibunda/larva/ (http://www.ukmoths.org.uk/species/calliteara-pudibunda/larva/))
Many thanks; I'd say who needs books when you have such knowledgeable forum members but I do love my books...
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Hello Gail, the internet is very useful but like you, I still prefer books.
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Midgies were quite vicious this morning. Ponies got their hooves trimmed this morning about 11am. The temperature rose from about 6C at 10.15 to around 9C at 11.30. As it got warmer the midges attacked and we had to stand there being eaten while the farrier did his work.
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Ouch!
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Nasty Roma! Very late for midges too - ours are gone by end August.
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We don,t get them at all here, must be too dry.
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This frog has been in the greenhouse since last year. It spends the day in a plant pot. A good way to keep slugs down, providing there are no chemicals in the green house. img. 1020038.
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Ian, that frog doesn't have a very healthy colour- I wonder if it may be suffering from Ranavirus, which is all too common these days. :-X :-\
http://www.gardenwildlifehealth.org/files/2013/06/Amphibian-disease-alert_June-2015.pdf (http://www.gardenwildlifehealth.org/files/2013/06/Amphibian-disease-alert_June-2015.pdf)
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Hello Maggi, it has been that colour since last year. I don,t know how it finds food because the greenhouse door is closed at nights. It seems quite active and there are slugs in the greenhouse.
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It's something that I have seen around here too - in frogs that look perfectly healthy. Quite a mystery - and a worry too!
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Common frogs can vary quite a bit in colour, and can even be quite red. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rana_temporaria.jpg
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I was going through photos today and found this from earlier this summer: Actias luna, the Luna moth. I found this hanging around a big box store in town. Later I found the remains of one on the ground below our Gingko tree. They are one of the largest moths in Canada. The adults don't feed on anything- they exist to reproduce.... and to beautify the landscape in my opinion! It seems that the caterpillars will feed on any number of trees (Birch, Persimmon, Sweet Gum, Sumac, Walnuts and Hickories, to name a few). It seems the photo decided to display in landscape format rather than in its original portrait format. Perhaps someone can give it a quick turn?
edit by maggi - pic turned.
[attachimg=1]
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I was going through photos today and found this from earlier this summer: Actias luna, the Luna moth. I found this hanging around a big box store in town. Later I found the remains of one on the ground below our Gingko tree. They are one of the largest moths in Canada. The adults don't feed on anything- they exist to reproduce.... and to beautify the landscape in my opinion! It seems that the caterpillars will feed on any number of trees (Birch, Persimmon, Sweet Gum, Sumac, Walnuts and Hickories, to name a few). It seems the photo decided to display in landscape format rather than in its original portrait format. Perhaps someone can give it a quick turn?
Love these moths, and bred them many times in the UK, feeding them on birch and walnut. One of the "Moths of the Limberlost", as described by Gene Stratton-Porter in the book of that name.
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The flowering eucalypt is attracting nectar feeders including the Musk Lorikeet (Glossopsitta concinna) which are colourful and noisy,
cheers
fermi
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We are being invaded by ladybirds/bugs again. They get in through the window vents, where the screen is badly fitted, and collect between the frame and opening window, so when we open it they crunch up when we then close it.
[attach=1]
[attach=2]
Should I be trying to save these and try and provide different accommodation, maybe in my garage etc, or do I just blast them out into the cold? There are many 100's in total I suspect. Are they the invaders?
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I think those are the alien invaders - Harlequins.
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A Red Kite photographed last week.
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/6/5771/29963165254_d36d617925_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/MDK48u)
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A Red Kite photographed last week.
Cool 8)
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WOW! 8) 8) 8) 8)
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I spot an interesting tweet about wildlife :o
https://twitter.com/marcellajkelly/status/792137494032777216 (https://twitter.com/marcellajkelly/status/792137494032777216)
Student biologists at Virginia Tech captured a rare species on film—a very wild, very naked Homo sapiens
http://motherboard.vice.com/read/wildife-camera-trap-shoots-rare-footage-of-naked-human (http://motherboard.vice.com/read/wildife-camera-trap-shoots-rare-footage-of-naked-human)
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A Red Kite photographed last week.
Oh my word! Fantastic!
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Superb capture Fred!!!
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We are being invaded by ladybirds/bugs again. They get in through the window vents, where the screen is badly fitted, and collect between the frame and opening window, so when we open it they crunch up when we then close it.
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
Should I be trying to save these and try and provide different accommodation, maybe in my garage etc, or do I just blast them out into the cold? There are many 100's in total I suspect. Are they the invaders?
Yes, it is indeed the Asian lady beetle, Harmonia axyridis.
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I have spent much of today cleaning out the window mechanisms of them. They were at the top and bottom scissor mechanism friction "hinges". Very time consuming as they invariably tried to fly around. There were many pupa cases too built out of what looked at first glance like cement, containing pupa. The house is almost true too the compass and the windows on the south and west were the worst, with few in the other windows, spiders excepted of course. No doubt many will creep back and have to be evicted again.
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There were many pupa cases too built out of what looked at first glance like cement, containing pupa.
Ladybirds pupate on vegetation, and their pupae are soft and stuck to a leaf or twig by the rear end. They certainly don't make cement cases. These must be the remains of potter wasp nests?
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Hi Anthony
The "cases" are visible in this
[attach=1]
The ones I broke contained white grubs, ~2mm diameter x 5mm long. Just sort of assumed they were from the other occupants.
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A Red Kite photographed last week.
Superb!
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The flowering eucalypt is attracting nectar feeders including the Musk Lorikeet (Glossopsitta concinna) which are colourful and noisy,
Lovely to see Fermi 8)
The eucalypt isn't bad either. Do you know what it is?
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Lovely to see Fermi 8)
The eucalypt isn't bad either. Do you know what it is?
Hi Ashley,
possibly Eucalyptus sideroxylon, red-flowering Ironbark,
cheers
fermi
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Beautiful. Reputedly frost hardy to about -6°C, so maybe worth a try here with careful siting :-\
Have to do without the lorikeets though ;D
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Ladybirds pupate on vegetation,
As I've discovered they're also quite partial to pupating on polycarbonate sheet and Horticultural fleece.
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Hi Anthony
The "cases" are visible in this
(Attachment Link)
The ones I broke contained white grubs, ~2mm diameter x 5mm long. Just sort of assumed they were from the other occupants.
Yes, as I said, some sort of potter wasp. Ladybird larvae or pupae are never white grubs, and pupate on or near their food source. http://www.mattcolephotography.co.uk/Galleries/insects/Bugs%20&%20Beetles/slides/Harlequin%20Ladybird%20Pupa%201.html (http://www.mattcolephotography.co.uk/Galleries/insects/Bugs%20&%20Beetles/slides/Harlequin%20Ladybird%20Pupa%201.html)
Here are potter wasp nests http://tristram.squarespace.com/home/2008/7/24/potter-wasp-nests.html (http://tristram.squarespace.com/home/2008/7/24/potter-wasp-nests.html)
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Anthony:
Wow those are wonderful images I have to return to look at all of them.
Thanks for sharing.
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Lucky enough to see two waxwings today. Exquisite birds.
(https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5469/30185136353_5b68f66cca_b.jpg)
(https://c4.staticflickr.com/6/5522/30185138043_62ecbdeb89_b.jpg)
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/6/5321/30783462256_7fe0c352cb_b.jpg)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/6/5563/30188256214_1ebf50a216_b.jpg)
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My favourite winter visitors! Great birds, very friendly and chatty - which appeals to me - as well as being so beautiful . Exquisite photos, Fred, you've excelled yourself with these!
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These are the sharpest and best pictures of waxwings that I have seen, fantastic Fred.
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Thanks Ian. The light was perfect.
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Wonderful Waxwing images Fred!
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You never cease to amaze me with the quality of your images, Fred.
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Magnificent.
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In a friend's tree this afternoon here in the city, a Great Horned Owl with a buddy.
Rather fried from a superb 5.5 hour stint of Tristan und Isolde this afternoon.
johnw - +4.5c and rising.
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Sanderling at Lunan Bay yesterday. My absolute favourite wader. These high Arctic birds seem to have little fear of people and run around the beach like clockwork toys.
(https://c6.staticflickr.com/6/5726/31214971325_404708de3c_b.jpg)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/6/5478/31071675302_9179f161a5_b.jpg)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/6/5324/31071674142_79b898ae25_b.jpg)
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Even in a still photo I can see the speed of movement in those little legs! Especially in the mid-air central pic.
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I see the AGS are going to be involved in practical conservation in the Lake District. They are helping the RSPB to propagate and replace upland plants in an area where they are being lost through over-grazing.
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Yes, a project Dave Morris is involved with, I think. It is a large donation that will be made, it seems - around £30 thousand pounds.
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Well, the AGS do have 'previous' for blowing holes in budgets!
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Had a beautiful experience this weekend, my first encounter with goldcrests! I mean, I've been in the vicinity of them before (or more accurately been walking through the woods with someone who knows about these things and been told 'there's a goldcrest singing in that tree over there) but never got anything remotely resembling a good view.
Well, it was a beautiful cold Novembers day and I needed some sun while recovering from a fluey cold thing, so went out to catch a few rays. I noticed quite a bit of higher pitched than usual tweeting in the rhododendrons so I stood still to see if anything emerged. Next thing a goldcrest emerged and started examining some aster stems no more than a metre from where I was standing. A minute or so later its mate joined it. They are tiny and beautiful little birds with a fine beak for picking out insects and a beautiful golden-yellow line along their head picked out by two darker lines. They were incessently active and reminded me of two little hummingbirds - how they survive the winter here I don't know. Anyway a real treat. Later they moved on the the Pinus mugo where my daughter got to see them too. They didn't seem particularly shy - Isuppose at this time of year they need to feed as much as they can.
I'm afraid I don't have a photo but I seem to remember someone posting one on this thread a few pages back.
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I was lucky enough to get quite close to some local Goldeneye this morning. Close being a relative term when it comes to Goldeneye of course!
(https://c5.staticflickr.com/6/5672/30493375644_1338f77177_b.jpg)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/6/5559/31171007822_763cd79001_b.jpg)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/6/5642/30493377454_141500a81e_b.jpg)
(https://c7.staticflickr.com/6/5615/30493379254_dbaca893a9_b.jpg)
(https://c3.staticflickr.com/6/5783/31171009722_e21154db7b_b.jpg)
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Very beautiful pictures Fred. Thank you :)
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Wow! :)
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Discovered this fat green caterpillar with big "eyes" near his head; is it possibly a hawkmoth larva?
It was feeding on Zauschneria (Epilobium) foliage,
cheers
fermi
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Can someone tell me why the photos come and go? All the waders above have disappeared but I can see the recent caterpillars.
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No idea, Brian - all showing here for me.
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Did a reboot and they are all back ;-)
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Seem to have had an early visit from Rudolf, or something smaller; Roe or Muntjac.
A low branch on my Malus Red Sentinel' has been snapped of leaving a nasty gash, and all the apples gone. With 2 other shrubs debarked recently and the hole in the side of the Sorbus can't wait to see if the 2 movement detectors recommended elsewhere here actually work.
Better get the Christmas tree in before it gets reshaped ;-)
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:)omeone tell me why the photos come and go? All the waders above have disappeared but I can see the recent caterpillars.
[/quote]
I thought the caterpillars must have eaten the ducks, instead of vice versa. :)
What amazing photos we see from our Fred. The goldeneyes are magnificent an the eyes are WONDERFULLY golden indeed. Fermi's caterpillars are great too. I never get anything half so exciting.
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Lovely pictures this morning on Facebook of Rafa's gorgeous bloodhound (Alcea? Anthea?) who made her first puppy appearances here a few years ago. She's a BIG lady now, off with family and friends on a daffodil hunt.
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Nothing wild about Althea - she's a big softie!
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South Island Robin (Petroica australis) male and female in southern beech forest near the Mararoa River. These birds are very tame which means they are easy prey to introduced predators (stoats, rats etc). However there were a lot of them present in this patch of forest.
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Happy Christmas!
This morning I saw a different sort of hover-fly attracted to the Gilia capitata flower which I couldn't identify
cheers
fermi
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Some more pics of the hover-fly and the Gilia capitata
cheers
fermi
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A mass kill of marine life has been ongoing since Boxing Day in southwestern Nova Scotia. No cause has been determined and it appears similar to what's happened in Cornwall and on the east coast of the USA recently. A big cross-section of marine species and no land or aerial predators are touching the carcasses. Very puzzling. The public as you might expect is jumping to conclusions.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/fish-kill-off-st-mary-s-bay-lobster-clams-crabs-beach-1.3913265 (http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/fish-kill-off-st-mary-s-bay-lobster-clams-crabs-beach-1.3913265)
Has the Cornish event been explained yet?
john
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Followed this link, was attracted by another headline and found myself going through all 161 pictures of crazy lobsters ;D. I am curious about so many things and there is so much information out there, I could sit here all day.
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John, I have been following this story, and am dismayed by all the crazy conclusions people make. Given the silence of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, I figure they still haven't found the cause. What I wonder is if that magnitude 3 earthquake that shook Weymouth NS earlier in the month might have liberated sub sediment methane. It would lead to temporary anoxia- and cause multi species die-off. That would seem to me to be a more probable cause than the experimental turbine placed hundreds of miles away in the Minas Channel
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The news gets worse, apparently seals and a young humpback whale* have washed ashore overnight.
Gordon, I have to agree with you that it had to be something toxic from a vent or an imbedded pocket. I initailly thought a heat vent from the quake but the gulls would immediately be out in full force to feed. The new test tidal turbine seems to be a popular scapegoat but there's no sign of physical damage to the bodiesand no predators.
Have you heard of any similar events in NS outside St. Mary's Bay?
ps 30 Dec. 2016 - no mention of seals in subsequent reports, the whale death is apparently unrelated to the problem according to the Dept. of Fisheries.
john
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I noticed our local Lidl had nest boxes with built-in cameras in stock again yesterday. ~£30 from memory. Plug into laptop or TV types. The former are powered using the usb lead; don't know about TV type.
Not the highest quality videos but entertaining all the same last spring. Check the camera alignment before installing; mine was a bit off centre when bought.
Nothing using it as a winter roost so far this season; it's been up for a month or so after cleaning.
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Apparently a small flock of Waxwings at a site between Newton Abbot and Bovey Tracey has got local Twitchers in a state of euphoria
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The last of the Red Sentinal crab apples are feeding up to 9 blackbirds at a time over the last few days. A few Redwings on odd days too. Mostly they feed on the bird feeder sunflower seed spillage though. Noticed several RS crab apple trees in the January sales here. Bought another together with 2 Sorbus trees. Maybe I will eventually tempt some waxwings to visit.
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A friend just rang to ask if I knew what might have buried a whole rabbit in her garden. She doesn't have a dog. It was buried just beneath the surface. The only thing I can think of are a neighbour's dog or a fox. Might anything else be responsible?
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Most likely to be a fox. They will kill more than they need if they have the opportunity to be cached for lean times.
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A fox buried a squirrel in my sand bed, leaving the tail sticky out. I pulled it out and transferred it to the lawn, but it still came and checked for it a couple of days later. There clear anything I leave out over night.
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Last sunday we noted in our meadow garden, that a busy woodpecker damaged
our big birch tree.
Last year we noted a smaller hole in the stem, but now it seems that this hard working
bird used the quiet time to finish his work.
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Wow, he has been very busy!
[attachimg=1]
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It can be said that he was fierce ... The problem will arise in high winds. Do not you think ?
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Maggi and Frederic,
Thank you for your reply, we had very strong winds some weeks ago but
the tree was without leaves.
We will ask an expert what to do, because we want to be at the safe side.
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It reminds me of metal openwork joists. :) They are not less resistant but are lighter. On the other hand they do not get attacked by the mushrooms once the wood is exposed.
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Some mountain hares and a red deer stag in the snow last weekend along with the location.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/697/32566349716_9f498468cf_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/RBM4bd)hare8 (https://flic.kr/p/RBM4bd) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/763/32453729422_ceafcabee5_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/RrPR61)hare5 (https://flic.kr/p/RrPR61) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/320/32566352726_b06ed1d182_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/RBM557)hare6 (https://flic.kr/p/RBM557) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/509/32566350316_3e8444c450_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/RBM4my)hare7 (https://flic.kr/p/RBM4my) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/516/32566353746_17b311103c_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/RBM5nG)hare4 (https://flic.kr/p/RBM5nG) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/457/32453729712_9dc890c0bb_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/RrPRb1)hare3 (https://flic.kr/p/RrPRb1) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/266/32566355096_0d79c9ceec_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/RBM5LY)hare2 (https://flic.kr/p/RBM5LY) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/440/32453730062_56911ee607_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/RrPRh3)hare1 (https://flic.kr/p/RrPRh3) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/523/32490638842_04763c683f_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Rv61Yj)Red Deer Stag (https://flic.kr/p/Rv61Yj) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/1/770/32460474222_744b4c1501_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Rsqq5E)Glen cluanie_29-01-2017 (https://flic.kr/p/Rsqq5E) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
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Wonderful photos, Fred! :o :o
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Cracking Mountain Hare images Fred!
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Magnificent photographs. Thanks for showing them Fred.
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We should have been in The Gambia but our travel plans were thwarted by His Excellency President Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya AJJ Jammeh (-recently retired).
At short notice a long weekend was instead hastily arranged on Islay.
Islay is the most southerly of the main Hebridean Islands and has a very mild climate. The growing season is very long with grass growth even through the Winter. Islay is famous for its distilleries (there are eight) and its wildlife -particularly the huge numbers of wintering geese. Whilst January is not the best time to visit as light levels are poor whilst storms are frequent we nevertheless had an excellent time with good food, whisky tasting and some excellent wildlife sightings.
One of the least expected sightings was this female otter and her cub in front of the Bunnahabhain Distillery.
Bottoms up!
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Gorgeous hares!
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We should have been in The Gambia but our travel plans were thwarted by His Excellency President Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya AJJ Jammeh (-recently retired).
At short notice a long weekend was instead hastily arranged on Islay.
Islay is the most southerly of the main Hebridean Islands and has a very mild climate. The growing season is very long with grass growth even through the Winter. Islay is famous for its distilleries (there are eight) and its wildlife -particularly the huge numbers of wintering geese. Whilst January is not the best time to visit as light levels are poor whilst storms are frequent we nevertheless had an excellent time with good food, whisky tasting and some excellent wildlife sightings.
One of the least expected sightings was this female otter and her cub in front of the Bunnahabhain Distillery.
Bottoms up!
Brilliant Steve, and timely. I was watching otters in rough surf from our headland yesterday.
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In my garden today.
Japanese White-eye (Zosterops japonicus) in ume blossoms (Prunus mume).
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A wonderful series of this bonny hyperactive wee White-eye Tatsuo!
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Tatsuo:
Do they eat the blooms?
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Arnold, Zosterops eat insects, spiders, soft fruits and nectar. They are not unlike Vireos in habit but are totally unrelated.
Japanese White-eye was introduced into Hawaii and is now one of the most numerous land birds on the Hawaiian archipelago where they seem to out-compete native nectarivorous species such as Hawaiian honeycreepers.
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This is a rather sad sight in the field next to our property. This is an erythristic badger. They lack the black pigment so they are ginger and white. Possibly a victim of a car which crawled off to die here.
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And reading through the mention of Waxwings reminded me of this one in the garden last month.
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Thanks, Steve.
I have squirrels which eat the opening buds on a Quince tree.
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Islay holds almost all that remains of Scotland's Red-billed Chough (Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax) population. This enigmatic crow is at the most northerly extent of its range here and is unfortunately now endangered. Whilst Choughs are predominantly mountain birds across most of their range, they are in North-west Europe the Celtic Crow being found on the western coastal fringes of Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Isle of Man, Cornwall and Brittany.
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The long curved red bill is used to probe soft soils for insect grubs, etc.
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Though in flight it looks superficially like a typical crow these birds have long emarginate primary wing feathers which give extra lift in coastal winds and mountain updrafts but are less effective in sustained flapping flight in windless conditions.
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First and second winter Choughs flock together over winter. The mortality rate is very high in yearling birds whilst a declining gene pool is resulting in increased cases of congenital blindness linked to expression of a recessive gene. To improve survival of young birds in late winter supplementary feeding with mealworms has been introduced. This seems to be working as the Islay population has crept up over the last couple of years.
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In Western Europe Chough are almost entirely dependent upon heavily grazed coastal pasture/machair and in winter they obtain much of their insect food from well-rotted cow pats. They struggle with hard frosts and prolonged snow cover. Another big issue is the widespread (almost prophylactic) use of anthelmintics in cattle to treat lungworm infections, etc. These drug treatments typically involve "mectins" such as Doramectin and Ivermectin which are also insecticidal to cow pats.
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-All images taken on Islay in late January 2017.
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Very beautiful bird that I did not know. What sad fate do we reserve for the world? You will tell me it is always the same debate. But I often ask myself the question, nevertheless.
Steve, if I understand the translation, this corvid lived in the mountains and now on the cliffs of the coast? How did he get to feed himself in the mountains with his prospecting in the mud? Maybe I did not understand anything? ::)
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Beautiful choughs Steve, and fine photos with great detail. I love these birds for their buoyant playful flight and evocative call.
Fortunately they are still fairly widespread along the south and west coasts of Ireland but in small numbers. In-breeding must be a hazard but I wasn't aware of the congenital blindness problem.
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Never really associated the Chough with Scotland, although I think I have seen it there on the west coast. A Pembroke bird to me, and SW cliffs maybe. Only 1% of population in the UK according to the BTO http://blx1.bto.org/birdfacts/results/bob15590.htm (http://blx1.bto.org/birdfacts/results/bob15590.htm)
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A Roe doe -taken on Islay by Marian (my wife):
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Love the choughs Steve.
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Copying this photo from Cohan Fulford who showed it on Facebook -
"Bonasa umbellus/Ruffed Grouse ; male in full display; saw this beauty when I was in the bush on the farm cutting wood; these birds are not terribly shy-- I only realised he was there when a female flew away as I approached pulling a sled with wood (noisy on the crunchy snow)- but I had passed that spot a couple of times not long before, and was using the chain say 10-20m away. Usually displaying males quickly deflate and slink away when approached, this one stayed still fully fluffed, and only slowly began to move off as I approached-- still displaying.. I only followed him a few metres, then let him go about his business. February 16, 2017, near Condor, Alberta, Canada"
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P.S. Cohan says "hi" to everyone!
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These photos, from itchydog images on flikr, of plant "pests" in China - somehow gave me pause to be grateful we do not have such well-hidden critters here....
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Geometrid Moth Caterpillar (Tanaorhinus viridiluteatus, Geometrinae, Geometridae)
Pu'er, Yunnan, China
https://www.flickr.com/photos/itchydogimages/8378397533/ (https://www.flickr.com/photos/itchydogimages/8378397533/)
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Shield-backed bug nymphs (Plataspidae) https://flic.kr/p/ePzmFx (https://flic.kr/p/ePzmFx)
How's that for masters of disguise?
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I met this spider at 1960 m on the Remarkables near Queenstown. He/she has this wonderful ginger moustache. If he is a she it is even more remarkable.
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Very pretty jumping spider.
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Whilst travelling on the M4 last week we (well the co-pilot really) counted 32 Red Kites between Reading and Slough and travelling back to Devon earlier this week a further 17 on the same stretch.
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Come friendly kites and soar over Slough?
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Ah, a Betjemanic twist. :D
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Maybe not wild life but who cares. We came across these Clydesdales in a field next to Turnberry Golf Course (Trumpton as it is called locally ). They were obviously being groomed into a pair for a ploughing competition. It must be over 50 years since I last saw plough horses in action. Seeing these placid big beasts was quite emotional as it made me realise how much the countryside has changed-and not for the better. I even found myself singing the old bothy ballad the Plooman Laddie from Maggies part of the world in the N.E.
http://www.doricdictionary.com/bothy-ballad-the-plooman-laddies/ (http://www.doricdictionary.com/bothy-ballad-the-plooman-laddies/)
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I well remember, when I was very small, a local ice cream man used a Clydesdale to draw his cart. Beautiful horses.
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This is also a sign of spring, but fortunately not in my garden. Vipera berus, huggorm in Norway, is the only poisonous snake in Norway. This was enjoying the warmth of the sun, just woke up from the wintersleep.
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We were really looking to photograph a Short eared owl, but was very pleased with this meeting.
Marit
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Soon the viper will be looking to eat the short-eared owls eggs, I suppose?
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Yes, they do eat the birds egg, so that must be the reason that the snake are quite common but the Short eared owl are more rare?
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This little charmer is more common, and he is photographed in the garden last summer :)
Strix aluco, tawny owl.
Marit
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Nice image of this cute wee Tawny Owl Marit!
There are species of snakes which eat eggs but Vipers prey mainly on small mammals.
We usually have a few wintering Short-eared Owls near where I stay. A pair summered last year but there was no proof that they nested. Short-eared Owls are common breeding birds in the hills of nearby Perthshire.
This image was taken in Glendevon. The bird was picked out by a shaft of sunlight whilst the loch in the background was in shade creating a pleasing background.
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what a look, you fixed it!
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Something digging up some small tulips last night, again. The security lights came on in the middle of the night. Think it must be foxes looking for slugs etc. They like disturbing my woodchip mulches round the trees.
I cover some rhubarb each spring with a rain water tub to force it, but as soon the weather gets mild it gets hot and sticky underneath. Some mould I can live with but the stems get all slimy, presumably because of slugs, as when I knock them those still visible slide down and fall off. We wash it well of course before making crumbles. ;-)
Several butterflies around now; peacocks and brimstone mainly. Frog spawn too for the first time here.
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Beautiful adder - been a while since I've seen one, though the local farmer saw some last year. I need to go for more walks without the dog!
Never heard of them eating eggs, though they will certainly take nestlings.
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Hei,
I love your owel pivture Steve! And yes Tristan, the adder it is realy beautiful creatur :)
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This weekend we vere lucky to met an sea eagle, or to be more precise, there was more than 20 in the air in the same time.
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Haliaeetus albicilla
Marit
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wow! Marit - I can count his wing feathers!
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And I saw it right in the eye 8)
wow! Marit - I can count his wing feathers!
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And I saw it right in the eye 8)
Nice image of this impressive eagle Marit! Its Scots Gaelic name is "Iolaire suile na grein" - The eagle with the sunlit eye.
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This little guy is irresistible; click on the link below.
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http://i.imgur.com/J5mrz9D.gifv (http://i.imgur.com/J5mrz9D.gifv)
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Gabriela, it is very pale. Is that the normal colour or an albino, we sometimes get here?
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I have no idea, just got the link from someone.
Haven't seen a 'real' one in ages...
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I think the pale appearance is because that is an "African pygmy hedgehog" which as well as being paler and slightly smaller than the European version we are used to, also has hairier ears which give it an even cuter look than "our" version. I believe that these little Africans are also sold as house pets in the UK .
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We seem to have had a great year for hedgehogs but the roll toll is appalling. Last Saturday coming home from Dunedin where I'd been at the Farmers' Market to my home south of Lake Waihola, about 50 kms, I passed at least a dozen squashed or knocked dead hedgehogs, most fresh so just from the Friday night earliest. I was in tears before I saw the last of them.
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Both of our local ospreys are now back.
Green BF was back on Tuesday, his wife, White UF, returned today from her long African holiday.
They wasted no time setting about the tasks of home building and mating.
It is a privilege to have these amazing birds 10 minutes from my front door and to be able to witness this.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2896/32935676374_845f06203b_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/SbpX8d)7 (https://flic.kr/p/SbpX8d) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2945/33737639486_7a170becf1_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/TphdPq)6 (https://flic.kr/p/TphdPq) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2887/33737636836_c7d99bc04e_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Tphd2J)8 (https://flic.kr/p/Tphd2J) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2836/32935678684_5755349341_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/SbpXP3)5 (https://flic.kr/p/SbpXP3) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2923/32935679334_9a58b62048_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/SbpY1f)4 (https://flic.kr/p/SbpY1f) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2897/32935680294_f2c9b5ef81_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/SbpYhN)3 (https://flic.kr/p/SbpYhN) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2936/32935682074_9baa21e00e_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/SbpYPu)2 (https://flic.kr/p/SbpYPu) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
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I'm amazed - and envious!
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Stunning images Fred and blue sky to enjoy the remarkable return of the birds.
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Cracking images Fred.
Great to see them back.
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Outstanding photographs of magnificent birds. What a thrill to see these. Thanks Mr Admin. :)
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Juvenile bald eagle in the back yard today looking for some squirrels. this is 12 miles from mid-town Manhattan.
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Nice image Arnold.
I think this is a Red-tailed Hawk.
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I thought so to at first but it's very large and chest was too white.
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Chiffchaff and male osprey.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2907/33447624040_0fa425786a_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/SXDPk7)Chiffchaff (https://flic.kr/p/SXDPk7) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3847/33447621410_a7d618c344_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/SXDNxL)Male Osprey (https://flic.kr/p/SXDNxL) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2892/33447622060_c11c113554_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/SXDNJY)Male Osprey (https://flic.kr/p/SXDNJY) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
NIkon D500
Nikon 500MM f4
Nikon x 1.7 teleconvertor.
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'singing' every night in the garden for a coupe of weeks now. And we have a couple living here, so with a bit of luck they will have chicks.
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A few photos from today.
Marsh Harrier male
Crossbills, male, female and juvenile.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2934/33918881186_bbe6f587fa_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/TFi8Ej)mh1 (https://flic.kr/p/TFi8Ej) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2929/33830095201_ced230a40f_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Txs5Ft)mh2 (https://flic.kr/p/Txs5Ft) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2824/33575069110_6555fe95a9_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/T9V1iU)xb4 (https://flic.kr/p/T9V1iU) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/4/3935/33830094791_938b9841f3_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Txs5yp)xb1 (https://flic.kr/p/Txs5yp) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2876/33830094141_4d8738c062_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Txs5nc)xb2 (https://flic.kr/p/Txs5nc) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2904/33918880596_de60149712_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/TFi8u9)xb3 (https://flic.kr/p/TFi8u9) by Frederick Carrie (https://www.flickr.com/photos/134206410@N06/), on Flickr
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Super photos. Love the crossbills! That can't be a juvenile from this spring already, surely?
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Nests have been found in January and February. They are very early nesters.
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I suppose being seed eaters rather than insect eaters, they can breed early. A bit chilly for the babies though in Jan/Feb!
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On one of the warm days last weekend managed to snap this visitor to the garden without frightening it off.
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A Deer little thing decided a solitary flower stem of Eremurus robustus would look lonely, and grazed it off last night, on the way to my small pond near the house. Guess there is little water around at present with this drought. It left the other 2 plant groups of Eremurus with another 14 flower stems just yards away; so far. Scattered some human hair around in hope of deterrent.
I have/had a collection of surplus old pots of various old bulbs and other plants and some rocks, awaiting sorting round the back of the house, mostly covered by coarse weeds, grasses etc. Last week one night they were all turned over and scattered around. Guess a badger had quite a feast of slugs and snails.
Something dug a hole ~5” diameter and 6” or so deep recently, very near the hedge. Oddly there was little “spoil heap” so don’t know where the soil went or what did it. A very hard and root filled stony part of the garden too.
Seriously considering isolating part of the garden with fencing; impractical to do the whole thing. Maybe a small pond by the front gate would keep some of the 4 legged night visitors happy.
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Brian, it sounds like your garden is good for wildlife. A good place to have when we are surrounded by destruction.
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This pic from Ian the Christie kind of the Pied Wagtails which have just hatched.....
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A wonderful photo. Not birds at all, just wide open mouths with a bit of fluff attached. How daunting for the parent to face those every time they return with a little something for lunch. They'll be exhausted by the time each day ends.
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Great nest construction. My nest-cam is still looking at the empty base of the box. The Bluetits using our feeder leave the garden and cross the road to a neighbour. Very much more bird feeding activity when the rains arrived at last. (~40mm so far) The female pheasant not visible for over a week now; sitting somewhere maybe.
3 Mallards moved in last week for 3 days. A pair plus a friend ;-) Wrecked my tiny pond until I covered it with 2” square plastic mesh. Even then the female squeezed in and I had to get her out again. What a lot of noise; but as soon as she was a few feet away back to normal. Put out a plastic potting tray with ~2” of water in it and she sat in it for several hours with the male sitting alongside. They just sat on the lawn at night usually.
Noticed a Magpie attacking something from the window. Rush outside to rescue a slow worm. It had shed its tail but not fooled the Magpie. Put it in the hedge to recover. Used to have many slow worms just a few years back but seem rarer now even though we have 2 thick hedges.
Deer still visiting by the various trimmed plants around and slots in soft soil.
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Like to post this just back from Gardening Scotland on Friday placed my new acquisition's in the garden unplanted had a quick brew came outside and spotted the hummingbird Hawk Moth.
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I've yet to see a hummingbird hawk moth here - I'll be beyond excited if one ever arrives!
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Like to post this just back from Gardening Scotland on Friday placed my new acquisition's in the garden unplanted had a quick brew came outside and spotted the hummingbird Hawk Moth.
One that I look forward to see every year!!!
Maggi - they lay eggs on Galium sp. so planting some in the corner of the garden may increase the chances to have it around. Also, they like to feed on plants with long and narrow calyces; here they are very happy for Phlox and Vernonia, but of course there are many other such species.
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YES!!!
I thought mine was but never having seen such a thing in NZ, wasn't absolutely sure.
I spent several minutes chasing one around a row of large orange and yellow lantanas in wooden tubs, at Melk Abbey in Austria, last September. I did post photos and a small video on Facebook at the time but have had trouble locating the transferred phone photos to my laptop then accessing them to post here. I know they're here because I've seen them but then they vanished from my sight. In the meantime today I've had another look at my phone photos and yes, it was a hummingbird hawkmoth a wonderful creature but never still even for a second ;D
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A spider in the garden with egg sack, Pisaura mirabilis? img. 1020647.
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I was out early this morning before it got too hot. As promised I enclose a photo. of the Lizard orchid img. 1020694. Also seen were purple loosestrife img. 1020701. Blackstonia perfoliata img. 1020702. White campion, a declining flower in this area img.1020703. also Erigeron acer img. 1020708.
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This lovely dragonfly, a Broad-Bodied Chaser (Libellula depressa), has been frequenting our garden pond recently. I was able to watch it mate with a female who subsequently laid eggs in the pond.
Paul
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Here's two shots of an infant praying mantis getting a start on a career of pest control.
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Just back from a visit to an old sand quarry to look at a rare sedge. Among the other plants seen were vipers bugloss img. 1020709. Musk thistle img. 1020710 and tree lupin img. 1020710.
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I'm always wondering how our nature is great and how we can kill this beauty
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Last week I spotted this bullfinch eating seeds of Oxalis enneaphylla
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How dare he? I wonder will the seeds go right through and maybe germinate somewhere else or will they be chewed up - well, whatever small birds do to their food - and be fully digested.
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'singing' every night in the garden for a coupe of weeks now. And we have a couple living here, so with a bit of luck they will have chicks.
Indeed, they raised 2 chicks. Unfortunately, strong winds a couple of weeks ago has blown one of the 2 chiks out of the three where they were raised. But the other one was spotted in the garden one morning at the age they start to move from one tree to the next, a one week period where they develop better flying skills and loose their last down, but still get fed by the parents. They whistle constantly from 6 PM to 5 AM to tell their location to the parents. So, that morning, when going to the greenhouse I spotted this on an old pole right at the backdoor :D
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Wow! How great to have that in the garden.
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Wow! How great to have that in the garden.
That's one of those moments when I feel 'rich'. Now that he is starting his life on his own, he left the garden and we find it very 'silent' in the garden. We were so used to hear him whistling all night long. In previous years we have also had chuch owls nesting under the roof of the barn. And we are very happy to see there are again a few swallows flying around. We had a nice population of more than 50 three year ago, but the last two years we had none flying around. My guess is that they got caught on their migration to be roasted & eaten. Often the swallows make their nests in te barn. A bit messy because swallows don't clean up the poo of the chicks, but a big piece of cardboard just under the nest is the right solution. Same for the chirch owls in fact, they also let everything drop down.
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As Maggi says, wonderful to have an owl in the garden. I have a North Island friend who had a family of our native moreporks in his garden. The nest was right at the top of a very tall bamboo, among stems which were 15cms thick. They were very hard to photograph though, about 10 metres off the ground. The morepork is so named because of his call which literally sounds like "more pork."
I really like your signature under your post Francois. The very essence of being "aholic" (alcoholic, bulb or seedaholic, is that there is NO moderation. :)
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I took this shot near the Ken Dee marshes in Galloway some weeks ago. A field was being cut for silage and a group of Red Kites were swooping down collecting the insects being disturbed.
This bird was trailing a length of grass around with it. Why, I don't know.
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A magnificent shot Tom. It would take a lot of insects to feed so large a bird.
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This particular caterpillar which I found by chance in my garden yesterday gained recognition as iNaturalist's Observation of the Day http://naturewatch.org.nz/observations/6900594 (http://naturewatch.org.nz/observations/6900594) Its name is Declana egregia and is also known as the South Island zebra or SI lichen moth. The host plant for the caterpillars are various Pseudopanax species. I don't have a photo of the moth which is notable for its striking black and white pattern (see http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/resources/identification/animals/large-moths/image-gallery/geometridae/declana-egregia (http://www.landcareresearch.co.nz/resources/identification/animals/large-moths/image-gallery/geometridae/declana-egregia)) The caterpillar is truly an extraordinary creature in its camouflage and behaviour and is one amongst the many jewels of our local biodiversity here on the Otago Peninsula. The moth also features on the NZ $100 dollar note and I don't see those very often either.
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A Song Thrush brood photographed a few days ago in a nest on the side of our garage. They have since fledged.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/5/4213/35665896552_511d1bec37_o.jpg)
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Just as Roma reported we have a pair of Bullfinches eating Viola seeds pictures taken through the kitchen window.
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Raining again ;-(
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What did I say ;-(
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Taken, through the window, 5 minutes apart.
(Fine netting round birch is to keep deer from damaging the bark)
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Had some company recently with a flock of 4 NZ Fantails ,( Rhipidura fuliginosa), flitting from perch to perch close by while checking an area I sprayed a few weeks back in preparation for the upcoming local Landcare Group's planting day .....
Despite their near constant moment ,(especially of their tail feathers ),I managed to get a reasonable close up of one of them.
Cheers Dave.
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Super picture, Dave. But so difficult to photograph, I've never managed a decent shot yet! They seem unbothered by human company and will flit around quite close by. Quite magical.
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Super picture, Dave. But so difficult to photograph, I've never managed a decent shot yet! They seem unbothered by human company and will flit around quite close by. Quite magical.
Thanks Carolyn
They are quite inquisitive and often when working outside in the garden they will flit just above me showing off their acrobatic skills ,gliding ,stopping and changing direction in mid flight as well as hovering.. We have on occasions ,(Hild thinks close to a dozen instances), had them fly inside the house for brief periods during summer when the sliding doors are open ......
Cheers Dave.
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We had one in the house a couple of days ago. Jolly useful as he cleaned up the spiders on our 10 ft high ceiling in the kitchen. No way I was getting up there!
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Can anyone identify this luminous green spider in our garden yesterday? It is the exact colour of high-vis jackets and just less than 1cm long.
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Nice little bloke, obviously not afraid to be noticed.
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Can anyone identify this luminous green spider in our garden yesterday? It is the exact colour of high-vis jackets and just less than 1cm long.
Your spider is Araneus cucurbitinus, Darren. This is a praticularly brightly coloured individual.
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Thank you Matt, it was really quite striking in the sunshine. We had never seen one quite like it.
As you say Lesley - not afraid to be noticed, though it did drop off it's perch every time I pointed the camera at it!
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I can't resist it either - seriously adorable. Oops, I only got as far as the dormouse! :-[
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Some insects in my garden
1.-3. A comma and a large white on Buddleia
4. A bumblebee on African Blue Basil (Ocimum kilimandscharicum x basilicum 'Dark Opal',
which acts like a magnet especially to several species of bumblebees
5. Anthidium manicatum - a wool-unsing bee on Leonurus cardiaca -
(if I googled the insect correctly)
Gerd
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Some insects in my garden
This is one of my neighbours bees (he is able to identify them) drinking in my birth bath.
Gerd
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I love that your neighbour knows all his own bees, Gerd!
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Maggi, after I showed him this picture, he told me that he identified 'Marie Louise', his best honey collector ;D
Gerd
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[attachimg=1]
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A great spotted woodpecker at an alpine nursery, no longer selling plants img. 00050. Red squirrel at the same site img. 00052. Grey seals relaxing img. 00069. Reindeer with calfs img. 1020852. Does anyone know who owns this. It was on a nettle img. 1020803.
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Heath spotted orchid img. 1020836. A goldfinch img. 1020817. Long leaved sundew img. 1020827. Pale butterwort img. 1020825. Wall rue img. 00015.
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Dwarf cudweed img. 1020864.
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I was sat down the garden this morning and noticed something small and black moving on the lawn. On close inspection I saw that it was two bees mating. The smaller one had a white tail, probably from the swarm in the sycamore. This is the first time I have seen bees mate. Perhaps this is something not seen too often? By the time I returned with the camera they had gone.
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In an unused annex of the house we have some temporary guests. Although I regularly pass there I hadn't noticed them until now.
So, after 2 years without swallows it looks like the local population is doing very well ;D
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praying mantis stalking on a Eucomis zambesiaca
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We were out to friends' coastal garden near Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia last night for a lamb roast. Last week we heard of more & more reports of great whites sharks off our coast, the week before we were shocked to hear of Portguese Man of War threatening a beach very close to Halifax, so we should not have been surprised to hear yesterday our friend caught two sizeable Grey Triggerfish (Balistes capriscus) just a very short walk from home. These are most unusual creatures which we've always associated with tropical waters such as the Carribean but they've been appearing here in greater numbers. I hear that despite their formidable teeth the local fisherman love them as they eat all the barnacles off the hulls of their boats; from the wharf our friend saw them eating mussels & periwinkles if you can imagine. They've also been seen eating the invasive European green crab which has been destroying estuarial eel grass stands. No question the climate and ecosystem are changing quickly.
Rather cartoonishly cute & highly observant - this video is 5 years old:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r89pwxcr7LQ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r89pwxcr7LQ)
And a more recent one, poor thing appears to have had a bad nip from another triggerfish:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NrDvERzORY (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NrDvERzORY)
And a few shots of the same coastal garden which Ken maintains.
john
17c and rain all day long.
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Nice to see a Phormium at home in Novae Scotia - all neat and tidy in a pot! Are they taken indoors in winter?
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Never seen this before. I am assuming slugs mating?
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Nice to see a Phormium at home in Novae Scotia - all neat and tidy in a pot! Are they taken indoors in winter?
David - The Phormius are great performers out on the cool coast, despite gusty winds at times they hold up perfectly. They usually stay outdoors till mid to late November but must be wintered indoors before the temps approach about -5c.
john
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The nest of a solitary wasp? in the greenhouse img 00241.
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I guess this is the larvae of a swallowtail (Papilio machaon) - confirmation desired
This species is more than rare here - the caterpillar feeds on Seseli petraeum, an Apiaceae from
the Pontus Region/Turkey
Gerd
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Juvenile Water Rail. Very shy birds. Taken in very poor light at ISO 7200. That says a lot for the quality of Nikon cameras, with many cameras the image would be unusable at such a high ISO.
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4377/35732544873_411f5e7812_b.jpg)
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Great shot of a special bird. I have good memories of their distinctive porcine squealing calls and occasionally being lucky enough to spot them.
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Water rails seem to be increasing on our local patch. Usually heard rather than seen though.
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I managed to get an adult too last month as well as that same youngster when it was very small.
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4282/35646248841_d8f2c4c420_b.jpg)
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Nice image Fred!
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Black Tailed Godwit at Montrose yesterday afternoon in quite poor, flat light.
Nikon D500
Nikon 200-500 f5.6
Hand held. f /8, 1000sec, ISO 1000 to 1800
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4392/36090557983_0f87f0e10d_b.jpg)
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4401/36064591334_92b4b83a0e_b.jpg)
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4418/36727896842_792ee94b85_b.jpg)
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4407/36758917451_25c58dec02_b.jpg)
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I have discovered why my garden gets dug up periodically, particularly where there is bark mulch. I dug 3 holes with a trowel, to plant some colchicums through bark mulch, and found 5 chafer grub larvae. Large fat white C shaped grubs with a red brown head and 3 pairs of legs. Curled about 2 cm across and 6-8mm diameter body. Must be numerous for me to find them that easily.
Over the last 2 weeks 1 corner of the lawn near the house is also being destroyed. Full of holes and quite brown in places. Probably too late in the season for insecticide, even if I could get any or pay for treatment, and similarly for the pheromone trap. Trying the old flooding and covering tonight, to bring them to the surface but this is some way from where I planted the colchicums.
This makes me rethink whether I am going to be so generous with bark mulches in future.
Anyone got or tried the chafer traps. They vary wildly in price, with or without pheromone.
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I'm not convinced that the bark mulch is the cause of the chafer grub infestation. I have only ever found them while digging up turf from the lawn. i use bark mulch and garden shreddings a lot and have never, I think, found them in the borders, only under the lawn.
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Cockchafer grubs are common here, under the grass a few cm down. Our local badgers enjoy them a lot so it's just as well we're not bothered about having a pristine lawn ::)
Then for a few weeks every year when the hefty adults are flying they collide into the house windows with a great clatter, reminding us of our humble place in the local ecosystem ;D
Brian I hope you can find a solution that avoids insecticide.
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We are getting some landscaping work undertaken -including an area of decking. The timber seems to have attracted the attentions of a Giant Horntail (Urocerus gigas), also known as the Great Wood Wasp. She created quite a stir when she first appeared. Fortunately I was able to persuade the workmen not to splat her with a hammer. This species looks like a Giant Hornet complete with a needle-sized 2cm long stinger but is in fact entirely harmless. The "stinger" is an ovipositor and this fearsome beastie is really just a sawfly on steroids.
(https://c1.staticflickr.com/5/4365/36991074752_5acf349d55_o_d.jpg)
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[attachimg=1]
This buck wandered onto the farm property and approached the house. When it stopped on the grass, I snuck out the side door with the camera. At first I could not find it. It spooked and bolted down the hill. I swung around quickly and snapped this photograph with the buck in mid-air. Blind luck on my part! :)
Urocerus gigas very 8)
I never catch insects to pin or examine. Many will not sit still for a photograph. Studying the wing structure and veining, as well as other parts of their anatomy is extremely fascinating.
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Great shot Robert!
That's an impressive sawfly Steve, I suppose it deposits the eggs in the wood, the same like our carpenter bee which is big as well but not really like the sawfly.
Speaking of giant insects, I found this Northern walkingstick clinged to the car on Monday, so it must have came for a drive from the woods on Sunday! I depose it on a Magnolia leaf - for size idea. Probably a female, the male is usually brown (Diapheromera femorata).
[attachimg=1]
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Gabriela,
8) Insects are so diverse!
Thank you for sharing.
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I guess this is the larvae of a swallowtail (Papilio machaon) - confirmation desired
This species is more than rare here - the caterpillar feeds on Seseli petraeum, an Apiaceae from
the Pontus Region/Turkey
Gerd
You are right Gerd. I have found more than hundred eggs and caterpillars of it this year, mostly at dill and a few at carrots. This was very unusual as they normally place just a few eggs and then fly away.
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Thank you for identification Stefan! This species is more than rare here in my region. I hope I'll see more
of them next season.
Gerd
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Found this in the garden today in a large glazed pot. I thought at first it was a slug but its movement was different. this is the third one I have seen in the garden over a number of years.
Elephant Hawk Moth caterpillar, I have never seen the moth.
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Hi Roma,
The elephant hawkmoth is really beautiful, coloured pink and pale green. I have rarely seen the moths in our garden, but remember (long ago) collecting mature caterpillars, allowing them to pupate and metamorphose into adult moths.
The caterpillars feed on willowherbs, but we quite often find them on fuchsias (also in the Onagraceae) in our garden.
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A rather sad sight yesterday. We were visiting some artists studios and workshops around the Holy Loch and Loch Long when we came across a dead Northern Bottlenosed Whale washed up on the shore. It always surprises me about the number of different whales and dolphins that appear in the Clyde estuary. Over the years I have seen 5 dolphin species and 6 whale species from the shore. Happily they have all been alive and swimming.
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Sad indeed, Tom. I wonder if the whale and dolphin conservation society will call for an enquiry into the cause?
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Can anyone identify the bird below for us please? We think it may be a Meadow Pipit? - but we have never seen one before so we are not sure. Apologies for the poor photos - taken at extreme zoom!
Thanks
Paul
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Yes it’s a Meadow Pipit Paul. Tree Pipits are summer migrants and have markedly shorter hindclaws.
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Thanks Steve! It's funny how some birds are described as being common and widespread and yet you can spend most of your life never seeing one. It was a lovely surprise to see it (actually two of them) in the garden today.
Cheers
Paul
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Grey seals sunbathing[attachimg=1]
Too busy relaxing to bother about people[attachimg=2]
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[attachimg=1]Red breasted mergansers.
[attachimg=2] A gannet shows how it,s done
It,s right what people say, computers don,t do the same thing twice.
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[attachimg=1] Gentianella campestris.
How many ptarmigan.
[attachimg=3] Autumn colours.
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[attachimg=1]
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How many ptarmigan.
Fun game! I count 5.
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I see five too- nearly got fooled into thinking four - but I wouldn't be surprised if there were a couple more - their camouflage is very good!
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Matt and Maggie, you are both right.
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Some great pics, ian!
I love the camouflaged ptarmigans.
Is that stone arch an actually foot-bridge or the remains of something else?
cheers
fermi
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Hello Fermi, the bridge is thought to be the oldest stone bridge in the Highlands. It was a packhorse bridge and was damaged during floods in 1829. A book was written about the floods by Sir Thomas Dick Lauder (the great moray floods) and is interesting reading, still available. In one narrow gorge the water rose about 80 feet. Even today, a heavy downfall or prolonged rain causes a spectacular scene.
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Last warm day - last week...[attachimg=1]
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Magical photo Natalia.
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Don,t forget to put your clocks back. As the nights are getting longer perhaps a few quizzes may help pass the time?
Can you name the birds? Apologies for those members not familiar with them.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
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Spot the odd one out.[attachimg=1]
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Can you name the butterflies?
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=4]
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Snow in summer?
[attachimg=1]
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More birds.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2][attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
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Quiz 4. It is getting harder.
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[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
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Great exercise for our brains, Ian - so far I'm just about managing the odd one out in the stag picture and perhaps one or two of the more common birds! :-\ :)
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Maggie, I have plenty more pictures but maybe should leave a space in Wildlife for others to post.
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A roe deer visited my garden on Friday night. How did I know? A yellow lupin has been flowering all summer. It had one fresh spike looking good. On Saturday morning the spike was still there but all the flowers gone. I'm also quite sure most of the flowers on Rudbeckia 'Goldsturm still had their ray florets on Friday. The flowers on Gladiolus 'Black Velvet' are also gone. Hoof prints on the soil confirmed my suspicions.
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Anybody have IDs for the last 4 quizzes or no-one interested?
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As you have no takers, I'll have a go.
Common Sandpiper; Goldeneye; Dabchick; Black-necked Grebe; Peacock Butterfly; Gatekeeper; Ringlet; Brimstone; Cotton Grass; Tree Creeper; Goldfinch; Wheatear; Golden Plover; Willow Grouse; Snow Bunting; White-fronted Geese; Red-crested Pochard.
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All correct Chris. The grouse was a young red. Do you want some more?
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Well done, Chris !!
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Just been to look outside for the lights. All I can see is a dull green/white patch on the clouds. Probably thousands of street lights being reflected.
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All correct Chris. The grouse was a young red. Do you want some more?
Why not? It may encourage some others to have a go.
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Some more images to name.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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Hoodie Crow, orange Tip, Juvenile dipper, Kingfisher and saxifrage ..of sorts..oppositifolia ?
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Four out of five Tom.
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Is that last plant Diapensia lapponica ?
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Correct Maggi.
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More pics.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
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Primula Scotica, comma,......, Sedge Warbler
Try this one.
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No idea, Tom - but it's a lovely scene!
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More pics.
Primula Scotica, comma,......, Sedge Warbler
... alpine clubmoss Diphasiastrum alpinum ... Saxifraga aizoides
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Tom and Ashley both right.
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Tom, are they Gadwall?
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Some more.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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Great stuff Ian. You have a very impressive library of nature photos.
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Iain
They are a feral group of Mandarin Ducks which breed on Loch Eck, near Benmore, Argyll. I saw them as I was returning from Benmore a fortnight ago. They were at the loch side as I passed, so I had to continue until I could turn and get my camera out of the boot. When I got back, I stopped and they were lined up beautifully in full frame. Before I could take the picture, they took off at high speed. I only managed two shots before they disappeared to the other side of the loch. I have been looking for them for about 20 years and this was my first sighting.
The first shot was tricky, this one makes it more obvious.
Your pictures, (1) Viola lutea.(mountain pansy),(2) Puffins and Fulmar,.(3) Moneses Uniflora, (4) don't know (5) Small Tortoiseshell
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I eventually gave up on Tom's - I now understand why :)
Ian's 5th is Painted Lady.
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A matter of persistence, Tom. Twenty years is a long time though.
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The fourth picture of the last group shows a seedhead of Rannoch Rush, Scheuchzeria palustris.
Here are some more.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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Avocet; Large Skipper, Sea Spleenwort?; Bog Asphodel; Raven
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One, two and five are right, Chris.
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How did I miss these quizzes?
3 = moonwort, Botrychium lunaria
4 = yellow mountain sax, Saxifraga aizoides
Keep the fun coming!
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Number 4 is wrong matt.
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Number 4 is wrong matt.
Then it must be marsh sax, S. hirculus?
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Right Matt. Here are some more.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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Osprey; Allium sp.; Grey Wagtail; Corn Marigold; Huperzia selago.
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Right Chris, the allium is A. carinatum and is naturalised where the photo. was taken. I have sent some bulbils to the exchange.
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More.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
The last one is a grass and is suitable for bare ground. The flowers have not yet opened.
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Third pic in last post is Vaccinium oxycoccus - yes, okay, I only go for the easy ones!!
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First bird with red breast may be a Redstart?
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Yes Maggi, male Redstart.
The other bird is a Marsh Harrier.
Not giving much away with the fungus image. I can only think of Chicken of the Woods (Laetiporus sulphureus).
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First and third right Maggie. Male marsh harrier right Chris. I wondered if it was chicken of the woods. The grass is fairly rare and is found on open sand on fixed dunes and inland on sandy heaths. This one is in an old sand quarry near the coast. I think it is one which is garden worthy. I,ll wait a bit in case someone knows it.
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Try these.
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[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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Ha - I thought you new the fungus!
1. Dotterel
4. Razorbill
5. Sea Milkwort.
I come back to the others if no one else chimes up - rather busy at the moment.
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Would #3 be Leymus arenarius, Blue Dune Grass? #2 looks a lot like Scilla verna to me.
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Both right Gordon.
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[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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1. Frog Orchid
2. Ring Ouzel
3. Large Heath
4. Golden Eagle
Hopeless on orchids.
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First four correct Chris.
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Orchis mascula?
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Right Steve. An unusually dark form growing with Mountain everlasting, Antennaria dioica.
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The rare grass found in sandy habitats was Grey Hair Grass, Corynephorus canescens. Here are some more.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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1. Female Common Blue
4. Peregrine
5. Merlin.
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2. looks a bit like alpine coltsfoot Homogyne alpina, but I don't think it is that.
3. is lousewort, Pedicularis sylvatica
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Chris, 4 is right. Matt. 3 is right. I was told number 1 is brown argus.
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5 looks like a Hobby to me.
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Right Steve.
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2 is Erigeron acer
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Good one Matt.
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More wildlife to identify.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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The easy one is #2 Common Eider, Somateria mollissima. # 3 is Common Lizard, Zootoca vivipara
Is #4 Oxytropis halleri?
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Right Gordon.
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The first one is Carpinus betulus.
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And 5 is a well-flowered plant of Silene acaulis
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Axel and Matt. Both right. here are some more.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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Another nice selection there, Ian.
1. Parnassia palustris (grass of parnassus)
2. Water rail
3. Yellowhammer
4. Trientalis europaea (chickweed wintergreen)
5. Vicia sylvatica (wood vetch)
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Well done Matt. Here are some more.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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OK, here goes:
1. Scotch Argus, female
2. Lycopodium clavatum
3. Small Copper
4. Scutellaria sp.
5. Saxifraga stellaris
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1, 3 and 5 are right Matt. I know number 4 is a bit tricky as not many people have seen it. For a clue, its common name has the name of two wild flowers. Number 2 is not often seen either but Matt has the right family.
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4. Acinos arvensis
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#2 is marsh clubmoss, Lycopodiella inundata.
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James and Ashley are right. Here are some more to ID.
[attachimg=1]
[attachimg=2]
[attachimg=3]
[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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1. Ringed plover
2. Speckled wood
3. Common/eastern grass snake Natrix natrix (distinct from the newly identified species Natrix helvetica barred grass snake which also occurs in the UK)*
4. No idea
5. Common centaury, a gorgeous gentian relative
*see story here: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/aug/07/new-species-of-grass-snake-discovered-in-england (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/aug/07/new-species-of-grass-snake-discovered-in-england)
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Four out of Five right Matt.
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I had not heard of the other snake. Here are some more.
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I didn't know about distinction between Natrix helvetica and Natrix natrix but, from the original publication https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-07847-9 (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-07847-9) it seems that the new true Natrix natrix is very rare and localized in Great Britain and the few individual are allochtonous (maybe from old escape). Only Natrix helvetica seems native in Great Britain.
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1 Purple Hairstreak
2 Indian Ringneck Parakeet
3 Curlew
4 Egg Leaf Twayblade Neottia ovata
5 Lizard Orchid, Himantoglossum hircinum
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The last four are right Gordon.
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Would #1 be a Small Blue ( Cupido minimus)?
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Gordon, it's a moth which fly during the daytime : Odezia atrata, Chimney Sweeper
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Gordon was right. It is a dark small blue. Continue....
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[attachimg=2]
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[attachimg=4]
[attachimg=5]
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2. Common Tern
3. Grayling
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5=Palmate Newt
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Can anyone tell me is it legal to kill deer this time of year ( in Scotland )
Angie :)
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Gordon was right. It is a dark small blue. Continue....
Sorry, but I'm sure that it is not Cupido minimus wrong shape of the wing, wrong position of the wing, white only at the tips of the wing and not all around the wing... All fit very well with Odezia atrata, have a look (https://www.ukmoths.org.uk/species/odezia-atrata/adult/ (https://www.ukmoths.org.uk/species/odezia-atrata/adult/))
1 : Blechnum spicans ?
4 : Potentilla palustris = Comarum palustre
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I think you are right Yvain. I can,t remember where I took the photo.
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Matt. Going back to grass snakes I wonder if this local one is a hybrid? It shows a part barred skin?[attachimg=1]
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I believe the presence or absence of a yellow collar is diagnostic , Ian. I'm sure hybrids could be a possibility.
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Matt, the one in the photo. had a toad in its mouth. The toad had inflated its-self to avoid being swallowed. I have another couple of photos. and will see if there is a "collar." The trouble is I have that many photos. mostly on colour slides, that finding a particular one takes a long time. It is the same with photos on disc. I have not found an easy way to list what is on each disc, so I have to look at them all. Most of my wild flower photos are on colour slides and at the last count there are about 3,000 slides (not all flowers). It gives me something to do on cold days. The plant shown in post 1110 is Marsh arrow grass. There is a close relative, sea arrow grass which can be found along flushes at the coast.
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Here are some more to be going on with. Apologies for the bird photo. I had not noticed my camera selector had turned to another setting.
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[attachimg=5]
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I see that I had put another photo of the grass snake on the desktop, here it is, showing a yellow collar. I wonder what that makes it. Maybe a hybrid ?[attachimg=1]
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Angie, if you look at the BASC deer culling site the Statutory culling seasons for deer are given for England, Scotland and Ireland. In short the Scottish culling season is as follows. Red deer stag July 1st-Oct 20th. Hind Oct 21st.-Feb 15th. Fallow buck Aug.1st.-April 30th. Doe Oct 21st.-Feb. 15th. Sika stag July 1st.-Oct 30th. Hind Oct 21st.-Feb 15th. Roe Stag April 1st.-Oct 20th. Doe Oct 21st.-March 31st. Other deer dates are given. Hope this helps, ian. In our area some red deer suffer from lack of eye retina. It is thought this is caused by in-breeding. As these deer are blind the policy is to "put them out of their misery."
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Chris, grayling is right. I think the tern is arctic (no black tip to beak, although this is perhaps not clear in photo). Gordon, the newt seems to be common (two black lines down the back). Yvain 1 and 4 right.
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Chris, grayling is right. I think the tern is arctic (no black tip to beak, although this is perhaps not clear in photo).
You are right. I noticed it was all red but got them mixed up in the aging brain.
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1. Sea Eagle
2. Yellow Rattle (Rhinanthus minor)
3. Scarlet Splash (Cytidia salicina)
4. Yellow Loosestrife (Lysimachia lysimachus)
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Chris, 1, 3 and four correct. I,m sure you know more about fungi than I do and put the scarlet splash in for you to identify for me.
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How about Yellow Bartsia (Parentucellia viscosa) for No. 2?
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Thank you Ian . I spoke to a friend of a friend that helps out on an estate and he gave me some advice. This is what I enjoy looking at in my field.
Today I bagged three deer heads which wasn't very pleasant. I moved them to a place that would maybe benefit other wildlife. It must have taken a lot of effort to drag three deer over a mile to their car. I maybe was silly approaching someone with a gun in the dark but honestly I am fed up of these folks that think they can do as they please. I told this one man to leave the deer not knowing that they had killed three. Nothing was left except the heads and off course the gutted them. Don't think they had been shot in the same day.
Hopefully it wont be long before the others appear again.I know these animals need culled but would prefer to have someone to do the job in a better way.
Ian never seen a grass snake but since worms terrify me maybe its better I don't see a snake n the flesh as they say.
Angie :)
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About Grass snake, from https://www.arguk.org/get-involved/news/what-does-the-re-classification-of-european-grass-snakes-mean-for-our-native-grass-snakes (https://www.arguk.org/get-involved/news/what-does-the-re-classification-of-european-grass-snakes-mean-for-our-native-grass-snakes) and the original paper, https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-07847-9 (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-07847-9) there is only one species of grass snake in Great Britain : the new Natrix helvetica. So hybrid are not possible. Very few individuals from Britain and Germany were found to be allochthonous but they represent only escaped indivdual in Britain and a very localized population in Germany.
If you read the paper in Scientific Reports, you will see that morphometry and genetics are not congruent in the eastern species and potentially in the western too. There was the same problem with common toad (and spiny toad).
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Chris, yellow bartsia is right. How about the last one? Angie, my sister is also scared of worms. She won,t even mention them. Do the shooters have permission to shoot on the land? If not their licences (if they have one) would probably be revoked and their guns seized. Perhaps a word with the landowner would be the first port of call.
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Yvain, I have read the papers on recent grass snake studies but it meant nothing to me. I think Degrees from the big schools are given subject to how confusing a report is to the ordinary person. I was once given a geology students report to read and ended up giving up after the first few lines. The ability to put a report together that makes sense of the subject seems to have been lost. I think this is why the academic world and the laymans world never meet. A pity that so much information gathered by "amateurs" is not passed on.
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Basically, they have shown that the grass snake in France, Great Britain, Belgium and part of Germany and Switzerland (Western Rhine) is a true species and not only a subspecies as previously thought. Conlusion is that the Natrix natrix ssp. helvetica should be renamed as Natrix helvetica.
The genetic study show that the gene flow between western and eastern population of grass snake are very weak, as weak as between Bombina bombina and Bombina variegata, so weak that those two populations should be separated in two true species. The distinction between Natrix helvetica (Natrix natrix helvetica) and Natrix natrix (Natrix natrix natrix) is old, this not only a genetic point of view and many characters are already know for identifying them. The last study only show that they must be consider as true species. The same conclusion was recently brinh to Natrix astreptophora and Natrix helvetica in southern France.
Only the subspecies helvetica was known to be indigeneous in Great Britain, so now, there is only Natrix helvetica (so always 3 species and not 4 as some media have claimed it)
It could be seen as just a taxonomical point of view that is annoying because you have to change a common name. It has been the same few years ago with Lacerta bilineata and Lacerta viridis or Bufo bufo and Bufo spinosus. Scientific names are not only a mean to help people speaking about the same thing, they should also reflect the classification and the concept of species (which is not as simple as its definition) is still very important. These studies are not difficult to understand just to be understand by a happy few, they are complex because Nature is complex (It's not a easy subject, not easy to explain for me even in french, I hope that you understand what I've written)
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Thanks Yvain. you have cleared the muddy waters a bit. How is it explained that some british grass snakes have an unmarked skin and others, such as the one I have shown, have banding? I understood that the banding, or lack of it, distinguishes one "sub species" from another. I also don,t understand the diversion from the Linnaean system of two names for each species. Nor am I really convinced that DNA analysis is the answer. If someone were to test the DNA of bluebells in a large wood it may be that there are many sub-species but this would take too long and not be cost effective. Can,t we just say that Evolution is happening. It may be that over millenia wildlife diverge then converge repeatedly? I like to keep things simple so that I can understand.
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Chris, yellow bartsia is right. How about the last one?
Bit stuck on that one - the flower reminds me of bramble. You need a botanist such as Matt to come along.
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Chris is closer than he thinks with his mention bramble. #5 has to be cloudberry Rubus chamaemorus?
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It is Matt. How is the weather over there? Cold and windy I bet? Here are some more pics.
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The last one may be difficult as it is not in flower and is not a common plant in the UK. I think it is more common in Scandinavia (Norway). One for Trond.
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1) Short Beaked Common Dolphin
2) Chukar Partridge
3) Clavulinopsis sp.
4) ?
5) ?
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2. Red-legged Partridge and Grey Partridge
3. Clavulinopsis fusiformis
4. Senecio fluviatilis - Broad-leaved Ragwort ?
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Gordon, number 3 right. Chris 2&3 right. I know it is difficult to identify birds of another country which look similar to those somewhere else, especially if the photo. is not that good.
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Not a native bird, but very attractive,
cheers
fermi
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Hello Fermi, is it a species of finch? There are still no correct answers to numbers 1, 4 and 5 of the last quiz. Any offers?
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It’s a Goldfinch Ian.
I suppose at this angle it might almost pass for a Gouldian Finch but the name of the image file is a dead giveaway. ;)
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Thanks Steve, I thought it looked like one but was not expecting to see "our" goldfinch down under. I did not notice the name either.
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Of course, "down here" we call it a "European" goldfinch ;D
Introduced into Australia in the 19th century.
I was surprised to see them in the garden when we first moved here and this is the first time that we've had them nest in such an obvious place
cheers
fermi
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1. Common bottlenose dolphin
4. Solidago virgaurea
5. Plantago coronopus?
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Just found a toad sitting on my path, popped him into my polytunnel. Just wandered why he would be out in such a cold night.
This is what it was like outside earlier , silly toad.
Angie :)
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That is not really your view outside is it Angie? That is a Christmas card!
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Lovely snow picture, Angie.
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Nice to look out at if you are cosy indoors . Took Mr toad out of my polytunnel and placed him under a bush . I covered him up with leaves , just thought I might forget about him in the polytunnel . Hope he will be ok. Hubby said I am daft ::)
Angie :)
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Not so daft Angie, I have a yellowish coloured frog in a greenhouse. It seems to prefer the indoors and is maybe keeping the slugs at bay. I have also provided it with a pile of leaves in one corner. It usually sits in a plant pot with a sedge in it but the colder days have come and it is probably huddled up in the leaves.
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A friend has had toads living in his greenhouse for many years. They are usually under an empty compost bag near the tap stand-pipe.
Some years ago I visited someone who grew a lot of nerines under glass. What surprised me was his long water tank; I forget if it was covered under the side benches as a support, or under the paving centre path, but it had a number of frogs swimming around in it. It was only a normal sized greenhouse; maybe 8' x 10'. The tank was about domestic bath sized I think.
A large volume of water of course makes a good heat store too, although less so in the ground maybe unless insulated. I have small water butts in my 2 greenhouses for rain. (covered to keep wildlife out ;-)
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Hello Matt, one and four are right. 5 is a high level alpine known from only three sites in the UK.
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An Australian native animal, the short beaked echidna, Tachyglossus aculeatus, but known in our garden as "Errol" due to his swagger!
Always a worry though when he decides to dig for ants in the bulb beds!
cheers
fermi
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The answer to picture 5 of reply 1144 is Norwegian mugwort, Artemisia norvegica. Some more for you.
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1. Podiceps grisegena, red-necked Grebe
3. Muscicapa striata, spotted Flycatcher
4. Pinguicula lusitanica, pale Butterwort
5. Lasiommata megera, Wall
no idea for the 2 but it looks beautiful
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Pipped at the post by Yvain. A nice set of species, Ian.
2 is Cornus suecica, can be found in upland Scotland and just a handful of sites in N. England.
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Well, it makes me think about Cornus but no such species in France.
And why aren't there any seeds of this beauty in the SRGC seed exchange ? ;) Same for other beauties such Rubus, Pinguicula, ... published previously.
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Yvain, one of the reasons that seed are not usually available in the exchange is that they are not considered "garden worthy" by many gardeners. Some of the UKs wild plants are difficult to grow in gardens or become too aggressive when not kept under control by other species or weather conditions.
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Here are some more.
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Ian, it 's the same in France and I'm always disappointed whan I see Petunia and red pelargonium in the gardens of alpine villages. I feel a bit angry when I see that it's easier to have seeds of himalayan plants than seeds of french alps... I try to cultivate and promote native plants in garden and if everything goes well, I will try to produce and sell some :)
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1 : Anas clypeata - Northern Shoveler
2 : Polyommatus icarus - Common blue
3 : Carex pendula - Pendulous sedge
4 : Menyanthes trifoliata - Bog bean
5 : Sedum anglicum - English stonecrop
Except 1 and 4, I'm not totally sure for the other ones but genus should be good.
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All correct Yvain. Try these.
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1 : Lythrum salicaria. Purple Loosestrife
2 : Anas strepera. Gadwall
3 : Anser cygnoides and Anser anser f. domestica. Domestic geese
4 : Helianthemum nummularium. Common Rock-rose
5 : Metrioptera brachyptera (nymph). Bog Bush-cricket
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All right, Yvain. Here are some more.
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This one is not so easy to me.
1 : no idea. Flower look a bit as Rumex or Veratrum but not the leaves, so...
2 : I don't know anything in fungus
3 : Pyrrhula pyrrhula - Eurasian Bullfinch (male)
4 : Pseudorchis albida - Small White Orchid
5 : Jasione montana - Sheep's bit
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#1 looks like mountain sorrel Oxyria digyna.
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#2 is a Puffball (Lycoperdon) but too old to say which one with any certainty.
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Yvain, Ashley and Chris are correct (I did not know the puffball species). Try these.
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1. Black-throated Diver
2. Broomrape ?
3. Coconut Milkcap (Lactarius glyciosmus)
5. Sandwich Terms
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#2 is Monotropa hypopitys, (Pinesap, or Dutchman's Pipe)
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#4 is difficult without seeing the leaves really. It is probably Dactylorhiza incarnata and not Dactylorhiza cruenta.
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Chris, 1 and 3 are right. 2 is correct Gordon. 4 is D. incarnata.
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#5 - I mentioned Sandwich Terns as the bulk of the picture but there are also Arctic Terms present.
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Sorry, Chris, I,m a bit slow. Yes you are right about the terns. The photo. is not very good. Try these.
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The two easy ones are #1 Helleborus foetidus and #3 Bohemian Waxwing
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Right, Gordon.
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2,4,5
Reed Warbler
Mountain Hare
Gentiana verna
?
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2 : Acrocephalus scirpaeus - Reed warbler (might be Geat reed warbler but seems very rare in UK)
4 : Lepus timidus - Mountain hare
5 : Gentiana verna - Spring gentian (a difficult group but it seems that only this species is in UK)
Edit : Steve has been quicker but my reply was ready, so I post it ;D :P
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Steve and Yvain are both right. Just reed warbler not the rarer one. See if I can catch you out with these.
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It's been too long since I posted here, but I thought the following pictures might be of interest - taken last week at our local nature reserve during the cold spell of weather when everything froze over. Three hours sitting in the hide (yes, I am retired!) produced some memorable views of bittern and fox (which seems to be squinting in the stong light)
Apologies for the picture quality - had to use my bridge camera at full reach as they were on the far side of the largish pond.
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Good pictures Peter. I,ve heard bittern on my local patch but never seen it.
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Nice images Peter!
Always a spectacular bird to see.
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I wonder if anyone has offers of the IDs on reply 1187?
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Missed these, Ian.
#2 could be a Ruff
#4 Amanita fulva - Tawny Grisette
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Hello Chris, sorry, not a ruff.
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My proposition
1 : Origanum vulgare - Wild Marjoram
2 : Tringa ochropus - Green Sandpiper
3 : Cirsium heterophyllum - Melancholy Thistle
4 : a mushroom :P
5 : Asplenium adiantum-nigrum - Black Spleenwort
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Hello Yvain, 1, 3 and 5 are right.
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If it's not the green one, maybe the common one ? Actitis hypoleucos - Common Sandpiper
I'm used to identify them when moving, it's easier to see the behaviour and if it has long/short leg...
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Chris, thanks for the Amanita, I thought you would know it.
Yvain, sorry, not common sandpiper.
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I'm wondering if #2 might be a juvenile Dunlin (Calidris alpina)
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Difficult, I can't see the color of the leg and length of the beak. It has the shape of Tringa totanus - Common Redshank but the legs don't seem to be red. I also think to Tringa glareola - Wood Sandpiper but it seems too unicolored/unspotted and too compact. It doesn't remind me any Calidris or any other Tringa.
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Is this one of the Nearctic Calidris?
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It is an un-common visitor to our area from north america.
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Aye, thought so.
Is it a Pectoral Sandpiper?
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Yes Steve. I will post some more tomorrow.
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They have bred at least once in Scotland (Loch of Strathbeg, I think it was 2004). Displaying birds have also been seen in the Western Isles and Caithness.
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After all, I have no chance to identify it : I even don't know its existence ! and I'm really not sure that I would have notice that it's a visitor if I had saw it in my telescope. I'm far from the coast and only used to see the common shorebirds.
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I think Ian caught us all out with the American vagrant.
Living on the north-west Atlantic coast, we get a regular number of American waders, especially in the autumn.
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Hello Yvain, I am also many miles from the coast (about 50). In our area we are lucky to get wildlife visitors from the south and the north. We are fairly sheltered from extremes of weather as well. The prevailing wind is from the west and we sometimes get birds from north america coming over. Sometimes we also get birds from the far north such as winter visitors like whooper swans and pink footed geese. Here are some more pictures.
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I'm 140 miles from mediterranean see and 300 from atlantic coast :P Even common shorebirds are rare ! I lived a long time near lac du Der famous for cranes, geese and white-tailed eagle but not for lost american birds. In France, the best place for twitchers are Ouessant Isle at the western tip of Britain but it's really too far and I'm not twitcher, I even become less an less a birdwatcher and more and more a plantwatcher and plantgrower ;D
1 : Cupido minimus - Small Blue
2 : Stercorarius parasiticus - Parasitic Jaeger
3 : Salvia verbenaca - Wild Clary (I don't see the leaves but flowers seem small). If not Wild Clary, Meadow Clary
4 : Lychnis flos-cuculi - Ragged-Robin
5 : Thymus polytrichus (or another Thymus gp. serpyllum) - Wild Thyme
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All correct Yvain Here are some more.
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If you didn't see 'Attenborough and the Empire of Ants' last Thursday it is repeated tonight on BBC 2 at 7.00 pm. It is filmed in the Jura mountains and there are a few plants as well as the ants. A good look at spring crocuses and Gentiana verna, not just a fleeting glimpse which is usual in wildlife documentaries.
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Are there any offers for the last quiz?
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The ones I can do off the top of my head are:
1. Water lobelia - Lobelia dortmanna
3. Hooded crow - Corvus cornix
4. Roesel's bush cricket - Metrioptera roeselii
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The ones I can do off the top of my head are:
1. Water lobelia - Lobelia dortmanna
3. Hooded crow - Corvus cornix
4. Roesel's bush cricket - Metrioptera roeselii
That is a very impressive top of the head Matt if it retains scientific names too!
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I confess I had to check the scientific name for the bush cricket! I've not seen one since moving north so it was lost in my memory banks.
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1 and 3 are correct Matt. 4 is close.
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4 is Metrioptera brachyptera with its black strip on the back femur.
I had no idea of the Lobelia, even the genus. a very nice plant. I didn't know it and I learn that it can be found in France, on the Atlantic coast. Thank Ian.
5 looks like a pink polytric
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I am thinking that #5 could be male plants of Polytrichum juniperinum?
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Yvain and Gordon are right. Sorry Matt. maybe not the best photo. Try these.
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Number 2 in the last quiz is a rare plant on Skye. Maybe it would be worth searching the Uists for it? Look in fresh water lochans near the edge, white roots are noticeable among stones.
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#3 is Mertensia maritima?
#5 is a pair of Green Tiger Beetles (Cicindela campestris)
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Is #2 in the previous quiz Eriocaulon aquaticum?
This quiz
#1 Common Sandpiper
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4 might be Araneus alsine ?
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Yvain, I think the spider may be Araneus marmoreus, A. alsine is a rare spider in the UK. Gordon, 3 and 5 are right. Chris, 1 is right and 2 in the previous quiz is also correct. Did you see the "fungi" in my post regarding the "local patch?" last week. It was very small and I was not sure if it was a fungi at all.
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Found this on Twitter and found it very interesting :
Tweet by Anupama Prakash, 29-01-18
"Each panel here shows the dorsal wing surface to the left and the ventral wing surface of the SAME individual to the right. To think that all this incredible surface-specific diversity can be generated by small genomic tinkerings is truly amazing! "
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Picture number 2 in the last quiz is Alpine speedwell, Veronica alpina. As no one knew it that is a point to the quiz setter. Here are some more.
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The quizmaster must be racking up a few points now. We've had some tricky brain teasers recently.
Another nice set. Here are my guesses:
1. Pyrola rotundifolia
2. Pyrola media
3. Ajuga vulgaris (the bracts are too small to be A. pyramidalis)
4. Sillver-studded blue butterfly
5. Looks like it could be a Brambling?
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Well done Matt, 1, 2, 3, and 5 are right.
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Common blue for #4?
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You are right, Yvain. Here are some more, some are more difficult, I hope, as the knowledge among members is deep.
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The first is one of my favourite flowers and can be found in northern UK but it is not that common.
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1 : arabis or cardamine ?
2 : Mergus merganser - Common Merganser (group of young or female-like)
3 : Mergus serrator - Red-breasted Merganser (1 male, 4 female)
4 : Ophioglossum vulgatum - Adder`s-tongue
5 : Platanthera bifolia - Lesser Butterfly-orchid
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All correct Yvain. 1 is Arabis (cardaminopsis) petraea, northern rock cress. 2 is called Goosander over here. Try these.
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I don't know the English name and I have to check (and the spelling of the latin name too), not always the best names...
This set is much more difficult for me and I'm a bit confused. I think that Mat will be able to complete all the names.
1 : Pipit maritime - Anthus petrosus - Rock pipit (I thought to a weird Turdus...)
2 : Luzula ? (with its long bracts, it don't seems to be Juncus)
3 : Viola tricolor - wild pensy ?
4 : Salix sp. (I wonder what it was when I saw the fruits..)
5 : Andromeda polifolia
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Yvain, 1, 3 and 5 are right.
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Number 4 is a Salix but which one?
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Picture 2 in the last bunch is Great Fen Sedge, Cladium mariscus. Number 4 is Salix repens, creeping willow. See if you know these.
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#2 is Salicornia europaea?
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It is Gordon.
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#3 is a Pale Tussock Moth Caterpillar, Calliteara pudibunda
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Right again Gordon.
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There has just been a very good programme on BBC 4 about wildlife in gardens. Worth watching on catch up.
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Last week I saw two "growths" on a tree near the supermarket. I have just checked and they are bunches of Mistletoe.
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The tree is a hybrid poplar.
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It,s been fairly mild here today. I recorded 19 species of birds in the garden, including a robin carrying nest material into an ivy. Blue, great, coal and long tailed tits were here as well as the song thrush singing from the oak tree early this morning. I also heard a greenfinch singing, a rare bird in our area now. Two goldfinch were in a bird cherry. The blackbirds are having to keep last years young out of the garden so they don,t take over the territory. Crows have become regular visitors and six magpies were in the treetops. A wren was hunting for insects in the ivy. They must nest nearby, they nested in the ivy two years ago. Robins nests take some finding, usually low down in dense cover. The blackbirds will be nesting soon. They usually have two broods a year, sometimes three. Spring is not far away.
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I seem to have beaten the Panal with reply 1234 apart from Gordon. Picture 1 is a pair of Scaup. Number 4 is a cuckoo. Number 5 is a Marsh Gentian.
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Can't be Scaup Ian. Bill pattern and head shape wrong.
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Thanks Gary. I was told there were un-common ducks at this site (inland) and photographed them. Bird watchers in the hide identified them and I thought I had remembered that the ducks in question were scaup. I,ve looked through my notes and have not recorded the species seen on the day. The birds in the photo. look like tufted duck? I,m not a regular birder, I just notice birds. Answers on a postcard.
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Hi Ian, they actually look like Ring -necked ducks with the bill pattern, a scarce/rare North American duck but cant be sure. Or possibly a hybrid. Have you any more photos of them? Its usually the bill pattern that clinches the identification combined with general head and body shape.
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Gary, I have checked my notes and the Scaup was recorded at another local site, not the one in the photo., hence the mix-up. I have also looked at the bird blog for the site in the photo. I used to visit in the past. The photo. I posted was taken on 11-2-12. The bird list for the site in the photo. 2012 contains Ring Necked Duck (1), no date given. There are two more photos. but the bird is swimming away so the bill is not shown.
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Gary, I have just had a reply from the Collator of bird records for the site in question. The bird further away is a female ring necked duck. The nearest bird is a tufty. Good work on your part.
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Cheers Ian, keep the photos coming.
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Here are some more, hope I get them right this time. ???
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1 Harebell, 2 Siskin, 3Common Twayblade, 4 Common Crane, 5 no idea. Only confident of Siskin
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Starry saxifrage (S. stellaris) for #5?
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Gary and Ashley, both right. Here are some more.
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#3 is Water Avens, Geum rivale?
#5 is White Helleborine, Cephalanthera damasonum
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Gordon, 3 is right.
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1 Lesser Celandine. 2 Herring Gull.
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#1 : Gagea lutea (Yellow Star-of-Bethlehem)
#4 : Silene acaulis (Moss Campion)
#5 : Cephanlanthera longifolia (if it's not one, it's the other ;)) with its short bracts (Narrow-leaved Helleborine)
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Gary, 2 is right. Yvain, 1,4 and 5 are right.
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Some more puzzles. Picture 3 has an unusual colour.
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#1 is a Wall Brown, (Lasiommata megera)
#3 is Borago officinalis
#5 is Vapourer Moth caterpillar (Orgyia antiqua)
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I'll try alpine lady-fern Athyrium distentifolium for #2 and mountain sandwort Arenaria montana for #4.
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Gordon, 1, 3 and 5 are right. Sorry Ashley, 2 looks similar to your answer. The stems are yellow and have a scent. 4 is mainly a coastal plant.
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Would #2 be Oreopteris limbosperma, the Lemon Scented Fern, and #4 be Minuartia verna, Spring Sandwort?
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Gordon, you have 2 OK.
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On reply 1240 I showed mistletoe in a tree near the supermarket. The tree was not old nor did it look injured. Yesterday I noticed that the tree has been cut down.
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It's a damned hard life being a tree in a built-up area these days, for sure.
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On reply 1240 I showed mistletoe in a tree near the supermarket. The tree was not old nor did it look injured. Yesterday I noticed that the tree has been cut down.
Maybe it was The Druids that did it? :P
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More likely the local authority but I have not found out yet.
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Picture 4 on post 1258 is knotted pearlwort, Sagina nodosa. Here are some more.
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#1=?
#2 =Small Skipper, Thymelicus sylvestris
#3= Glossy Buckthorn, Rhamnus frangula (an invasive species here in Nova Scotia, and on our acreage)
#4= Cloudberry (Bakeapple in Newfoundland. Knotberry or knoutberry in England?), Rubus chamaemorus,
#5 = Black Tern, Childonias niger
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#1 Sea Milkwort (Glaux maritima).
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1) Loiseleuria procumbens
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I'm with Maggi on #1. Seem that Loiseleuria procumbens also goes by Kalmia procumbens.
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Gordon, 3, 4, and 5 are correct. 2 is large skipper. Maggi has no.1 right. I hate name changes and prefer the common names.
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Five years since this was last recorded in the area - An Arctic Walrus is visiting Orkney.
He spent a little time on Ronaldsay before moving to Sanday - this photo of him is from the Scotsman Newspaper
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The Arctic walrus pictured relaxing on a beach on Sanday, Orkney. PIC: Russell Neave/Sanday Ranger.
Read more at: https://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/arctic-walrus-in-rare-sighting-on-orkney-beach-1-4703044 (https://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/arctic-walrus-in-rare-sighting-on-orkney-beach-1-4703044)
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A strange time of year for a holiday? Perhaps they prefer our cold weather to the Arctic.
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Here are some more wildlife to identify.
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Listera/Neottia cordata and Corallorhiza trifida. Both are uncommon where I live.
Cornus canadensis, maybe?
Great crested grebe
The duck is possibly the ruddy duck Oxyura jamaicensis
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Erwinia, 2, 4 and 5 are correct.
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Red-necked Grebe and Cornus suecica.
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Right, Steve.
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I,m running out of digital photos, most are on slides.
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#1= Osmunda regalis
#2= Large Heath (Coenonympha tullia)
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Correct Gordon.
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Are these in #4 oystercatcher eggs?
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Sorry, no.
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Ian, would #4 be a Lapwing nest?
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No 4 Moorhen
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Sorry meant no 3
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Both right. Here are some more. Number 4 may be tricky, it,s the shape of the leaves.
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#1 is Early Purple Orchid, Orchis mascula
#3 is a Tree Creeper, Certhia familiaris
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Both right Gordon.
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Good to get to know UK wildlife ;D
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#2 Oystercatcher
#4 Dot Moth (Melanchra persicariae)
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Right Chris, I expect the weather is bad over there.
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Not at all. Ian. We have had the best of the weather in recent times with no snow and some glorious sunshine. Had the cold winds though.
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Chris, I guess your #4 refers to the 5th photo. Would the viola in #4 be the Fen Violet, Viola persicifolia?
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Chris, I guess your #4 refers to the 5th photo. Would the viola in #4 be the Fen Violet, Viola persicifolia?
Yes, #5 - can't count.
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Three sets of footprints outside my back door.
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Red Squirrel, human, baby rabbit
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Gordon, Fen Violet is right.
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Here are some more pictures.
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#1 Musk Mallow, Malva moschata
#2 Razorbill, Alca torda
#3 Garden Tiger Moth, Arctia caja
#4 Can't make out the details of the mammal(s) photographed
#5 seems to be too hairy to be Alpine Milkvetch... ?
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#4 Couldn't be an escaped coypu, could it?????
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Hare
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Hare
Oh, I see that now - thank goodness for that - didn't think there would be too many escaped coypu! Been speaking about coypu with someone - must have got them on the brain!!
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Oh, I see that now - thank goodness for that - didn't think there would be too many escaped coypu! Been speaking about coypu with someone - must have got them on the brain!!
Only just tuned in to this one.
There is something about first impressions, Maggi, which are often correct. My first thought on #4 was Coypu (not Ian's best photograph, perhaps). :o
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If Ian now says it is not a hare, I'll need to go for a lie down with a bar of chocolate!
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Gordon, 1, 2, and 3 are right. Gary has number 4. You are right about the photo. Chris, it was quite a distance away.
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Picture 5 on reply 1300 is Purple Oxytropis. Here are some more to try.
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#1 Sedge Warbler
#3 Drinker moth
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Right Chris, I thought you would know them.
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From a FB post by Mike Strick
Every year in early summer, the stag beetles emerge to find mates. They have spent the first five to seven years of their life underground as larvae and now have just a few short weeks to live as adults.
Every year I'm shocked by how many people fail to recognise these icons of British wildlife, and am saddened by how many beetles end their lives crushed underfoot. Stag beetles have been around virtually unchanged for millions of years, and are not equipped to survive in an urban environment. Their numbers have declined drastically over the past few decades and the species is seriously endangered.
If you see one on a pavement, please move it out of harm's way. Despite being large (the male can be up to three inches long), they are placid and harmless provided you don't stick a finger between the male's large 'antlers', which can inflict quite a strong pinch. Pick them up gently with finger and thumb on either side of the thorax (the middle part of the body, behind the head) and move them into a garden or similar. If you're not sure how, here's a video of us rescuing a male from a path: https://youtu.be/3vflpPExBuU (https://youtu.be/3vflpPExBuU)
Please keep an eye open for them. In flight in the early evening they are phenomenal, flying in an upright and rather ungainly style, making a noise like a small fighter plane. They tend to make a pretty uncontrolled landing, often ending up on pavements, which is where you’re most likely to see them and where they need your help to get to safety. The recent high winds are probably giving them trouble, meaning that they could end up in particularly tricky situations.
If you have children, it would be a big help if you could make sure they know about stag beetles too. Kids probably come across them more frequently than their parents. If they know what they are and what to do, the beetles are more likely to survive the encounter!
These are spectacular animals. We really have nothing else like them. It would be a shame if we lost them forever.
Another way you can help is to report any stag beetles you find to one or both of these sites. More data on where they're found will help establish why they're declining and how we can prevent it:
http://ptes.org/get-involved/surveys/garden/great-stag-hunt/ (http://ptes.org/get-involved/surveys/garden/great-stag-hunt/)
http://www.wildlondon.org.uk/stag-beetle-survey (http://www.wildlondon.org.uk/stag-beetle-survey)
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I,ve never seen one or heard of any in our area. Mainly southern in england.
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Today I remembered to bring the camera when taking the dogs for a walk around the French Basin Trail in Annapolis Royal. Although the temperature was hovering around 2 C, there was still plenty to see. My cold hands couldn't track the Tree Swallows and Barn Swallows that have just arrived from the south, but the waterfowl, and another fellow were camera ready. Sadly, the pair of Wood Ducks I saw the other day, were in hiding.
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2 Blue tit eggs in the box today.
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A pair of Robins feeding each other today so probably in the hedge.
Ducks nest with 10 eggs stripped bare overnight 2 days ago, behind the wall. No spillage so buried somewhere I guess but not found them yet.
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We spent Friday evening watching this character patrol the edges of our two ponds. Four fish were caught while we watched. Seems that fishing is good here, as he/she came back this morning for more![attachimg=1]
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On reply 1308 picture 2 was Lupinus nootkatensis, picture 4 was lesser butterfly orchid and picture 5 was Pennyroyal Mentha pulegium. Here are some more.
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Can you find and identify the insect on 5?
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Up to Loch Doon today in brilliant sunshine but COLD ! Hoped to hear one of the three cuckoos reported yesterday but no luck. However, the Ospreys made up for that. The female has taken up with a new mate since her companion of last year was probably killed in a fight with another Osprey.
The picture was taken by a HD Video camera situated next to the nest.
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1= Paris quadrifolia
2= Monotropa hypopitys
3= Pair of Eiders (Somateria mollissima)
4= Twinflower (Linnaea borealis)
5= my eyes fail me ;D
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Four out of five Gordon.
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Daylight viewing brought out what is in photo 5- it looks to me like an Emerald Damselfly.
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You are right Gordon. I have found a better photo. My pictures are not catalogued so it can take hours to find a photo. As there are 300 or so images on a disc it would take up too much space to put a text on the disc. Does anyone know of an easy way (apart from writing out a list) of recording what is on each disc?
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Here are some more wildlife to identify.
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2. Oak Eggar Lasiocampa quercus
3. Black-throated Diver
4. Hogweed
5. Wheatear
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2,3 and 5 are right Chris.
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Giant Hogweed
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1 Common Vetch?
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Sorry Gary, both wrong.
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#1= Lathyrus linifolius (Heath Pea)
#4= Angelica archangelica
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4 is right Gordon. Number 1 is a plant of wet areas.
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On the west side of our garden, we are bordered by a road and then a neighbour's row of Scots Pines. A pair of Magpies have been nesting in one of them, and visiting our garden repeatedly for food.
This afternoon a Red Kyte attacked the nest and flew off with a nestling in its claws, very loudly chased by one of the Magpies. The latter reappeared about 10 minutes later, checked the nest and then flew off.
The Blue Tits nest is very active. Seem to be able to find sufficient food. The meal worms I put out are not touched during the day, although they disappear overnight and the tray is tipped over.
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A Robin is continually flying in and out of the Ivy hedge so must be finding sufficient food too.
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Surely it's not getting that warm here...a painted bunting?
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/rare-bird-painted-bunting-marble-mountain-sighting-birder-cape-breton-1.4676426 (http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/rare-bird-painted-bunting-marble-mountain-sighting-birder-cape-breton-1.4676426)
johnw
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Some miscellaneous pictures.
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Creeping ladies tresses.
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Serrated wintergreen in seed.
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Grey hair grass.
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Solidago virgaurea.
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Alpine bistort.
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Some of the wildlife local to me here in Derbyshire.
(https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4106/5089533467_71a5d2252c_b.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/8KKbZ2)Tawny Owl (https://flic.kr/p/8KKbZ2) by Mike Swain (https://www.flickr.com/photos/42320153@N05/), on Flickr
(https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1841/44191965642_0beaff74c3_k.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2ak6nL7)Red Deer H15 II (https://flic.kr/p/2ak6nL7) by Mike Swain (https://www.flickr.com/photos/42320153@N05/), on Flickr
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A spider.
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Alpine saw-wort.
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Dwarf cornel in fruit.
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White water lily.
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Marsh woundwort.
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Intermediate sundew.
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Long leaved sundew.
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Sneezewort.
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Brown beak sedge.
Dunlin and ringed plover.
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Bitter vetch, Lathyrus montanus.
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same thing happened here. I clicked on in-line full size image and it did not display as others.
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Some of the wildlife local to me here in Derbyshire. Not sure what I'm doing wrong but looking at the attached photos, it seems the forum changes the colour and reduces their sizes.
The forum has an automatic sizing feature. Looking at the photos direct on Twitter I cannot say I see any difference in colours.
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Bitter vetch, Lathyrus montanus.
same thing happened here. I clicked on in-line full size image and it did not display as others.
In your case, you used the attach code not the attachimg code, Ian.
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Thanks Maggi, as my school reports used to say (the better ones that is) tries hard but could do better.
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Oh Ian, if I only had a pound for every time I've been described as "trying" !!!! ;D ;D ;)
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Had to chase some squirrels out of the garden a few times this morning. Ignore them most of the time as they go round on the power lines, and only get annoyed when they try to get at the bird feeders, all of which are protected types. Today one came up to the house by the french window, and later I noticed some pots of Dianthus had all been grazed down. They have been there for some years and never touched before, but are in the neighbours garden: by deer we thought. Not been aware of deer that close to the house before although plenty around. A corpse has been slowly cleaned by Red Kytes or foxes over the last few weeks.
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Great start to the New Year:
a scould of Jays (three), a volery of Long-tailed Tits (12), two Goldcrests and a bellowing of Bullfinches (eight).
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gathering pollen
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Found this shield bug underneath the hasp on my shed. Looking at pictures on Google, it most closely resembles the hawthorn shield bug, but you can't always rely on the accuracy of Google and there are no hawthorns anywhere nearby. I have a birch tree a few feet away, and the birch shield bug looks similar. Can anyone be more positive, please? Maureen
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Hi Maureen,
According to this key (http://www.ukwildlife.net/heteroptera/pentatomoidea/hawthornshield.html) it looks to be hawthorn shieldbug. Presumably your shed is a really good place to hibernate, hawthorn or no hawthorn!
Tristan
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Lovely flitting tits[attach=1]
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Hi. I have against the south wall of our house a narrow sheltered bed ( visible through the glazed doors) with display pots mainly, which include several pinks/carnations. These have rooted through and don’t get moved. A few months back these were eaten almost to the ground. Ragged gnarled stumps left. As I get deer in the garden many/most nights, I assumed this was them, but recently some large pots of cyclamen (in winter storage alongside) hederifolium and graecum, have had their leaf stems bitten through, leaving the actual leaves on the ground and longish stumps on the pots. I doubt deer would do this so assume it is mice, which I see the odd one of occasionally in the day time. There are many other cyclamen elsewhere in the open garden, and in odd pots, which don’t show any similar damage.
Anyone else had this problem with cyclamen?
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Yes I've just had a similar experience. Several large plants of C. mirabile in pots side-by-side on the greenhouse floor were suddenly shorn of every single leaf. Other cyclamen nearby (persicum, libanoticum & coum) remain untouched, so far at least.
In the garden, maturing cyclamen seed capsules are sometimes eaten too in late June/July. When it happens it's remarkably thorough: every last capsule within an area taken and over just a night or two. Mice may be responsible but I also suspect bank voles which are an invasive species here. The latter certainly eat emerging flower shoots on hellebores in November or December, again very thoroughly, so that some years I'm left with not a single flower from many plants in one particular area. Presumably the capsules/shoots are highly palatable when they reach a critical stage of development (e.g. sugar content). No easy remedies unfortunately.
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I posted too soon. Found a group of Cyclamen hederifolium with many leaves eaten off and deer prints right next to them. These were minus leaf and stem, unlike those near the house where they seem to drop most of the leaves but eat sections of the stem. So far they seem to have left the C. coum in full flower alongside. Seems I have very choosy/clumsy deer. I was going to plant some Fritillary imperialis in the same bed but having second thoughts now. Maybe the smell will put them off or is that just the actual flowers and they won't get that far?
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Flitting tits. Surely a pleasant little spoonerism in there. :)
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Hi Maureen,
According to this key (http://www.ukwildlife.net/heteroptera/pentatomoidea/hawthornshield.html) it looks to be hawthorn shieldbug. Presumably your shed is a really good place to hibernate, hawthorn or no hawthorn!
Tristan
Thanks, Tristan. Much the same conclusion I came to from trawling the web, but good to have someone to confirm it. Maureen
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Who is the culprit? Today’s snow left me a few clues. For the past year someone has been having fun in my polytunnel and greenhouse . Could this be who it is, any idea ?
Angie :)
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Angie:
Not cat or dog.
Looks to be close to a badger.
google badger prints in the snow and have a look.
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Arnold I think you are right. It has five wee toes so that could be what it is. There is a Forrest bounding my property and it’s full of badger sets. I am thinking of buying a camera that I could use in my polytunnel and the outdoor area so if anyone can give me advice on what I could buy that would be a help. I have looked up the internet but there is so much on the market. Someone said you can get the images on your phone, that would be good.
All paw prints gone now that the snow has melted.
Angie :)
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I often hear the long-eared owl during the evening twilight when I'm still working outside until the end of the day.
Here's one taking his day-rest in the garden. When they look long & thin like on the pic it's because they are a bit stressed by a photographer 30 meter away ...
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That's beautiful Francois. We had them nesting in the forestry plantation near us a few years ago - I first noticed the chicks making their plaintive 'squeaky gate' calls. Later we caught glimpses of adults and fledged birds on our roof! That bit of foresty has been felled now so the owls have gone elsewhere - I look out for nightjars instead. I expect the long-eared owls will be back in a decade or two when the trees are mature again...
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Two juvenile long eared owls. A nightjar camouflage and nightjar eggs in a scrape.
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edit by maggi to rotate images.
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Long-eared Owls are shy, secretive and often go under the radar. In my area we have a very high density of Tawny Owls which are more aggressive and usually out-compete L.E Owls so I never expected to see any in my area.
A few hundred metres from my home there is old mining wasteland which has re-vegetated and now has extensive meadows and a few small trees. Last Summer I was very surprised to find some L.E. Owl chicks on one of the footpaths there. They had bailed out of the nest (an auld craw nest) and over a fence onto the public footpath so I moved them to a safer site near the nest tree.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48116461346_a1d3a4a6d6_c_d.jpg)
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/48116552577_238134770b_c_d.jpg)
At last I have found a use for those old leather gardening gloves.
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Great photos Steve ;D
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Those are stunning photos Steve (and Ian). I love the expression on that owl chick's face - like Lady Bracknell! ('A handbaaag?')
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I have the base of a plastic barrel in the garden as a bird bath. It is well used for bathing by the birds and as a drinking water supply by mice. I,ve noticed that a frog has also used it for laying spawn. The water is about 2" deep.
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This morning my brother saw a roe deer sitting on the path at the side of the house when he delivered my newspaper. He said it got up slowly and walked off towards the wood. About 4 pm I was having a walk round the garden when I spotted him sitting on Anemone nemorosa 'Kentish Pink'. He has diarrhoea and was looking unwell. I got fairly close and he didn't get up. I phoned the SSPCA but they couldn't get here till after 7.30 by which time the deer had got up eaten shoots off Clematis x durandii, most of the lower flowers on the Chaenomeles and more Anemones, lain down again among the Azaleas, and got up again. He was standing among the Azaleas when they got here but ran off when approached. He is obviously sick but not sick enough to be caught. Hope he stops eating my flowers.
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Roma, perhaps the plants he ate did not agree with him?
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Update on the deer. I spotted him sitting on a flowerbed outside my front door about 7 pm last night and gently persuaded him to return to the wood. He must have wandered on to the road during the night and has been killed by a car. A VW. I picked up the badge with deer hair still on it. I'm sad for him but glad he'll no longer be eating my plants. But I expect some of his friends will still visit the garden and there's always the rabbits.
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Meet Chuck, my vegetable garden and daylily patch nemesis. Last year I replanted my vegetable garden 3x while searching for his den or quietly sitting with a rifle. He evaded me each and every time and I ran out of growing season and gave up. This year I was ready for him.
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Chuck now lives in a big hay field on the far side of town with a fast running river between us. I'm so relieved I didn't have to do him in. With the state our local grocery stores have been in I need that big garden.
Chuck is a woodchuck or groundhog. The one that gets dragged out of his den to check his shadow in February. Like your European marmots only bigger and greedier. He is also somewhat of a unique color. Most woodchucks are brown. Chuck will shed out to be solid black. Figured if I stuck with a chuck it may as well be a cool one.
https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Marmota_monax/
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Those are impressive teeth - can see why he was a gardener's despair but glad to hear that he is safely haymaking! We have deer around here but so far they have not caused any damage to my plants.
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He was surprisingly calm until the car started moving. He chattered his teeth the whole way to let me know he was a big scary squirrel. I know I made a point of not letting my fingers touch the wire.
I blamed my biggest Canada lily being eaten on the deer last year but in retrospect it was probably the chuck.
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Chuck is a handsome chap - most unusal colour - I wondered why he seemed familiar, then I remembered this photo of a South American bulb chomper which was featured in International Rock Gardener #122 of February 2020
http://www.srgc.org.uk/logs/logdir/2020Feb281582900723IRG122.pdf (http://www.srgc.org.uk/logs/logdir/2020Feb281582900723IRG122.pdf)
They must be cousins!
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The cururo, Spalacopus cyanus, a tunnelling root and bulb eating rodent pic by late Carlos Celedon in IRG 122
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:D Kissing cousins.
Chuck apparently has a lady friend I hadn't noticed. She was out there this afternoon. Luckily I still have a chunk of cabbage. Maybe I can reunite the couple tomorrow.
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Fairly quiet in the garden today. Still a cool wind. A bee-fly paid a visit this morning. Butterflies seen were peacocks, small white and the first holly blue this year. A goldfinch paid a short visit this afternoon. There are still aircraft flying over but not as many as usual.
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robin taking a bath.
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Small tortoiseshells and peacocks here and a small blue butterfly which I assume was holly blue.
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A warm day today with no wind. I saw the first comma of the year along with holly blue, small white and peacock. The most interesting activity today was a blue tit pulling pieces of leaf from an apple mint and taking them to the nest box. Maybe it was using the soft leaves for bedding? I read that mint is a deterrent to ants. Could it be that the blue tit was using the leaves to deter insects? A buzzard was circling around with a sparrow hawk. Blackthorn is in flower in the hedge. I noticed one of the garden mice was searching among fallen leaves. I put out food for them at night, peanuts or suet bits. A house sparrow is making a nest in the same part of the hedge as a blackbird. When the sparrow goes into the hedge the female blackbird usually follows. Maybe the sparrow is trying to take over the blackbirds nest? A squirrel is eating the new leaf buds on an oak tree.
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Birds today were pigeon, collared dove, blackbird, starling, blue tit, house sparrow, dunnock, robin, buzzard, sparrow hawk, wren, magpie, chaffinch, crow, goldfinch and heron.
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... The most interesting activity today was a blue tit pulling pieces of leaf from an apple mint and taking them to the nest box. Maybe it was using the soft leaves for bedding? I read that mint is a deterrent to ants. Could it be that the blue tit was using the leaves to deter insects?
Maybe to deter skin/feather mites that parasitize nestlings & can cause mortality?
Fascinating that we're not the only animals to use plants 'medicinally'.
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Ashley, it shows how much we are missing when we don,t bother to stop and look.
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So true Ian. The more we look the more we see. Nature around us is endlessly fascinating.
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Maybe to deter skin/feather mites that parasitize nestlings & can cause mortality?
Fascinating that we're not the only animals to use plants 'medicinally'.
There are quite a few recorded instances of birds using plants to control parasites; one researcher observed a common grackle treating its feathers with a lime fruit and wild carrot and fleabane used in nests reduces the emergence of mites. See https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6000146/ (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6000146/)
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Thanks Gail. That's a very interesting read.
Honeybees also gather plant resins to coat internal hive surfaces with propolis. This may afford antibacterial and antiviral protection to the colony.
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"Osprey watchers" may like to know that the pair with a webcam in Nova Scotia at (Dartmouth?)
https://www.novascotiawebcams.com/en/webcams/ospreycam/ (https://www.novascotiawebcams.com/en/webcams/ospreycam/)
were mating this morning at ~6.30am. At least I knew which was which sex for a few moments. I find them very difficult to differentiate from above. The supposed female necklace is not too visible, although the head markings are different.
Anyone know when egg laying is likely to start, assuming mating was successful?
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Sunny and hot yesterday and sunny and warm today. Due to boredom I am now chasing insects in the garden.
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Rhododendron Wee Bee?
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Often heard but not always seen in the open, a wren singing.
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The bird cherry is in full flower.
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I thought this "wasp" looked interesting, smaller than the garden wasp.
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Bilberry in flower.
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Ian - It's not Wee Bee or Too Bee, both a bit bi-coloured and slight pinched flowers from campylogynum genes. Lovely soft pink colour, perhaps one of the later lepidote hybrids of Glendoick. Snipe ring a bell.
john
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Hello John, poor picture due to bright sun. The outer edges are darker and the flowers (not seen in photo) are pinched.
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Another warm day. Several orange tip and holly blues. One decided to sit until I had a decent picture.
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Holly blue.
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Several orange tip and holly blues.
Here too. Holly blues are very skittish when there's a camera around.
We have a nice (& expanding) area of lady's smock (Cardamine pratensis) in the grass but so far I've seen only a single (male) orange-tip around it.
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Ian - Here's a shot of 'Wee Bee' for comparison. The leaves seem to be a bit large with yours.
john
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John, I,ve just looked at Stan de Pratos photos. of the Perth Show on the forum. He shows a picture of R. Ginny Gee. That might be my plant and I have the name mixed because they sound similar?
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Right! Here's my 'Ginny Gee', it only is pink for a short while then quickly fades to white.
johnw
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A close up of the flowers showing the darker edge. They are already fading but still visited by bees.
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half a mile from the house
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I made several walks during nights, while we sleep many animals are hunting. The silence in the woods is priceless ;)
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How wonderful to see the owl Yann. We have barn owls and tawnys around but never when I have my camera with me. My walk around the village emphasises how lucky I am not to be self-isolating in a flat somewhere...
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And more wildlife (lots of people in the village are doing teddy bears in the windows to give children something to look out for, this one is ours).
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Wow... I'm speechless, Yann. What a majestic bird. I congratulate you for this great moment.
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How wonderful to see the owl Yann. We have barn owls and tawnys around but never when I have my camera with me. My walk around the village emphasises how lucky I am not to be self-isolating in a flat somewhere...
Indeed, in our collective misfortune we're very lucky to live in the countryside.
Owls are active when sunset, not easy, even with a lens with good apertume, to photography. I use a 300m f2.8 equivalent 600mm in 35mm or my FZ1000 that let me reach 1400mm. But with no light, no miracle.
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Wow... I'm speechless, Yann. What a majestic bird. I congratulate you for this great moment.
That's just modest shots, i don't have the skills of an animals photograhier nor the pro camera.
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One of the benefits of having a scruffy lawn; I love dandelions and this evening two male and a female bullfinch were showing that they share my enthusiasm.
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Your lawn looks like my front lawn Gail. I don,t have such colourful visitors to mine though.
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"Greetings from the Wild West - hope this message finds all you Scottish Rockers well in these strange times.
We thought you & the club might enjoy a little diversion.
Steph said you had a section on the forum for wildlife in the garden & you’d be welcome to include this never-before-released ‘bonus material’ if you like on our behalf.
Looks like there just might be some kittens on the way. Fingers crossed she brings the little ones back for another leisurely wander through the alpines ...
Cheers from Calgary ~ Dave & Stephanie Ferguson"
Short video was attached meant to accompany the article linked below. .. but sadly I cannot post that to the forum - I've taken this screengrab though, which shows how close the bobcat passed to the Ferguson's window....
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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/apr/30/wildlife-through-the-window-what-readers-have-spotted-during-lockdown-aoe (https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/apr/30/wildlife-through-the-window-what-readers-have-spotted-during-lockdown-aoe)
Two screengrabs from the Guardian article ....
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Many thanks to Stephanie and David for sharing this with us. The video is remarkable, the bobcat picks her way very delicately down through the garden and crosses right in front of - and very close to, the Ferguson's dining room window. What a very beautiful animal to be able to observe at close quarters!
Two things came to mind for Ian and I - firstly, pretty good going that the Ferguson's keep their windows clean enough to film through! (Couldn't happen here!) and secondly, what would Molly the Wonder Westie do if she met such a critter in her garden? (We hope that wouldn't happen!)
Beats the blazes out of our fox here in Aberdeen!
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A Short video was attached meant to accompany the article linked below. .. but sadly I cannot post that to the forum - but I've loaded it to Facebook - it will show here :
https://www.facebook.com/ScottishRockGC/videos/610650696190064/ (https://www.facebook.com/ScottishRockGC/videos/610650696190064/)
Many thanks to Stephanie and David for sharing this with us. The video is remarkable, the bobcat picks her way very delicately down through the garden and crosses right in front of - and very close to, the Ferguson's dining room window. What a very beautiful animal to be able to observe at close quarters!
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A buzzard, a rare visitor at our neighbors roof.
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Rudi:
Loos to be some kind of raptor with that hooked beak.
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Common Buzzard is the European equivalent of Red-tailed Hawk Arnold.
We have a noisy pair nesting in a tall oak 60 metres from the house. The nest has been in use for the last 7 years.
Here is one above the garden:
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49852609392_f32710434e_o_d.jpg)
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Got it. Thanks for the clarification.
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A buzzard, a rare visitor at our neighbors roof.
i also have a couple playing in the garden at early morning and i'm always surprised they don't fear us.
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I have no talent for photographing such fast birds...I prefer the slow animals... ;D ;D
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hihihi ;D
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Dear friends, many thanks for your comments and the fine pictures.
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There is an interesting short film about our wildlife at contact@standforthetrees
edit by maggi - I think the film is reached via this link : https://standforthetrees.org/
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Thanks Maggi. It is warm and sunny here today. I have just seen two swifts, the first of the year for me.
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Saw my first Swifts and House Martins whilst in town doing the food shop yesterday.
Sitting in the garden now with Swifts and House Martins overhead. Blackcaps singing like crazy with three different birds to be heard from the garden and Chiffchaff singing earlier this morning but quiet now in the afternoon heat. It all seems louder and more vibrant in the lockdown! 8)
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hihihi ;D
Here is another tiny creature that I was able to keep up with in terms of speed...😉
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It seems bees became crazy about the pollen of Paeonia officinalis!
Gerd
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Lovely picture Gerd. I think the single peonies are brilliant bee plants. I had a P. delavayi (lutea) in my last garden that was always full of bumbles.
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Thank you Gail! Love your photo . My Paeonia lutea is flowering also just now.
Gerd
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I was sat down the garden watching the birds going about their business when I noticed a beetle making its way across the lawn. I saw that it was a lily beetle, going in the direction of the few lilies that are in the border. I re-located it into dense vegetation away from the lilies. In the greenhouse I noticed a Brimstone butterfly so I let it loose outside. A few tiny speedwell are growing in the back lawn. They are Thyme- Leaved Speedwell, V. serpyllifolia.
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As i prefer being in the fields than confined in the greenhouse here're some shots took in the neighborhood
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i'm lucky to live in an unspoiled nature area however the town isn't far away.
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Good pictures, Yann. We are unsure what we are allowed to do at the moment.
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indeed, walking in nature is safe i don't see many risks except crossing few peoples in the paths.
This morning i took risk talking with a town hall agent who didn't respect distances, even i reminded her.
Travels far away are still forbiden as everywhere in europe so planes and trains aren't a danger.
Life itself is an everyday adventure so not taking risks is impossible, we must go on whatever is happening.
I hope most of you are now allowed to hike a bit in their respective counties or regions?
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I was sat down the garden watching the birds going about their business when I noticed a beetle making its way across the lawn. I saw that it was a lily beetle, going in the direction of the few lilies that are in the border. I re-located it into dense vegetation away from the lilies. In the greenhouse I noticed a Brimstone butterfly so I let it loose outside. A few tiny speedwell are growing in the back lawn. They are Thyme- Leaved Speedwell, V. serpyllifolia.
Hi Ian, that's not a lily beetle - these are brighter red, a bit broader and have a black head. I think this is a species of cardinal beetle.
Nice brimstone - I've planted some alder buckthorn in the hope of attracting some but no joy yet. They are uncommon in this part of the country.
Best, Tristan
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With the drought many flowers didn't bloom so well, definitely 2020 is a year to forgive.
Between january and now rain's deficit is -70% with 173mm cumulated. (vs february 221mm in Edimburg ;D ).
Here're some survivors
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This looks like being a good butterfly year, and with the lockdown we have really been able to appreciate the green hairstreaks which seem to be doing well. They seem to particularly like our Viburnum 'Mariesii'.
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Orange-tips are still flying, though getting a bit faded now.
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A recently emerged female broad-bodied chaser (Libellula depressa).
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This looks like being a good butterfly year, and with the lockdown we have really been able to appreciate the green hairstreaks which seem to be doing well. They seem to particularly like our Viburnum 'Mariesii'.
Such an odd colour - looks like some sort of odd paint shade! ( the butterfly, not the plant!)
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new plants seen last week-end
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Cirsium eriophorum is rare in my region
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Thymus like this drought and sun
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A green shield bug in the garden.
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Well camouflaged!
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In previous years we've only ever found a single Lily Beetle - this year Ian is at nearly twelve so far!
Sigh!
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In previous years we've only ever found a single Lily Beetle - this year Ian is at nearly twelve so far!
Sigh!
Lots here and worryingly I've come across several narcissus fly sunning themselves on pots of snowdrops...
But to lift the spirits I was delighted to see that the brimstone butterfly is a perfect colour match for Paeonia 'Sequestered Sunshine'. (Bad photo but joyful sight!)
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Tristan, you are right about the red beetle, my mistake. I think it could be Pyrochroa coccinia.
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No rain for 38 days, the last one was on 12th april, 3.7mm ???
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A Speckled Wood, Pararge aegeria.
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Tri-colored bumblebee
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Some new arrivals on the large pond In Kinneil Estate a few minutes from my home.
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Magpie moth.
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Hoverfly.
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Even a shallow bowl of water provides a drinking and bathing supply for wildlife in hot times.
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The first hedgehog I,ve seen this year.
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Gold-ringed Dragonfly.
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Two rather super phots, taken from and upstairs window, through a window screen by an American friend - I think these are lovely. (I know others may disagree!)
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Whats not to like. We are priviliged to see wildlife.
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Daring jumping spider
Phidippus audax
Feasting on some aphids on a sorrel plant.
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Well, I've just had quite an encounter! I was out in the garden at dusk seeing what was about (there are usually a few toads and things at this time of year). I was passing the honeysuckle when something large and pink zoomed across my torch beam. I took a look and to my surprise and delight there were two hawkmoths feeding there! I ran inside to get my old butterfly net and managed to catch one (haven't lost the knack)... it was a small elephant hawkmoth. I counted four on the honeysuckle and catmint.
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After photographing and releasing that one I took a closer look and saw something a bit bigger also patrolling the honeysuckle - this thing!
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... a large elephant hwkmoth. You can see the difference in size relative to the jam jar lid.
Now, I know neither of these are rare. But they are one of those things you don't often see, and to get a good look at both species in one evening was magical. It was lovely to be able to watch them in flight too. Made me feel like a kid again! :)
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I've found a large elephant hawk caterpillar in my garden a couple of times but have never seen the moth. Must go out a bit later at night. There is some wild honeysuckle near my house so will check there.
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Hi Roma, if you do go, worth trying to do it just at dusk. I had quite a few at about 10:30 but by the time it was properly dark they had gone to do whatever hawkmoths do on a dark night! :)
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Both moths feed on willowherb and also fuchsia (which are in the same family).
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Those days i'm not often in front of my PC except for work, precious free time is dedicated to wild plants.
Here're some met in a 30-50 miles radius...as we couldn't move further until today. Now it's time for alpines aventures :+)
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the weather is still very warm and dry :P
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a few more from these last days
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30mn from the house some rarities
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another rare one in regression, Thalictrum flavum
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Both moths feed on willowherb and also fuchsia (which are in the same family).
They do, and as well as a couple of fuchsia bushes there is rather more willowherb in the garden than I might like! Larvae of both also go for bedstraw (especially small elephants), and there is plenty of heath bedstraw on the common around us. They were there again tonight. I shall have to take some cuttings of the honeysuckle.
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Watch out for the small elephants, they can do a lot of damage in the garden.
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Some good pictures on the Nova Scotia osprey webcam today
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Here at home I am having to put up with a pheasants nest, currently with 6 eggs, just where I wanted to plant a number of Sanguinaria plants a good friend has given me.
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The countrysides look like we're end of august but flowers are still blooming and certainly enjoyed the 12mm fell previous days.
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There was a disaster in the garden the other day. A blue tit had got into the water tub next to the greenhouse. Even though the tub has a lid ( a plastic bowl), there was enough water in it to stop the bird from escaping. I have now put a wire mesh in the bowl.
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I think a green lynx spider
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Very nice Spider... Arnold.👍
A tiny beetle whose interesting surface structure only becomes visible when enlarged... Unfortunately, I have no idea what the name of this "fellow" is...🤔
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Very nice Spider... Arnold.👍
A tiny beetle whose interesting surface structure only becomes visible when enlarged... Unfortunately, I have no idea what the name of this "fellow" is...🤔
That’s a vine weevil Otiorhynchus sulcatus.
Not something I like to see in my garden especially around pot plants. The grubs eat the plant roots.
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That’s a vine weevil Otiorhynchus sulcatus.
Not something I like to see in my garden especially around pot plants. The grubs eat the plant roots.
You're absolutely right... an uninvited guest in most gardens. I first saw him in my garden today... not a mass plague. Since I am a completely organic gardener, I will refrain from fighting it... in most cases something like this is regulated naturally here... the small creatures usually win anyway...😉
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Vine weevils- and their grubs- are a real menace - and , I regret to say, ALL are female. :'(
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I will remain vigilant. But I'm afraid countermeasures here will be relatively ineffective. My garden is surrounded by absolute wilderness. If I kill one beetle, ten will come to its funeral...;-)
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If the grubs establish in valuable plant beds there are parasitic nematodes that you can buy -all organic ........but not cheap.
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Found this being shared elsewhere - I don't know the plant or the type of bird which has made this super nest ...
https://twitter.com/i/status/1277859147417968640
Adding a screengrab in case the video doesn't show for you ... the bird has made a sling of a leaf and built the nest in it
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From nice birds to not so nice goat moth (Cossus cossus). I have often found the caterpillars when they look for a place to pupate. The adult moths are rarely seen.
The other day I found 3 different empty pupae cases and one imago that had just eclosed and was pumping up its wings with blood.
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One from March 2020 just before the lockdown. This bird was taking no prisoners. We fled.
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That's a very impressive picture, and bird! I can see why you fled.
What do you do if your snout is too short? This bunble bee knew, as did all its friends, and every single flower on on the five stalks of this digitalis had the tell-tale little hole at the back, visible as little dark spots on some of the flowers in the picture. I wonder if they re-use the holes, some of the flowers had been cut almost right around the circumference.
Does anyone know what this Digitalis is?
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Nursery web spider, missing on of the eight legs.
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The elephant hawkmoths, both species, are truly magnificent and I would feel greatly privileged to see either or both. I don't believe we have any hawkmoths in NZ at all (Anthony Darby would be able to tell me if he happened to see this.) I did see several on tubbed lantana plants at Melk Abbey in Austria in 2016 when travelling with my sister. I took some short video clips but not good results as the moths were so mobile and never alighted for more than a fraction of a second at a time. I worked out what kind of hawkmoth they were but I've forgotten now. Haven't forgotten their beautiful flitting dances around the lantanas though.
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Seven blues on a Saxifraga aizoides.
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Seven blues on a Saxifraga aizoides.
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Gorgeous scenery...Hoy. I love the blue ones too. Especially beautiful is the underside of the species I have here...
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Gorgeous scenery...Hoy. I love the blue ones too. Especially beautiful is the underside of the species I have here...
Thank you Leucogenes. The butterflies were sunbathing so I couldn't get picture of the underside. But I agree the underside is the most beautiful!
Here you can see both sides of the wings of both sexes! Lycaena virgaurea.
Female
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Male
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My finger!
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Wow...this lycaena virgaurea is terrific. I've never seen him in my home before.
Apparently, we have another passion in common... Hoy. Watching insects in my garden is a great pleasure for me.
Here are some more examples of the last few days...
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For several days I had been on the "hunt" for Vanessa atalanta... the "Admiral". In my childhood, I saw him often... but now he's rarely here.
Strangely enough, this one comes to my rockery every evening at 6:30 p.m. to be precise. I managed to get a photo... in combination with the beautiful foliage of Senecio incanus var. incanus.
It was a good day for me...😏
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Wow...this lycaena virgaurea is terrific. I've never seen him in my home before.
Apparently, we have another passion in common... Hoy. Watching insects in my garden is a great pleasure for me.
Here are some more examples of the last few days...
Nice pictures!
The Lycaena virgaurea (we call it 'gullvinge' (golden wing)) is common here. This summer I have seen many, especially at our mountain cabin.
The Admiralis is often seen here, although they say it doesn't stay here during winter. Last year they arrived in 1000s together with Vanessa cardui and Aglais io. I had hundreds in my garden at the same time. This year only one or two.
Photographs from last year in my garden.
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Elsewhere in the forum, Lesley Cox in New Zealand suggested this photo....
"A dozen fantails, and sometimes more, have started roosting in this Mosgiel shed. Photo / Stephen Jaquiery
Otago Daily Times
Mosgiel livestock vet Victoria Chapman has been delighted to discover more than a dozen fantails roosting snugly together on a jasmine vine in her shed.
Chapman has recently been living elsewhere while builders undertake renovations at her Bush Rd property, and was pleased to learn from them last week that the fantails had just started roosting in the brick farm shed.
The birds began roosting at dusk, shortly after 5pm, then flew off at dawn and, through the day, also visited the builders by flying into the nearby farmhouse while they worked, she said.
An old jasmine vine had grown not only on the shed's exterior wall, but had also ventured inside and through part of the roof, a loop of vine just below roof level providing a convenient indoor perch which was warmer than alternative roosts outside, exposed to winter winds."
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Here we call Lycaena virgauraea 'Scarce Copper'. It's actually very scarce as it doesn't breed in Britain, but I think there may be the occasional vagrant. I would love to have these beautiful jewels in the garden.
Leucogenes - Red Admirals were a bit hit and miss here when I was young, but are increasingly common in Britain due to the milder winters we get, meaning they now frequently overwinter successfully. A couple of years ago we had about 30 visit the garden to feed on Buddleia at the end of August.
What are yours feeding on Trond? Is it an Inula? Aglais io (Peacock) loves the flowers of Inula hookeri here.
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What are yours feeding on Trond? Is it an Inula? Aglais io (Peacock) loves the flowers of Inula hookeri here.
Tristan, they're feeding on Telekia speciosa, a garden plant that also has escaped into the wild.
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Nice to see the butterflies, everyone :) I've realised this year that perhaps my greatest garden satisfaction (maybe especially now when everything is a 'bit' out of control ;) ) is to see the vast variety of pollinators enjoying the flowers-- all sorts of flower flies, many native bees, butterflies, etc-- even got a glimpse of a hummingbird visiting a Dianthus the other day :)
Bee on Canadanthus modestus, a native aster which is now in the gardens in a few spots, I may have sprinkled seed there, or not, I forget ;)
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A fly (Drone Fly/ Flower Fly, I guess?) on Achillea I've been amazed to realize over the last few years how many wonderful flies there are, and how many are important pollinators!
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Tachinid Fly on Anaphalis in the garden -- these are big flies but not keen to sit still for photos; larvae tend to be gruesome parasites on other insects/caterpillars etc.. adults feed on nectar or not at all
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Tiny moth which I've only ever noticed on Tanacetum and Achillea, sometimes in good number, though only a couple around these plants... They are also very wary and tricky to shoot!
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Hello Cohan, your photos are superb, a real pleasure to see, including their insecty subjects.
How are things chugging along in Canada? We hear so much garbage from the chief American mouth that not much else gets through. I hope you yourself are very well and the virus is under some kind of control too.
Keep on with those lovely photos.
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Nice to see the butterflies, everyone :) I've realised this year that perhaps my greatest garden satisfaction (maybe especially now when everything is a 'bit' out of control ;) ) is to see the vast variety of pollinators enjoying the flowers-- all sorts of flower flies, many native bees, butterflies, etc-- even got a glimpse of a hummingbird visiting a Dianthus the other day :)
Cohan, do you think the number of insects are the same as ever?
I am a bit concerned as I think the number of all kind of insects have diminished the last 10-20 years.
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This mountain hare (Lepus timidus) was born here in the spring and it has stayed around all summer.
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This is the commonest "wild" animal here!
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Any ideas as to what these very green eggs might be on the underside of a pelargonium leaf?
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Any ideas as to what these very green eggs might be on the underside of a pelargonium leaf?
No idea - but it seems this introduced butterfly is a pest of pelargonium and geraniums -so a possibility ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geranium_bronze - mentions green eggs!
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Interesting, thank you Maggi. I just went out to check on them but they have disappeared so not sure if they've hatched and walked off or, we currently have a lot of ladybirds, who I suppose may like green eggs (and ham!).
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Hello Cohan, your photos are superb, a real pleasure to see, including their insecty subjects.
How are things chugging along in Canada? We hear so much garbage from the chief American mouth that not much else gets through. I hope you yourself are very well and the virus is under some kind of control too.
Keep on with those lovely photos.
Thanks, Lesley. Like many places, the virus had been brought quite low here, then things were opened up more again ( though in the small town where I worked, it never felt that closed!) and the stats for my province are back up (nothing like the U.S. though)- mostly in the bigger cities, but the town I work in has a lot of tourists passing through on the way to the mountains, so I think locals are foolish to think that because we had virtually no cases earlier (when there were no tourists yet!) we are safe... oh well.. I am on the frontlines in food service...
Yes, the crazy goings on in the world and some of the crazy leaders seem to suck up all the attention of the world :( we can counteract that a little here, anyway! Hope you feel better and are able to get some gardening done!
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Trond-- I always like seeing hares-- a luxury, I guess, since they rarely (only one spring so far) show any interest in the garden...
are there a lot of free range sheep- I guess that's at the mountain cabin? they must have a big impact on the flora?
I can't really say about the number of insects-- my gardens are bigger and more diverse than they have ever been on this property, so there is a lot of habitat and food for a wide range, plus I've learned a tiny bit more about several types, so my awareness, noticing and photographing of them is more than ever. So I would say the number and variety is very high, with annual variations-- [eg this year has been a very low year for wasps (the big, noticeable species, we also have many tiny ones) whereas last year was extremely high- they like dry weather, at least at certain times]-- but I really can't comment on longer term statistics. This year has also been extreme for mosquitoes, and there has also been a very high number of dragonflies (though I have not noticed many damsels...) -- due to the wet year, of course.
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A miserable wet day here today. I don't like the rabbits eating my plants but do like to watch them from the window. These two were sitting there grooming before 1 pm then sat looking miserable. They moved over to the tree and stayed there grooming or looking miserable till I went out about 4.30 and one ran off when I tried to get closer. The other one is still sitting there after 7 pm. They are well camouflaged against a tree.
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Don't know who did this to my Canna but must have bitten through when the leaf was still rolled up ;D
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Don't know who did this to my Canna but must have bitten through when the leaf was still rolled up ;D
Seems even the leaf munchers are taking up creative hobbies during lockdown!
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Don't know who did this to my Canna but must have bitten through when the leaf was still rolled up ;D
Reminds me of the time many years ago, when a number of my Agaves-indoors-- were turning up with odd marks on the leaves.. in my case it ended up being a mischievous nephew......
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A miserable wet day here today. I don't like the rabbits eating my plants but do like to watch them from the window. These two were sitting there grooming before 1 pm then sat looking miserable. They moved over to the tree and stayed there grooming or looking miserable till I went out about 4.30 and one ran off when I tried to get closer. The other one is still sitting there after 7 pm. They are well camouflaged against a tree.
Only snowshoe hares here, so it is funny to see yours with such small ears ;) guess they were hoping for improved weather..
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Pheasants just outside the kitchen window today, between Showers.
[attach=1] 2 young on the left, female adults on the right
[attach=2] young.
The only remaining young from this years nest(s). 2 or 3 nests in 3 adjacent gardens, reduced by the local Red Kytes, Buzzards, Sparrow Hawks, or Foxes. A typical nest here has ~12 eggs, so not a good survival rate. The most we saw at any one time was 11 chicks.
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I know that squirrels and other rodents may be enthusiastic bulb diggers at times, but has anyone had experience with foxes unearthing bulbs? A rather young fox seems to have settled in the neighbourhood and after some recent groundwork in the garden I repeatedly found narcissus and corydalis bulbs dug up (but not eaten) in the morning after the fox came by. I have to admit this is only guessing so far and eyewitness evidence is still lacking, but has anyone heard of this?
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I have certainly heard of foxes digging in areas where blood fish and bone meal has been used.
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I get the Crow family and pheasants sometimes digging in loose soil/sand bed for bulbs and chafer grubs. I find deer prints in the sand bed and signs of digging but don't know what they are looking for. I get a fox sometimes but have no evidence of them digging for anything specific. The pheasants have dust baths on dry soil/bark etc. and disturb anything under or nearby. They managed to fill up a number of white colchicum blooms this week with soil. The pheasants eat flowers in spring, eg. erythroniums, and passiflora growing tips, but generally leave crocus alone.
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Found this chap galloping up the drive today.
Elephant Hawk moth caterpillar
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Lucky I'm not scared of spiders. On the bedroom carpet the other night when I switched on the light.
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Lucky I'm not scared of spiders. On the bedroom carpet the other night when I switched on the light.
and I raised you one scorpion!
[attachimg=1]
This is about 1& 1/2 lifesize!
cheers
fermi
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You win, Fermi. I wouldn't want one of those in my bedroom. Luckily none of our British spiders are venomous.
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You win, Fermi. I wouldn't want one of those in my bedroom. Luckily none of our British spiders are venomous.
Fortunately it wasn't in the bedroom - just in the corridor on the way to the loo!
They had to withdraw an episode of "Peppa Pig" here because Papa Pig was telling Peppa that spiders are harmless which is of course not true of some Aussie spiders!
On a more pleasant note here's a Yellow Admiral (Vanessa itea) which settled on a post long enough for me to get a pic
cheers
fermi
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Any ideas on this insect. Looks like a wood wasp but smaller and doesn't seem to have any yellow on the body. I think the appendage at the rear is an ovipositor not a sting but did not pick it up to find out ;D
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I'm seeing lots of Peacock butterflies in the ponies' field just now. There are a few large patches of Devil's bit scabious (Succisa pratensis) which they love. I counted 17 Peacocks and one Small tortoiseshell this afternoon.I see an occasional Red Admiral too.
Peacock
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Small tortoiseshell
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Roma, it could be a sawfly.
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Any ideas on this insect. Looks like a wood wasp but smaller and doesn't seem to have any yellow on the body. I think the appendage at the rear is an ovipositor not a sting but did not pick it up to find out ;D
Hi Roma, it's an ichneumon (you can tell from the narrow waist). There is a good guide here:
Guide to British Ichneumons (https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjiuau9g97rAhXXThUIHZXpB-sQFjAAegQIAhAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.naturespot.org.uk%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2Fdownloads%2Fbritish-ichneumonid-wasps-id-guide.pdf&usg=AOvVaw0mBpPJhLN1Ggp4fzxgB5GJ).
Pimpla rufipes seems to match fairly well.
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Thanks Tristan. That does look like it.
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We're disappointed with the amount of grass sprouting in the gravel driveway so we've had some locals in to clean up some of the excess seed.
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Neochmia temporalis
[attachimg=2]
Red browed finch (AKA red bums)
[attachimg=3]
cheers
fermi
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Any ideas on this insect. Looks like a wood wasp but smaller and doesn't seem to have any yellow on the body. I think the appendage at the rear is an ovipositor not a sting but did not pick it up to find out ;D
(Attachment Link)
(Attachment Link)
Does look waspy.. we have many species of the tiny predatory sorts here, I haven't even tried to sort them out.. most also pollinate flowers at times.
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We're disappointed with the amount of grass sprouting in the gravel driveway so we've had some locals in to clean up some of the excess seed.
(Attachment Link)
Neochmia temporalis
(Attachment Link)
Red browed finch (AKA red bums)
(Attachment Link)
cheers
fermi
That's a cute one!
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Lucily no venomous spiders or scorpions in my area! Watched 72 Dangerous Animals- they have versions for various countries/regions, often rather over dramatised, but the one for Australia seemed especially worrisome...lol
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Pheasants just outside the kitchen window today, between Showers.
(Attachment Link) 2 young on the left, female adults on the right
(Attachment Link) young.
The only remaining young from this years nest(s). 2 or 3 nests in 3 adjacent gardens, reduced by the local Red Kytes, Buzzards, Sparrow Hawks, or Foxes. A typical nest here has ~12 eggs, so not a good survival rate. The most we saw at any one time was 11 chicks.
hard to see them disappear as young, but I guess one would be overrun, otherwise.. same here for all small creatures- grouse, hares, squirrels-- all seem to maintain more or less stable populations , no doubt thanks to predators (hares are supposed to have natural fluctuations, but we are never overrun).
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I was alerted to the presence of the yellow tailed Black Cockatoos (Calyptorhynchus funereus) by their screeches from the top of the pine tree at the bottom of our garden.
At first two, then three then at least 5. Then as quickly as they arrived they were off.
Their powerful beaks have evolved to tear open banksia pods to get at the seeds so the cones of the Monterey Pine are no match. http://birdlife.org.au/bird-profile/Yellow-tailed-Black-Cockatoo (http://birdlife.org.au/bird-profile/Yellow-tailed-Black-Cockatoo)
cheers
fermi
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I have to live with Green necked Parakeets at times but the thought of a bird getting into the Banksia nut I have on the shelf takes some thought. Approx. 10" long by 3" diameter. Can I assume they attack them before they take on the properties of hardwood; i.e. the wood-turning stage?
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Hi Brian,
I think they could chew through concrete!
Those beaks are pretty fierce. They would have to wait till the seeds are ripe so the exterior of the cone would have hardened considerably,
cheers
fermi
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Hi Brian,
I think they could chew through concrete!
Those beaks are pretty fierce. They would have to wait till the seeds are ripe so the exterior of the cone would have hardened considerably,
cheers
fermi
that's some serious beak power :) the most anything has to manage here is spruce cones, which you could break apart easily in your hands, and most of the seed just falls out, anyway.. the squirrels toss them down while they are green and closed so they don't lose the seed!
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It seems wasps have a special fondness for ivy!
Gerd
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I'm sure both wasps and bees have a fondness for ivy. They can be seen clustered over the flower heads whenever there is pollen visible. The result is a massive crop of ivy seeds which birds, especially blackbirds and startling spread around my garden in many thousands every year. Every seed germinates and it is a full time job pulling the seedlings, ideally as they're very young and germinating as the slightly older plants get such a hold on the earth that I would need a forester or a bomb squad to control them over the year. We have a pear tree just coming into bloom now, at about 12 metres. It is huge, but an ivy climbing it has now reached the top and will probably kill in in a yea or two. The ivy trunk has so entwined and become incorporated in the pear trunk that it is impossible to identify which is which and so kill the ivy without killing the pear as well. I hate ivy.
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It seems wasps have a special fondness for ivy!
Gerd
Gerd,
Also brown bees (Apis mellifera mellifera) and the common drone fly (Eristalis tenax) love the ivy!
Brown honeybees in the ivy.
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Common drone fly in the ivy!
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................ We have a pear tree just coming into bloom now, at about 12 metres. It is huge, but an ivy climbing it has now reached the top and will probably kill in in a yea or two. The ivy trunk has so entwined and become incorporated in the pear trunk that it is impossible to identify which is which and so kill the ivy without killing the pear as well. I hate ivy.
Lesley,
My experience is that it take many years for an ivy to kill a tree. And I don't think strangling is the worst case but the weight of the ivy. I have an ivy in my garden and it hasn't yet killed the birch tree it climbs. The diameter of the tree is 30cm.
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The ivy flowers are a good late source of nectar for insects.
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Apart from being such a wonderful resource for insects and birds, ivy provides surprising arboreal opportunities for small animals we normally think of as restricted to the ground.
A week or two ago I was astonished to meet a pygmy shrew almost face-to-face through our kitchen window as it skittered nonchalantly among the ivy stems on the wall :o
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It seems wasps have a special fondness for ivy!
Gerd
I often wonder what flowers smell like to insects-- there are many of these sorts of small, not brightly coloured flowers which attract many pollinators, often wasps of many sizes and other sorts of predatory insects ( many of which nectar as an important part of their life cycle), small moths, beetles, etc..
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Funnily enough, it was a nice day a few days ago and our ivy was absolutely humming with all kinds of insects (except for wasps, thankfully).
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The highight for me was definitely the red admirals though. I'm also hoping that the holly blue butterflies made it through our dreadful summer. They have a strange life cycle with two generations per year. The caterpillars of the spring generation feed on developing holly buds, and the autumn generation ivy. A few years ago we cut our ivy back too hard and lost our holly blues, but we have let it grow and this spring saw a female laying on the holly. Fingers crossed...
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yesterday we saw by a walk on Kaiserstuhl our first green lizard (Lacerta bilineata )
The animal was so friendly to wait a little that we could make ( a more or less ) good picture :)
Have fun
Hans 8)
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yesterday we saw by a walk on Kaiserstuhl our first green lizard (Lacerta bilineata )
The animal was so friendly to wait a little that we could make ( a more or less ) good picture :)
Have fun
Hans 8)
Ohh! He is so handsome! You are lucky to see him!
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we think this animal was laying in the sun ....yesterday was a very nice and sunny day ( now is rain )
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Araneus diadematus Cross orb-weaver
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yesterday we saw by a walk on Kaiserstuhl our first green lizard (Lacerta bilineata )
The animal was so friendly to wait a little that we could make ( a more or less ) good picture :)
Have fun
Hans 8)
cool :)
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Once again the shade-house was invaded by a blackbird at the end of August.
At the end of September the nest was empty as the fledglings went off to fend for themselves in the undergrowth (to be fed by mum and dad I presume!).
We have a love-hate relationship with blackbirds as they are an introduced pest but their song is so memorable (at least to this old Beatles lover!)
cheers
fermi
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Once again the shade-house was invaded by a blackbird at the end of August.
At the end of September the nest was empty as the fledglings went off to fend for themselves in the undergrowth (to be fed by mum and dad I presume!).
We have a love-hate relationship with blackbirds as they are an introduced pest but their song is so memorable (at least to this old Beatles lover!)
cheers
fermi
cute. Somehow that Euro bird was not introduced here, the local Turdus species is the native American Robin- with similar egss of 'Robin's Egg Blue'.. we have introduced house sparrows (not in the countryside) and starlings (not on the acreage, they are out in the open).. our blackbirds are unrelated marsh birds.
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Araneus diadematus Cross orb-weaver
Love the orb weavers, but don't see them often..
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yesterday we saw by a walk on Kaiserstuhl our first green lizard (Lacerta bilineata )
The animal was so friendly to wait a little that we could make ( a more or less ) good picture :)
Have fun
Hans 8)
Certainly I have cataracts in both eyes but I can still read with some difficulty and am still allowed (just) to drive. Yet peer as I might I can see no sign of anything in this photograph that looks anything remotely like any part of a lizard. Any clues please?
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Lesley,
Look in the top right corner. The lizard sports a black spot diagonally below and to the left of it's eye.
Personally I was decided to get a cataract op. when I could no longer distinguish grass from crocus seedlings.
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Articles in papers recently about pheasants decimating the UK Adder population.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/oct/01/adder-extinct-across-britain-snake-threat-game-birds-release
We get an occasional Grass snake in the garden and adders were not uncommon many years ago locally, but not seen any for some years. I have somewhere a photo of a whole group, nest?, of Slow worms (a legless lizard) taken in my now current garden ~30 years ago. Since living here I have only seen 1, and that had fallen into the water stop tap hole. Maybe my pheasants have wiped them out too.
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Certainly I have cataracts in both eyes but I can still read with some difficulty and am still allowed (just) to drive. Yet peer as I might I can see no sign of anything in this photograph that looks anything remotely like any part of a lizard. Any clues please?
Hello Lesley ,
please look here ...I have the animal marked :)
With best wishes from Germany
Hans
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Hi all ,
what do you think who was at my window?
We haven't actually seen her for a long time (in the usual places) ... so that we suspected she had migrated ... now she probably wants to go into the house (it's cold and wet outside)
Hans
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Amazing. How big is she?
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Hi all ,
what do you think who was at my window?
We haven't actually seen her for a long time (in the usual places) ... so that we suspected she had migrated ... now she probably wants to go into the house (it's cold and wet outside)
Hans
fun, no mantises here...
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Amazing. How big is she?
mhhh ...is difficult ...I had not a ruler with me
We think it could be 10 - 12 cm
Here is a picture of this animal in May - one day after his "birth" ( around 1 cm )
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here is another ( not so good ) picture from 17.07.2020
...it is eating a wasp !
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on 31.07. by my daily conroll I could see that this animal has start with molts its skin
on next mornig I found this :
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on 31.07. by my daily conroll I could see that this animal has start with molts its skin
on next mornig I found this :
Are they native there, or introduced? It seems they have been intentionally introduced in many places.
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Hi Cohan ,
They are native here ...I know this animals since more than 20 years
We live here in the warmest part of Germany ...
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Today I have remember that we have seen such animals also in France ( March 2017 )
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breaking news
today in the morning I saw a new Oothek of our Mantis :)
It was placed near the water tap ( for the garden ) ....OK ...this place is a little silly ....
This is near (50 cm ) from the Muhlenbergia Grass ( where the animal most time live )
Size : 3,5 cm
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Hans, your photos of the green lizard brought back happy memories of a holiday in the Alpujarras 13 years ago. On a walk, my wife and I came across this beautiful pair of ocellated lizards Timon lepidus - Europe's largest lizard - courting. The male is the one with the big head [insert joke of your choice here]. The male was quite bold which allowed me to get some excellent photos of this magnificant animal.
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Tristan , very nice pictures from Timon lepidus :)
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Not really fauna or flora but yesterday during my lockdown daily walk i, as almost everyone in the region, discovered an apocalyptic sky with incredible colors. It happened during at least 20-25mn, hopefully i was with my camera and was able to catch this moment.
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Thank you Rob for your clues. I found Hans' delightful lizard eventually and partly remined by the photos Anthony Darby puts on Facebook of his NZ native lizards. I wish he would put some here as they are very beautiful with their bright green and gold colours. I'll drop him a note. :)
I am now almost 4 weeks post knee replacement surgery and overall am very happy with it. I can walk now without crutches and can sleep on either side comfortably. There is pain in my right big toe for some reason but none in my leg and I'm doing some weeding among trays of plants lifted to an outdoor table so my time is not totally spent reading.
I have an appointment with the Dunedin Public Hospital Eye Clinic for late November so I'm hoping my cataracts will soon be sorted too.
I do wish everyone in the UK a speedy end to your new lockdown time. It must be horrible for it to be happening again, especially going into winter. I feel that we in the southern hemisphere have had the best of it, having started with winter and the spring which followed being largely Covid free, and summer which we now start, the same provided we are careful and not complacent. For alpine gardeners here, the worst of it has been the cancellations of our "Visiting speakers," and it may be that that particular programme has ended for good.
We are all shocked and deeply saddened by the news which sits so heavily amongst us.
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Good to hear you are improving, Lesley.
Anthony Derby has posted some great photos of his geckos in another thread -starting here -
https://www.srgc.org.uk/forum/index.php?topic=6476.msg417033#msg417033
Fascinating little creatures that they are!
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A nice sunny afternoon in the forests
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Not really fauna or flora but yesterday during my lockdown daily walk i, as almost everyone in the region, discovered an apocalyptic sky with incredible colors. It happened during at least 20-25mn, hopefully i was with my camera and was able to catch this moment.
dramatic sunset, nice captures! nice walk in the forest as well :)
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another walk in the forest before trees are naked ;D
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gloomy day under a scottish drizzle (that's what we used to say in my region), i left the home with just the macro lens so no wide view!
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Hi bird watchers. It’s nature watch time.
I have a large Bramley apple tree, maybe 70 years plus old. Hanging from it are 3 bird seed feeders. 2 identical spring loaded anti-squirrel types and 1 caged to keep them out, all with clear plastic tubes. They are each ~10 feet apart. I normally only feed with hulled sun-flower seed, so essentially all are identical. After a time they get quite grubby, partly from grease from the seed and dirt in general that you would expect from 100’s of bird visits. I clean them every so often of course. The grease from the seed takes some cleaning off.
Often I notice that 1 of the feeders attracts little attention, (or conversely all the attention) and when I fill them up maybe 2 are empty and the other almost full. I used to think this was the position as 1 is close to the hedge, 1 in clear open space beneath the centre of the tree, and the other nearer the house. I cleaned 2 of them a couple of weeks ago but left the other, less dirty, until later. I have only recently realised that it is the 2 clean feeders with visibly clearer tubes that get all the attention. If I swap them around the birds change which ones they use within an hour or so and the grubby one is left almost full. It works every time. Even when 2 are completely empty there are few if any small birds on the grubby one. Just a Greater Spotted Woodpecker left feeding this afternoon. No small birds at all.
Who would have thought that garden birds were that choosy about free food? I assume it is because the grease that comes out of the seed stops a clear vision and they don’t recognise the seed. Any other ideas?
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another walk in the forests, we're now entering winter for sure. Most of the fauna will struggle to find some much-needed food.
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Sunny afternoon and still some nice stuff to see.
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another walk in the forests, we're now entering winter for sure. Most of the fauna will struggle to find some much-needed food.
Winter in your woods looks pretty easy for wildlife-- at least the food is not covered with snow! We've had a couple of warm weeks, so I'm sure the wildlife has been very happy-- snow is not too deep, lots of bare places, and there have been insects moving around, good for the many small birds that rely on insects all winter, they are amazing!
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Heading out of the acreage across the road to check mail yesterday, just around sunset, I saw something in a poplar beside the drive-- I thought it was a clump of dried leaves at first, but kept looking, as there was nothing there recently. I soon realised it was actually a Ruffed Grouse/ Bonasa umbellus. It is not the first time I've seen them up in trees (I've seen them far higher) -- eating leaf buds- but it is still odd to see these heavy looking birds so far off the ground-- normally you see them foraging along the ground, and flying low and noisily only when they are spooked. They seem comfortable up there, though, so they probably do it much more often than what I see!
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Indeed i'll never wake up with 1m of snow ;D The best time for forest animals is now until first week of february.
Saturday i'll try to find the Squacco Heron, with global warming several populations don't return anymore to Africa at end of summer.
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Indeed i'll never wake up with 1m of snow ;D The best time for forest animals is now until first week of february.
Saturday i'll try to find the Squacco Heron, with global warming several populations don't return anymore to Africa at end of summer.
Nice! No winter herons here, but I see a couple of Bald Eagles all year, and I don't have confirmation, but I think some crows stay, as well as the ravens that are here all year.
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Our ladybirds seem to be choosing strange places to hibernate this year - here a group have decided on one of the metal plant stakes;
[attachimg=1]
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Our ladybirds seem to be choosing strange places to hibernate this year - here a group have decided on one of the metal plant stakes;
Beatles getting into metal? :o
cheers
fermi
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Just back from work for launch pause, along a small road behind the house subjects were waiting me for photos :+)
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After the storm direction the sea for good lights, well i was gifted.
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35mm dropped in few hours
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not much plants yet
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not much plants yet
- but beautiful views!
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Could this be where my Helleborus niger flowers went? There were three of them - not in the garden but very close.
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nice neighbour :D
7°c and very wet climate however i stayed behind a huge tree 1h or so and was again rewarded.
I also discovered a lot of Asplenium scolopendrium, a species in decline in the region.
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Our ladybirds seem to be choosing strange places to hibernate this year - here a group have decided on one of the metal plant stakes;
(Attachment Link)
wow, not much shelter there! Here they need to choose much more out of view locations!
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Yann-- nice views and lovely bird!
Roma-- hope your pretty neighbour doesn't spend too much time in your garden!
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Hi bird watchers. It’s nature watch time.
I have a large Bramley apple tree, maybe 70 years plus old. Hanging from it are 3 bird seed feeders. 2 identical spring loaded anti-squirrel types and 1 caged to keep them out, all with clear plastic tubes. They are each ~10 feet apart. I normally only feed with hulled sun-flower seed, so essentially all are identical. After a time they get quite grubby, partly from grease from the seed and dirt in general that you would expect from 100’s of bird visits. I clean them every so often of course. The grease from the seed takes some cleaning off.
Often I notice that 1 of the feeders attracts little attention, (or conversely all the attention) and when I fill them up maybe 2 are empty and the other almost full. I used to think this was the position as 1 is close to the hedge, 1 in clear open space beneath the centre of the tree, and the other nearer the house. I cleaned 2 of them a couple of weeks ago but left the other, less dirty, until later. I have only recently realised that it is the 2 clean feeders with visibly clearer tubes that get all the attention. If I swap them around the birds change which ones they use within an hour or so and the grubby one is left almost full. It works every time. Even when 2 are completely empty there are few if any small birds on the grubby one. Just a Greater Spotted Woodpecker left feeding this afternoon. No small birds at all.
Who would have thought that garden birds were that choosy about free food? I assume it is because the grease that comes out of the seed stops a clear vision and they don’t recognise the seed. Any other ideas?
Not sure what it is about-- I have a feeder normally used only in winter, but left out, so I expect the low temperatures and UV to keep it sanitary generally, but the 'clear' part is certainly cloudy, I think I've even had some that had opaque reservoir areas, so I don't see visibility being important-- mind you mine are the sort where the seed spills out of the reservoir at the bottom, and that is where the birds access it...
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I sometimes hunt for slugs by turning over the pots of seedlings in the garden.
and I found that !!
surprisingly, it looks above and far from an orange woodlouse, but turning it over, we see that it is more of a gastropod.
brought home for observation, I deduce that it ranks among chitons (Polyplacophora),but I did not know of any species of terrestrial chiton. in addition, he has some sort of siphon (or other) in shell, pointing from behind.
it advances while undulating.
Does anyone know this little orange thing (1 cm)? I would like to determine this 'garden chiton'
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Veronique:
Have a look.
https://www.diverkevin.com/NorthAmerica/Invertebrates-Eastern-Pacific/Invertebrates/i-Fm77tBp
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Hi Veronique,
I'm pretty sure that isn't a chiton. First, because they are (supposedly) all marine, and secondly because they have a girdle surrounding the main part of the body, which your animal doesn't have. That said, I'm afraid I don't know what it is (though my money would be on some sort of insect larva - some of the blue butterflies (Lycaenidae) have very strange looking larvae).
Did you take a photo of the underside and if so can you post? It might provide some clues.
Best wishes, Tristan
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Arnold : these photos are superb, I love it!
you are certainly right Tristan, this is much more likely, especially also because of the appendage towards the rear of the carapace.
but when I turned it over, the body was all under a slug, hence my questioning .. I did not manage to see any foot.
my photo below is unfortunately not clear enough, it is taken when the beast was stuck to a jar.
there are some freshwater chitons all the same, aren't there? tiny but present in the ditches. my husband, a biology teacher, sometimes takes water samples from the ditches to determine the very small animals with his pupils, and we observed a chiton there of a few millimeters.
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European hare in the garden last week. It tries to dig something to eat from under snow, but there is so much snow, it is difficult for it. Lucky I have protected my apple trees and roses, otherwise it would eat them.
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Hi Veronique, there are no freshwater chitons either. I'd be interested to see what you find in freshwaters.
Those appendages look like honeydew secreting organs to attract ants (https://www.antwiki.org/wiki/File:Shattuck_49480,_Camponotus_consobrinus_tending_scale,_Hall,_ACT-web.jpg). Maybe it's a scale insect of some kind? These lose their legs as adults so don't look very insectlike.
Best wishes, Tristan
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Leena, love the hare! We get them around here too, though I have never seen one in the garden (fortunately).
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That's a lot of snow, Leena! We've had snow on the ground since mid-Oct, in places, but it has never got very deep, yet, this year... lots of snowshoe hares here, but luckily they are not usually interested in my garden! Sometimes they just hop past, or sit beside to eat dandelions...lol here is one from May 2015, it has not fully changed back to brown from winter white-- I have never photographed one fully white :(
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Leena, love the hare! We get them around here too, though I have never seen one in the garden (fortunately).
Here we have them in the garden also, very common, but usually they do very little harm, except in winters and early spring when there is nothing else to eat. Then they eat crocuses and other early flowers, but they are not as bad as deer which do more harm to plants.
That's a lot of snow, Leena! We've had snow on the ground since mid-Oct, in places, but it has never got very deep, yet, this year... lots of snowshoe hares here, but luckily they are not usually interested in my garden! Sometimes they just hop past, or sit beside to eat dandelions...lol here is one from May 2015, it has not fully changed back to brown from winter white-- I have never photographed one fully white :(
Cohan, there is a lot of snow right now:(.
Your showshoe hare looks cuter than european hare:). There are also mountain hares (Lepus timidus) here, and they turn white in winter, but they are more rare, and never come to the garden. European hare is bigger and it has taken over our original mountain hare in many places and mountain hare is now more in northern Finland than here is south.
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Hi Veronique,
After some research on the web, I found ! It's a Syrphidae larva, genus Epistrophe. The two spikes are the posterior spiracles for respiration. It should pupate soon. The larva is usually eating aphids, so, a good ally in the garden.
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Definitely Yvain! Well done, didn't think of hoverflies.
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Not sure what it is about-- I have a feeder normally used only in winter, but left out, so I expect the low temperatures and UV to keep it sanitary generally, but the 'clear' part is certainly cloudy, I think I've even had some that had opaque reservoir areas, so I don't see visibility being important-- mind you mine are the sort where the seed spills out of the reservoir at the bottom, and that is where the birds access it...
I eventually found out what most of the problem was/is. The internal spring that closes the feeder to squirrels weakens after a time, and the opening partially closes. Small birds easily give up and use the other feeder. I made a temporary eternal spring wire fix, but then acquired a new insert. It now behaves itself and although the birds now get choosy some days it is more random.. It is a good design but not ecologically sound if you have to replace the whole insert when it weakens. Just replacing (or adjusting) the spring would be better.
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I eventually found out what most of the problem was/is. The internal spring that closes the feeder to squirrels weakens after a time, and the opening partially closes. Small birds easily give up and use the other feeder. I made a temporary eternal spring wire fix, but then acquired a new insert. It now behaves itself and although the birds now get choosy some days it is more random.. It is a good design but not ecologically sound if you have to replace the whole insert when it weakens. Just replacing (or adjusting) the spring would be better.
Ah, that makes more sense :)
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I have hares in the garden but these came by broad daylight and browsed crocus leaves and rhododendron buds!
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Hoy, those are beautiful animals but so bad for plants here. Luckily we got a fence around the garden which helps keep the deer away but hares still come through it.
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I protect all my shrubs and trees from debarking. They seem to like the scilla leaves at present and some cyclamen. One of the pair of Roe deer last week, as we went to bed, was very fat or pregnant ;-) A flock of 10 Red legged partridges most days recently are entertaining, but a bit twitchy if they see me. Did our best for the RSPB birdwatch today.
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Hoy, those are beautiful animals but so bad for plants here. Luckily we got a fence around the garden which helps keep the deer away but hares still come through it.
Leena, it is impractical and would also be expensive to build a fence around our garden. It is easier to protect some of the most valuable plants.
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I protect all my shrubs and trees from debarking. They seem to like the scilla leaves at present and some cyclamen. One of the pair of Roe deer last week, as we went to bed, was very fat or pregnant ;-) A flock of 10 Red legged partridges most days recently are entertaining, but a bit twitchy if they see me. Did our best for the RSPB birdwatch today.
I also protect some of the most valuable plants. A couple years ago the deer damaged a redwood that I hadn't protected. Fortunately the lower parts of the stem survived.
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I have hares in the garden but these came by broad daylight and browsed crocus leaves and rhododendron buds!
cute if troublesome...lol Deer don't come in here or eat my plants much- occasionally I see one passing through. Moose were in recently to do some of their winter pruning of shrubs. I was happy to note that a couple of Sorbus seedlings have managed to grow too tall for the moose to reach the tops, but they are not out of danger yet: they sometimes grab a slender trunk and bend it over/break it halfway so the tender tips become in reach! Mostly they do this to native poplars of which there are thousands, so no loss, also sometimes Amelanchier, not at all rare either, but it could happen to these Sorbus. Our original S aucuparia,planted sometime in the '70's really only reached a tree-like height rather recently, since they pruned it into a multi-stemmed shrub, which is why I thought it would be nice if some young ones (bird sown) could grow tall enough to be able to maintain single trunk shape.
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We haven't seen many squirrels about this last year but two have recently been coming to my brother's nut feeder next door. I bought this metal feeder because the wooden ones let in water and the peanuts went mouldy if the squirrels were not eating them up. Saturday was the first time I saw a squirrel there. He struggled a bit because he couldn't get his back feet on the edge like they can with the wooden feeders and it was quite a stretch to reach the nuts.
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He looks very like his Cork cousins ;D
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This one is a bright red including his tail. The other one is darker and has a blonde tip to its tail. The dark ones usually have a very dark tail which gradually turns blonde before they shed and the new hair grows in. A few years ago we had some which could have been described as strawberry roan if they were horses.
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'Ours' vary a lot in colour too, as do the length/thickness of their ear tufts presumably depending on the state of molt.
We find them highly entertaining ('Cirque du Squirrel' as they leap through the branches & occasionally make mistakes :o), and by giving them their own feeders they don't bother the birds much.
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Eurasian jay (Garrulus glandarius) is a regular visitor in the garden in winter.
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A blackbird awaits his turn.
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Eurasian jay (Garrulus glandarius) is a regular visitor in the garden in winter.
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A blackbird awaits his turn.
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That's a nice one!
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Today i ran 4km to heat slowly the machine for the next spring hikes, i had my camera in the backpack and the light was amazing.
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Today i ran 4km to heat slowly the machine for the next spring hikes, i had my camera in the backpack and the light was amazing.
beautiful views
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I noticed some trails in the meadows, and after our 'polar' week last week they are now much more visible. Someone told us this is probably a badger trail.
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The snow is gone but the deer is back. This time a 1 year old red deer calf. It looks a bit shabby though.
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The snow is gone but the deer is back. This time a 1 year old red deer calf. It looks a bit shabby though.
It could be that it couldn't find enough food with your unusual snow cover Trond.
Now it seems wants to recuperate :D I spot some snowdrops in the picture, luckily they don't like to eat those.
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The snow is gone but the deer is back. This time a 1 year old red deer calf. It looks a bit shabby though.
Maybe just late winter coat? It should be easy feeding now, anyway.
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I noticed some trails in the meadows, and after our 'polar' week last week they are now much more visible. Someone told us this is probably a badger trail.
That's fun.. do you ever see them?
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A few weeks ago, we had a surprise visitor to our pond, a creature which is usually only seen if you head into the wilderness, and are very lucky. River Otters are not common here, so we were amazed to be able to watch it from the comfort of our sun room. Martin captured a video of it, on his cell phone. We posted it to our Facebook page here, hopefully you'll be able to see it as well: https://www.facebook.com/gordon.and.martin/posts/4143190189048602 (https://www.facebook.com/gordon.and.martin/posts/4143190189048602)
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How marvelous for you, Gordon!
I always loved otters after reading Gavin Maxwell's "Ring of Bright Water" and his other books - one of the first authors I "binge-read"
cheers
fermi
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That's fabulous Gordon (and nice pond by the way). Is it a young one do you think? It's hard to tell from the video but it doesn't look quite full size to me.
Otters tend to poo in conspicuous locations to mark their territory, so you may see that one regularly.
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Thanks, Fermi and Tristan. Martin and I think it is a youngster. I have more than a few doubts that it will be a long term resident, the first being the presence of our two Shetland Sheepdogs. Apart from that, I've been able to assess the amount of fish in the pond,now that the ice is gone, and it looks as if the otter cleared out all the adult goldfish we had in there, even more than we lose to annual visits from herons,mergansers, and cormorants. The fish will bounce back... we'd rather have native fish in the pond, but the amount of aeration and fluctuating water level/quality,make it unsuitable for what we'd love to have (trout).
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For those understanding german or french
https://www.arte.tv/fr/videos/069769-005-A/les-secrets-des-fleurs-sauvages
https://www.arte.tv/fr/videos/069769-004-A/les-secrets-des-fleurs-sauvages/ (if you like Cypripedium)
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For those understanding german or french
https://www.arte.tv/fr/videos/069769-005-A/les-secrets-des-fleurs-sauvages
https://www.arte.tv/fr/videos/069769-004-A/les-secrets-des-fleurs-sauvages/ (if you like Cypripedium)
A marvelous series of films- a real joy to watch - thanks for the tip, Yann!
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French/German tv-channel Arte is my favorite tv sender.
Always with programmes worth watching!
Gerd
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My new rockery area looks a bit bare for wildlife, not even anything flowering...
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...but a closer look reveals that these solitary bees are making their nests here, apparently the warm loose soil is an ideal habitat! You can just about see the bee peeping out of her burrow.
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A frequent garden visitor - a reason we don't usually need to cut down the ornamental grasses!
The Eastern Grey Kangaroo - Macropus giganteus
cheers
fermi
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Goodness Fermi! That's a bit more of a challenge than rabbits or deer. Quite a special visitor though. Do they do much damage?
He/she looks very at home there anyway - kind of like it's enquiring when you are going to bring it drinks, and whether it could get a side order of olives.
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Hi Tristan,
fortunately roos tend to only eat grass whereas wallabies are more destructive.
Thank goodness we don't have deer around here - yet!
Yes, he looks very laid back and ready for a G&T!
cheers
fermi
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A frequent garden visitor - a reason we don't usually need to cut down the ornamental grasses!
The Eastern Grey Kangaroo - Macropus giganteus
cheers
fermi
Cool!
Tristan- nice to see- I think I have one or several sorts of solitary bees in the rock garden too.. and more kinds of pollinators than I ever knew existed in the gardens overall- plant it and they will come!
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Kangaroos lie down in such a way that one might expect someone like Marlene Dietrich or Greta Garbo, to relax and yes, the G and T is on its way. 8)
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French/German tv-channel Arte is my favorite tv sender.
Always with programmes worth watching!
Gerd
Indeed, the only chanel i watch....
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OK I'll bite.
What is G and T?
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Here, it's Gin and Tonic Arnold (so I'm told - I'm not the biggest gin fan and when I do drink it, I don't pollute it with tonic). But it's possible that it's something quite different in NZ - over to Lesley!
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Thanks, After watching Granchester I was sure it was 'tea'. Everything goes better with tea.
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Tree Bumble bee,Bombus hypnorum, captured in the greenhouse. Took a pic before I released her. The tree Bumble bee only arrived in UK in 2001 and reached Scotland in 2013.
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Kangaroos lie down in such a way that one might expect someone like Marlene Dietrich or Greta Garbo, to relax and yes, the G and T is on its way. 8)
it does have that look...lol
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This big bumble bee looks very like the one we have in NZ, with its furry golden shoulders and it is about 3 cms long. We also have a much smaller species which in my youth and ignorance I assumed was the youngster of the big one. But I didn't know about different species in those days.
I had a sting from a big one early in this immediately past summer. It stung badly but only for a few minutes. It was inside the house and I encouraged it onto my hand to take out but it didn't like being shaken off when I went to remove it.
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Yes, G and T is gin and tonic. I like one after a shower and before getting dinner ready after a hot day in the garden. About 1 gin to 3 or 4 tonic and I like it with lemon juice squeezed into it rather than just a slice in the glass because I like it really sour. Over ice is good too.
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Lesley - I have a new favourite gin found last Spring locally. It's called Plymouth and made in Devon, UK. As I visited Stella Tracey's wonderful garden near there so I decided to give it a try. Excellent, and G&T got us through the summer & autumn of 2020; not solely the original bottle!
johnw
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Hello John, I haven't been n touch for a long time mainly due to both phone and camera problems which I'm gradually getting sorted thankfully.
There appear to be a lot of makers of different kinds of gin about nowadays. Certainly there's one in NZ and some of them have what seem to me to have very odd flavours, fruits etc and various other things such as manuka honey. I haven't tried any but may do in time.
I've also read in one of Val McDermid's thrillers that one of her sleuths regularly samples various new kinds with a friend when they're both in the mood. Perhaps I'm not sufficiently adventurous in my liquid tastes. Prefer my Scotch neat and rum likewise (though not frequently. It's a very good cure for a queasy stomach or even 'flu.)
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Tree Bumble bee,Bombus hypnorum, captured in the greenhouse. Took a pic before I released her. The tree Bumble bee only arrived in UK in 2001 and reached Scotland in 2013.
Strange. New to UK and Scotland? It is one the commonest bumblebee species here among our 34 species.
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Strange. New to UK and Scotland? It is one the commonest bumblebee species here among our 34 species.
Hi Trond, yes that's right. First recorded in the UK in 2001, and in Scotland in 2013. It reached Ireland in 2017. It's now one of our commoner species too.
Heaven knows why it wasn't here already, as the conditions seem highly suitable. We had one in our conservatory the other day. Nice to have some good bee related news.
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The tree bumble bee reached Belfast in 2019 where queens were seen twice close to the city centre. 2020 queens and workers were seen in west Belfast and last week I got a queen in my garden
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Hi Trond, yes that's right. First recorded in the UK in 2001, and in Scotland in 2013. It reached Ireland in 2017. It's now one of our commoner species too.
Heaven knows why it wasn't here already, as the conditions seem highly suitable. We had one in our conservatory the other day. Nice to have some good bee related news.
The tree bumble bee reached Belfast in 2019 where queens were seen twice close to the city centre. 2020 queens and workers were seen in west Belfast and last week I got a queen in my garden
Interesting. I have had quite a few bumblebee queens in my garden the last week and I suspect some where tree bumblebee.
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I didn't knew about the tree bumblebees, must check if we have any here.
You may never know what's lurking in the woods. They are very cute and intelligent but equally destructive; most surely looking for birds eggs already. This was in a remnant piece of woods preserved in the city with many houses nearby.
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Fascinating article about the tree bumblebees here;
https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/tree-bumblebee-bombus-hypnorum/
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Fascinating article about the tree bumblebees here;
https://www.bumblebeeconservation.org/tree-bumblebee-bombus-hypnorum/
Great article Gail, thanks for sharing.
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Cute racoon, Gabriela! My last place in Toronto downtown had a piece of fibreglass sheeting (like greenhouse stuff) over a rear basement entry outside the bedroom window, which looked out on parking area/back alley. Racoons liked to go through there and leave presents :( I had to put out 'Critter Ridder' (capsaicin based) which kept them off the fibreglass..lol
Saw my first bumblebee last week, no pics, though I've snapped a couple of the small solitary bees- the first (male Andrena, I'm told) while there was nothing flowering yet, the rest, the red, just as first things were happening, though it was not on flowers. I think some of them live in the rock gardens, often see them there anyway, esp in spring.
Really missing my longer lens (stopped zooming a few months ago) as bug and bird season kicks in! So, crappy shots of anything that doesn't let me get close!
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This cute creature- seems to be a Plume Moth / Pterophoridae though apparently pinning to a genus and species is tricky, and I haven't found any good reference to attempt that! As you can see, it wasn't shy at all, I was able to get close enough (plus cropping) for some decent shots with just an 18-55mm lens. In a Crocus flower, only one in that bed, maybe why it wasn't keen to leave!
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Interesting wings on that one, Cohan!
Here are something bigger! We saw 4 cranes (Grus grus grus) today when we went skiing at the mountain cabin. I'm not equipped for bird photography though!
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Cranes are always fun to see-- here we have Sandhill Cranes-- I hear them much more often than see them, as the calls carry quite far
and there are wetlands in all direction..
It was interesting to learn what the Plume Moths are, I've seen them, but not looked up, before..
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Question on Twitter from Anthony McCluskey
"Can anyone help with ID of these beetles found in Glen Lyon, Perthshire? Was thinking possible Cantharis pellucida but I know several species look similar."
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Can anyone help?
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A few photos from behind the house, i've the luck to be surrounded by nice meadows full of orchids.
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and while talking about orchids, here're few ones from Vercors took yesterday.
This year blooming is delayed of 10 days as everywhere.
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and several hours before i was on the coast, it's also a festival, the winter and early spring rains were benefit to bulbs.
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Silene conica is quite common among costal meadows
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A good selection of orchids, Yann.
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I went to Hoveton Hall gardens with a friend on Sunday and was so impressed with the amount of butterflies and other insects attracted to a Sorbaria sorbifolia bush that I've ordered one. Does anyone know what the rather handsome beetle on the right is?
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Meadow brown on Sorbaria
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We also went to Buxton Heath to see the silver-studded blue butterflies, which seem to be doing very well there. It is an absolutely magical place with the heather in flower, cows contentedly grazing and lots of tiny blue butterflies flying around your feet...
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handsome beetles, Maggi, no idea of names-- scarcely have a beginning on my own!
Yann-- lovely meadows!
Gail- always fun to see blues-- I find them hard to photograph- if they do sit still a moment, they are unlikely to open their wings for me!
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Gail, the beetle looks like a Long Horn, similar to a Four-Banded Longhorn.
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Gail, the beetle looks like a Long Horn, similar to a Four-Banded Longhorn.
I agree Ian, do you think it could be Strangalia attenuata?
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We also went to Buxton Heath to see the silver-studded blue butterflies, which seem to be doing very well there. It is an absolutely magical place with the heather in flower, cows contentedly grazing and lots of tiny blue butterflies flying around your feet...
I love silver-studded blues because they always seem to occur in large colonies. On the Great Orme at Llandudno there is an endemic subspecies caernensis, where the females are quite blue - I think it's a bit bigger than the typical form too. Well worth a visit if you are in the area about now, and you can see thousands of them in good weather.
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I thought Strangalia when I saw it but the name has been changed? That,s why I used the English name. Confusion rules.
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Thank you - that looks right. I hadn't known that the longhorns is such a large family (over 35,000 species), or that the scientific name of the Cerambycidae comes from the shepherd Cerambus who was transformed into a large beetle after an argument with nymphs. Beware of arguing with nymphs...
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There has been a lot of butterflies this summer, and during the past week there were more than 20 Argynnis paphia in the garden.
They like Origanum vulgare but their most favourite plant is Serratula tinctoria.
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That's spectacular Leena! I take it you live near the woods then? This large and spectacular butterfly is one of my favourites, they are such strong fliers.
Here we call it the silver-washed fritillary, because the green pattern on the hindwing looks like it has a thin coat of silver over it. I see one of your females is also the uncommon silver-grey form.
Sadly we don't have this one in this part of Wales, though you do get it further south. Here we have a population of small pearl-bordered fritillary (Boloria selene) and very occasionally, dark green fritillary (Argynnis aglaja).
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Thanks Tristan:). Ten years ago there were none of those big butterflies here, but in the past years they have become more common.
This year is the best, and also the first time there were the silver grey form in our garden. Garden is surrounded by woods:).
I hope they stay here and next year we will see even more of them.
Argynnis aglaja is rare here, one summer some years ago there were couple of them, I think they migrated from more south.
Argynnis adippe is the next plentiful of those orange butterflies in my garden.
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Fabulous photos Leena. I saw a few at The Stone Pit at Holt on Saturday but sadly they don't visit me...
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There has been a lot of butterflies this summer, and during the past week there were more than 20 Argynnis paphia in the garden.
They like Origanum vulgare but their most favourite plant is Serratula tinctoria.
Beautiful scene with butterflies Leena.
We seem to have less butterflies in the garden this year. In our parts Vernonia species (Ironweeds) which have flowers similar with Serratula are also particulalry liked by all butterflies.
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Always nice to see butterflies :) Lots of fritillaries here too, not sure if that many at once though!
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This is a bit of 'wildlife'.
Wife shot it on the back steps. I was surprised. Normally she would run from a scene like this.
https://youtu.be/BLQzhbltztw
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This is a bit of 'wildlife'.
Wife shot it on the back steps. I was surprised. Normally she would run from a scene like this.
Bit too wild for me - I've always had a horror of mantids! Scary looking critters at the best of times!
Kudos to Mrs T. !!
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A mantis consuming some kind of fly for lunch? From the text alone I thought your wife must have encountered a bear or something as large on the back steps and gone for the shotgun!
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Lesley
Sorry if I mislead you.
We do get bears, deer, possums and the occasional racoon here. I'm just 10 miles from mid-town Manhattan.
Not really the wild kingdom.
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I feel most successful as a gardener when I see the huge numbers and endless variety of pollinators and insect predators etc of all sorts!
A couple of bees on Veronica- there were at least 3 different kinds of bumblebees, leafcutters, drone flies and more, just in a short time..
Malva is popular too, but nothing draws the pollinating hordes like plants with masses of small flowers! Some of the composites and others draw as many wasps as bees..
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I agree completely Cohan. It's a joy to see many & various pollinators in the garden; other wildlife too.
First time I've come across this in the garden, a mossy rose gall produced by the wasp Diplolepis rosae:
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A miniature but fearsome predator in the garden, the pygmy shrew Sorex minutus.
Reputed to have red-tipped teeth due to iron deposits that resist wear, but I didn't ask to see ;D
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Well spotted Ashley.
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Thanks Ian; unfortunately they're more often seen dead than alive.
Small beer compared to the many great things you show us from your local patch. That Scotch Argus for example, or Saussurea alpina which also clings on in Irish mountains but I've yet to find it.
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Ashley, the Saussurea usually prefers damp ground, often in the shadow of boulders or in the open where there is running water. It seems to be loosing ground as far as numbers of plants go. Where I,ve seen it, it favours granite areas.
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I see what you've done there, Ashley.
First facing it one way and then the other ;)
cheers
fermi
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I saw a few at The Stone Pit at Holt on Saturday but sadly they don't visit me...
Having said that the silver-washed don't visit me, look what I found in my garden!
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in the wetlands odonates are numerous this year, i guess the wet and cold climate in northern area of the country extended the reproduction period.
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I had the chance to spend 5 weeks in the Alps from Mercantour, passing by Ecrins, Valgaudemar, Devoluy and terminating in Hautes Alpes.
I've tons of photos i'll sort during the long winter's nights and post later in the forum.
Here're a few ones from the Devoluy where i like to return and return each summer. Surrounded by the the pic de Bure the small village of Rabou.
From last week and still many plants to watch despite warm weather.
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Climbing was the master word of these holidays, 23 mountains pass, 21053m D+, 18417m D- cumulated, one pair of shoes destroyed in the Combe de Mai (Bure) ;D
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Great views Yann. Some of the plants look familiar over here.
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Sigh. Absolutely beautiful Yann!
Is that Allium narcissiflorum?
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yes, i let you imagine the scent with the wind.
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Ashley- the mossy gall is interesting! Shrews are fascinating animals- they are around here, but not often seen.
Yann, lovely places!
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Went to Therfield Heath, next to Royston golf course, today to see the Adonis blue, which were suitably obliging despite the somewhat showery weather;
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Some of the butterflies we saw had red ?mites on them. Does anyone know what they are/how harmful they are to the butterflies?
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Gail, a search on the web suggests the mites are Trombidium breei and are said to be harmless to the butterfly.
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Thanks Ian and that is a relief - they are quite big in comparison to the butterfly...
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Gosh those Adonis blues are rather stunning Gail :o
Interesting & rather enormous mites. It's surprising if they don't exact some toll on their hosts, directly by feeding on the butterfly's body fluid but also as possible vectors of viral infections. Of course parasite/host relationships tend to be optimized by evolution for long-term survival of both.
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Having recently picked a tick off my ankle and thinking about the comparative sizes tick/human to mite/butterfly it makes sense that they must have some effect. I wondered if they are irritating to the butterfly. It is widely reported that butterflies don't feel pain, on the basis of no good evidence, but I found a study reporting that fruit flies can experience chronic pain after an injury (https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/07/190712120244.htm) so assume the butterflies are experiencing something...
While googling I came across this;
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/08/210818130604.htm
I thought I might do a study on what motivates researchers to choose their study topic - do you think the lead researcher had been comfort eating through lockdown?
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!
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The other day I came across this golden-ringed dragonfly in the garden. It was quite cold so he couldn't fly off, and I could get some good shots.
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I also came across this cute little 10-spot ladybird, Adalia decempunctata.
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Well done Tristan, I think I,ve only seen three Gold Ringed ever.
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Well done Tristan, I think I,ve only seen three Gold Ringed ever.
They're quite common here Ian and we get one or two foraging in the garden most years. They seem to like fast flowing streams. If they are around they are quite easy to approach (even in warm weather) as they are not terribly skittish. I think they are a stunning insect.
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The other day I came across this golden-ringed dragonfly in the garden. It was quite cold so he couldn't fly off, and I could get some good shots.
Great shots, they're fascinating.
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Beautiful dragon fly Tristan.
The monarchs are in a feeding frenzy at this time; on Liatris ligulistylis.
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Gorgeous Gabriela. I like the Liatris ligulistylis too, not seen that before but nice pom-pom flowers.
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Thanks Gail. L. ligulistylis has larger "pom-pom flowers" (inflorescences) than others and in great quantity on longer stems, it is no surprise they prefer it over other Liatris. I also have a little species, L. microcephala nearby; they feed on it as well but for short time, so the bumblebees have it at their discretion.
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Many butterflies would feed on any Liatris species if given a choice from other plants species.
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How can I bury peanuts with all these d***ed cyclamen in the way? :-\
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Super photo, Ashley.
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Tristan-- cool Dragonfly- they are fascinating insects for sure, and great friends here: we eagerly await their appearance each year to help get mosquitoes under control!
Gabriela- fun to see the monarchs- they don't make it into my area.
Ashley- do they dig up your plants to do their burying? The most they do here is sit on a rock or piece of wood in garden beds occasionally to eat spruce cones- or at times when they drop thousands of cones from the tree tops, they may pile in garden edges..
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This is a large, old Dasiphora fruticosa /Shrubby Cinquefoil cultivar/hybrid behind Mom's old house; flowers mid summer until serious frost.. I'll have to get some wider views of the shrub, it's in an awkward place to shoot, through a fence. Although not quite full sun, I think it is still much taller and less compact than newer varieties-4-5 ft tall, couple metres wide.
There was a tiny native bee loving it plus a honeybee if you ever wondered how tiny some of those bees are, look at the contrast in size between the two! A cool fly was also hanging out on the plant.
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This is the same type (?) or similar tiny bee on some late flowers on a Malva- most of the plants look like the second photo!
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... Ashley- do they dig up your plants to do their burying? The most they do here is sit on a rock or piece of wood in garden beds occasionally to eat spruce cones- or at times when they drop thousands of cones from the tree tops, they may pile in garden edges.
Fortunately they don't dig stuff up or cause any harm in my garden Cohan but I've heard that elsewhere (grey?) squirrels excavate crocus corms etc. so gardeners must use wire mesh as a deterrent.
As you say, red squirrels love both spruce & pine cones. Here they really binge on green cones from about July onwards & leave great numbers of 'cores' under pine trees particularly. Besides cones and acorns they also eat apples we leave out for the birds, lichen on tree branches as well as freshly emerged oak/maple leaves and flowers before increasing tannin levels make them too bitter. Apparently squirrels also plunder nests when the opportunity arises & indeed birds around the garden seem to keep a particularly close eye on the squirrels during the breeding season.
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This moth had expired on one of the walls. I think it is a lesser broad-bordered yellow underwing.
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Still plenty of bumblebees about, here enjoying Centaurea jacea.
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Fortunately they don't dig stuff up or cause any harm in my garden Cohan but I've heard that elsewhere (grey?) squirrels excavate crocus corms etc. so gardeners must use wire mesh as a deterrent.
As you say, red squirrels love both spruce & pine cones. Here they really binge on green cones from about July onwards & leave great numbers of 'cores' under pine trees particularly. Besides cones and acorns they also eat apples we leave out for the birds, lichen on tree branches as well as freshly emerged oak/maple leaves and flowers before increasing tannin levels make them too bitter. Apparently squirrels also plunder nests when the opportunity arises & indeed birds around the garden seem to keep a particularly close eye on the squirrels during the breeding season.
They are definitely opportunistic feeders here- will take advantage of bird feeders, raiding the compost pile etc They take apples that fall, but don't seem to know to get those still on branches, even when crabs or apple crabs are on the branches late. They also pick mushrooms, often putting them on spruce boughs to dry!
Some birds in particular seem aggressive towards squirrels, in some cases I think it goes both ways- esp with magpies, maybe blue jays.
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It's always good to see nature taking care of pests the organic way.
Hornworm Manduca quinquemaculata
Wasps Cotesia congregates
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Arnold- nature is not always delicate...lol... I always assume one reason that I have few insect problems is that I have lots of *other* insects ( and birds)! now if only I'd get a good timely predator of flea beetles!
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Pomatostomus superciliosus - the white browed Babbler - is a new bird this year!
cheers
fermi
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I am delighted to see the shrew because though I've read about them, we don't have them in NZ so I've never seen one. As for the mossy rose gall, what a lovely thing. Actually I DO know those very well. They signify a bad hair day. :D
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Your new bird Fermi. Is this name for real?
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Does anyone know what might have made these concrete-like blobs on this rock in the Peloponnese?
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One of them had been broken open and it looked as though there were chambers inside for some sort of larvae??
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Hi Gail, I would say these are likely to be the nest chambers of potter wasps (also called mason wasps).
See https://www.buglife.org.uk/bugs/bug-directory/heath-potter-wasp/ for an example (though there are lots of species).
Tristan
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Thanks Tristan, I can't find anything that looks quite right but have found some fascinating articles in the process.
https://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/MISC/WASPS/Sceliphron_caementarium.htm
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Some wildlife from our yard.
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Few more
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And few more
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Nik:
You have wolves in Connecticut?
Arnold
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You have wolves in Connecticut?
Coyote
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Looks like a healthy one. I guess plenty to eat with turkeys.
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Looks like a healthy one. I guess plenty to eat with turkeys.
:-)
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Coywolf. We also have regular coyotes, red and grey foxes, fisher cats and bobcats.
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This particular one spent about two hours resting in our yard. Early in the morning.
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We have had a Fox and Muntjac in the garden in the last week or so. That is I saw them both. I suspect they are here almost every day/night. The fox was midday outside the window, just 10 feet or so from my wife preparing vegetables, the very pregnant Muntjac was at dawn and tripped the security light. 3 cock pheasants this week were debating who is going to be in charge this winter, although seed spilling off a feeder by a woodpecker took their mind of sex for a while.
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Muntjac in the UK are now (have been for quite a while) persons non grata and laws have been ammended a long while back - release (even of rescued muntjac) is illegal..
They are one of (the only?) animal that can eat bluebells and they have actually wiped-out huge areas that have been known for bluebells since before records began.
They are unusual cervids as pairs keep together and breed year-round.
Maybe abhorrent to some here, but lots of folklore says that muntjac venison is premier cru amongst UK venison........personally, I'd far rather eat roe, fallow, even red/sika (in that order).
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I strongly recommend investing in a wildlife camera, because most of the activity (except birds) happens at night. Too bad videos cannot be shared here, but here are few screenshots from an interesting interaction not that long ago. The camera is at our lower deck, facing my Cymbidiums bench. The opossum did not want to have anything to do with the mother deer and the twins.
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We have had a Fox and Muntjac in the garden in the last week or so. That is I saw them both. I suspect they are here almost every day/night. The fox was midday outside the window, just 10 feet or so from my wife preparing vegetables, the very pregnant Muntjac was at dawn and tripped the security light. 3 cock pheasants this week were debating who is going to be in charge this winter, although seed spilling off a feeder by a woodpecker took their mind of sex for a while.
That’s a great picture of a fox, brianw!
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I strongly recommend investing in a wildlife camera, because most of the activity (except birds) happens at night. Too bad videos cannot be shared here, but here are few screenshots from an interesting interaction not that long ago. The camera is at our lower deck, facing my Cymbidiums bench. The opossum did not want to have anything to do with the mother deer and the twins.
You can post a link to a youtube video, Nik, if you have a channel there!
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I was looking out of the kitchen door (1126hrs on 16.12.2021) whilst awaiting the kettle to boil for a pot of tea when I espied a Long-eared owl perching on the washing line. I managed to take some photographs before it flew off some four minutes later. I've been lucky to now have all four of Britain's native owls in the garden or flying over.
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I've been lucky to now have all four of Britain's native owls in the garden or flying over.
Only four natives? Barn, tawny, long-eared, short-eared, snowy, although the snowy may have died-out again (RSPB refused permission - they are the experts authority advising DEFRA on all thins avian - for release of unrelated captive-bred stock for several years).
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There was a Snowy Owl in the Cairngorms a few weeks back, for a few days.
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Snowy owls do not stay in one place. They migrate from one place to another. The "Norwegian" snow owls belong to the same population as the ones in Siberia, and even Alaska.
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A flock of whooper swans has taken a rest on the frozen pond. They have stayed some time now. The pond froze over yesterday so maybe they will leave .
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A flock of whooper swans has taken a rest on the frozen pond. They have stayed some time now. The pond froze over yesterday so maybe they will leave .
(Attachment Link)
A staging post for their trip to the Uk? Maybe.
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Snowy owls do not stay in one place. They migrate from one place to another. The "Norwegian" snow owls belong to the same population as the ones in Siberia, and even Alaska.
They do not migrate - they are irruptive - they follow food, or die. Moving away from poor food sources can mean moving Km or 100's Km.
The pair that landed on Fetlar in 1967 were fleeing starvation, almost certainly in Scandanavia.
In many areas their populations very closely follow lemming populations which rise and fall massively over periods of a few years. In lemming years snowys can rear 6-8, or more chicks, every pair. In crash years most pairs will fail to even produce eggs and any pairs that do will rear just one or two chicks, if any.
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A staging post for their trip to the Uk? Maybe.
Yes, maybe. Depends on the winter weather. Some years they stay all winter.
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They do not migrate - they are irruptive - they follow food, or die. Moving away from poor food sources can mean moving Km or 100's Km.
The pair that landed on Fetlar in 1967 were fleeing starvation, almost certainly in Scandanavia.
In many areas their populations very closely follow lemming populations which rise and fall massively over periods of a few years. In lemming years snowys can rear 6-8, or more chicks, every pair. In crash years most pairs will fail to even produce eggs and any pairs that do will rear just one or two chicks, if any.
Yes, they follow the food. In Norwegian they use the word "trekker" (migrate) to describe the movement of birds between Norway and Taymyr, Russia. This movement depends on the size of the population and the amount of food.
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Jeepers-- I slack on my viewing for a while, and everyone has had all sorts of wildlife around-- great photos and info, everyone!
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First blackbird song noticed this morning - 7.30 a. m./Solingen/Germany
Spring is just around the corner!
Gerd
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This Pheasant either wanted to come in; or more likely admiring itself. We have 2 varieties; with and without the white collar. The resident has no collar. This is the challenger; with the collar.
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Brianw
Jasmin: Actually, the pheasant is stressed, miffed, and giving an initial warning display to his rival, the reflection of himself. I recommend hanging tulle (a meshlike fabric net--in case you are not a seamstress or tailor) over at least the lower portion of the window door. You will still have the view, and there will be less danger the bird will harm himself attacking the “rival”. Concussions and death are the most prevalent risks birds suffer from crashing into or fighting images in windows. The layers of their skulls are thin and supported by struts, leaving air space. The whole skeletal anatomy is lightweight for flight; however, this increases bird vulnerability to lethal injury.
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Sorry no photos.
In the past few weeks I have seen several black-tailed deer, about 50 turkeys, 2 orange sided towhees & several Stellar's jays on my property.
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I have 2 bird feeders I fill with sunflower hearts. Most of the winter a small flock of Siskins has been hanging about, with a few Goldcrests and Chaffinches. Robins and blackbirds feed on the ground. Quite a lot of seed gets spilt and is cleaned up by Wood Pigeons, sometimes Crows and this trio of Pheasants. The Pheasants are rather flighty, especially the hens. I was amazed how well this photo came out as it was taken at an angle at least a metre from a double glazed window. You can see the middle bird has her beady eye on me even that far back from the window. The last warm spell we had most of the Siskins disappeared but they came back when it turned colder. It is warmer again and I have seen very few small birds yesterday and today. There is little spilt seed so nothing to attract the Pheasants now.
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It’s not going to get much wilder in my containers.
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A good deal, the ants get a few Crocus specioses seeds and in return give a demonstration how strong they are, even walking up a plant label.
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Today we had an elk walk the length of our driveway and pause in front of our garage for about half an hour. The flock of turkeys has increased to more than 60.
Now that the Weigelias are in full bloom, we are starting to see Hummers and Western Bluebirds. My Halesia carolina is now in bloom. Its branches intertwine with Laburnum [also blooming] and several Rhododendrons to produce a riot of color.
I am seeing a pale blue butterfly that I can't identify.
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Marc, have you any photos. of the Elk etc?
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In Tockholes, Lancashire elevation 230m last Sunday saw a stunning yellow butterfly which I think was a Brimstone.
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A colony of antlions live since last year in the sand plunge of an unused frame in our garden.
It is situated under a conifer, which keeps it very dry. The wire mesh keeps the cats away
from using it as a welcome toilet.
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Marc, have you any photos. of the Elk etc?
Ian,
Due to the physical effects of aging, I find it nearly impossible to use a camera.
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Crazy weather- after some very welcome heavy rainfalls we had a warm afternoon
with 26°C. The hornets in the bird nesting box were still rather active.
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The hornets in the bird nesting box were still rather active.
No frost so far?
We had a frost of 2-3 degrees C around 3 weeks ago, though none since. That will have seen the last of the workers off here - only queens over-winter.
I have to say that I adore hornets - such a beautiful gingery-brown and yellow. It is always a great treat to see them slowly making their way through open woodland - so large and slow and a characteristic colour that is easily followed as they go about their business. They are also remarkably placid, despite so much folklore to the contrary.
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Vinny
I agree, wish they had a better image among folks. They are the best pest control creatures out there.
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We had no frost until now, but don' know how long the mild weather
lasts. We always enjoy the presence of hornets in our meadowgarden,
and never had any bad experiences with these interesting insects.
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We are getting back to something like normal, here in my garden in the Chilterns. 3 male pheasants and 1 female this morning. Most we have seen since spring. 3 partridges last week for a short time. All are very twitchy still though; not used to me yet. Woodpecker on the feeder most days.
On the Thames a few days ago, no winter migrants in evidence; just Swans, Cormorants and odd ducks and gulls.
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A recent visitor to our garden and capable of wreaking havoc is the Black or Swamp Wallaby, Wallabia bicolor.
We don't mind it eating the windfall apples but get annoyed when it pulls down branches to feed, often breaking them in the process >:(
cheers
fermi
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Much as I accept wildlife around eg. pheasants, squirrels, and sometimes muntjac, they take their toll on the plants. I fence one small area to keep my Erythronium flowers from the bigger pests but each year I lose flowers from crocus in rough (lawn) grass areas. An American website suggests C. tommasinianus and its hybrids are less prone to squirrel damage, although I have not noticed this. Anyone have knowledge of this selective crocus control? Not sure what all my various crocus flowers are or if they are selectively eaten. The bulbs themselves seem to be left alone so far. Nothing seems to eat daffodils, eranthis, snowdrops but muscari and cyclamen are grazed.
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In my last garden C. tommasinianus was planted as a small group. They appeared all over the back garden within a few years and even made it to the front garden on their own. They are in the front garden at my new house and are spread all over the borders. They are just coming into flower now.
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Fermi\
Is the photo of a black wallaby?
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Fermi\
Is the photo of a black wallaby?
Yes! Do you want it? ;D
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Anyone have knowledge of this selective crocus control? Not sure what all my various crocus flowers are or if they are selectively eaten.
Brian, I wouldn't claim to have knowledge on the topic, but do have some frustrating experience of crocus being eaten by roe deer. It seems they eat them all, but especially, I feel, the ones I have few of. Except one, the one in the picture below and which I got as C. chrysanthus Fuscotintus. It appears early, the flower is always preceded by very pointed leaves and I have wondered if the sequence of 'leaves first' is a protection against grazing, the animals noses senstive to being pricked by the leaves? The flower in the middle of the picture is probably living dangerously, sticking its head up so high.
Luckily, we haven't had deer in the garden the last few years. The last time, all the crocuses that were up flowers first, like those in the second picture (C. gargaricus (?) and C. tommasinianus), were grazed to the ground, or down to the top of their appearing leaves.
Knud
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I can add a bit of my own experience. I plant 500 common Crocus in a lawn area and our local squirrels have decided to eat only the non yellow ones preferentially.
This isn't a scientific observation but most of the non yellow Crocus are gone and yellow have increased.
Could it be something to do with the color rendition of the predators?
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Maybe there is a difference in taste?
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Hi Roma
You could try this product and it's totally environmentally friendly www.grazers.co.uk (http://www.grazers.co.uk)
I've used it here on the farm against rabbits but you can also use it for deer, pigeons voles & mice.
Growild,
Thank you for sharing this!
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Maggi, thanks for the edit, fixing my quote, I could not figure out what I did wrong. I'm rusty, must post more regularly :).
Arnold, I had heard that here too, that the yellow crocuses would not be eaten. In my picture above, they did eat the blue ones first, but the next morning the yellow ones were gone, too. And some pale yellow C. chrysanthus nearby, also up 'head first'. We have some strong yellow large crocuses (vernus?, Dutch?), but they come up later here, and by that time the deer had stopped coming, so I do not know about those.
Knud
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Maybe there is a difference in taste?
Yes probably, and it may well be that the colour signals poison or just a bad taste. Aposematism, or warning coloration, has been an accepted concept in zoology for 150 years, and now also (as far as I understand from 'googling') in botany the last 20 years or so. Yellow and red are are among colours mentioned as aposematic, and apparantly there is not a conflict between colour as an attraction to pollinators and a defence against predators. Botanists out there, please correct me if I am wrong!
Interestingly, predator behaviour in relation to aposematism is speculated to be learned behaviour, so my yellow crocuses may have been grazed by a young deer. I hope it was left with a bad taste in its mouth after eating three bunches.
Knud
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Yes probably, and it may well be that the colour signals poison or just a bad taste. Aposematism, or warning coloration, has been an accepted concept in zoology for 150 years, and now also (as far as I understand from 'googling') in botany the last 20 years or so. Yellow and red are are among colours mentioned as aposematic, and apparantly there is not a conflict between colour as an attraction to pollinators and a defence against predators. Botanists out there, please correct me if I am wrong!
Interestingly, predator behaviour in relation to aposematism is speculated to be learned behaviour, so my yellow crocuses may have been grazed by a young deer. I hope it was left with a bad taste in its mouth after eating three bunches.
Knud
Like the other monkeys of all colours we can perceive red best because it signals ripe fruits. So besides an attraction to pollinators (insects and hummingbirds) red attracts also animals. Many garden tools are painted red to make them easier to find when they are lost.
Gerd
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If like me you associate holiday visits to Scotland with different wildlife to home, (SE UK for me) you would find visits to see plant and wildlife in Canada quite different. This link
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/baby-ospreys-reunited-with-parents-burning-nest-1.6903059
shows how common Ospreys (a Scottish rarity) are. I could watch an adult resting between hunting while I sat at my laptop in the apartment I stayed in recently; a suburb of Dartmouth, NS. (Town names are something else ;-))) Nest poles are mainly erected to try and stop them using the overhead power poles. It sometimes works.