Wildlife January 2012

[David Nicholson]

Hard for me to tell what she's like as my entire screen has turned a bright lime-yellow. Why is that? What do I do about it?

Lesley, first check that the fitting at the computer end of the monitor lead is firmly fixed in to the back of the computer. If it is do you have a friend near by with a computer who might let you plug your monitor into their computer? If your screen shows the same colour on another computer then it's odds on that your monitor is Kaput. I speak with no experience whatsoever so a post on the computer thread might bring a response from David Pilling who does know what he's talking about.

[Lesley Cox]

Thanks David, for some common sense. I'll do that as soon as Roger is out of bed. He thinks it's probably caput but it's only a couple of years old and I'm not keen to get another right now. The yellow comes and goes for a few minutes at a time then back to normal.

As for the spilt tea, an aquaintance's wife, annoyed over something, threw her cup of coffee into his keyboard a while back. Proved expensive.

[Anthony Darby]

Must have been Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee?

[Martinr]

Lesley, it might not be the monitor but the cable connecting it to the computer that is causing the problem. Cables which are frequently plugged and unplugged , wound up tightly or kinked near the connectors often create a one colour/no colour effect. Try borrowing a known good one from someone before condemning the monitor. Cables are a lot cheaper than screens!!

[Anthony Darby]

I spotted this moth on the window outside. It's a swan plant moth (Glyphodes onychinalis) with wings just under 10mm long. It's from Australia and was first seen in 1986. It is mainly found in Auckland and feeds on swan plant (Gomphocarpus) flowers. The other pic shows one of my emperor gum moth caterpillars now. Sorry about the grubby fingers. I'd been potting up some plants.

[fredg]

Not sure if these qualify as wildlife or not, they only seemed to get irritated with each other.

I had to include the catkins, it'll not be long to spring now 

[Lesley Cox]

Thank you for the notes and advice re my screen. I've taken everything apart and reconnected the leads firmly but the problem remains, still yellow but changing back to white/blue at intervals. I can live with it for now. Roger says it's because my screen is too bright but it is as it always has been and I can see everything clearly so I don't really want it changed. He couldn't see how to make it less bright anyway.

[Hoy]

Try some paint?

Sorry, I have no idea what it is, but can't you get an old screen somewhere? Here people throw away quite usable PC in containers because they've bought a new model. - if it is the screen and not the screen card inside the computer.

[Lesley Cox]

So far today, all is well. And yes, I'd be able to get a second hand screen if need be, but I'm hoping the problem is fixed, whatever it was. I had to remove everything from the desk and pull it right out into the middle of the room yesterday because so much stuff had fallen down the back. At last something went down I really needed so couldn't put off any longer, the retrieval and cleanup involved. So much dust and dog hair, you wouldn't believe. Maybe all of that, once removed, solved the problem.

[Anthony Darby]

This wasn't an experiment as I already knew the outcome. I have two large swan plants (Gomphocarpus sp) which are regularly visited by female monarchs. I caged one and left the other, which continues to be visited by female monarchs, as do the smaller plants I have. You will note that there is evidence of caterpillar eating on the uncaged plants but no caterpillars as they are taken by mantids and wasp of the genus Polistes (both immigrants). I have only ever had one caterpillar reach maturity uncaged! The caterpillars on the caged plant all hatched from wild laid eggs already on the plant before I put the cage over it. Birds leave the caterpillars alone, but the distasteful nature doesn't seem to affect insect predators.

[Lesley Cox]

Will the caterpillars have enough to eat in the lower caged plant Anthony? From when I used to have a few I remember they ate masses of foliage and it was almost impossible to keep up the supply. Will you have to move them to another plant and cage that?

I think it was in the TV programme "North" the other night, a woman up there somewhere had a huge population of monarchs. She had a tree which seemed to have an orangey coloured centre. She shook it slightly and hundreds of monarchs flew out of the tree. They settled on her and the guy with her and just about everywhere.

[Anthony Darby]

I will probably have to supplement their food. I have lots of smaller plants, and they will eat that climbing weed which is related.

[Lesley Cox]

I understand that if their proper food runs out they can be kept going for a short time on pumpkin flesh but they don't really like it and I believe they don't pupate while on that.

[mark smyth]

Is everyone in UK and Ireland watching Earthflight? Fabulous filming of storks, cranes and sand martins

[Michael J Campbell]

Yes