wildlife

[ashley]

Fine photos Fred and Trond
Here are some Icelandic cousins, from Heimaey off the south coast & Látrabjarg in the north-west.

[Steve Garvie]

Cracking images Fred!!!

[Lesley Cox]

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. (One of Ian's beautiful prints from when he visited NZ a few years back. Fortunately I don't have to fish for them.)

[Maggi Young]

Goodness me - how lucky are we to have all these fantastic photographers in our midst?

[admin]

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.

[Maggi Young]

Million dollar photos though, Fred!

[Hoy]

Crab spiders are very common here. One of them got a honey bee for breakfast the other day while others patiently waited:







This tattered painted lady (Vanessa cardui) escaped by choosing another plant.

[Anthony Darby]

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.

[Lesley Cox]

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.

[Anthony Darby]

Had a few holidays on the Broads, staying at Ludham Bridge on the River Ant. Visited Bressingham nursery a couple of times too.

[ian mcdonald]

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.

[TC]

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

[ArnoldT]

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.

[Maggi Young]

If he scoffs that lot he'll soon get bigger!

[Lesley Cox]

Nice snake. Someone has told him to "get knotted?"