birds of prey flock together

Up to 14 buzzards have been seen sitting together in these bare fields. Buzzards are usually fairly solitary birds, but they seem to be congregating in these fields, possibly to feed on the worms, or to warm up in the morning in the winter sun.

Christmas tidings from Duchy College

a giant corn dolly prepared by Duchy college ready for the ritual sacrifice of a student (still to be selected) at the winter solstice.

Bal maidens

images from A Hole in the Ground, an exhibition (in aid of NSPCC) in our parish hall of arts and crafts inspired by mining in the Tamar valley and a reflection of the harsh life of young men and women who worked in the mines locally.

Come and have a look

Another exhibition of photographs from Spot's blog is now on show at the Old School Community Centre, Stoke Climsland. Entry free (! of course !)

p.s. Tea towels with this attractive image will soon be available, get your orders in now!

winter scenes

Wonderful and strange light this afternoon, followed by a crescent moon and Venus brilliant in the evening sky.

on the first day of winter

Alfie, today's guest dog. I have no idea what he was doing in the top picture, possibly looking for water-fowl or otters, but we had a 2 hour swim and run marathon along the Inny which exhausted the lurchers but not Alfie.

Hard though it is to remember, these meadows were full of butterflies only a few months ago (see link). Below is an example of witches' broom, a gall of birch caused by a fungal infection

autumn

Light pouring into the woods today, and, away from the sun's warmth, a frost flower in bloom.

dawn

all avian life trying to warm up in the morning sun after a long cold moon lit night

autumn 13

 

images from our walk in Greenscombe woods today

deep sleep

A tortoiseshell caught hibernating on a log from the wood shed. It is extremely well camouflaged in this situation by the seemingly drab pattern of the underside of its wings.

our lane

not much to say, autumn is gathering pace

windy days

We have experienced a succession of wet and windy days recently. It is hard to capture the wind in a photograph but the pampas grass gives some idea of the strength of the wind. And the scene below is of the Tamar valley in its autumnal clothes. There hasn't been much to photograph recently!

on the forest floor

Back to more local matters. It looks like it is going to be a good year for mushrooms, and they are beginning to appear in abundance wherever the leaf mould has started to form.

There are so many species of similar looking fungi it is very hard for an amateur to tell them apart. The middle  photo is of a species of russula, probably the aptly named sickener, or russula emetica, for that is what it does. The bottom photo is of slippery jack, a very slimy fungus (reputed to be edible as long as the slimy cap is removed!)

King Canite

we have spent a very pleasant week in Kalkan, Turkey, hence the lack of pictures of heavy rain. All the dogs run wild but seem well cared for, one way and another. They run round looking for people to whom they can attach themselves (rather like sophisticated street chuggers) so we were obvious soft touches. It is interesting that dogs seem to need us to go for a walk. This one seemed Canute like in his willingness to demonstrate that the sea was not to be deterred.

very last of the summer wine

It was a brilliant if cool sunny day today, and there were several tortoiseshell and red admiral butterflies fluttering about, feeding before their long winter hibernation. There was also a crowd of small coppers (top picture), the last of several generations this year. Later generations are supposed to be larger but these were very small if bright butterflies. And there are still a lot of bumblebees around making honey while the sun shines.

passing year

Autumn is upon us.

woolly bears?

a very large caterpillar found crossing the road up to Kit Hill. It looks a bit like the caterpillar of the tiger moth known colloquially as woolly bears, but it is very large for a tiger moth caterpillar and a slightly different colour. I haven't been able to identify it. Many caterpillars are leaving their food plants now to look for somewhere to hibernate.

welcome visitor

A nuthatch, in its characteristic upside down feeding position, making a rare visit to the peanuts. It is a feisty little bird and tends to drive off other birds when it is feeding.

little and large

the smallest of the small (? mycena or marasmius sps) growing in a forest of moss, and a large parasol mushroom emerging in a hedgerow.

now what?

Spot following in his mother's footsteps (link)

a tissue of life

this little white drab daisy like flower is sneezewort. It is odd how something quite common like this can pass one by. Apparently the smell of it can make a man (and presumably a woman) sneeze. It was widely used to treat toothache, and blocked noses. Its leaves have a biting  hot taste and have been used in salads. Found in Ged's fields at Bridestowe yesterday during a very pleasant walk, and lunch at the excellent White Hart Inn (see link) who have an enormous Great Dane puppy which put the fear of dogs into Spot.