early purple orchids

this looks like the pink version of the early purple orchid that is flourishing along the A388 at present
this is a good side view of the flower, with two sepals folded up behind the main tube

cuckoo flower

and mum and her favourite rare double cuckoo flower, or may flower or lady's smock. May is accumen.

down by the river

this pretty little flower is pink purslane. I am not sure why it is called Purslane (? french porcelaine, latin portulaca) for shiny stems?

more lords

and ladies. See lords and ladies earlier at http://tamar-valley-life.blogspot.com/2006/04/lords-and-ladies.html

no wonder they used to laugh in medieval days.

speckled wood

not the fritillary but the speckled wood, a fairly common butterfly of woods in early Spring.

not always calm

these young mallards were very nervous, and no, I didn't chase them; we have our own ducks now back at the pond.

reflections

and the Tamar today, running very still and deep, blue skies and deep blue eddies.

inny

lovely evening down on the Inny near Beals Mill bridge. The fish were rising. The blossom is out. Bliss.

flash news...breaking on the world news desks

yes, I came fourth out of a very large class of irritable breeds; and Harriet didn't do too badly either .

What with my brains and our good looks we will take over planet Earth.

Mum only came third out of 5.

oodles of poodles

Duchy college dog show saw many hundreds of the finest dogs in the area come to wish me happy birthday

stitchwort sideways

this shows this pretty white flower from an unusual angle. Their latin family name is stellaria, for little stars which is what they look like, and in this case holostea ... for making bones whole (because the stems snap easily and therefore ...). And if you pick it there will be a thunderstorm (hence thunder flower). And stitch for easing stitches. What a lot of dog-lore for one day.

Admin note:- Spot has recently learnt to read, and here is a very good source of information http://www.countrylovers.co.uk/blit/bukrev32.htm

poodle faking

In my mind this is taking interspecies cooperation too far; who would get to eat what? Mattie needs treatment, send her back. No, on second thoughts, may be not, the boss would probably have to be carried away in a strait jacket if there were any more of us.

news from the litterhood

fresh pictures from our siblings. Mattie (the lower head) has fallen in love.

Mrs Tatton Brown reports that Mattie did not win any prizes at her last show. What do they know who only poodles know?? For me she is still the prettiest of them all.

out of order

This is an unusual combination, scurvy grass and cuckoo flowers. Usually they are out at different times but the scurvy grass is a bit late and the cuckoo flower is on time.

rabbit

So don't mess with me, huh. One mighty crunch of my jaws and I'll have your head off. Anonymous where are you?

(squeamish admin note:- Spot is still a little bit sore and probably couldn't catch a fast moving slug. He found this and was putting it in a litter bin (the Terrano)).

more cherry

admittedly he has fiddled about wth this picture but it's the dog's eye view.

and

the wild cherry is out

more ferns

or this lot which look like a convention of elderly seahorses.

hart's tongue fern

They look like a party of cobras having tea together.

cuckoo species

today's gift to the woodland folk

what is it, cuckoos ?

and there were two of these birds, they are much smaller than buzzards, and have a very distinctive fan shaped tail, and in the lower photo you can see the wing shape more clearly, the boss thinks they are female cuckoos (they were not kestrels or sparrowhawks). Does anyone know? Does anyone care?

After thought 2/12/06 are they kites?







(admin note:- I think Spot is asking a rhetorical question but yes, as the planet's biggest cuckoo species ever, we should all care, so for more info see http://www.bto.org/migwatch/text/species/cucko.htm).



And lovers beware! http://www.icdc.com/~fmoore/T/T/The_cuckoo_bird.html

mallards rising

There was a lot of bird activity at Kit Hill quarry early this morning. It was cold enough to freeze your b... but enough of that; this mallard flew away before I could introduce myself. His colours blend beautifully with the granites and mosses of the quarry face.

Spot

I'm back! It's all done and dusted, and I'm fine. Blur is caused by travelling faster than speed of light.