the house that Sally built

It was Stoke Climsland Flower Show on Saturday and once again we were blessed with fine weather (it feels like every day this year has been fine). Every one is very creative round here. Especially with potatoes.

Spot the butterfly

We saw two or three clouded yellows today, this is several weeks earlier than last year. Clouded yellows are usually migrants from southern Europe but I wonder if these are indigenous examples which have managed to breed last year and survived during the very mild winter. The meadow was full of large butterflies today, including these three silver washed fritillaries having a dog fight over Spot.

giant wood wasp

 

Every now and again one comes across something genuinely strange. This is a giant wood wasp (urocerus gigas), about 4 cms long. The brown rod beneath her sting is the sheath of her ovipositor, and gives it the common name of horntail. She lays her eggs in sick or recently felled pine. The black rod is the actual ovipositor and she is pushing it into the pine wood. Her abdominal muscles ripple with the effort required. The larvae take up to three years to mature

as rare as a pig's bladder

another real local rarity is cornish bladderseed, seen here growing in profusion in the meadows.

cafe agrimony

It has been predicted recently that this will be a good year for peacock butterflies. They are attracted to hemp agrimony, a common wild flower locally and there were four on this one small patch to the side of one of the meadows at Greenscoombe. The moth below is a rosy footman (miltochrista miniata), described as 'local' in my reference book ie not that common everywhere. It is a very striking salmon orange colour.

wire trip

the first of this year's new swallows gathering for a geography lesson on the way to Africa.

round two

swallows and martins have raised one brood, and now have started again. This is a swallow nest (they tend to nest inside buildings eg barns, rather than on the outside like martins, this nest is in the porch of our near neighbours) and this brood have just hatched. There may be a third brood before they leave. The first brood help with feeding this and subsequent broods.

ant nursery

There has been a very marked increase in the number of ant hills in the meadows. I accidentally disturbed the very top of this hill. The eggs must have been very close to the surface which seems strange unless the ants are trying to control the temperature because of the recent hot weather. The eggs were quickly taken back under cover by their nursemaids.

butterfly count

It is the start of butterfly count month (see link). The meadows were teeming with the usual mid July suspects, including dozens of small skippers (as above) meadow browns, ringlets and silver washed fritillaries. Very few red admirals and no tortoiseshells or peacocks. Five common blues which is definitely up on the last two years.

morning cocktails

The amazing scorpion fly. I am not quite sure what it is doing, or what it has got its head in, but they have a reputation for drinking fermented fruit juices and getting drunk.

mother and children

one careful spider mother (probably pisaura mirabilis, the nursery spider) and dozens of babies

gathering 2

A wave of meadow brown butterflies is sweeping through the lanes, maybe it is going to be a very good month for butterflies.

the gathering

the rooks have heard that some people are complaining about the noise they make early in the morning .... they are planning their next move. Hitchcock eat your heart out.

on the mend

Our hedgehog is definitely on the mend, eating and drinking and doing a bit of stomping about (and increasingly ignoring us). Still not quite sure it is 100%, but we will release it late tonight if all seems OK.
But sadly not on the mend enough. He gradually became more withdrawn and listless. He was taken to our nearest vet this morning where he was found to be very anaemic and emaciated. The state of his teeth suggested he was an elderly hedgehog. He died under an anaesthetic  while being examined with a view to treatment with antibiotics and steroids.

bit of bread and butter no cheese

The air is full of the calls of yellowhammers. They are fairly easy to spot because they like to sit on the top of bushes, trees and telegraph poles to broadcast their presence. There seem to be a lot around locally even though they are becoming increasingly rare nationally (see link).

hedgehog day 2

I think we are going to be OK. We have moved out of the box, had something to eat and drink, and used the toilet facilities. If all is well he can be released tomorrow.

hedgehog day

We have seen plenty of hedgehogs in the grounds recently but never during the day. This hedgehog was found curled up out in the open at midday, and that usually means something is wrong. There were no external signs of injury fortunately. After checking with St Tiggywinkles (see link), we placed it in a cardboard box with some hedgehog food (which of course we have to hand), and some water. In the absence of a local wildlife hospital, the emergency vet recommended keeping it safe for 24 hours and then releasing it back into the garden. We shall see. These situations are strangely disarming.

June treats

 a greater butterfly orchid

a tattered heath fritillary

a violet ground beetle

fledging day

all the young blackbirds flew the nest this morning except this tail end Charlie (Charlene I think). It may well be the bird rescued earlier in the week.

After we checked all was well, it eventually left the nest this evening. It has had quite an eventful start to its life.

walking with Lottie

 Lottie will do almost anything for a carrot, and was impressed by how quickly a human was able to learn her trick.

 She then had to work off all those extra calories by giving free bareback rides (only one, actually)

and of course champions make friends with champions (you know what I mean)

again for more information about this epic journey, please see the link to walkingwithawen and give generously!

walking with Lottie

We were honoured today by a visit from Jan and Lottie who are walking from the furthest point East in England to the furthest point West, both for charity, and for the life enhancing experience (see link to walkingwithawen (aka Lottie)). They have walked from Dartmoor, via Sydenham Damerel, and over Horsebridge into sunny Cornwall.  Dartmoor can be seen in the distance just above the granite gate post.

Lottie quickly made herself at home

a trip to Lundy 3

 One of the main reasons for going to Lundy at this time of year is to see the puffins at Jenny's cove. They are not easy to spot without binoculars and telephoto lenses, and the air is full of kittiwakes, razorbills and seagulls. However, if you look closely at the bottom left hand corner of the picture below

 and in the grassy area of the picture below, one can just about make out puffin-like puffins. I am not quite sure about the congregation on the rock emerging from the sea,

 but there were a lot more of them nesting on the cliff face (razorbills, and guillemots?).

There are also a lot of wheatears about, with a distinctive black eye line and flashing white tail feathers, which I think are designed to draw predators away from their nest sites.

We stayed on the island for about 4 hours, and then took 2 hours to get back to Ilfracombe, and another two hours to drive home....so a very long day travelling but worth it to see a little gem.

a trip to Lundy 2

 Lundy is spectacularly beautiful, especially when the sun is out and there is little or no wind. Sheep, horses and cattle graze the heath which is very like the moorland across the sea in Devon. The goats (below at Jenny's cove) are allowed to roam wild.

a trip to Lundy 1

Our trip started at the pretty (but still fishing) town of Ilfracombe (after a long drive from home).

 The statue of the pregnant woman was controversial locally, but has inevitably become something of a sight to see. She certainly looked very fearsome in the early morning sun.

We arrived at Lundy after a two hour voyage in MS Oldenburg, a small, fairly elderly ferry boat, seen here docked at the jetty on the island. Even on such a fine day there was a considerable swell. The climb up to the village on Lundy is very steep and long and not for the unfit. And NO dogs, so Spot was left at home.

blackbird update

things are coming along nicely in the blackbird nest. However, I think magpie predation may have started even though the nest is right next to our front door. I found a small chick on the ground. It was alive and warm. It was not under a nest, and the nearest nest is the one above. I am fairly sure that a magpie had just snatched it out of the nest and was frightened off when I returned home this morning. I am not absolutely sure it was one of the blackbirds but I have put it back in that nest. Time will tell whether it develops into a duck or a swan.

the pollinator

It is a sorry season for hay fever sufferers. The white smoke just visible in the grass is pollen released as Harriet swept through carrying medium sized branch. She is, of course, still sulking following the shock result of yesterday's over 60's beauty competition (see previous post).

Stoke Climsland Post Office 175 anniversary

well, this is probably the best and most important day of my life, I came FIRST in the over 8 years old class, and Harriet came nowhere (see link for relish). Not quite sure why I didn't win best in show but there you go.